The new, Talk to an Architect website, is provided to help you take a confident first step towards participating in a highly creative, collaborative, and rewarding process with your architect. They’ll even help you get the conversation started.

View the video to understand why it is important to use an architects services. View the other video’s on the Talk to an Architect website here.

North Shore City have just published this report for comment. The most significant local problem is how to prevent the Hurstmere Shops being wiped out by the Shopping Malls. The “Framework” does recognise the crucial feature that :
“ Takapuna Beach is the key point of difference- a stunning natural asset that we need to make the most of.”

But then the “Framework” gives up and offers no means “to make the most of” except a pious hope that improving the existing links, and the current scheme to waste a few million dollars on Hurstmere Green, may do the trick. Instead the “Framework” concentrates on creating “ A broad pedestrian Plaza” to link Hurstmere with Westfield Shore City, thus moving the centre of shopping yet further away from the Beach.

One of the most far-sighted acts of Anne Hartley’s first City Council was to buy the residential land between the shops and the Beach. What could have been a unique City / Beach development was unfortunately captured by the Greenies who turned most of this high value land into grass.

The land nearest the back of the shops became parking and a relatively unnecessary road. Today the shops are separated from the beach by a ‘Cordon Insanitaire’ of dead cars, irregular asphalt, uneven retaining walls and spotty planting, a strikingly unattractive Townscape.

Actually the ‘Broad Pedestrian Plaza ‘ should run the other way, towards the Beach and Rangitoto, from the Hurstmere shops to the edge of the reserve. At Hurstmere level the Plaza and new shops would go over the top and hide the present mess. A totally new Takapuna Restaurant Quarter could be built on the edge of the reserve , which might just“ make more of the Beach.’’, and attract more people to Takapuna.

Denys Oldham
Architect Retd . B.ARCH[NZ] FNZIA
6th August 2010

Shaping our Places keeps an eye on the local rags and media releases to see what’s happening in terms of urban planning and design around the country, but sometimes this just doesn’t cover all the issues.

Do you have an issue that you would like to see more widely publicised? Perhaps it is an issue that is happening in many towns and cities across the country that people are unaware of.

We would like to invite you to submit a blog about things that please you (or may not please you) about your community’s urban affairs.  These could become interesting topics for us or our mayoral candidates to discuss.

You can send us your thoughts, ideas or just a good old rant through the contact us page on this website.

With local body elections fast approaching, a number of candidates have now been declared with more expected over the coming months. Local government has a huge role to play in the shape of our communities.

We’ll be asking a variety of candidates a number of questions about positions and policies on urban design, architecture, heritage, and planning.

We’ll report back to you on what they have to say, or as the case maybe not say, in the e-newsletter and through the website.

If you have any thoughts on questions or possible candidates you’d like to hear from, please submit them through the website.

Here are a few to start with:

• What is your vision for the city and does it include urban design, architectural, heritage, and planning policies?
• What are your urban design, architectural, heritage, and planning policies?How important is this to you?
  
• What mechanisms and funding will you put in place to give effect to these policies?

All comments on the website are welcomed – but we do ask that you be prepared to put your name with your feedback.

Dominion Post, 27 May 2010

Mayor Kerry Prendergast would like to see private cars banned from Wellington’s ‘golden mile’ within 10-20years.

Removing cars makes the city more pedestrian friendly but the mile would still be open for public transport. which includes electric busses or light rail, courier vans, retail vehicles and taxis.

Mayor Prendergast seems to be going very middle road, by trying to appease both sides of the argument. Possible mayoral candidate, Sir Robert Jones believes that it should only be access for pedestrians, while Fran Wilde (Chair of the Greater Wellington Regional Council and Cross-council Regional Transport Committee) said that ‘making the golden mile an effective public transport spine, but did not require removing cars”

The vision for the golden mile, which runs from Lambton Quay, along Willis and Manners Streets to Courtenay Place is to align with the Wellington City Council’s transport strategy and moving more people on to public transport.

How would this shape Wellington City? Do you think that this is an effective way to use public space? If you are not a Wellingtonian, what would this mean to your town/city if your major shopping areas were turned into pedestrian only access?

Your comments are welcome.

To read the full story, visit the Dominion Post website here.

A fascinating video from Julie Anne Gentern who discusses a few issues around sustainability issues around transport.

• Most cars and towns are car dependant and this can have negative effects including air and water pollution. It also carries the cost of accidents and the negative health effects including the ‘obesity epidemic’ that New Zealand is in the midst of.

• 30% of New Zealander’s don’t have access to a car, whether it be from age, disability or just choice. As we are so dependant on cars, this gives those without a huge disadvantage.

