Princes Wharf is a former commercial wharf on the
Auckland waterfront
The Auckland waterfront (rarely the Auckland harbourfront) is a city-side stretch of the southern Waitematā Harbour coastline in Auckland, New Zealand. Previously mostly dominated by Ports of Auckland uses, from the 2000s on it is becoming i ...
, in
Auckland
Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, which has been redeveloped into a multi-story high-class
mixed-use development
Mixed use is a type of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning classification that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions ...
and
cruise ship
Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...
terminal.
While generally considered a success in redevelopment, as is the close by
Viaduct Basin, some critics have called its architecture 'urbanely sterile',
while others have remarked on the restrictions private owners have placed on public access rights. Also criticised was that many of the public facilities (like art galleries or markets) that were envisaged in the original plan change from a wharf to a new use did not materialise, and in the view of some, have instead seen the wharf become dominated by uses like car parking.
History
Working wharf
Plans for a new wharf between Hobson Wharf and the ferry terminal were made in 1920 by the
Auckland Harbour Board, with construction commencing in 1921.
The two-storey concrete structure was unique at the time in Auckland, as all previously constructed wharves utilised a single-storey shed design.
Princes Wharf was formally opened on 12 May 1929 by
Earl Jellicoe. , the then-largest
battlecruiser
The battlecruiser (also written as battle cruiser or battle-cruiser) was a type of capital ship of the first half of the 20th century. These were similar in displacement, armament and cost to battleships, but differed in form and balance of att ...
of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
, berthed at the wharf for the commissioning, showing the strategic importance the British Empire attributed to the naval facilities of its colonies.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the wharf was placed under the control of the
United States Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...
, and used to provide provisions to the
Pacific Theatre of war.
After World War II, the wharf, and Auckland itself, gained in importance both as starting point and destination for an increasing number of
ocean liner
An ocean liner is a type of passenger ship primarily used for transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). The ...
s (especially in the early post-war years when long-distance air travel was not as established yet), and later on, cruise ships including the and . In 1960, passenger services were moved from the neighbouring
Queens Wharf to Princes Wharf,
and in 1961 a dedicated passenger terminal was built on the wharf.
Redevelopment
In the early 1990s, plans were introduced to redevelop the wharf and add new functions to a site that had become under-used in some respects. With the new buildings designed to be reminiscent of a ship, the redevelopment of the wharf started in 1998.
[Information plaque at the end of Princes Wharf, as of 2007]
The wharf now contains the renovated Overseas Passenger Terminal (berthing of cruise ships) of
Ports of Auckland,
a
Hilton hotel, various restaurants as well as apartments, office space and a multi-story parking building. Princes Wharf also contains the largest apartment of New Zealand, a luxury residence built for one of the wharf's developers with 1,061 m
2 of internal floor space and decks of of
deck space.
However, a number of the hotel apartments -
like many buildings constructed in the 1990s in New Zealand, are having weathertightness issues, and as of 2010, are undergoing substantial maintenance.
The development also contains first-floor viewing decks at the 'prow end' of the development, which are
public space
A public space is a place that is open and accessible to the general public. Roads, pavements, public squares, parks, and beaches are typically considered public space. To a limited extent, government buildings which are open to the public, su ...
like other parts of the wharf, but have long been a matter of legal contention. The wharf developers and the Hilton hotel have repeatedly, and against legal orders, limited public access to this area (for example to use it for private functions), while officially claiming a need to act against vandalism and use by drug dealers.
In the discussion about opening up more of the waterfront, the wharf has thus been cited as a negative example, touted by developers as providing more public access to the harbour, but now being all but privatised, as well as inadequate for the increasing demands of the cruise ship industry.
References
External links
Photographs of Princes Wharfheld in
Auckland Libraries' heritage collections.
{{coord, -36.840752, 174.765015, type:landmark_region:NZ, display=title
Hotels in Auckland
Wharves in New Zealand
2000s architecture in New Zealand
Auckland CBD
Auckland waterfront
Waitematā Harbour