This project includes Daldy Street Linear Park (Fanshawe Street to North Wharf) and Amey Daldy Park (centrally located within Wynyard Quarter). The overall project was informed by a cohesive design strategy built upon the Urban Design Landscape Framework.
The brief for the project was developed between Eke Panuku and the city’s transport and development agencies identifying a need for open space at the geographical centre of the Quarter. In contrast to the nearby water’s edge spaces which serve the broader population of Auckland, this space would be oriented toward the local community. Key functional constraints included addressing significant ground contamination, providing flood detention and resilience, and incorporating pumpstation infrastructure within the park itself.
A key objective for Eke Panuku and Auckland Transport is that its portion of Wynyard Quarter be redeveloped in manner that will ensure the areas long term environmental, economic, social, and cultural success – the quadruple bottom line.
Daldy Street ‘Linear Park’ provides the second of Wynyard Quarters strategic urban design moves. This is a ‘hybrid’ space that combines the functionality and linearity of a street with the rhythmical spatial sequences and diverse programs of a park. The design intent of the ‘park axis’ is to provide a legible and accessible continuous landscape connection from Victoria Park northwards through the centre of the Quarter to the future Headland Park.
Low impact design, sustainable infrastructure, movement networks and episodic design elements are woven into an integrated landscape system. This provides for a journey and continuous green corridor between ‘land’ (pre-reclamation waters edge) and ‘sea’ (harbour). The design language draws on the site’s post-industrial and coastal character, integrating elements of the sites marine archaeology and establishes a native and ecological planting aesthetic which supports a low impact design strategy and ecological diversity.
Amey Daldy Park is an urban, undulating, iconic open space that creates a lush green heart for Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter. The park integrates social infrastructure, low impact design and a ‘designed topography’ into a contemporary new park space, establishing a dynamic ‘backyard’ for the precinct’s anticipated growth of residential and working populations.
Amey Daldy Park is intrinsically interwoven with Daldy Street Linear Park, providing a 650m continuous green corridor between ‘land’ (original coastline pre-reclamation) and ‘sea’ (Waitematā harbour) the Linear Park culminates with Amey Daldy Park at its heart.
The sophisticated park topography explores a relationship between the coast, original seabed beneath, and the horizontality of reclaimed land. Acting as a form of informal furniture, the topography accommodates a range of passive and active recreational and event programs that support and adapt to the requirements of this new, growing urban community.
A series of raingardens were designed and constructed along both Daldy Street and the edge of the park itself. These were modelled using Music and the outcome of this modelling showed that the LID measures will exceed 80% sediment reduction for the project. The actual predicted reduction in TSS exceeded 95, far exceeding any requirements of the Auckland Unitary Plan and embraced by Panuku Development.
This project provides a case study and exemplary model in quality higher density living for a city challenged with rampant urban sprawl. Amey Daldy Park and Daldy Street Linear Park contribute to the emerging vibrancy of Wynyard Quarter and support a range of high quality local businesses including small eateries, gourmet bakeries, fish markets and a wide variety of cafes and restaurants.
The Wynyard Quarter Sustainable Development Framework defines a number of sustainability targets for the Quarter. Those relevant to Daldy Street include;
– 80% of total suspended solids removed from stormwater (exceeded)
– 2 intersections per hectare (minimum) to create permeability of street network (exceeded)
– 10% of residents and 25% of businesses to utilise care share vehicles (achieved)
– 40% reduction in energy use (compared to baseline) in open spaces (e.g. lighting) (achieved)
– 10%renewable energy generation onsite (10 year target) (enabled)
– 70% trips by public transport, walking and cycling (achieved)
– 4 million annual visitors (by 2030) (enabled)
– 5% annual increase in cultural and heritage references (achieved)
– 90% residents agree to a sense of pride in the way their local area looks and feels (achieved)
– 55% residents agree to a sense of community in their local neighbourhood (achieved)
– 1.4 hectares of open space per 1000 residents (achieved)
In a world with increasingly complex problems the design demonstrates how sustainability, ecology, infrastructure and place making can be woven together to inform high quality and innovative design responses.
Project Location: Wynyard Quarter, Daldy Street, Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland), Aotearoa (NZ)
Design year: 2015
Year Built: 2020
