Hard News: On the Waterfront
239 Responses
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what would get people to flock to this area on a sunny summer's Sunday afternoon?
Given it's in Auckland, I'd say an IMAX screen or five, a food court, branches of all leading chainstores and convenient parking for 5000 cars.
Was that not the answer you sought?
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Totally agree jarbury but I would add, A Bus Station.
There's one across the road.
Given it's in Auckland, I'd say an IMAX screen or five, a food court, branches of all leading chainstores and convenient parking for 5000 cars.
When I visit Western Springs Park, Cornwall Park or the Domain on a sunny summer's Sunday afternoon there are a LOT of people there. So we don't just flock to the malls.
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Given it's in Auckland, I'd say an IMAX screen or five, a food court, branches of all leading chainstores and convenient parking for 5000 cars.
You forgot the celebrities.
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BTW, where's the Auckland Transition Authority in all this? I can't see how anyone could credibly argue that there's no ongoing financial impact on the new Council. Banksie's pretty much promised it.
That is what I think is the problem. In general (because Aucklanders are just like that) we don't mind change for the waterfront, but we do mind this whole business of "DO AS WE SAY!" without consultations or consideration of our rates. It really does feel like we are in a rut thanks to the new Agency but all of a sudden it's play with the waterfront. If this is streamlining, consistency is out the window,plus could we get some idea of what rates are going to be. It feels like mind games for the super city concept, lots of window dressing.
Open the gates, have competitions for the people to decide what to put down there.Let people go down and have a look. Many hands make light work.Start with the market they pushed out of Aotea Square, farmers markets. Put an effort into some safety around the waters edge (if not ,revise swimming pool regulations) Sculptures (like the one that used to sit in front of the PO,now Britomart) could come out of storage for a start and take visitors through a terminal to an intergrated public transport system that will skip over to trains of to Kingsland or buses via Vector Arena or sit on the waterfront for an open outdoor space to enjoy the view. Open the gates.JMO -
Sofie:
Are we agreeing on something? Stop it! :) But you've got it: I'm not some anti-development Luddite, but if my rates are going to go up 7% a year for the foreseeable future, I'd love to have some idea where the hell its going. The, shall we say, "strategic ambiguity" about the final bill and exactly what is going to happen should make everyone nervous. "Just trust us" doesn't cut it.
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I think half the problem is that everyone pisses around doing nothing forever, and then by the time we go "holy crap the world cup's only two years away" things need to be rushed through without the necessary thought.
This whole Queens Wharf issue should have been sorted out about two years ago. Then we could have spent a year arguing about who should pay what for it, and then we could have spent a while arguing about what should be built on it....
There is an interesting tension between the whole "damn it takes forever to do anything in this city" feeling and the "not enough consultation, why hasn't my voice been heard" feeling. You can't easily have it both ways.
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There is an interesting tension between the whole "damn it takes forever to do anything in this city" feeling and the "not enough consultation, why hasn't my voice been heard" feeling. You can't easily have it both ways.
Somehow there's a link between this inherent contradiction and the "Quarter Acre Cartel". It's no less contradictory than driving a Hummer/Explorer/Range Rover with a 'save the planet' sticker on the rear bumper. Do as they say, not as they do.
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You can't easily have it both ways.
So use the already paid for stuff. Put money into the terminal for ships and ferries. Markets already exist and are vibrant. If you start with a comfy open space (not too expensive) Other bits will be added as the need or want occurs but it can be useable immediately. Open the Gates.
I do think Mayors do tend to like some sort of monument for their time in office and hence delays when they are voted out plus another shelved idea sits but if we start to build it, the people will come which is a wonderful incentive to continue.
Have competitions and people will feel consulted. Sorted!
@Craig, you are often agreeable :) -
I actually don't mind what the government has done here. Someone needed to step in and sort out at least a part of the waterfront, and I'm glad it's been done.
