| 3 “We outgrew our main building many years ago, and we’ve finally taken the opportunity to develop a new purpose-built Civic Centre that will house all our staff.” to page 4 REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT Whangarei District Council: Civic Centre Richard Loader Space key driver for new civic centre Spread over four levels, the new Civic Centre will deliver all the core functions of Whangarei District Council. Making quite the impression on Whangarei’s city landscape, Whangarei District Council’s (WDC) new $59 million Civic Centre promises to be a wonderful civic asset for many decades to come. Beautifully designed, with sustainability and a rich cultural story threaded throughout, the building is just weeks away from completion, with council staff excited about moving into their brand-new premises and the luxury of interacting with each other in the same building. WDC’s Chief Financial Officer, Alan Adcock, says space was a key driver for the new Civic Centre. “For the last seventeen years we’ve had nearly two thirds of our council staff in separate leased premises almost 800 metres away from our main building. “We outgrew our main building many years ago, and we’ve finally taken the opportunity to develop a new purpose-built Civic Centre that will house all our staff. “The new building will be a much more open and accessible place for the public to interact with our staff, and that’s the heart of it. “Also, we will become a more efficient organisation with all staff housed in the one building. Working out of two major locations as we have been doing has also caused confusion amongst the public about where they should go for services.” The new Civic Centre is located adjacent to the existing Council buildings, on a site previously occupied by the local RSA. Following competitive tender, The Building Intelligence Group was engaged to manage the development of the new building, bringing its significant experience in strategic advice and project management to the fore, and effectively acting as WDC’s agent. Embracing a collaborative approach to the project, construction procurement documentation required major building firms to assemble an experienced construction team of consultants and trades to undertake the project, as part of their tender. The tender was won by Canam Group, who brought with it a strong team including Avery Team Architects, Babbage Consultants – the main engineering company, Littoralis, who designed the landscaping and Robinsons Asphalts who are delivering it. “We looked at a range of criteria, including track record and the quality of the team that they could assemble, when selecting the main contractor,” says Alan. “Canam’s major sites are in Auckland and Tauranga, but as a result of this project they’re now forming a base in Whangarei. They had completed previous projects in Northland, but they have now developed enough scale as a result of this project to justify having their own office here. Our relationship with Canam throughout the project has been of a very high standard, particularly given the challenges faced with the project.” Design and construction of the new Civic Centre commenced three days before the first Covid lockdown, setting in motion a number of resourcing, supply chain and financial challenges, which had to be deftly navigated.
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