Plans for small, shiny Avondale town centre

By BERNARD ORSMAN

Avondale's town centre is at the heart of an Auckland City Council plan to revitalise the suburb.

Residents have commented that the town centre has poor street lighting, graffiti and dirty streets.

Planners, on the other hand, believe it has the potential to develop a "small shiny urban" look.

After withdrawing a plan in 2001 to rezone parts of Avondale, including the racecourse, for three, four and five storeys, the council has updated Avondale's liveable community planning project based around the town centre.

Avondale people have told researchers that intensification around the town centre is acceptable as long as there are jobs, services and infrastructure to sustain the extra people.

The council is looking at intensification within a 10-minute walking distance of the town centre, after consultation with the community.

Auckland Regional Transport Network, a transport body owned by six Auckland councils, is also looking to move the train station closer to the town centre.

Avondale is a blue-collar suburb with large population growth. A quarter of the population is Asian, another quarter Pacific Islanders, 11 per cent Maori and it has a decreasing European population.