New Christchurch apartments criticised for having 'poor' urban design

Many apartments built in parts of Christchurch since 2016 have “monolithic” appearances and “inadequate or poor” design, according to a new report.

The findings are no surprise to residents who have long complained about intensive developments being put on properties where a single home used to sit, causing problems with parking and clogging narrow streets.

The developments looked at in the review all comply with existing planning rules, although some developers have interpreted the rules differently, which has led to calls for the District Plan to be modified.

The report, by the Christchurch City Council’s urban design team, looked at 46 housing developments built in medium and high density areas since new rules came into force in 2016.

While the team found some good developments, there was a significant proportion that were “inadequate or poor” and where the site layout was “less than satisfactory”.

The report said not enough space had been allocated to front gardens or communal spaces, and the resulting environment was not as safe or as pleasant as anticipated.

“Landscaping was consistently under-provided and not enough space was allocated to it.”

Tall front fences have also been criticised, along with poor site layout, which was evident in the majority of the medium density developments sampled.

The report does not look into the quality of the buildings, only their design. The report also does not identify any properties, apart from showing a few photos of the good and bad designs.

For more click https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/122695983/new-christchurch-apartments-criticised-for-having-poor-urban-design

Source: Stuff