• By replacing every car in New Zealand with an electric one may reduce the carbon emissions in the long term, but ultimately fossil fuel is used in the manufacture of the cars themselves not to mention the batteries. And in the end it doesn’t bring the benefits of a city designed so you can walk and cycle and take electric transport for your basic daily needs. The development of motorways takes away the ability to walk around different areas within cities.

Her solution: “Development and redevelopment is happening all the time so we can see a rapidly changing urban forum, but instead of seeing it spread out, we want to see it pull in. Back to transport nodes, where people can feel safe and easily take a bike or walk”.

“We can’t promote both car oriented development and pedestrian, bike and transit orientated development. We have to choose one or the other”

Do you remember a time when it was safe for our children to walk to their friend’s house or go to the park unaccompanied? It seems that those days are long gone, but in various cities in Spain, they are looking at resurrecting this.

Image Credit: Melissa Garcia Lamarca

In large, busy urban areas, where the majority is dominated by cars, roads housing and business (obviously designed by adults) they are building safe and accessible spaces for children in public areas.

The project, called City of Children, aims to make it possible for children to leave their home without being unaccompanied by an adult so that they can meet with their friends and play in public places within the city: from courtyards to sidewalks, from public squares to parks. Through children’s proposals and ideas, participation in decision-making and realisation of their projects, it aims at building a children’s culture in the minds of adults and especially in administrators so that they know how to make their decisions, having interiorised children’s thoughts and needs. The project believes that only when adults understand that spending for the good of children is not a cost but an investment that will bring returns many times over will it be possible to think seriously of the future of our cities.

This is great food for thought for New Zealander’s. Although we don’t have the large population numbers as other countries, it could be an idea to include all of our community, young and old, when thinking about our urban design.

Image Credit: Melissa Garcia Lamarca

Click here to read the complete blog from Polis.

It is generally accepted that New Zealand needs to spend big on on infrastructure over the next few decades. The Government looks committed to to using the PPP model. New Zealand is in it’s infancy in regards to PPPs, and even in countries where there are well established PPP laws, policies and plans, it doesn’t always go to plan.

However, what is established wherever PPP have been tried is the vital importance of design in realising long-term value. In parts of Australia the public sector retains the design component, specifying design requirements for those bidding. The general idea had always been that this was best left to the private partner, the thinking being that they were best placed to discover design innovations.

The PPP model is an evolving one. There certainly seems to be room to configure it in a way that best meets our needs here in New Zealand.

Your thoughts and comments are welcome.

Watch the interview from TV3 News as Group Manager for Australian-based GHD , Steve Kanowski, joins Michael Wilson to discuss the pros and cons of public-private partnerships.

Citizens and Ratepayers has announced more than half of its candidates for seats on the region-wide Auckland Council.

Citizens and Ratepayers has largely been a central Auckland group with National Party connections, but believes the the brand will work across the entire region in the election to be held in October.

Albany Ward
Linda Cooper, Waitakere City Councillor
Josephine Kim, lawyer

Albert-Eden-Roskill
Christine Fletcher, former Auckland mayor
Paul Goldsmith, Auckland City Councillor

Franklin
Des Morrison, Franklin District Councillor

Maungakiekie-Tamaki
Alfred Ngaro, community worker

Orakei
Doug Armstrong, Auckland City Councillor

Te Irirangi (Howick)
Dick Quax, Olympian
Jami-Lee Ross, pilot and Manukau City Councillor

Waitemata and Gulf
Michael Barnett, Auckland Chamber of Commerce head and ARC councillor

Whau
Noelene Raffills, Auckland City Councillor

The C&R will announce the other nine candidates as the election draws nearer. Labour and the City Vision ticket are still accepting nominations.

Shaping Our Places will be contacting each of the candidates for the Auckland election for their views on urban design.

David Roberts has taken it into his own hands and thought up ways to make his neighborhood more “walkable, sociable, sustainable, and safe”. He came up with a list of suggestions (as shown on the map) that would make it easier for people to get to parks and public spaces, easier to meet neighbors, walk or bike to stores, etc.

Yes it is an American example, but maybe it is something more of us should do. Many people sit and gripe about the way their community is set up, and have many genius ideas about what should be where. Why don’t we start being a bit more pro-active and start drawing up plans of our own?

Why do our district councils make it so difficult to find out information about the plans for our communities? Most of the Long Term Council Community Plan’s (LTCCP) are hundreds of pages of waffling, trying to sell an idea of how wonderful our cities and towns are, and they leave the important information in the background: where our places are heading. We know how great our cities and towns are. We wouldn’t choose to live there if we didn’t. How many of us have the time these days to sift through this seemingly endless amount of babble to find out the real facts?

