With crowds of tourists and office workers now filling the western waterfront fringes of Auckland's CBD, it is hard to remember that transforming former fisheries warehouses and industrial spaces into a vibrant mixed use precinct began only in the mid-2000s.
Before that, New Zealand's 1995 America's Cup win prompted the metamorphosis of the Viaduct closer to town by 2000, in time to host the Louis Vuitton regatta and the America's Cup. Hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2011 then pushed the timetable to turn the Wynyard Quarter into a vibrant, mixed use, harbourside community.
Charming as they are, the restaurants, parks and event spaces were only the beginning of the neighbourhood.
The waterfront was also designated a smart working area – home to innovative, creative and green businesses connected by state-of-the-art communications as well as old-fashioned people-to-people amenities such as restaurants, plazas and walking lanes.
Goodman was one of early investors in the area, acquiring and developing a series of high-end offices on the southern Fanshawe Street edge of Wynyard Quarter. Known as VXV - the name reflects its gateway position between Victoria Park and the Viaduct - the precinct is now home to Fonterra, IBM, Bayleys, Air New Zealand, Datacom, Microsoft and KPMG.
"Goodman develops both industrial and office parks in Auckland. We could see the potential of the area and saw it as a chance to contribute to the growth of Auckland's waterfront," says Kimberley Richards, Goodman's director of investment management and capital transactions.
"The opportunity existed to create a vibrant office precinct attracting global businesses. We now have significant scale, establishing VXV as a highly sought after office location."
The seven VXV buildings already host some 10 per cent of the CBD workforce (about 7000 people), with the whole Wynyard Quarter area expected to accommodate around 25,000 workers by 2030.
However, the type of offices large clients were demanding has shifted since Air New Zealand brought its corporate offices to the first site, says Richards.
"Corporates are consolidating from a number of office buildings to one. They want a high profile building that reflects their brand and their values," she says. "Today, they occupy less space in higher quality, more efficient buildings. With changing work practices and new technology, people are moving from fixed desk to more flexible work spaces. On average, that means a 20 per cent decrease in footprint."
Goodman worked with planners and architects Jasmax to ensure public plazas and laneways around their clients' buildings connected with the wider Wynyard Quarter master plan. They sought street level tenants who could bring amenities to the area's workers and residents - cafes, restaurants, and retail - and ensured that new builds met 5 Green Star design ratings.
"Our customers are engaged in the VXV community," she says. "There's a wellness committee which runs fundraising, yoga, and other wellbeing initiatives. We're focused on activating the plazas and connecting people across the precinct."
Richards points to Goodman's work with Fonterra on their new seven floor campus-style building as a poster-build for both companies' sustainability aims. Design and construction elements - double glazing and low E curtain wall facade, atrium and sky lights that bring in natural light, fresh air from outdoor ducts and an internal green wall irrigated from harvested rain water - are combined with social sustainability.
The ground floor cafe and event spaces are open to the public while collaborative and activity-based working for the 1500 staff is designed into the open floor plates and shared staircases around the atrium.
The Property Council of New Zealand's Excellence Award-winning building is expected to achieve a 4 to 5 Star NABERSNZ (National Australian Built Environment Rating System) rating for water consumption and energy efficiency.
Build of the VXV precinct is complete, with 99 per cent occupancy, Richards says, so the focus is now around improving the amenities for corporate clients: "We are excited about the growth of Wynyard Quarter and the America's Cup returning in 2021."