Westhaven Promenade

Auckland's waterfront walk had a gap. Between the Auckland Harbour Bridge and the Viaduct, the promenade along the Westhaven foreshore stopped and started, and behind it sat failing stormwater along Westhaven Drive, a seawall due for repair, overloaded parking and paths, and water-quality problems in St Mary's Bay. Eke Panuku's Stage 2 would close the gap and fix what lay beneath it.

The job ran along a working marina at the water's edge, a continuous 350-metre boardwalk to build while berth holders, tenants, walkers and cyclists kept using the place, mana whenua guiding the cultural side, and even Owha, the resident leopard seal, in the mix. Below ground, the stormwater and seawall had to be renewed at the same time.

RCP was Engineer to the Contract and project manager for the build, working the marine environment and its many stakeholders, the marina team, tenants, berth holders and mana whenua, into a coordinated delivery.

The boardwalk went in as a precast 350-metre concrete deck with timber decking, steel balustrades and tensioned wiring, the coastal rock armour was upgraded and around 1,200 cubic metres of sandstone dredging managed, and surplus timber and gangways from Stage 1 were reused where they could be. Six new rain gardens and stormwater chambers cleaned up the run-off into St Mary's Bay while protecting the existing pōhutukawa. Completed in 2020, the promenade joined the waterfront walk from the Viaduct to the Harbour Bridge, and was recognised at the 2020/21 Hynds CCNZ Construction Awards.