The Waiheke Skatepark Redevelopment at Tawaipareira Reserve has been a long time coming with the first concept design produced by RICH Landscapes in 2009. This design encapsulated various street and flow elements through the existing skatepark with several unique skateable art styled features. In recent times a drive from local users has seen funding put forward for the design and construction of this facility to take place.
As part of the successful team to win this design and build tender, RICH Landscapes went into consultation with the lead local users to understand how they envisioned the environment changing to suit their needs. Various ideas were put forward including the rebuild of the main stair area with new street features, a standard pyramid on the main lower flat area accessible from various angles, a Jersey Barrier styled feature to turn users around in the existing skatepark, extending the park to the East with turnaround quarterpipes and an area developed especially for younger uses including smaller ledge, manual pad and a series of rollover fingers that work with the quarterpipe placement.
Other skate features implemented across the skatepark include a tight quarterpipe blended into the existing ramp and platform drop with concrete edge, ramp and euro-gap, across and down rail and hubba ledge over the rebuilt stair area, new platform with drainage garden gap and ramps, skate kerb, pole jam and standard wollie ledge. A quarterpipe extension with wollie wall adjacent the small quarterpipe was also implemented.
An additional phase of consultation was conducted as new skatepark users became involved in the project. This saw a thorough examination of the final design and detail drawings though only resulted in minor adjustments due to the robust design that had been produced through the earlier consultation process.
Additional funding was also supplied at this point by the client to undertake remedial works across the existing skatepark, fixing additional concrete cracking, removing the steel pipe edging at the top of the long curving bank and resurfacing in some locations.
Materials, Textures and Colour finishes used in the environment help to connect the space with the beach and holiday life that exists on the island. These finishes include the use of pine timber balustrades, exposed aggregate walls with shell fragments and the sand and water toned oxides used in the concrete features and slabs. To soften the build-up of material for the quarterpipe platform number planting connecting with the local estuary would also be implemented.
A future flow bowl environment is also envisioned for this space though was outside the scope of works due to budget constraints.
"Albany skatepark is very fun with creative lines and a little street area with ramps, ledges, stairs, quarter pipe and manual pads."