This week we have the second instalment in the profiling of the LTCCP’s. Nelson City’s LTCCP, otherwise known as the ‘Nelson Community Plan’, doesn’t explicitly mention its urban design plans, it more sets out its financial contributions to the city’s development. It does mention the central city development on page 32.

All is not lost though. The city’s urban design plans are laid out in more detail in their Heart of Nelson Central City Strategy, and also their 2010/11 draft Annual Plan. Other related documents include the Nelson Urban Growth Strategy (NUGS) and intensification study both of which are both available on the city councils website.

As well as mentioning urban design and development in the Community Plan and Annual Plan, the council has set up an urban design panel and an Iwi urban design advisory panel and has a series of Resource Management Plan changes proposed to deliver better urban design around the city.

The Nelson Community Plan is available free of charge on request, although to save on resources it is preferable to access it directly through the council website. It is also available on disc.

Urbanist Tommy Honey discusses the pros and cons of owning and using electric vehicles on Radio New Zealand’s Nine to Noon show with Kathryn Ryan.

He comments on Wellington’s possible plans for installing ‘parking stations’ for the ability to recharge your vehicle while you shop.

How would this change the look and possible infrastructure of our cities and towns? What are the logistics of supplying energy to the users and the impact it could have on our country’s energy rescources?

Urbanist Tommy Honey – Tommy Honey looks at the future of electric vehicles – duration 10.03mins

Video from www.betterplace.com discussing the pros of owning a electric vehicle (mentioned in Tommy Honey’s segment):

In the lead up to the local council elections coming up in October, Shaping Our Places will be searching out your districts long term plans. Amazingly, yes, they do plan for the future, and even include a thought for urban planning. We hope this will give you some interesting reading material over the months and make you think about whether the vision is up to par.

We start with the Wellington City Councils 2009-19 plans. Their aim is to have ‘a compact, vibrant, attractive city’ with their long term approach to urban development.

They have a strong focus on urban development and transport, and have recognised the importance of good urban design, ‘Urban design will contribute to economic development through good transport linkages and a flexible approach to land use planning”.

The plan also recognises that Wellington has built its reputation on being a vibrant city with well connected and attractive streets and is known as the cultural centre of New Zealand. It states that this is a combination of landscape and urban design.

Click here for a link to the Wellington City Council ‘Long-Term Council Community Plan 2009-19’. Or if you are based in Wellington, the council offices have copies available for you at no cost.

Part of the kiwi dream is to own your own home. Unfortunately since 1991, housing affordability in New Zealand has declined substantially.

According to the 6^th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey, published last year, New Zealand’s house prices in major cities are almost twice the considered affordable median.  This puts us in the ‘severely unaffordable’ category. Hugh Pavletich has highlighted this in his recent press release stating “Our poor affordability performance is illustrated year after year, where currently our major cities housing is approximately 5.7 times annual gross household income. House prices should not exceed 3 times annual household income’.

Out of the six countries and the 272 areas surveyed, New Zealand’s best placing in the Housing affordability rankings was 188 (Palmerston North – Manawatu at 4.6). New Zealand is ranked fifth out of the six countries for the most unaffordable housing behind the United States (2.9), Canada (3.7), Ireland (3.7) and the United Kingdom (5.1). Australia has the most unaffordable housing with a median of 6.8.

It has only been in the last few years that the government has started to seriously address this issue. The establishment of the Urban Technical Advisory Group and the Commerce Committee Housing Affordability Inquiry has brought this issue a bit more into the spotlight and we are currently waiting on the report from the Urban Technical Advisory Group to be released. Hopefully this will provide a foundation for some progress to start on getting governance and responsible regulatory administration in place. But as Pavletich points out ‘the government and public bureaucracies at all levels are a reflection of us’.

The Housing Affordability Survey also mentions that local authorities of New Zealand have, in effect, established unaffordable housing as an objective of public policy, however unwittingly and that these authorities should adopt performance programs that include easily understood measures (such as the Median Multiple).

So where does this leave us? When the next elections occur, should we be pushing for more tax cuts and rate reductions? Or focusing more on the planning and affordability of our homes and in effect our communities? Do we have to get comfortable with the idea of greater housing intensification – which isn’t always necessarily bad? Or should we just abandon the Kiwi dream of home ownership in favour of other more realistic housing models – long-term tenancies?

Comments welcome.

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“Cities of Nature, Living between Land and Sky” is the theme of the New Zealand Pavilion being constructed in Shanghai for the 2010 World Expo. In a prime spot, it is located close to the host country’s pavilion where there will be a large amount of foot traffic and ‘virtually’ be seen by every person attending the expo.

