Project Description

Organised along the primary east-west pedestrian axis through the campus, The Pā brings together four key projects under one roof structure: the wharenui to the east, the wing for the university executive leadership team to the south, the central student hub, and the Faculty of Māori and Indigenous Studies building within a refurbished 1960s’ space on the western edge.

A design concept of manākitanga was central to this project and is expressed throughout the project’s organisation and design.

Inside The Pā, a range of spaces and amenities, coupled with the flexibility to host a wide range of activities at various scales, responds to the university’s desire to create a ‘sticky’ campus. 

Jury Citation:

Caro Robertson, Ari Stevens, Julie Stout and Patrick Kennedy:

“In solving a complex brief to address a dispersed campus layout, The Pā’s project team has brought four large facilities together under one roof and created a new circulation spine to bring order to the campus. The guiding principles of manākitanga and inclusiveness are central to the project’s design ethos, and this is demonstrated in the warmth and generosity of its many gathering spaces. As a backdrop, a heroic structural system of glulam beams pushes the boundaries of this technology to give the project its awesome tectonic strength”

Project teams:

Architectus: James Mooney, Patrick Clifford, Jeremy Purcell, Kitty Fan, Amelia Fagence, Carmen Fu, Chirag Jindal, Claire Brunelat, Elizabeth Seuseu, Hannah Diack, Hermann Matamu, John Baker, Lauren Speer, Lu Cheng, Lusitania Vete, Maggie Xu, Michael Thomson, Sara Nazem, Tom Johnson, William Anderson, William Brooks. architectus.co.nz

Jasmax: Richard Harris, Neil Martin, Stephen Middleton, Andrew Grant, Paul Lelieveld, Vincent Kumar, Claire O’Shaughnessy, Aaron Troy, Abby Morgan, Adam Jepson, Azza Ho, Erinna Wong, Icao Tiseli, Jessica Mount, Kahu Eruera, Kathryn Roberts, Kimmy Deng, Lukas Havlicek, Luke Szokalski, Marianne Riley, Nick Scarles, Nikki Senekal, Rameka Alexander-Tu’inukuafe. jasmax.com

designTRIBE: Rau Hoskins, Paul Addison. designtribe.co.nz

The New Zealand Architecture Awards receive generous support from Resene, a steadfast sponsor of the program since 1991, and APL, which commenced its sponsorship of the awards in 2021.