Don’t forget our second Winter Lecture of 2015 this Sunday 6th September at 123 Grafton Rd, from 3-5pm. 123 Grafton Rd Villa Restoration:This grand villa, situated prominently of the edge of Grafton Bridge, is the only survivor of the large villas that once lined Grafton Rd.The house is being progressively...
Dr Elizabeth Aitken-Rose laments the Unitary Plan Hearings Panel’s stance on heritage in an opinion piece in the Herald on 18 August 2015. She points out that the features that make Auckland unique, such as our volcanic cones and our collection of inner suburbs’ traditional timber houses, are not valued...
The Sunday Star-Times of 16 August 2015 published an in-depth article on the proposed demolition of the historic Hanna Block at King’s School. It outlines the building’s history and presents the case for retention, championed by old boy and Waitemata Local Board member Rob Thomas. Read the full article here.
The Last Day of “Remembrance” of the art installation at St David’s soldiers’ memorial church in Khyber Pass was marked by a very special presentation on 23 July. Corporal Apiata, VC presented Mark Bramwell, grandson of New Zealand’s only Gallipoli VC, and first WWI VC, Lieutenant Colonel Bassett, with a...
Talks aimed at removing density controls in the Proposed Unitary Plan for 50% of residential Auckland are being held between Auckland Council, developers and community group Auckland 2040. This would allow no density limits in the Mixed Housing Urban zone, and no density limits on sites greater than 1000 sq.m....
On Wednesday 15 July, the Unitary Plan Independent Hearings Panel released interim guidance which said it was not convinced that houses in character areas necessarily qualified for historic heritage status and protection. The panel said the council’s proposed interim demolition control overlay put unnecessary pressure on landowners wanting to develop...
Our first Winter Lecture for 2015 was held on Sunday 12 July. Civic Trust Board member architect Julian Mitchell from Mitchell Stout Architects presented on the redevelopment of the scheduled heritage Lopdell House, and the construction of the new Te Uru Waitakere Contemporary Gallery, linked to the older building. Julian...
King’s School has approval from the council to demolish the Hanna Block to make way for the construction of a new four storey 19 classroom block to meet 21st century student needs. The Hanna Block was originally built as a two storey dormitory block with bedrooms, bathrooms, changing rooms, workshops,...
Our CTA board member Julian Mitchell, is from Mitchell & Stout Architects, who are up for an international award for their redevelopment of the Lopdell House precinct. He will be presenting on this project at Lopdell House on Sunday 12 July – see Events for more details. A spokesman for...
The High Court has ruled that resource consents should not have been granted for Ports of Auckland’s extension of Bledisloe Wharf. Work on the wharf has been stopped. The decision by Justice Geoffrey Venning is a significant victory for Urban Auckland, Stop Stealing our Harbour and the thousands of Aucklanders who protested in various...