THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
February 2008
4.
campus design framework
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4.1
THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
Design Principles
The following design principles are established to indicate a direction for building and site improvements that contribute to quality of life on
the campus and the quality of environment and character of the campus.
• Celebrate the campus realm - ensure development of buildings,
landscape, paths and streets, indoor & outdoor spaces is
integrated to create a vibrant campus that is welcoming to the
students, staff and visitors alike.
• Create a campus identity - create a distinct character for the
campus defined by its unique natural environment, landuse,
existing & future built form and landscape, reflecting the
University’s pride in its Maori dimension. Use every new project
to define, improve and connect the wider campus environment.
• Strengthen the unique natural setting of the campus
- facilitate development that protects and enhances the unique
natural and designed landscape character of the open fields,
arboretum, lakes precinct, hillslopes, plazas and courtyards,
including memorial planting and other significant planting
projects undertaken by the University.
- facilitate development that maximizes connection to the green
open space and lakes precinct. Enhance vistas and access, and
orient buildings and open spaces to reinforce this connection.
• Preserve significant views from public spaces – both within
the campus and from surrounding areas.
• Extend the designed landscape legacy and spatial character
of the campus - consolidate built form within the residential and
urban core; balance the distribution of character landscape by
providing a new landscape centre in the east campus.
• Establish a large events space - to enrich the social and
recreational life of the campus.
• Protect significant vegetation on the campus - successful
species of significance on site should be protected from new
development and incorporated into new planting works.
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
• Create walkable precincts & hubs - create a system of
walkable (5 minutes) mixed-use precincts centred on hubs, the
foci of campus social and academic life. Use the sequence of
hubs, linked with pathways to facilitate the creation of a unified
campus.
• Create connected open spaces - use existing and potential
open spaces to create a well defined system of pedestrian
linkages and pedestrian spaces, which include walkways, formal
and informal open spaces, courtyards & gardens, linking all
facilities, bus stops and parking.
• Establish a ceremonial area - as the cultural and formal hub of
the campus as a whole.
• Activate pedestrian spaces & places - use the established
system of main pedestrian routes & pedestrian open spaces and
view corridors as a framework for locating new buildings. Open
up edges of buildings to outdoor spaces to create a continuous
and lively pedestrian edge.
• Facilitate active / accessible social hubs - use design &
location of buildings, courtyards, outdoor / indoor gathering
places, pedestrian linkages & open spaces to create a hierarchy
of social spaces that fosters social interaction.
• Enhance the Main Street - develop Hillcrest Road frontages as
intense activity areas.
• Coordinate pedestrian space - make existing and future
pedestrian / bicycle paths continuous both to destinations off
campus and to key destinations within the campus.
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• Enhance east-west pedestrian spine - develop the main
walkway from Knighton Road to Silverdale Road across Hillcrest
Road as the major pedestrian “street” of the campus.
• Establish north-south pedestrian spine - develop the partially
established north-south spine from the Southern boundary to
lakes / sports fields.
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• Establish universal access - combine and improve the
circulation for pedestrians, cyclists and people with disabilities
into an integrated universal access.
• Enhance Unisafe – to ensure pedestrian walkways, pedestrian
spaces and parking areas are adequately and appropriately
illuminated at all times.
• Improve pedestrian safety and transportation – create a
legible and accessible system of vehicle, emergency & public
transport with high priority to pedestrian movement. Establish a
clear definition of all forms of access to facilities and departments
on campus.
• Balance distribution of cars – relocate required car parking
generally to the periphery of the campus to promote a pedestrianfriendly central area. To reduce land area occupied by cars, the
provision of parking buildings will be considered for any further
major parking requirements.
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
• Promote compact, sustainable development - create an
integrated, human-scale campus environment that promotes
walking /cycling /public transport. In-fill development for efficient
use of land and remove temporary buildings for new permanent
buildings and open space.
• Activate unfriendly building fronts - by sleeving the buildings
with active pedestrian-orientated frontages.
• Encourage mix of landuse - use walkable precincts to facilitate
provision of variety of necessary and desirable services &
facilities, including café, retail and residences.
• Recognise heritage - preserve significant buildings and
landscape features on the campus.
• Create a built form that emphasise the underlying
topography - provide higher buildings along the Hillcrest Road
ridge, and lower buildings adjacent to or opposite residential
neighbourhoods.
