Where is the greenery?

As I was casually talking to a friend about things we don't like about Auckland, the issue of a lack of greenery and enjoyable/nice open green space was raised.
Sure, we have the Auckland Domain, Victoria and Albert Parks in the central city- but what can you actually do at these places? For the amount of people these spaces are serving, there really is a lack of space and opportunity to get out and really feel as though you are outside of the city.

Describing his own personal experience and thoughts on the issue, my friend stated that "you spend 40 minutes of driving to get anywhere of worth. This is something that must change if Auckland wants to become the world class city that the council is striving for through the Auckland Spatial Plan.

Open space is hugely important to the overall quality of life people living in an area experience. An abundance of open spaces results in higher well-being and  " contributes to the way people feel about where they live and impacts strongly on the sustainability of the natural environment."Big Cities, 2007. The Quality of Life Report examines 12 different cities around New Zealand and proves what my friend and I had thought, "All but one city have more than five hectares of council managed green space for every 1,000 people (Auckland was just slightly under at 4.9 hectares per 1,000 residents)."  Big Cities, 2007.

 When I think about life in Auckland city in comparison to other cities I have visited, I have less enthusiasm with regard to the built environment. Some say that it is because I live here and it is always different when you live in a city rather than visiting it. But, in the case I beg to differ. When I visited Christchurch earlier this year (BEFORE the earthquake), I spent quite a bit of time in Hagley Park and in civic squares through the city- it wasn't just me doing this- on a normal working day there were locals out enjoying the spaces in their lunch breaks because of how accessible they are but also because of how many there are. 


Think of the spaces in Auckland that I have already mentioned. How many people actually utilise the Auckland domain or Victoria Park? Albert Park is a hit in the warmer months, especially for university students- it is an idea example of what Auckland should further establish throughout the city rather than massive parks that have a lack of uses because they are actually just green space with no sitting areas or use of edge spaces. I remember in my first year of my Planning degree we focused a lot on the theories of Bentley et al (1985) and how public spaces are best used when edge space is used and acts as an encourager for people to stop and spend time in the area whether it be through cafe seating or simply park benches.

Auckland needs more interactive, space that is 'of worth' and encourages activity rather than just a means of getting to a destination as a through route.



If you want to read more about the quality of life report, check it out on this link.

Big Cities. Quality of Life Report. 2007. Accessed at:
http://www.bigcities.govt.nz/pdfs/2007/Quality_of_Life_2007_Built.pdf