Uptown

Light Rail Transit (LRT) has the potential to unlock a whole new future urban neighbourhood in the city fringe, in the location of the current Dominion Road flyover.

The masterplan envisages an opportunity to create a mixed-use neighbourhood of four quadrants, built around a new urban junction and future LRT stop.

This offers the opportunity to achieve multiple urban development, social and environmental outcomes in a way that also reduces the severance and separation between city centre and city fringe.

This is a key goal of Transformational move 7: City to the villages.

Opportunity exists to establish new walking and cycling connections parallel with the railway corridor connecting the neighbouring transit-oriented development nodes at Dominion Junction and Maungawhau / Mt Eden.

These connections will, over the life of the masterplan:

• unlock and leverage the proximity benefits between the two stations and development nodes
• help open up access to the whole area
• increase the transformative potential of the transit investment in the southern fringe.

Post-CRL opening, land acquired for construction will provide the potential for more than 100,000 square metres of residential and commercial building in the immediate vicinity of Mt Eden Station.

This provides potential for over 1100 homes and 2300 future residents, creating a new future urban neighbourhood closely oriented around the rail station.

A new finer grain block and street pattern will be created enhancing access and seamless connections between the station and main arteries of Mt Eden and New North roads.

In addition to accommodating light rail between the city centre and Dominion Road, the masterplan envisages a much bolder future for Ian McKinnon Drive.

Making use of land within the motorway corridor, it will create a generous and quality green link of generous and comfortable walking and cycling connections between Karangahape Road and the future neighbourhood at Dominion Junction.

This will be a beltline or route that could become as celebrated and loved as Te Ara I Whiti Lightpath is today.

The transit investment and associated development opportunity for Karangahape Road, Mount Eden and Dominion Junction catchments will also likely invigorate the in-between uptown neighbourhood of Eden Terrace on Upper Symonds Street, Khyber Pass and Newton Road.

While lacking the abundant access coming to neighbouring nodes, as gentrification takes root, the neighbourhood may present an opportunity for people and activity priced out of adjoining higher value areas.