Executive Summary
The Draft New Zealand Urban Design Protocol has been prepared by the Ministry for the Environment in conjunction with an Urban Design Advisory Group as part of the Government's Sustainable Development Programme of Action and Urban Affairs Portfolio.
Its purpose is to accelerate quality urban design to create places that work and people use and value.
The Protocol will be a voluntary commitment to specific urban design initiatives by central and local government, the property sector, design professionals and other groups. A key objective in signing up to the Protocol will be better co-ordination and sharing of information amongst these groups to create more successful towns and cities in New Zealand.
The Protocol will make our towns and cities more successful by using quality urban design to help them become:
- competitive places that thrive economically and facilitate creativity and innovation
- liveable places that provide a choice of housing, work and lifestyle options
- environmentally responsible places that manage all aspects of the environment sustainably
- inclusive places that offer opportunities for all citizens
- distinctive places that have a strong identity and sense of place
- well-governed places that have a shared vision and sense of direction.
The Protocol identifies six essential design qualities:
- Context: Seeing that buildings, places and spaces are part of the whole town or city
- Character: Reflecting and enhancing the distinctive character of our natural environment, heritage and culture
- Choice: Offering diversity of urban form, densities, building types, public spaces and transport modes and providing more opportunities for all people
- Connections: Enhancing the way our infrastructure and urban form work together
- Custodianship: Ensuring design is responsive to the impacts on our environment, safety and health
- Collaboration: Working across sectors, professions and with communities to improve urban design outcomes.
Supporting resources will also be developed to help implement the Protocol:
- Urban Design Case Studies will provide practical examples of quality urban design
- Urban Design Toolkit will provide a compendium of tools and mechanisms
- Summary of Urban Design Research will include current research on urban design issues
- Value Case will present a rationale and evidence for the link between quality urban design and economic, environmental, social and cultural value.
Your feedback on this draft Protocol is sought by 30 September 2004.
