Sir Ron Carter: Ray of hope for a coherent, resilient future for our city

Conventional wisdom has it that the public and private sectors are grudging bedfellows which only ever work to some common interest out of sheer necessity.

Collaboration across the sectors for a common good is often talked about in theory, but seldom achieved in reality. But the Committee for Auckland's suggestion to Auckland City Mayor Dick Hubbard that a taskforce would yield some direction for the design of the city has shown this idea to be fruitful.

When it comes to the issue of conserving versus developing the urban areas of a city, viewpoints are entrenched. Local government is viewed as slow and obstructive, the private developer as fast and greedy.

We can also be strong-willed in expressing what we like and don't like about design.

One man's palace can be another man's shanty. Change to our urban environment is always debated fiercely.

No one has been particularly happy with Auckland's changing face. Although there are pockets of fine product, the city has seemed forever haphazard. Yet few have put their hands up to address the urban disorder.

The report from the mayoral taskforce on urban design is a sign that a collaborative effort can lead to agreed action. The taskforce came from different backgrounds - from investment, design, development, the tertiary sector and local government.

The taskforce produced a document that is refreshingly clear in direction and cuts through the usual non-committal, design by committee, politically correct but pleasing no one type of report that has become commonplace in local and central government.

Mr Hubbard is to be congratulated for his brief to the group to leave no stone unturned, not accept second-best and to be bold and not constrained by trying to second-guess any political acceptability.

Perhaps we are getting now to the nub of the city's inertia. For too long we have been second-guessing rather than getting in front and leading by defining what is wanted for Auckland.

Without getting too carried away about claiming this initiative as some first in collaboration across sectors and disciplines, it is, indeed, a timely and heartening symbol of co-operation.

Modern leadership is about sharing decision-making. There is no point waiting around for another Robbie, a Rudolph Giuliani or a Ken Livingstone to come and wave a wand over Auckland.

It will rise up as a great city when civic and corporate leaders speak with one voice, boldly articulating what it stands for. The cliches about a heartless, fast and ugly city can then be laid to rest.

Conventional wisdom also has it that citizens are reluctant to give their time freely for the good of their city. That has perhaps often been Aucklanders' experience. The running of the city has been left to the councils, which are then beaten up when they get it wrong.

But this so-called wisdom is being proved wrong also by the taskforce initiative. Developers, business leaders, educators, designers and the council have put in hours of time and goodwill to take this project forward.

Good leadership has many definitions, but a common theme is not giving up. It is about sticking to a vision and setting goals that are a stretch. There are always times when they can seem far from achievable, but success has always been about picking yourself up and keeping going.

I am growing optimistic that the initiatives and work on urban design are putting structures in place that can lead to ongoing collaboration among city leaders across the board to propel Auckland forward.

My experience within other organisations and now chairing the Committee for Auckland has taught me that shared decision-making can generate goodwill and in turn achieve critical mass. A chorus of voices singing from the same music sheet is far more powerful than a lone voice.

These are first steps towards designing a coherent and resilient future for an Auckland with a heart that pulses. It will take tenacity, some stumbles, and some perseverance.

But there is more than a glimmer of a collective goodwill to get something done, to move past some traditional political and philosophical no-go zones to achieve lasting results.

The momentum achieved by the urban design taskforce could well signal a new goodwill in Auckland's civic, corporate and academic corridors of power that would do well to roll on downtown and tease out solutions for the design of other projects, such as the city's waterfront.

* The Committee for Auckland is a not-for-profit trust that follows the model of similar groups in Melbourne and London.