Delta Works: Adaptive Reuse of the Industrial Shed

Abstract

The Te Whau River, located west of the city outer fringe, was used by the Maori as a transport portage to cross between the two Auckland Harbours; Waitemata and Manukau. With the colonisation of the city and the development of rail then road, the river lies underutilised and neglected. Recently the Te Whau Pathway Trust has proposed a shared pathway that will follow the original portage route of the Whau River. The pathway will connect the patches of green reserves left behind by the demolished brickwork factories built along the river in the past, allowing for a new connection to the river. The Whau River and the proposed pathway bends around the industrial edge of New Lynn at Delta Avenue, where the area is highly occupied by portal frame ‘shed’ warehouses that only address the street front, rejecting the river edge. The urban research carried out has shown that these sheds house a high number of trades related to the automotive industry. With a future decline in car ownership, as modes of transport change, this thesis applies the adaptive reuse approach to these existing sheds. A location facing north towards the river and near the proposed Te Whau Pathway is identified and a design is proposed that adapts two existing neighbouring sheds into a ceramics centre with workshops, studios, gallery and café space, and the other next door for a combination of living and working spaces. An outdoor public space connects the ceramics centre building to the river and includes an outdoor performance stage, garden, playground and fireplace. The fireplace includes a tall chimney that re-instates the kiln chimneys that once marked out the clay river banks in the past and will act as an attracting beacon to the surrounding residents across the river to the north. This thesis explores the combination of adaptive reuse and urban design approach, acting as a catalyst for regenerating an industrial area and making a new connection to the river, drawing inspiration from New Lynn’s heritage and culture.