Excellence award for “clear vision” for New Plymouth city centre

A vision for a vibrant and sustainable New Plymouth city centre has picked up a major planning award for NPDC with judges praising its “clear vision” for the city in 2050.

NPDC’s Ngāmotu New Plymouth City Centre Strategy, which was passed in 2021, picked up Award of Excellence Master Planning and Urban Design Strategy in the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architecture Awards 2022.

The judges said the strategy is well-communicated with a “clear vision” and a key part of its success is the formal partnership between Ngāti te Whiti hapū and NPDC.

“The overwhelming support for the adopted strategy is testament to the collaborative effort undertaken throughout this project, with landscape architectural input being an invaluable component in enabling this success,” said the judges.

The award recognises the strategy is a strong plan to adapt and meet the challenges of changes to living, working and traveling in the city centre through to 2050, said NPDC City Centre Strategy Project Manager Gaye Batty.

“The judges rightly cited the collaboration with Ngāti te Whiti as key to the success of the strategy and we’re building on that partnership in drawing up design principles to guide development of the city centre through to 2050 as a well as proposals for greening Devon Street with a new trees masterplan,” said Ms Batty.

The City Centre Strategy is a key step in restoring the Ngāti te Whiti voice to the development of Ngāmotu and bringing the mana of our cultural heritage back to our historic whenua, said Ngāti te Whiti Chairperson Julie Healey.

“As mana whenua, we’re looking forward to working closely with NPDC and other stakeholders to create a vibrant and sustainable city centre,” said Ms Healey.

She was pleased the judges recognised the collaborative development of the strategy alongside Ngāti te Whiti.

Gaye said the strategy will open up new development opportunities in a vibrant and sustainable city centre and it celebrates our unique local culture and heritage and building on the legacy of past generations, like the Coastal Walkway, Puke Ariki and the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. 

“We’ll be partnering with private organisations and individuals on major investments that will support jobs and businesses, all types of transport, housing and accessibility.”.

NPDC and Ngāti te Whiti are currently working on design principles to guide development of the city centre through to 2050 as a well as proposals for greening Devon Street with a new tree's masterplan.

The five key moves of the strategy are:

• Restoring the Huatoki from Sir Victor Davies Park, through Devon Street and the Huatoki Plaza to The Landing
• A coastal street and precinct to connect the city and the coast
• Green links from Pukekura Park and Pūkākā/Marsden Hill to the city centre
• Reinforcing the retail and business hub from Liardet Street to Queen Street with better amenities
• Promoting inner city homes especially to the east of Liardet Street

Go to our website to find out more about the future of our city

Caption: The Ngāmotu City Centre Strategy will include plans for the greening of Devon Street