Kyle Ramsay dirty old town How the architectural connection of blue and green elements within a concrete jungle can provide a sense of place and identity Kyle Ramsay dirty old town A Research Document submitted to Unitec School of Architecture in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Master of Architecture, 2016 Unitec School of Architecture, Auckland, 2016 I met my love by the gas works wall Dreamed a dream by the old canal I kissed my girl by the factory wall Dirty old town Clouds are drifting across the moon Cats are prowling on their beat Spring's a girl from the streets at night Dirty old town I heard a siren from the docks Saw a train set the night on fire I smelled the spring on the smoky wind Dirty old town I'm going to make me a good sharp axe Shining steel tempered in the fire I'll chop you down like an old dead tree Dirty old town Ewan McColl, 1949 2 i. PREFACE Some may question the connection between a song written This may be a notion brought on by nostalgia. But in a Was it a loss of connectivity at a personal level, as I have about Salford in 1949 by social activist Ewan McColl and society with issues stemming from social, cultural, mental grown older and moved on? Or is it due to the erosion of subsequently made famous by Irish folk/punk heroes The and physical well-being, perhaps there is something to it? wider historical references, social interactions or physical Pouges in 1981, and a town in provincial New Zealand. To connections? be honest, there may well not be really. That’s not to say that a single student’s architectural thesis project can fix any or even one of these ills, but it can at And although far from an urban design basketcase, there is However, if we note that the narrator is reflecting with least acknowledge them and then spark a conversation. a latency that has seemingly at best been overlooked and, at bittersweet memories of the old industrial town where he worst, wasted due to the rigours of economic expediency. grew up and his longing to leave in pursuit of success, About 30 years ago, New Plymouth could well have been only to later realise that, with the passage of time, he has labelled New Zealand’s Salford. A ‘dirty’ industrial city with There are things that can be addressed here, as perhaps realised that despite his worldly achievements, it is actually railyards and industry taking centre place on the cityscape. with many places in New Zealand that are important to us. in this dirty old town where he was the most content and This began to change in the 1980s, and as a provincial Such as our connection to a place and how this is shaped optimistic about life. town, it is now considered quite progressive. and how this can be slowly diminished by the forces of the modern economy (which could now be considered ‘old Perhaps this can used as a metaphor for how, as a society, However, somewhere along the line, somewhat economy’) without even realising it. our fervent quest for automation, efficiency, financial ironically some of the old town’s charm was lost in the prosperity and commodification over the past 50 years aforementioned quest for mechanisation and efficiency. With this project I hope to, like the optimism penned in the or so has been at the expense of the very things that truly lyrics of ‘smelling the spring in the smoky wind’, through make us content, like the uncomplicated simplicity of times As someone proud of my hometown I have noticed this the wider discourse of an architectural project, reference past, even if they are not as sophisticated. change, but have not been quite able to pinpoint why? and attempt to initiate a return of these connections, be they historical, social or even just plain old nostalgic. 3 ii. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Cesar Wagner, my supervisor, Muito Obrigado. Your My friends, who are either genuinely interested or simply patience and wisdom have been greatly appreciated. just feign interest in my architectural rants. Cam Moore, for your enthusiasm and taking the time out to Surfing, lets me switch off. Music, switches me back on. assist me, even when you didn’t technically have to. You, the reader, for reading this document. I hope that it is Special mention to Kerry Francis, who took time to visit New worthy of your valuable time. Plymouth, walk the project with me and then offer that I consider a Parisian De-rive artist’s approach to the project. Mum & Dad, thanks for having me and deciding to keep me. Peter McPherson and Christoph Schnoor, who in my first Ana, thanks for your support throughout it all. year at Unitec were incredibly accomodating of my unique circumstances. Your patience and encouragement made My children, Isabella and Luca, you both continually amaze that year so valuable to me and helped me get to this point. and inspire me, and are exactly the reason why I should want to make the world a better place through architecture. David Turner, for lighting a fire within for Urban Design and teaching that architecture is about how people live. My Studio colleagues, for providing me with continuing inspiration through your collective creativity. Fig A. Map of New Plymouth circa 1850. (Central area highlighted) Source: pukeariki.com 5 iii. RESEARCH QUESTION Can an architectural proposition provide a connection between a city’s iconic natural assets and enhance a real and metaphorical sense of place? 