"In creating a high-density housing solution oriented towards open land, Housing New Zealand's approach to Talbot Park satisfies a range of urban design criteria. It is also indicative of the council's desire to work with agencies to find creative, functional housing solutions."
The benefits of constructive urban design stretch further than the outer borders of this one development. Property Council of New Zealand Chief Executive Connal Townsend points to the arrival of Nosh, "the best deli in Auckland," that now attracts residents from wealthier neighbouring suburbs into Glen Innes as an example of how an area can be softened by urban design. Nevertheless this style of development should just represent the first step in lifting areas such as Glen Innes and Panmure, he suggests.
"This will eventually be achieved through a spider's web of transport nodes, where mini-cities will be created in the outer suburbs, based on the same principles as the CBD." This, it seems, is just the beginning of the story of Auckland's urban design.
06 Apr, 2007