By ANNE GIBSON property editor
Detailed plans for the $300 million redevelopment and expansion of the Two Double Seven shopping centre in Newmarket have been unveiled by Asian-backed developer Auckland One.
It intends to expand the existing Two Double Seven into a mall which slopes from seven levels at the back to lower-rise on Broadway, with 3341 car parks, 200 shops and 50,000 sq m of floor space, similar to Westfield's plans for its former Mercury Energy site.
Westfield's $450 million plans for its 4.3ha site are to build an 11-level, 70,000 sq m mall with 12 cinemas, 260 shops and 3000 car parks.
The Two Double Seven developer and owner is Denis Jen, a Chinese billionaire based in Singapore and Brisbane who owns $1 billion of property.
His Intro International owns seven Australian shopping malls.
Auckland One's chief executive officer, Michelle McKellar, said the new mall had approval from the Newmarket Business Association and the Newmarket Protection Society - both opposed to the $450 million Westfield development.
Plans for the redevelopment of the 4ha Two Double Seven site, which includes the former Levene Extreme building, also show street flyovers across Mortimer Pass, including a foodcourt on level one and a vehicle and pedestrian bridge link on level two.
Westfield's application for air rights to allow it to build a five-level structure running 110m over Nuffield St has met political controversy.
City Vision tried to stymie Westfield's air rights application by voting against it late last month.
Auckland One has yet to apply for planning approval for the bulk of its site.
This would be done early next year, Michelle McKellar said.
"But the site is appropriately zoned for retail and is specifically identified for this purpose in the Auckland District Plan."
Chicago architects Schaeffer did the initial design and then more detailed drawings were done by Architect Ignite.
Two buildings have already been demolished on the Auckland One site - the Westpac Bank building on the corner of Broadway and Mortimer Pass and the former Dominion Lead Mills building on Morrow St.
Early next year, the six-level Gaze building at 303 Broadway will be demolished.
The 1980s mirror glass tower is Auckland One's headquarters.
Then the next-door AMI building at 299 Broadway will come down.
All will make way for the three-level strip of shops to run about 350m along Broadway.
Construction of the first block of shops is due to begin early next year. Tenders will go out in the next few weeks.
The 20-shop strip along Broadway was scheduled to open in March 2002, Michelle McKellar said.
Planning approval had already been given for this first block.
"We're turning the mall inside out," she said, referring to the fact that the first strip of shops has entrances off Broadway rather than in an enclosed mall.
The second stage of the development was a 2000-space car park backing onto Gillies Ave which would be seven half-levels high, she said.
"This will feature 'living walls,' something new to New Zealand," she said.
It is a concept adopted from the Yountville winery in the United States by New Zealand architect Jeremy Whelan of Architect Ignite (formerly ASA Crone).
The car park's walls will be built from rocks excavated from the site and encased in wire mesh gabion baskets. Ivy will be grown over the entire structure to give it a more natural look.
Mr Whelan said the car park would be fully lit inside, but shafts of natural light would filter through from outside.
"When finished, the car park will not be higher than the buildings that exist now on that part of the site," he said.
Michelle McKellar said: "It will provide a screen or foil to the buildings around the area."
Because the historic Highwic House was a neighbour on the site, she said, it was crucial to build an attractive car parking building.
Mr Whelan said the strip-shop nature of the redesigned and expanded Two Double Seven was an example of the "main street" type of development which was making a comeback overseas.
"Examples are the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica in Los Angeles and Paddington in Sydney."
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