REVEALING KINGSLAND
PROJECT BY Matt Lay, Rudolf Iseli, Meg Back & Brad Congdon
Kingsland Urban Design Competition Winner
Kingsland Urban Design Competition Winner
Revealing Kingsland is a design project that looked to revive a part of the main street of Kingsland and the historic church on the corner of New North Road and Sandringham Road. The primary focus of the project was to reveal and revitalize the exterior of the church and touch lightly on the surrounding landscape while making the area more accessible for pedestrians and for people who gathered before church or social functions.
Kingsland is an iconic area of Auckland, with many aspects of history and culture interwoven. Our group’s philosophy was to recognise those narratives in a simple form which integrated the past, the who of the here and now, whilst also seeding a resilient response which could be implemented in a cost effective manner while being responsive to the needs of the future. This was not an area that would suit an expensive looking makeover. To enhance the Kingsland sense of place a sympathetic reaction was required that integrated the current feel of Kingsland and celebrated the past and the people.
Our first reaction was a simple effective palette of materials to enhance the existing forms, yet still be contemporary. Existing bitumen flows into aggregate concrete, bluestone used in different directions and forms to delineate areas, and recycled boards to complement the character of Kingsland, while also ensuring the existing buildings still sit comfortably in their new environment. Ti Kouka, the hardy cabbage tree, is an established part of both cultural lore (”Cabbage Tree Swamp”) and the ecosystem, while contributing strong upright form as well as a more park like atmosphere. The intriguing coil patterns of the stain glass windows can be carried through as shading on the replacement glass pergola, while the forms reproduced in metal meld themselves cleverly to bike stands. The driveways still exist, however the woven pattern of blue stone paving flows from the driveways all the way across the road, providing a visual cue for both pedestrians and passing motorists.
The church (or rī rotu) is the first building that motorists and pedestrians notice as they enter the main street of Kingsland from the eastern end. It is a tall, historic building that dates back to a time when it was a vital part of the local community. It has a sense of faded grace as its sits on the corner and it has the appearance of a country church as opposed to a large grandiose church as found in other parts of Auckland. It is this understated elegance that was key to the landscape design. Careful considerations were made to not block the views of the church from the footpath or main road while also providing a level of protection for pedestrians from the main roads.
The three different areas each have a different function and subtle differences in design. Each area features the same material palette including the cabbage trees, basalt, and worn/upcycled wood, arranged in ways to compliment the church, reflect the past and the people, past and present. The placement of furniture is not entirely defined in this concept as the area needs to be responsive to use needs, but aggregate concrete and worn wood combinations can be combined with metal, or further art work continuing the theme from the entrance sculpture while performing other functional uses (e.g. to screen from road or sun).
The areas tie together to create a cohesive statement, a park like atmosphere, valuable amenity for church or community functions (such as craft or farmers markets), and a distinctive gateway that tells the visitor “You’re in Kingsland now”. However each of the areas could also be built as a stand-alone project and still markedly transform the area. Continuing the strong theme of revealing Kingsland: the culture, the history, and the ecology using the palette of materials gives clues of how it could be extended in the future; an example of this may be to extend the cabbage tree pits into planted swales along the front of the platforms as the area becomes less vehicle dominant and more road becomes available for development.
We aimed for a simple, and yet resilient response; design that forms highly useable and visually pleasing spaces, that recognise the narrative of the area, and yet remain responsive to the inevitability of the future.