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• Strengthen main pedestrian accessways - by concentrating
buildings along main pedestrian routes and Hillcrest Road.
• Provide definition & enclosure through built form - create
a sense of enclosure by providing sufficient height, width and
continuity of the buildings, either individually or collectively, in
proportion to the size of open spaces.
• Promote quality design - create an inspiring campus
environment through carefully designed individual buildings,
artwork, outdoor features and pedestrian paths with consideration
to aesthetic effect of the campus at large.
• Enhance main entrances - strengthen the role of entry 2a as
a main public entrance to the University and foster a sense of
arrival.
• Rationalise entrance numbering – identify all entrances to the
campus with consistent, attractive & inviting campus signage.
• Enhance public interface - improve environmental quality
of key intersections and points of introduction to the campus.
Create a landscape and design character that is consistent with
the character of the campus but compatible with the adjacent
neighbourhoods.
• Facilitate community focus - use building design and location
to create a sense of place both for the campus community and
for the surrounding local community.
• Utilise new and existing public facilities on campus - to
improve public use of the campus.
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
4.2
Design Concept
The overall concept for the future development of the University
Campus is to concentrate the development of new buildings and
outdoor social gathering spaces along two underlying pedestrian
axes which organise the layout of the campus, while protecting and
enhancing its overall spatial focus on the green open space of the
playing fields.
The Concept Plan transforms the activity-based development of
the existing campus into an organised sequence of mixed-use
precincts centred on social hubs, creating a more compact and
walkable campus. The social hubs are in turn connected by main
pedestrian spines that run east-west and north-south, unifying the
whole campus.
P
The Concept Plan includes access and landscape improvements, a
series of new building sites, areas for additions to existing buildings,
and a network of circulation for universal access and public / private
transportation. Improvements are suggested to develop Hillcrest
Road as the main street and to enhance the linkage across.
The key elements of the Concept Plan are as follows:
1.
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3.
4.
5.
6.
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enhancements to entrances / intersections
social hubs / walkable precincts
intensification of development and activities along main
pedestrian spines and cross linkages
landscape character areas
sports fields / recreation / events area
intensification of Hillcrest Road development and activity
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
4.3
Concept Plan
The Concept Plan establishes qualities that are most critical to
the campus’ identity and its strength as an academic setting, and
suggests ways in which they can be preserved and enhanced as
the campus grows.
The overall approach to the Concept Plan was based on the above
key principles (Section 4.1) with particular emphasis on the following
key features.
Significant landscape improvements are critical for the campus
access roads, intersections and entrances to establish “a sense of
arrival” to the campus. The Concept Plan identifies opportunities
for such enhancements that strengthen the campus’ identity and its
relationship to the wider Hamilton environment.
The Concept Plan identifies a number of key locations for hubs or
social gathering spaces. These hubs are envisaged as the centres
of 5min walkable precincts defined by their strategic locations,
existing buildings and views to green open space, and characterised
by a mix of uses and activities. They also establish a framework for
location of new buildings, additions to existing buildings, universal
access and vehicle circulation.
A new hub with a possible water feature is suggested for the eastern
part of the campus to complement the landscape setting of the main
campus, taking advantage of the existing stream.
The hubs are inter-connected by two major pedestrian spines that
traverse east-west and north-south and by the horseshoe link around
the playing fields. Frontage and /or landscape requirements are
suggested for enhancing the quality of these pedestrian spaces.
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The hilly topography, green playing fields, lakeside area, and
arboretum & other significant plantings provide identity to the
campus and the Concept Plan outlines protection and enhancement
of these landscape character areas.
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THE UNIVERSITY OF WAIKATO | HAMILTON CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT PLAN | PART 1 : CONCEPT PLAN
A natural amphitheatre form exists where the playing fields meet the
campus’ built edge on its southern side. This location is identified
as an events area both for the campus community and Hamilton as
a whole.
The Concept Plan suggests a built form that emphasises the
underlying hilly topography, by providing higher buildings along the
Hillcrest Road ridge to take advantage of views and to intensify
activities along this main road, and lower buildings adjacent to or
opposite residential neigbourhoods to ensure compatibility with
adjoining development.
Further, Hillcrest Road is identified to be a pedestrian priority main
street with appropriate provision for controlled through traffic. The
buildings along Hillcrest Road shall be no higher than the width of
the street to ensure adequate daylight and sunlight access.
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