Hobsonville Point: Suburb of the future

Community at Hobsonville Point. Photo / Dean Purcell

Atop the peninsula jutting out into Auckland's Waitemata Harbour is a prototype of what the future of the city's suburbs could look like.

The former defence base at Hobsonville Point, to the northwest of the city, has been transformed into a busy hive of construction amidst the local schools, cluster of town houses, suburban homes, a café and information centre.

The vision behind it is to build a sustainable community full of people who can live, work and play locally. Once complete it will be host to a number of retail stores, offices, some 3,000 homes and a full dining and entertainment precinct along its waterfront.

Already it has schools, ferries, a café and a regular Farmers market for the community.

Even in the middle of the working day there was a quiet hubbub of activity outside the suburb's only dining establishment - the Catalina Café. Most of those the Heraldspoke to, who were seated under the warm winter sun, were those working in the area or visitors who'd come to get a glimpse of the area's rapid development.

Northcote Point resident, Michelle Batchelor, was there with her parents and young daughter, to have a peek at the area and some show homes.

"We like the open space, it's a modern, family environment," she said.

Others commented on the suburb's image as a one-stop destination.

Both Ross Dinely, from Brown's Bay and Gareth Kinill said there was a real community feel to the area.

"It's become a real destination, a hub, where people are going to want to come," said Mr Dinely.

"Once you are here, it's a destination, you can work here and then just walk down the road for a coffee," said Mr Kinill.

Local resident Jacob Aitken was one of those who has made the most of this concept of being able to live, work and play locally.

As a builder he'd been involved in the construction of some of the homes and had decided to jump in and buy one for his young family. He said while it was a bit of a leap into the unknown as there wasn't much around at the time, the area has become a nice place to live.

"Everything is so accessible, the level is nice, can walk anywhere without it being too much of a mission. My two-year-old goes and plays in the local park across the road twice a day."

Hobsonville Land Company chief executive Chris Aitken hoped the growing suburb would become a road-map for the future of suburban development.

"It's a masterplan, the flagship for new towns," he said.

"The community aspect has been given an equal balance."

Fact box

Some of what's already there
• Primary and secondary schools
• Café for breakfast, lunch and dinner
• Regular bus service
• 24 ha of parks, reserves and public open space
• Community hall and gardens
• In the pipeline
• A waterfront hub with shops, cafes, apartments and offices
• Looping coastal walkway
• Retirement living • Main road with terraced homes business and shops