A NEW CHINESE EXOTIC Retrofitting A Car-park Building into A Chinese Community Centre

Abstract

Private cars provide Aucklanders with the convenience to travel, and they are still the most important travelling method in the city. With the continual increase in the number of private vehicles, car-park buildings have become an indispensable part of the urban landscape. A large amount of urban space with extremely high value is occupied by single-function car-parking buildings; however, some of these buildings completely lack architectural qualities. Fortunately, since the end of the first decade of the 21st century, Auckland Council has promoted public transportation by investing in a series of major public projects, such as the City Rail Link, and introducing related policies to curb the use of private motor vehicles. With the gradual improvement of public transportation and vehicle technology, some traditional car park buildings will foreseeably be abandoned or made available for reuse. Based on this assumption, this thesis will investigate the potential reuse of one of these car park structures to offer a place of cultural exploration to the local community. Chinese culture is broad and profound. With the acceleration of globalisation and the economic development of China, Chinese culture has spread its roots all over the world. Like a jewel in the South Pacific, New Zealand attracts a large number of Chinese people for travel, study, work, and to live. The vast majority of New Zealand Chinese people reside in Auckland and as a consequence, Auckland is inevitably influenced by Asian and Chinese culture. At the same time, however, most local Chinese communities lack the facilities required to accommodate the increasingly growing demand for their cultural activities. The goal of this project is to integrate both concepts and rethink a methodology that can maximise the value of design to contribute to the Chinese community and benefit other Aucklanders.