Description:

Housing in Auckland has been a complicated situation for a decade now. Since the early 1990s, house prices have risen considerably faster than incomes. Prices have skyrocketed, homeownership rates have declined, overcrowded and unhealthy homes remain a problem, and more young people cannot climb onto the property ladder each year.

As of 2018, there is an estimated 540,000 dwellings in Auckland alone, with an estimated shortage of 30,000 at its peak. Our city on the narrow isthmus of the north island must look beyond today to make meaningful progress. Collectively we must make changes that ensure reduced emissions, greater care for our natural environment, higher satisfaction, and quality of health amongst our population and provide homes for all New Zealanders.

Urban intensification has rapidly occurred all over New Zealand in areas struggling to keep up with the constant demand for housing. We can advance towards a more compact Auckland by utilising under-developed areas that can accommodate high-density property. Introducing new regulations has improved building codes and construction methods which allow for more compact housing. Gone are the days of the quarter-acre dream. The public eye has shifted, yearning for neighbourhoods that accommodate various lifestyles and cater to all ages of people.

While there are numerous contributors to the housing crisis in Auckland, there is little talk of the beneficial projects completed to keep up with the ever-changing needs of the city. Ten Years Apart is a visual publication that displays the intensification happening across the sprawling Auckland region. By recognising the work to intensify the home of 1.8 million people, we can remain clear on the needs of society and how we implement sustainable change that will benefit us in the future.

Our roads are busier than ever, the economy continues to heal, and we slowly find ourselves returning to everyday life emerging from the pandemic. While the steady development of residential housing may help, how do we answer transport needs regarding how we commute in such a widespread urban area suffering from a lack of diversification and ageing infrastructure.

Using time as a concept to navigate the speed at which development occurs around us, the publication acts as a snapshot to represent ten years in the history of Auckland. The vertical format is reminiscent of flipping through months on a wall calendar; however, in this case, at a larger scale, years. Seeing how far we've come by looking at the past, understanding the present, and thinking about the future gives us a clearer idea of how small a decade can feel and heightens the importance of positive change in an urban environment.

This publication, mirroring a wall calendar format, brings awareness to not only the improvement of housing over the last ten years but asks how we can support this by inspiring the potential of a city of creativity, culture, and innovation that can comfortably accommodate future generations.