Taranaki as a Great Street : how can stream daylighting be used as an urban device in place-making?

Abstract

The historical procedure to contain and pipe streams that interrupted urban development was considered best practice in the management of stormwater systems. However, the inherent value of open waterways has been recognised in providing for community well-being, including stormwater treatment, flood management, aesthetics and recreation. The practice of bringing historic streams to the surface is referred to as ‘daylighting’.

Stream daylighting tends to occur as nature restoration in the form of a park; it is much rarer to find it in a constrained environment in a more ‘architectural’ solution. The objective of this investigation was to offer stream daylighting as more than the re-introduction of nature in the urban environment and use it as an urban device for place- and city-making.

It is an understatement to say that people inhabiting space are influenced by their environment. My interest lies in this influence and the possibilities it brings when it can be harnessed in design. The knowledge of behaviour in space formed around the notion of affect and affordances can have large-scale consequences in urban development; it can dictate the perception of space. This pertains not solely to the built environment, but extends to the natural environment as well.

I developed a fieldwork technique (relating cross-sections to behaviour) in order to understand placemaking and what is involved in the behaviour of the street, the environment and the city by building on the interpretations of environmental perception as explained by Deleuze and Guatarri. The far-reaching consequences of urban restructuring and the role psychology plays were unexpected yet intriguing, resulting in a encompassing study that views the larger implications of an urban project, but might lack some finesse in the architectural details due to time constraints.

Additionally, stewardship over nature is a strong sentiment in New Zealand (Kaitiakitanga). Water pollution is an ongoing problem in New Zealand and every effort has to be taken to reduce it. Wellington’s geographical features show potential for urban stream daylighting on Taranaki Street. In order to maximise its potential, I needed to understand the hydrology of Wellington and the inherent technical difficulties pertaining hydrodynamics. Correlations between completed projects and their location provided helpful in determining dimensions and layout for my own design.

These aspects were brought together in my thesis and, in my view, explored in greater detail than is the norm.