The old port would become Aucklanders new Sunday walk. Harbour baths, oyster banks, new bridges, cultural institutes, company headquarters and native parks. Now that the industry has moved away, the harbour is well and truly returned to the city. Bridges and walkways will create a completely new link around Auckland’s inner harbour. With the aim to transform polluted waters and under-utilised docksides into urban fish farms, where seafood can be bred, harvested and served on site in the flagship seafood eatery. Alongside the farm and food functions there could also be plans for recreational activities such as kayaking and swimming. Auckland’s new, large public space.
Oyster Bay is a science, food and architecture collaboration which seeks to educate Auckland about the harbour, its history and its pollutants. A single oyster can filter around 5 litres of water per hour, collecting heavy metals that are present in the harbor. The oyster pontoons are essentially a small oyster farm which acts to filter the water in Oyster Bay. Oyster Bay has multiple tiers, allowing the control of water quality and levels of filtration.
Once beyond Westhaven Marina and Wynyard Quarter, Tamaki Makaurau’s sea side and boating culture is missing from the inner city. The water is a vital part of life in Auckland, and is a huge component of many cultures. Site access via the water needs to be revitalised to reconnect the public to that waters edge. Incorporating public access to the site via the water would be symbolising the historic trading and commerce from the site via water and opens the possibility of creating a new maratime meeting point for the users. The mooring bay would be situated between the Bledisloe and Jellicoe Wharves. ‘Tamaki herenga waka’, the resting place of many waka, grasps the spirit of the proposed short term marina.
From the land, the
ancient Maori times, Tamaki Makaurau was known for fertile nature of the land and sea. Kumara from the and shark, Snapper, Mussels and other species from sea. Even Kelp harvested to preserve the fresh fish and meat. There is increasing awareness and interest in quality, sustainability and local food. Our food should be organic and locally sourced too.
The building program for the aquaculture attraction would be based on ‘tasting the sea’. The food would be farmed in a number of pools, and a larger bay which would become a watery regional park that emerges in the harbour to prefigure the city’s return to the waterfront. The program would contain a hatchery, nursery pools, a processing area, and a restaurant district where the food can be served on-site.
The conventional restaurant model is dying. No longer is a single restauranteur or type of cuisine assigned to a single property, it’s all about sharing space. To attract larger numbers to Oyster Bay, it could be beneficial to create a ‘food destination’, which focuses on the idea of a communal farming situation, perhaps on the rooftop, and the aquaculture farms nearby. The farm-to-table movement is when a restaurant features organic ingredients grown or raised on nearby farms, and sometimes even includes a farm onsite. To grow vegetable and herbs on site, to accompany the seafood that is farmed on site would create a wholesome sustainable dining experience.
The restaurant district focuses on the philosophy of “tamaki kainga nga ika me nga wheua katoa” – Auckland, where the fish are so succulent you can eat them bones and all. The layout needs to refer to a collective of food venues which symbolise the gathering of many Maori tribes to trade food and other resources in Tamaki Makaurau. The transport canal leads all the way into the food district, allowing passengers on board to hop on at the base of the site and hop off right in the heart of the food district.
A matrix of pathways would transport the visitor through and over the water. The paths would allow visitors to walk over the aquaculture beds and nurseries, the experience being akin to a trip to the beach to explore the vibrant rock pools. There is potential to have a green park space to accompany the water and become part of the exploration experience. Canals would run through this space, meaning bridges would need to be sporadic through the site.
Oyster-tecture is a proposal to help remediate the health of the New York Harbour by nurturing an active oyster culture that engages with the issues of water quality and rising tides. A soft infrastructure made out of fuzzy rope allows the seeding of oysters at key points in the harbour. The fuzzy rope supports the oyster and mussel growth, and builds a rich three-dimensional landscape mosaic. A watery regional park emerges in the harbour to prefigure the city’s return to the waterfront.
The anatomy of a shellfish can be used as a design driver. Key imagery can be derived from the structure of a shellfish, or from the historical Maori traps and structures used for harvesting seafood. Layers of muscle, gills and organs, encased in a rigid protective shell. The interior lined with a lustrous finish. Similarities can be drawn between the structure of a shellfish and the structure of a building. Rigid exterior vs polished interior, cocooning the life inside.
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marina
The organisation of the site focuses on the function of the food, with the layout serving the practicality of the shellfish production line. The program consists of 4 stages. Stage 1 - Young growth area - hatchery, upweller systems, grading area. Stage 2 - Adult growth zone - nursery pools, planting bay, harvesting bay. Stage 3 – Processing area - sorting, washing, counting, and distribution area. Stage 4 - Serving area - Restaurant district. These new areas drove the development of the new design, with the layout following the function and flow of these different programs. The site takes on the notion of rock pools to create a multi-functional area. Green space and water are weaved together, with bridges and pathways connecting the spaces.
The site has been designed to be experienced by foot or by water transport. A canal runs along the main axis of the site, with an electricity powered platform that glides seamlessly above the water. This canal is used to take visitors up to the restaurant district, and also functions as a delivery system for goods to the restaurant store rooms. There are two storage facilities, one at the base of the site, and the other at in the restaurant district. This allows goods to be dropped off by supplier at peak times, but can be delivered to the restaurant store room after canal passenger hours, to avoid congestion. Rubbish from the restaurant district will also be held in the onsite storage, and delivered via the canal after hours.
SERVICE ROUTE FOR RESTAURANTS PATHWAYS FOR PEDESTRIANS CANAL
The form of the aquaculture pools are derived from the islands that are in close proximity to the site. These are Browns Island, Rangitoto Island, Motuihe Island, Motutapu Island and Rakino Island. The pools get deeper with the inverted contours of the existing islands. This excavated land would be used to build up the land on Wai Wai Park.
The function of the smaller canals on the site would be to promote a steady flow of water to and from the aquaculture pools. The water would need to be circulated to maintain healthy. The canals would refresh the saltwater pools, and flush the older water back out to sea, although this water wouldn’t be polluted anymore. This whole cycle would slowly aid the harbours return to health.
WATER
OYSTER BAY
aquaculture farms
The joining of water and urban activities as the main function, bringing water into the city, and the city onto the water.
CITY