Beachlands Maraetai Coastal Walkway

More than a lineal intervention the Beachlands-Maraetai Coastal Walkway demonstrates a project with conceptual breadth delivered through a subtlelty of detail. With close to 9 years of staged development the project has maintained its initial design intent and integrity, a 6km narrative that draws from the the past while weaving through the contemporary community uses and values. The project not only successfully negates sensitive coastal landscapes however the eccentricities of two unique communities. The physical outcome is manifested through a restrained use of materials, subtle interventions that reflect the farming, maritime, and natural history of the area. For example artistic nodal tidal markers provide opportunity for education and reflection. The use of timber walkways, viewing nodes, robust furniture and endemic beach grasses often provide an edge between the coastal landscape and the rural or urban condition. The Beachland-Maraetai Coastal Walkway represents a project that has successfully connected Auckland's urban edge with its green edge, in this case its coastal edge. More than a passive reconnection the project affords a depth of resolve, a pathway to reflect upon landscapes history, contemporary identity and coastal processes.