Pūkākā green link

Queen Street cuts through a wider cultural landscape including pa and urupā, Maramamao cultivation area and other significant sites to Ngāti Te Whiti. The street itself also holds significant historical importance to Ngāti Te Whiti and wider iwi groups.

Queen Street is an informal book-end to the western end of the city centre. Traditionally a fringe street of the city centre it has become more and more active with significant investment and success of the White Hart, Kings and Queens Hotel, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery / Len Lye Centre. The upper portion of Queen Street in particular has become the centre of what is known as the 'West End Precinct'.

Any development of Queen Street needs to recognise its significance to Ngāti Te Whiti, be developed in close partnership with Ngāti Te Whiti and be guided by the proposed Ngāmotu Māori Design Principles developed for the city centre. The now invisible cultural landscape needs to be physically represented throughout the city centre and that includes Queen Street and the areas around Robe Street.

To provide a quality public realm that matches that of the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery / Len Lye Centre, and the White Hart building, upper Queen needs to be developed into a quality shared space environment that is inclusive to the public and Ngāti Te Whiti. The street needs to operate with a community focus with places to meet, linger and find respite. The street should have traffic calming at the entrance, be pedestrian oriented with no kerbs, allow for vehicular access to the Kings and Queen Hotel, mobility parking and loading bays. Parking should be limited, and new planting should be introduced that doesn't mask the architecture of the adjacent buildings, that softens the width of the street and adds amenity.

The lower portion of Queen Street is overtly wide with a tipped balance to vehicle-oriented space. The width should be taken advantage of to widen footpaths for walking and cycling, and new tree planting to create a processional feel linking from the clock tower and Robe Reserve to the cenotaph and coastal edge. This can be achieved easily by narrowing the carriageway without losing parking. It is intended that an investment in creating a quality street environment will encourage private land development on both sides of the street. (See Development Opportunities).

The terminus of the street at Molesworth around the cenotaph is proposed to be a formal civic space that enables memorial events linked to the cenotaph. This can be achieved by raising the carriageway and blocking off the western carriageway where it splits at the cenotaph and leaving the eastern split for vehicle movements.  A new controlled pedestrian crossing from the civic space to Regina Place and the coastal walkway will complete the link to the coast. The crossing is key to the city leveraging off the popular coastal walkway and the West End Precinct.

To complete the pedestrian link to Pūkākā (Marsland Hill) pedestrian upgrades are required on Vivian and Powderham Streets. This includes potential controlled pedestrian crossing upgrades and other formal crossing points and in some cases moving existing crossings. The Robe Street connection is made up of two sections. Lower Robe and Upper Robe.

Lower Robe runs parallel with Robe Street Park. It is well established as pedestrian thoroughfare, but opportunity lies in upgrading the street and Robe Street Park to address safety, visibility, orientation and connections to the justice buildings, the police building and Atkinson building. Robe Street through this section could work as a parkway with wider pedestrian and cycleways linking toward Pūkākā. The cultural landscape values of this area hold rich histories and stories that should be better reflected in the park. There is extremely limited visual representation of Ngāti Te Whiti and Te Atiawa and cultural landscapes within the city centre. Given historical occupation by Ngāti Te Whiti in the Robe Street Park area this should be considered as a strong driver when undertaking any upgrade.

The upper portion of Robe Street above Powderham Street will need limited upgrades to increase accessibility. One side of the street should have the kerb pushed out to make a wider footpath, and new paving and planting installed. A new crossing will be required across Vivian Street, likely a controlled pedestrian crossing. Beyond the crossing a link through the Taranaki Cathedral grounds to the top of Pūkākā can be created with basic wayfinding and new lighting. Proposed new buildings and uses of the church ground will need to be supported by safe pedestrian connections.