Location: Auckland, New Zealand.

Architect: Woods Bagot.

The city skyline is often seen as the defining feature of a city’s identity, but it is the streets and the people who inhabit them that truly define a city’s character. This is exemplified in the case of Auckland, New Zealand, where the culturally significant Federal Street site was once a Maori village settlement, but is now a busy city center with a carpark occupying the site. However, a new development on Federal Street aims to create a modern-day village that echoes the communal qualities of the traditional Maori village, fostering a new community of residents, visitors, and the public. The mixed-use development will include residential apartments, a hotel, and food and beverage offerings, all stacked vertically to create a hive of activity that echoes the liveliness of the traditional villages that once thrived on the waterfront.

The building’s DNA is deeply rooted in the communal qualities of a traditional Maori village, with shared amenity platforms, including a sky lobby, bars, wellness, pool, spa, and residential amenities, ensuring that the building is publicly accessible throughout. The ground plane has been envisaged as a civic gesture, with the lower levels dubbed the “Marketplace,” showcasing the stunning produce of New Zealand and providing a place of discovery and rituals. The building’s form cuts an elegant shape on the skyline, with a soft silhouette that evokes the beauty of Auckland’s natural landscape. The textural and luminous qualities of the facade have been inspired by New Zealand’s flora, particularly the silver fern, which was used by Maori hunters and warriors to navigate through the forest. The play of light on the facade will guide onlookers making their way through Auckland, while the orientation of the tower form to the harbor announces itself confidently to the Pacific. Overall, the Federal Street development proposes a new kind of vertical living village for modern-day Auckland, one that is inclusive, distinct, and open to the public, staying true to its village roots by becoming a public destination akin to a town square or public plaza.

Photo credit: NA.