Utopia in a Dystopian World

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to look at a way of responding to the rise of the sea level on a site in downtown Auckland and to design a development plan for Auckland’s waterfront in a probable future when the sea rises more than 15 metres above existing levels. Through territorial analysis and movement tracking, informed by the need to incorporate existing buildings and anticipate human behaviours, I aim to envision a world, emerging between now and this future, with not only similar features but also many different ones. People will still carry out many regular human activities, involving, for example, plant life, parks and natural recreation areas, but it will become a different situation. Linked by ribbons of resting spaces and activity areas, the designed megastructure has vertical form and expanse and even agriculture. Offering potential for new forms of lifestyle, I predict a pattern over the site area where the new climatic conditions might be preferred by people. Yet, alongside this vision, this thesis examines the notion of a dark-future model of the flooded city. It takes the ideas of current rise in sea-level as a springboard for an almost science-fiction and dark future of flooding, to reflect on a horrible state of affairs – the dystopian world resulting from the rising sea levels. The site is a significant harbour in New Zealand. It has a vital role in the transportation and networks of Auckland. The question is posed of how (when these buildings are submerged) we can keep parts of them and give them functions and uses that are significant in the future. How do we give Auckland rebirth in the face of a dystopian future? Moreover, the Queen Street Valley and the harbour are, together, the oldest and most valuable area in Auckland. I look at a worse case, and at a site on which there are fascinating probable future scenarios, considering how bad or how salvageable it might be. Significantly, by considering the possibility of the old functions within the new scheme, I present a solution for the coming homelessness as the sea level rises and the new coastline forms. This thesis aims to create a new scheme of the old city, as well as a response aimed at reducing the amount of travel. With changes in the micro-environmental climate, the challenge is to satisfy people’s living demands and offer complex recreational spaces that increase the ratio of open space per person in the city – and to organise this combination well. In this way, I hope to create a utopian vision of potential in an imaged dystopian world.