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Urban Design Issues

The whole focus of the Addison housing development has been on place-making and trying to create something essentially ‘urban’ in a traditional suburban environment. The housing density is greater than a more conventional subdivision, with a gross density of around 20 dwellings per hectare, as opposed to 12 to 14 dwellings per hectare. Physically and visually, it succeeds in presenting an alternative to the conventional subdivision, and provides a greater degree of residential choice to homebuyers.

One of the early motivators for the intensive development of this site was the location of a proposed new railway station at Glenora. This is unlikely to occur in the foreseeable future because of a regional decision to pursue other transport options, rather than light rail, which means the area can support only one railway station, rather than the two envisaged, within the Takanini Structure Plan. The Takanini railway station is a five-minute walk from the north-western part of the site, but it is not easily accessible to those living to the east of Porchester Road. Bus connections are also poor. Thus, while the intent was to be transit-oriented, this aspect of the development has not materialised.

The Addison development contains a range of road types and sizes. The narrowest of these are the shared surfaces that service groups of up to 16 dwellings. They have a carriageway width of 2.4m to 5m, with no footpaths or parking, and give the appearance of a driveway. These streets need to be short so all residences are within reach of a fire hydrant. Road reserves increase incrementally in width (although retain traffic lanes at a maximum of 5.5m to 7.5m) to provide increased access to houses, and include parking and footpaths on both sides. However, as a consequence of the low impact solutions to stormwater management and the addition of cycle lanes, some of the major distributor roads through the development, such as Porchester Road, are significantly wider than originally planned (Porchester Road is 28m in width from boundary to boundary).

In contrast, the rear lanes (typically 6.5m wide) have been used as access to the terrace houses that front onto the reserves. The lanes were introduced by McConnell Property to remove garages from the street frontage, thus allowing a narrow site frontage and an improved connection to the open space. The Papakura District Council has concerns about the appropriateness and safety of the rear access lanes but has had difficulty in assessing them, because the Residential 8 zone assessment criteria do not refer to them specifically.

The dwellings are all two-storey to make efficient use of land (resources), and generally cannot support additional levels because of the peat sub-surface ground conditions. There are some limited three-storey apartments planned in proximity to the retail centre. However, the construction of these will be dependent on engineering issues. This solution has been undertaken at the expense of the external appearance of the buildings and of internal ground-floor living space.

Emphasis has been placed on the streetscape and open spaces, to create a sense of place and good urban form. The Addison development presents an intimate scale of houses that are clustered around open spaces, and a hierarchy of parks and reserves that includes:

  • a central town park that is located adjacent to the Takanini commercial core
  • a series of neighbourhood parks of a size that enables the opportunity for active recreation and play (1500m2)
  • community commons for the houses that surround the parks
  • link commons
  • reserves that connect open spaces and walking routes.

Most of the parks are vested with the Papakura District Council, however, the council has reservations about the establishment of small reserves and links in future development stages. It has not yet been established how the Addison residents’ society will maintain such open spaces.

The development incorporates Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design principles for safety and security, including:

  • no front fences
  • all the houses overlooking the street and/or other properties
  • ensuring rear access lanes have good sightlines
  • eliminating entrapment spots, and monitored security.

The proposed retail centre within the Addison development deviates in location from earlier versions of the masterplan, and from the centre anticipated by the Takanini Structure Plan. Papakura District Council’s Structure Plan seeks consolidation of commercial development within a new (greenfields) Takanini centre, located 200m from the proposed retail centre and is scheduled for a council hearing (no date had been set at the time of writing). A community gathering place, within walking distance of the central part of the community, is seen as being essential for the health and interaction of the people who live within the Addison development.

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