6 iv. ABSTRACT This research project set out to answer the question a discipline it involves so many different variables that it is These investigations included analysis of the current urban stated on page 6: can an architectural proposition provide hard to pigeonhole under one profession’s umbrella. form of the place in an attempt to establish an architectural a connection between a city’s iconic natural assets and solution, which then in itself, highlighted several issues enhance a real and metaphorical sense of place? However, it is these complexities that make it much more resultant from the past 50-odd years of poor city planning interesting and, because of its holistic nature, more varied and development. To effectively answer this question, an approach was taken and rewarding outcomes are achievable. to approach the project with a design, research, design Thus, can a (single) architectural proposition provide the approach. That is, a dual approach of both personal design What’s more, in order to understand an urban issue that aforementioned connection and ehance sense of place. In and investigation of already established architectural much more effectively, a full analysis of the scope of effect, no. That is, without perhaps creating something that literature along with precedent projects would assist in the project must be done. That is, not just architectural in itself becomes overly complex and out of context with the reaching an acceptable solution, from both an academic knowledge should be canvassed, but historical, social, urban design theory investigated for this project. and a personal perspective. environmental and economic information needs to be evaluated in order to reach a more definitive conclusion. However, a series of architectural interventions with a broad Early in the project, it became apparent after examining focus on achieving a connection that references academic, several built projects that the primary focus of the project Therefore, a review of existing knowledge of the discipline built best practice and coalesces with exisiting urban would be one of urban design. and those built projects that have a specific correlation context should provide suitable illumination for a solution or to that of the overarching parameters of this project was solutions to the above mentioned issues. While the subject of urban design has a wealth of literature completed in conjuction with more location-specific available, it is still a relatively contentious subject in terms knowledge-gathering. And if designed primarily with people in mind, it should, with of both architecture and wider planning. That is because as luck, enable the question to be answered effectively. 7 v. CONTENTS START RESEARCH i. PREFACE...................................................3 PART ONE: STATE OF KNOWLEDGE..............17 PART THREE: BLUE AND GREEN.......................99 3.1. COASTAL WALKWAY ii. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS....................5 1.1. WHEN WE LOSE OUR CONNECTION TO PLACE 1.2. CONNECTING WITH PLACE 3.2. PUKEKURA PARK iii. RESEARCH QUESTION......................6 1.3 OTHER CONNECTED PLACES iv. ABSTRACT...............................................7 PART FOUR: FINDING CONNECTION.............105 4.1 FINDING A PATH v. CONTENTS...............................................8 PART TWO: HISTORIC KNOWLEDGE.............79 4.2 TO GO DIRECT OR TO MEANDER? 1. PROJECT BACKGROUND...............10 2.1. PRE-COLONIAL (PRE 1840) 4.3 SERIAL VISION 2. RATIONALE FOR RESEARCH........12 2.2. COLONIAL (1840-1918) 4.4 AGENCY OF MAPPING 2.3 RECENT PAST (1918 PRESENT) 3. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES................13 4.5 THE HUATOKI CONNECTION 4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY........14 8 DESIGN END PART FIVE: CONNECTION ZONE.........................121 PART SEVEN: EARLY DESIGN..............................137 PART NINE: CONCLUSION/S............................169 5.1 CITY COMPOSITION 7.1 PROCESS AND CONCEPTS 9.1 CONCLUDING WORDS 5.2 URBAN CONTEXT 9.2 CONCLUDING DRAWINGS PART EIGHT: MAKING CONNECTIONS............153 5.3 CITY LONG SECTION PART TEN: ADMINISTRATION.........................199 8.1 OPEN/ENHANCE/REVEAL/CONNECT PART SIX: CONTEXT/CONSIDERATION............129 10.1 BIBLIOGRAPHY 8.2 OPEN: THE RIVERMOUTH 6.1 MATERIALITY 8.3 ENHANCE: HUATOKI PLAZA 10.2 APPENDICES 6.2 FORMALITY 8.4 REVEAL: HUATOKI SQUARE/PIAZZA 6.3 INSPIRATION 8.5 RETURN: HUATOKI RIVERSIDE 8.6 CONNECT: WALKWAYS & NODES 9 1.