Location: Auckland, New Zealand.

Architect: Warren and Mahoney Architects.

Commercial Bay is a transformative project in New Zealand that brings together various elements, including public transport, international quality retail environments, world-class workplaces, urban design, and sustainability outcomes. The project is located at the interface of the harbour and city and acts as a conduit for multiple urban movement flows. It is a destination for retail, food, entertainment, and commerce, as well as a transport node at the confluence of rail, bus, and ferry passenger flows. The development is also an enabler of Auckland’s most transformative project, the City Rail Link, and a connector of the waterfront promenade. The Commercial Bay development is a comprehensive site-wide precinct that delivers a new urban experience for Auckland’s residents and visitors. The central principle of the development is to provide experiences that are authentic to Auckland and its place in the world. The project enables an ambitious urban transformation that will create the centre of food, fashion, and lifestyle culture in New Zealand. The redevelopment provides the opportunity to seamlessly link the length of Auckland’s waterfront into a continuous high-quality promenade extending from Wynyard Quarter in the West to Britomart in the East. The public retail levels of the project are conceived as an accessible landscape to be explored by the retail adventurer with unexpected releases into landscape, dramatic harbour views, and city connections. The tower is designed as a new symbol on Auckland’s skyline, with a distinctive curved form that gestures towards the Waitemata Harbour. The sleek glazed skin is unique and identifiable in the city, and the expressed diagrid structure allows the tower to lightly straddle the City Rail Link while establishing a subtle resonance with the Pacific origins. Commercial Bay will deliver an unparalleled workplace experience, providing open, flexible floorplates with dramatic views over the harbour and city. The project combines retail, food, and transport to provide a total workplace experience that increases collaboration, promotes communication, and encourages business innovation. Overall, the Commercial Bay development is a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity for Auckland to join all of these threads together in a single, coherent project that redefines the experience of the city.