Council Shafts Wynyard Quarter Heritage

This is another chapter in the ongoing saga of heritage building and heritage character protection on Auckland's waterfront. It concerns what is happening - or is in danger of happening - at Wynyard Quarter as relentless development pressure is brought to bear on the fragile heritage receiving environment that is being progressively developed.

While I was on Auckland Regional Council I worked hard with Councillor Sandra Coney in particular to get sufficient protections built into the relevant planning documents. This 2009 blog gives the background to an important change that was made by Auckland Regional Council to the Urban Design Framework for Wynyard Quarter. Up to that point in time the Framework did not include as a principle, any mention of maritime heritage.

Heritage experts were then retained to advise on the key buildings and features of Wynyard Quarter. Their work is illustrated in this map, which you can click on to see the full size.

The outlined buildings are those identified by the heritage advisers, while the dotted lines indicate the adjacent land that is important in terms of actually looking at the buildings and appreciating them.

The tanks that are outlined are those that were on Wynyard Quarter before 1940, and were regarded as heritage value because of that. This includes the cement silos.

The arrows are important. These indicate the significant vistas or views of the heritage buildings and character sites. It makes sense to have these indications - because there's no point in having heritage and looking after it if you can't actually see it.

With this expert work done, both the Auckland Regional Council and Auckland City Council were ready to notify the relevant changes to the District Plan and the Regional Plan Coastal. These changes included schedules identifying the heritage buildings that Council had agreed should be protected.

Immediately these schedules were criticised by land owners, many of whom wanted to demolish the buildings, create brown field sites and redevelop from scratch. During the Plan Change process the number of protected buildings was knocked back to 9, but Auckland Regional Council fought back indicating that heritage character was important not just narrowly defined heritage buildings. Many of these objections went before the Environment Court while I was still on Council. I recorded my concerns about these attacks, site by site, and building by building in this blog.

After the appeal, and after consideration by New Zealand's leading heritage judge this number was reduced by a further 3 this effectively destroyed a strong character precinct in Beauchamp Street between Fanshawe and Pakenham. This map sets out the Judge's decision.

But that's not all. In the plan that was finally notified, a number of laneways and new view shafts were identified – some of these went directly through identified character buildings. You see? In the beginning the heritage and character buildings were a big part of the view. Council went ahead to give effect to its 2009 decision: "that maritime heritage and waterfront character need to be protected and enhanced to the maximum extent possible, alongside other principles in the Urban Design Framework...."

This map - a more recent modification - shows these new view shafts, and the heritage buildings that are deemed "in the way" of these views. One view appears to be toward the city, the other appears to be toward the Harbour Bridge.

Ironic indeed that the newspaper reports of the Waterfront Conference and presentations being held now in Auckland - from Hamburg and such places - highlight the emphasis these exemplary waterfront developments accord maritime heritage.

Even more ironic that the views of modernist Auckland architecture are now being regarded as more important than views and buildings that have been identified by experts as being of significant heritage value.

Auckland is being shafted.

Queens Wharf - Hasten Slowly

At last. Thanks to a mixture of Ports of Auckland suffering from effects of recessionary trading conditions, and a Government keen to be seen to be doing something positive in Auckland for a change, Queens Wharf has been taken for other purposes. It is now 50/50 owned by Auckland Regional Council and Central Government.

Government has a short term vision of the space being freed up to become "Party Central" during Rugby World Cup. Auckland Regional Council has voted for a mixed use development including public access, ferry services and a "fit for purpose" cruise ship terminal. These two ideas are not incompatible.

The Rugby World Cup event is about 2 years away, and in between Auckland's Local Government will be abolished and re-established. That's a big ask to do anything big on Queens Wharf. So. I think it very sensible that we do enough down there to tie up a couple of Ocean Liners as temporary Hotel accommodation during Rugby World Cup, and provide some amenity on the wharf that will attract the locals and keep them happy during large events. More later on this. I did a lot of work preparing an Urban Design Framework for Queens Wharf with some fellow Masters students at Auckland University. This work included a detailed analysis and critique of Auckland's existing waterfront spaces, and concludes with an Urban Design Framework for Queens Wharf in the medium term.

You can download this from links you will see on this page: Queens Wharf

But in the meantime, here's the big picture we came to:

Sea + City and Wynyard Quarter to emphasise maritime heritage

One of the big worries I have had, along with Councillor Coney, and also Auckland's heritage maritime industry - is over the extent to which maritime heritage and history and all that stuff, would be provided for in the planning for Wynyard Quarter / Tankfarm.

There have been lots of glossy pictures and artistic representations, photos of harbour piles and rusty chains and old railway lines. But what did these images really mean on the ground, in the water and in your face - for the redevelopment.

I noticed that the carefully prepared Urban Design Framework for Wynyard Quarter, prepared by Sea + City, and agreed by Auckland Regional Council, actually made no mention of heritage at all. I've advocated for this aspect at meetings, and so has Cllr Coney and others, but somehow this matter has not been properly resolved. This means a risk that Sea + City will not sense any strong direction in that regard.

That has now been fixed. At last week's Transport & Urban Development Ctte, ARC formally considered Sea + City's interesting designs for Precinct One of Wynyard Quarter. I prepared some detailed resolutions about heritage for this meeting, and these were unanimously adopted by ARC. The ARC has resolved, the following, and I draw your attention specifically to (d):

B.1 WYNYARD QUARTER PRECINCT PLAN 1
D160-02-14 & D160-W03
Committee Secretary: 10 June 2009
An addendum to ‘B1’ previously circulated to councillors from Mr Hugh Jarvis, was handed out. (Attachment 1). Mr John Dalzell of Sea + City presented the powerpoint slides on the draft precinct plan for Wynyard Quarter.
RESOLVED
a) That the report be received.
b) That the committee acknowledges that it has been consulted on the draft precinct plan Wynyard Quarter Precinct Plan 1 Version 6 May 2009 for the Jellicoe Precinct by Sea + City Projects Limited on behalf of Auckland Regional Holdings.
c) That, subject to any other matters that the committee decides, it endorses the draft precinct plan Wynyard Quarter Precinct Plan 1 Version 6 May 2009 for
the Jellicoe Precinct :
i) excluding the depiction of a future building extending over the coastal marine area from development site 12
ii) but noting the challenges with the inclusion of a stormwater pond or wetland in the public open space north of Jellicoe Street and west of Brigham Street.
d) That the committee advise ARH and Sea + City of its expectations in regard to planning for the protection and enhancement of maritime heritage and
waterfront character of Wynyard Quarter, including:
i) that maritime heritage and waterfront character is a principle of the Urban Design Framework for Wynyard Quarter.
ii) that maritime heritage and waterfront character need to be protected and enhanced to the maximum extent possible, alongside other principles in the Urban Design Framework.
iii) that the Wynyard Quarter Precinct Plan 1 includes: a variety of provisions and opportunities for the expression of Wynyard Quarter’s history and stories; provision for the heritage fleet.

This is an excellent result.
It provides for clear direction to Sea + City and Auckland Regional Holdings.
And it provides direction that the design must "provide for the heritage fleet".