This is a fantastic opportunity to promote out country. But what sort of an image are they projecting?

The New Zealand Trade and Enterprise website stated that:

“The aim of the pavilion is to present a welcoming vision of a nation that is striving to bring its cities into a sustainable balance with nature; a country in which natural beauty, the inspiration that it brings, and the lifestyles that it permits, can exist alongside and contribute to a modern and innovative first world economy”

It has based its  ‘City of Nature Experience’, within the pavilion, on ‘taking them through a “day in the life” of a New Zealand family in a composite New Zealand city in a natural setting: from the mountains to the sea, past farmlands and bush and back towards the mountains, through a beach-house, a school classroom and an office building.’

Read the full story here. Does this really reflect New Zealand’s vision for the future? Or is this just a huge marketing tool to bring in the punters? Comments are welcome.

The Dutch Pavilion is going beyond the norm and will not be the classic ’stand outside for hours outside waiting for the presentation inside’ model. The 5000 square meter pavilion comprimises 26 small elevated houses. The houses will line a pedestrian street that curves in a fugure of eight, a lucky number in China suggesting fortune. The submission, entitled “Happy Street”, is the response by designer John Kormeling to the Expo theme “Better City, Better Life” and the sub-themes.

Selected from a group of 35 architecture practices from around the globe, Auckland architecture firm, Moller Architects has scored one of the world’s top international design competitions for the Parliament buildings at Al Bustan in the city of Muscat.

The design of the structures and cladding recognised the heritage of Oman, and the Mollers have designed the three parliamentary buildings. Gordon Moller stated that he wasn’t sure why the Sultan of Oman chose their design, but he thinks it was because of the clarity of planning and the response to Oman’s traditions. Moller Architects also designed the Auckland Sky Tower and Macau Tower.

The construction work has started on Oman’s new parliament buildings. The first stage will be finished next year and the whole project completed by 2012.

Check out the NZ Herald website for the full article.

In New York, Citigroup is showing its commitment to the City by providing US$576m in loans and cash to help build or renovate more than 20,000 low-income housing units over the next four years. Is there anything which we in New Zealand could take from this example of the involvement of private investment in affordable housing initiatives? Sometimes it can be too easy to see the issue of providing affordable housing as the preserve of government when there are other available ways to meet the housing needs of increasingly growing number of New Zealanders. Check out the NZ Herald article, and provide your thoughts.

Tommy Honey in his regular slot on Radio NZ’s Nine-to-Noon asks this question following his tour of the new Supreme Court. Two-thirds of the $80m was spent on renovating the previously derelict old High Court building, which he describes as being largely without purpose and auxiliary to the newer addition. He questions the point at which we should let our historic architecture be replaced by the modern and new which better reflect today’s New Zealand. Any thoughts?

Tommy Honey – Urbanist Tommy Honey takes a look inside the new Supreme Court (duration 9:08 mins)

GOOD.IS: Could Urban Planning Reduce Childhood Obesity?

In the 19th and 20th century architects, urban thinkers and landscape architects like Fredrick Law Olmsted designed our cities and neighborhoods to address infectious diseases and even mental health issues, something that is more or less taken for granted in our era of flushing toilets and garbage removal. Before Prozac, a walk in nature (perhaps in one of Olmsted’s parks) was not an uncommon prescription for someone suffering from depression. It still may be. Recent studies have confirmed what we already knew: nature is really good for us…

And if you are in the city (like many of us are these days) a walk in the park might be the best thing you can do for your health– and it may be the best tool in our First Lady’s new assault on childhood obesity.

Michelle Obama’s new campaign Let’s Move couldn’t have come at a better time. With childhood obesity rates tripling in the last 30 years it’s fair to say it’s an epidemic. And a systemic problem that must include more than bigger picture thinking– like how the built environment impacts our daily habits, like walking to school.

Some people have already started thinking about how urban planning can impact public health and specifically, childhood obesity. Over at City Fix Megan McConville points out that if our neighborhoods and streets aren’t walkable then we can hardly expect our kids to get off the couch. And in New York (where city innovation seems to be happening at a breakneck speed) the Bloomberg Administration may be one step ahead of the White House– quite literally. The city’s Active Design Guide is leveraging good design to get New Yorkers moving. From their introduction:

“active design is critical to addressing obesity and its related diseases-the fastest growing epidemics of our time, while also supporting sustainability”

The program aims to design more walkable and bikeable neighborhoods while promoting more activity where we live, work and play. This is exactly the kind of thinking that could result in real, tangible change. Let’s hope the White House is paying attention.