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The tree-filled linear park at the northern entrance to Te Waihorotiu Station has reached another big milestone on its journey to completion.
The eastern section of Te Hā Noa from Lorne Street to Albert Park is now open to the public, with widened footpaths, fewer traffic lanes, wooden seating, new trees and landscaped resting places, all reflecting its te reo Māori name.
Te Hā Noa is a name gifted by mana whenua. Te Hā is about life’s essence – to breathe – and Noa is about being free in the journey to experience your surroundings.
Four trees were crane-lifted from trucks into new street-side seating areas earlier this month, watched over by the ancient trees of Albert Park.
The new trees – pūriri, pōhutukawa, titoki and rewarewa – and around 600 new plants underneath are another milestone in the transformation of midtown’s station neighbourhood.
Auckland Council’s midtown regeneration programme is ensuring the area will be ready when the City Rail Link (CRL) and Te Waihorotiu Station open.
Jenny Larking, Auckland Council Head of City Centre Programmes, says the new streets and spaces are like a leafy ‘living room’ for people in midtown.
“Like any international city with an underground rail system, our streets and spaces need to be tailormade to cater for an influx of people. The area had to undergo radical change to make sure the City Rail Link was optimised at street level. The fruits of that change are becoming really clear now,” she says.
Councillor Richard Hills recognises that trees provide shade and shelter, attract birdlife, counter the heat effects of an urban space like this, and absorb carbon.
“Recent urban heat assessments show our city is warming, especially in the city centre. These stunning native trees will not only help reduce those effects, but will contribute to the growing network of green infrastructure flourishing across the city centre and the region.
“Visitors, residents, workers and students will be able to walk or sit beneath these trees and amongst the new planting to enjoy a fresh perspective on the city centre, with no doubt many more native birds and insects enjoying their new habitats as well. It’s another big step forward in the development of Te Hā Noa,” he says.
In time, Te Hā Noa will form a green link across the city, linking two much-loved city parks – Rangipuke / Albert Park and Waikōkota / Victoria Park.
Victoria Street is one of three east-west streets purpose-designed for the station neighbourhood. In the regeneration, Wellesley Street is becoming an important central city bus interchange, and the upgraded Victoria Street is making the connection between walking, cycling, high frequency bus routes, and the train station easier and safer. Mayoral Drive will be the east-west route for the balance of vehicle movements.
This latest milestone follows the mid-section of Victoria Street’s Te Hā Noa, between Elliott Street and Queen Street, which opened in October 2024.
Read about the opening of the first section of Te Hā Noa at OurAuckland.
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Another big station milestone
As the linear park at the station’s Victoria Street entrance reaches this milestone, the station itself is gleaming with finishing touches.
Four thousand rods designed to mimic the stems of raupo (reeds) and the movement of water are now in place in the main entrance of Te Waihorotiu Station. Points of light among the reeds reflect a starlit sky and provide functional lighting at the gateway to the station.
A kauri carving at the centre was designed in collaboration with Paraone Luiten-Apirana ((Ngāti Hikairo, Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Arawa) and the station’s main artist Graham Tipene (Ngāti Whātua, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Haua, Ngāti Manu).
The carving represents Horotiu, the kaitiaki or guardian looking after the people and supporting the abundance of life-giving energy in the area.
More on the station design here.