Now.... about what to put there. As you say sofie, Open the Gates ASAP, let people explore the area a bit and work out what they want there. In a way I think that the "less is more" approach would be good here. Do we just want a good space to hang out in?
There should be enough time to decide upon that.
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I do think Mayors do tend to like some sort of monument for their time in office
That's called the Edifice Complex. (Thank you... I'll be here the rest of the week.)
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So has Auckland sorted all its infrastructure problems out then? I don't pay much attention to local news that doesn't directly affect me. But I had this idea that Auckland had a bit of a problem with water and power and roads and stuff that all were going to cost shit loads of money. And maybe that John Banks campaigned against spending $$$ of rates on these fripperies. (Don't all shout me down at once, please.)
Waterfront development for public use - is the best. Wellington has a great waterfront, I don't agree with everything the council (various) has done in past 20 years but I think what has been done is not bad. Auckland really should get with the (waterfront) program.
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Get the set designers for Outrageous Fortune to whip up something that showcases our quarter acre heritage for the world. And think of the jobs for all the lawnmower pushers and barbeque ranglers.
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Dinah, John Banks will do his best to wriggle out of spending much money on this. He's already wriggled out of contributing to the purchase cost.
And no, the infrastructure problems haven't been sorted, although vehicle numbers are down on the roads, public transport ridership is booming and the government took away our regional fuel tax as a way to improve public transport.
I'm still waiting for word on when Steven Joyce will let us know when we're getting the electric trains the ARC would have ordered by now.
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Not to mention diverting public transport funding into building more highways.
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Still, third world transport would go with the Outrageous Fortune theme. Maybe a few cars up on blocks on the lawn?
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Not to mention diverting public transport funding into building more highways.
Geez don't get me started on the stupidity of that move.
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Totally agree jarbury but I would add, A Bus Station.
There's one across the road
Cross the road, we are nat all athletes you know.
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things need to be rushed through without the necessary thought.
That IS Nationals forte after all.
Geez don't get me started on the stupidity of that move.
Ditto.
And, of course that previous comment should have been,
"we are NOT all athletes you know."
NOTTUB TIDE (if I say it backwards, is it more likely to happen?) -
I suspect that something as simple as a large, grassy, open space would do the tricky excellently.
See Dyan's pic from Vancouver, for example?
Keep the red fences and gates to add to the park-like feel. Plus, they're mega-historic (cf. stories of local good-time gals and US servicemen accomplishing astonishing physical feats despite the bars between them).
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I realised on the way home from work that we've done seven whole pages without a post-title-referencing 'coulda been a contender' joke. I think we're slipping, frankly.
Coulda been a cake-tin, duh.
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That IS Nationals forte after all.
You want to tell Mike Lee you've signed him up?
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Islander
Salt Lake City? Totally memorable and, please, may I never go there again.
Oh yes absolutely. A really great example of what happens when you don't try to make a city feel nice. I blame the lack of good coffee in the whole state.
However the actual salt lake is cool. Now if they'd just though to integrate the city with the lake itself and found some way to make the interface between lake and city a public, open and welcoming place.
The parallels with Auckland should be obvious. The harbour is really really beautiful and making the interface between city and harbour something to be proud of will take some doing.
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Yeah, cos Mike Lee was just gagging to rush through Mallard's waterfront stadium. Proven history of being undemocratically inclined, not like that nice Mr Key.
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You can find an "economic theory" to justify absolutely anything.
Craig I agree and have a personal dislike for economics that isn't helped by some of the Nobel Prize winners
But what I'm referring to isn't some new fangled outlandish weird options hedging theory. It's really boring basic economics that is pretty well accepted. In recessions it is beneficial for governments to spend money on capital projects, particularly infrastructure. The idea is that money spent by the government makes up for the reduced spending by business, and stimulates growth. Conversely, when growth is high government spending should be reduced.
So the recession is not a good argument against developing the waterfront.
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I suspect that something as simple as a large, grassy, open space would do the tricky excellently.
I'd vote for that.
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