New Tower is a Bold Statement Indeed

Written by Ben Ross - Talking Auckland

So when the first sod being turned?

 

I think the NZ Herald’s Property Writer Anne Gibson rather hits the nail on the head for the Precinct Property tower development which also marks the first stage of the City Rail Link construction as well.

From the NZ Herald:

Anne Gibson: Downtown tower makes a bold statement of identity

6:50 AM Thursday Feb 26, 2015

Big towers polarise people.

Love or hate the idea of Precinct Properties’ 36-level, $550 million downtown Auckland waterfront skyscraper, let’s get the negatives out-of-the-way first.

If you hate high-rise and think we should look like Paris or Rome, shift into this century and Downunder. Auckland is young by world standards and our planning rules create an environment more akin to United States rather than European city centres. If you voted for Len, you agreed to squeeze in and up.

Anyway, the CBD is already zoned for high-rise because the land is so expensive. That’s a good thing – cheap CBDs are in Third World cities.

……

Now for the positives. To be a world-class city, we need world-class buildings and architects Warren and Mahoney of Auckland, San Francisco’s Woods Baggot and Melbourne’s NH Architecture are certainly capable of delivering that. The bold curtain glass wall is an audacious statement and complements other surrounding towers, and the tower is said to reference the Waitemata, so more us than the Sydney-cloned PwC tower.

Even if you don’t think we need the City Rail Link, Precinct’s deal struck with Auckland Council ensures the tunnels can be built, regardless of Len’s funding issue.

Do you love that volcano spouting fire and water in the square, or does it look ridiculous? Will you be sad to lose the area outside Whitcoulls’ back door and the arse end of the Life Pharmacy, or would you prefer shops, cafes, bars and restaurants? For buses and the road through the area’s heart to vanish? Then it could be a real square, a people place. That’s all part of the plan.

With people flooding into Auckland from overseas and elsewhere in New Zealand, the existing 13,000sq m mall expands to 20,000sq m. Auckland CBD’s workforce has grown by 16,000 people since 2010 and demand for offices and shops has risen sharply.

Grand visions like this tower will always have their critics and promoters but one thing is for sure – we’re looking more to our CBD, the sea and hopefully a new level of built sophistication in this ever-changing, ever-growing grand statement of a stunning waterfront city.

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Full article: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11407963

 

When you see comments like this:

Councillor Mike Lee
The sell out of publicly owned Queen Elizabeth Square to Abu Dhabii owned Precinct Properties for a pittance, to build a skyline dominating office tower is what Aucklanders will regret for decades. And that the compensation was enabled by a non-notified consent issued to Westfield. Precinct knew damn well about the CRL tunnels long before they bought. A bloody scandal.

……

 

My own reply will be:

Actually I doubt the majority of Auckland would have regrets once the Tower is open and the CRL operational.
QEII Square is traded for the space outside the Britomart entrance (currently where the buses are) and we get one if not two lane ways in the Precinct site.
With this all go it is time for the Auckland Design Office to make sure the lane ways of decent quality and open 24/7.
Also too much NIMBYism Mike, too much of it on the Isthmus

…….

 

If anything the new Square outside Britomart which will be in place of a dividing bus interchange (that gets shifted else where) can easily take the name of QEII Square. At least that new Square you will be able to see the waterfront AND Queen Street valley unlike the current existing Square.

This Precinct and subsequent City Rail Link development I would think is something Aucklanders would enjoy rather than regret.

So when the first sod being turned?