Submitted by MP. Inspired by DP:

The parallels to the waterfront in Auckland, New Zealand (described below) and our waterfront is pretty interesting.

Auckland, New Zealand recently won the 2014 Rosa Barba International Landscape Prize for its North Wharf Promenade and Silo Park. The Rosa Barba Prize is considered the biggest prize for landscape architecture in Europe and is open to contestants from all over the globe. The winning park, completed in 2011 at a cost of $32M, was designed by Taylor Cullity Lethlean of Melbourne, Australia with Wraight + Associates of Wellington, New Zealand.

TCL + WA present … Auckland Waterfront – North Wharf Promenade & Silo Park from TCL on Vimeo.

This video above highlights the unique features of the park. You will see how strikingly similar this area is to the landscapes that Buffalo has on its waterfront. We already have some common themes, particularly at Canalside: open greenspace with multiple event and recreational uses, public art elements, public seating and walkways. Auckland has taken it a step further by functionalizing its old silos, creating wetlands to collect storm runoff and other well thought out elements.



Auckland’s harbor is slightly more complex than Buffalo’s in that it has active container shipping, ferry services and fishing industries comingled in the same space as the park. These are “obstacles” that Buffalo largely does not need to contend with (other than the occasional shipping freighter and the General Mills plant).



If nothing else, it’s a great analog to show readers what can be done with an industrial waterfront when the proper resources and vision are applied. I think Buffalo is on the right track with how Canalside is shaping up. We’ll see how the Outer Harbor shakes out…



Some more links:

http://www.tcl.net.au/projects/waterfront/jellicoe-street–silo-park-and-north-wharf-auckland-waterfront



http://www.worldbuildingsdirectory.com/project.cfm?id=4126