Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: Fixing Auckland

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  • Russell Brown,

    The Herald's story on how Eden park washed up on the night.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • JackElder,

    How does the "you don't need to wear a helmet cycling here" thing work? Are they expecting people to drive to the waterfront, park up, then unload the bikes for a bit of a cruise around? I'm sure people will do that, so I guess it's a good way to appeal to more casual riders who otherwise wouldn't come in. I take it that it's not legally an area of road, so the council doesn't need to worry about the legal requirement to wear a helmet when cycling on roads?

    Wellington • Since Mar 2008 • 709 posts Report Reply

  • Stephen Judd,

    the council has specifically stated that it is unnecessary for cyclists to wear helmets around Wynyard Quarter.

    Whoah. How does that work, legally? And how on earth did they manage to sneak that in without the helmet lobby going ballistic?

    Also, as a Wellingtonian, excellent to see Auckland providing some competitive heat in the nice waterfront department. This can only be good for stimulating urban improvements everywhere.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 3122 posts Report Reply

  • Rich of Observationz,

    Apparently the RWC will isolate us from global financial meltdown, as well. Truly wonderful that the great Mr Key has brought us such a beneficial visitation.

    What will we do for the next twenty-five years before it’s our turn again?

    Back in Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 5550 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    Some great photos of Wynyard Quarter by Sydney of EyeOnAuckland blog.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • recordari,

    In yet more happy news, I'm told that there is a pretty good chance of the Laneway festival next summer shifting to Wynyard Quarter.

    That would be brilliant!

    Carry on with the cycling bit, but this got me buzzing. The space felt very inviting, and as if it should have always been there, which it should. Imagining it filled with modern music is a very nice sentiment indeed. Not to mention the photo ops.

    Some great photos of Wynyard Quarter by Sydney of EyeOnAuckland blog.

    I looked at those off your tw feed, and there are some great ones there. My own efforts where truncated by torrential rain. It was a fun place to run through with your head down looking for cover, I'll say that.

    AUCKLAND • Since Dec 2009 • 2607 posts Report Reply

  • Su Yin Khoo,

    Citation on the no-helmet rule, please? I'm going to print this out and keep a copy on me at all times.

    Another great no-helmet photo from Saturday.

    Auckland • Since Aug 2011 • 25 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Su Yin Khoo,

    Citation on the no-helmet rule, please? I’m going to print this out and keep a copy on me at all times.

    Apparently it's in one of the council brochures, but I can't find the info on the Waterfront Auckland site. I may have been wrong ...

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia, in reply to Russell Brown,

    The Herald's story on how Eden park washed up on the night.

    And while I'm still rugby-agnostic :), nice to see that it was a relatively painless experience on Saturday night. (I don't think you can blame any human agency for the crap-tacular weather though.) Full disclosure: My partner works for Veolia so I might be slightly biased, but the general good-nature of folks waiting for the trains was appreciated. Some folks do have problems grasping that public transport is not run by magical elves. :)

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha, in reply to recordari,

    looking for cover

    Fine for large public places to be mostly open - and this one sounds great - but please fit in some protection from our rapidly-changing elements. Auckland's public planners and urban designers for some reason seem wedded to denial that it rains a lot here. One example is the large and expensive Queen St streetscape upgrade.

    Perhaps there's some mass delusion that providing practical shelter ruins the clean lines of the buildings or something? Or that it's not a factor in people deciding whether to use places other than hermetic suburban malls.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Willcox,

    Very interested in a link to the no helmet rule too thanks. The question of helmets constantly pops up here in Melbourne, usually in relation to the less than brilliant uptake of the bike-share scheme.

    Melbourne • Since Aug 2011 • 1 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia, in reply to Sacha,

    Auckland’s public planners and urban designers for some reason seem wedded to denial that it rains a lot here. One example is the large and expensive Queen St streetscape upgrade.

    I so much don't worry about the shelter, but why do urban planners seem to be in love with paving that looks fabulous but gets dangerously slick when wet unless you're wearing shoes with tractor-tyre tread?

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • David Cormack,

    As a Wellingtonian visiting Eden Park for the first time ever, I would just like to say how impressed I was with everything about the experience.

    We didn't know what entrance we were supposed to go to, no problem, the people in the fluoro vests were more than happy to help. They did it with a smile on their faces and wished us good luck and a great night. The lines to get in moved quickly and efficiently and there was no jostling. Kudos to you Eden Park.

    (though the line to the train station was something to behold).

    I then went and visited the Wynyard Quarter on Sunday and while I think it's lovely, my only concern is the gap between something and anything.

    We tried to do something similar in Wellington with the Queens Wharf centre in the mid 90s and it fell over because there was nothing between it and the nearest shopping. I hope this goes better because it's a lovely spot!

    Suburbia, Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 218 posts Report Reply

  • David Cormack,

    Oh and what really made it fantastic was finding myself sitting next to Joe Stanley and getting some really interesting perspective on the game.

    Suburbia, Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 218 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Craig Ranapia,

    Full disclosure: My partner works for Veolia so I might be slightly biased, but the general good-nature of folks waiting for the trains was appreciated. Some folks do have problems grasping that public transport is not run by magical

    And as I said, things seemed to be going quite smoothly when we left. I suspect the people who had a longer wait were coming from the far side of the ground or stuck around for speeches.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Tom Semmens,

    Now we’ve got this wonderful new development with the event centre, plenty of room for outdoor screens in Karanga Plaza and bars, restaurants, etc – all that plus the Viaduct and the fantastic stuff that has been hapeening at Britomart – why did we build the bloody awful “Cloud” again? Could not this area have been modified slightly and used as “party central?” For the money wasted on the Cloud they could have extended the tram tracks to Britomart, and linked up the entire bottom of town. The whole ill-fated idea of developing the wharf for the RWC seems like little more than a monument to a John Key brainfart.

    Sevilla, Espana • Since Nov 2006 • 2217 posts Report Reply

  • JackElder,

    Whoah. How does that work, legally? And how on earth did they manage to sneak that in without the helmet lobby going ballistic?

    I presume that it's legally a park or something rather than a public road, so the legal requirement to have to wear a helmet while cycling on the roads doesn't apply. In much the same way as I could say, "Hey, you don't need to wear a helmet while cycling around my garden." It's great when you're in the garden, but as soon as you get on the road to go somewhere else, you need your lid.

    Presumably they did it to emphasise the whole laid-back, family-friendly, cruisy atmosphere they're going for. More the beach cruiser atmosphere, rolling along at a calm 15kph, rather than the hammer and tongs demographic.

    Wellington • Since Mar 2008 • 709 posts Report Reply

  • Tim Gummer,

    Yes please: any info on anything no helmet wise in print, would be real handy. You've got me hanging out that we might have a thin end of the wedge here – in a good way. Of course in the meantime I'll continue to ride, safely, happily lidless pretty much everywhere.

    Auckland • Since Aug 2011 • 2 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha, in reply to Tom Semmens,

    For the money wasted on the Cloud they could have extended the tram tracks to Britomart, and linked up the entire bottom of town.

    Time may have been against them as such work takes longer. But mainly no one would have agreed to let McCully act like the boss of that alternative.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Stephen Knightly,

    My pet topic with regards to waterfront redevelopment: rip down the Red Fences and donate them to MOTAT.

    The port's Red Fences will have to come down one day, MOTAT is a natural home for this piece of transport history, plus they need a better fence along Great North Rd.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 25 posts Report Reply

  • Gareth Ward,

    shabby, expensive terraces and apartments that basically shut down the neighbourhood where they were built
    And yet this new neighbourhood will really need some form of residential living to keep it alive outside of Mon-Fri 9-5. Certainly the working wharves and the proposed hotel will help but you need to have people living around these areas to really keep their heart beating IMHO. I really look forward to the "Point Park" development at some point in the future and I understand there are residential aspects to that, as well as to the "Central Precinct" piece in around the existing Beaumont St.

    Re the red fences - I really don't know that any of them east of Queens Wharf will get pulled down now. It strikes me that the Council has finally understood that the Port are going nowhere, hence the whole reorientation west - both of things like Wynyard Quarter and the focus on Victoria Quarter etc...

    Auckland, NZ • Since Mar 2007 • 1727 posts Report Reply

  • Graeme Edgeler,

    Apparently it’s in one of the council brochures, but I can’t find the info on the Waterfront Auckland site. I may have been wrong …

    I’m also told there isn’t a fee to have your car untowed :-)

    Wellington, New Zealand • Since Nov 2006 • 3215 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Gareth Ward,

    And yet this new neighbourhood will really need some form of residential living to keep it alive outside of Mon-Fri 9-5. Certainly the working wharves and the proposed hotel will help but you need to have people living around these areas to really keep their heart beating IMHO.

    In theory, yeah. But these residents seem to have no street life. Nothing happens there.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Rich of Observationz,

    What happens to all the goods that used to be / are transferred through those wharfs. Aren't we going to need them (or to sell the exports) in the "weightless economy"?

    Auckland's pretty much got glitzy housing on every inch of deep waterfront now, so nowhere to relocate the docks (like overseas cities did way back when).

    Back in Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 5550 posts Report Reply

  • Su Yin Khoo, in reply to Russell Brown,

    I for one, am a resident of said apartments which is why Wynyard Quarter is so bloody exciting for us from whence we stumbled upon it back in January.

    It's true that nothing 'happens' around the area but it's super-accessible to other parts of the CBD that is enjoying a development growth spurt like the Britomart area. And more places should stay open for longer if they are to cater for residents of said apartments.

    More high-quality density accommodation and fewer student shoeboxes, please.

    Auckland • Since Aug 2011 • 25 posts Report Reply

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