Past Assignment: Planning Studio 221 Group Work

I have always enjoyed studio group works not only because it gives you real-life case studies and experiences, but also the feeling of great achievement and triumph when the "big piece" is handed in and you are given "hi fives" everyone you see.

the 221 assignment is a case study about the Rodney District, which dig into the social-economic, and natural-physical resources relationships in order to produce a sustainable urban development plan to cater for the predicted increase of population in the future.

the method of which we did this project is to distribute task to group members and later combine each section together and ultimately to be smoothed over by a dedicated editor. in hind sight the editing should occur far more earlier, and the result of last minute editing is that each section bears little relation to other sections.

Executive summary:

This assessment of the socio-economic conditions, as well as the natural and physical resources of the Rodney District can be used to outline a growth strategy, and determine suitable locations for sustainable urban development’s to be built in order to cater for the increasing population of the Rodney District.

Population, Age and Ethnicity

The Rodney district is one of New Zealand’s fastest growing area in terms of population, the constant growth allow the district to developed in a much faster rate compared to other parts of the country, this rapid growth can have both positive and negative effects on the overall integrity of the district in terms of its social, environmental, economical and cultural well-being. The polarisation of 15 to 29 years old and 30 to 44 years old mean that the age composition of the Rodney district is imbalanced and this lack of 15 to 29 years old segment of the population may cause the district in develop in way that is unattractive for younger generations. Furthermore, the largely white population may also cause problems for new resident migrating from other parts of the country sparking social and cultural conflicts.

Families, households and dwellings

This section will explore families, households and dwellings in the Rodney District. Attention has been given to the main trends in relation to these aspects. Evidently, the largest percentage growth for family types is from the category of single parents. The largest numerical growth is from couples with or without children. Furthermore, the largest increase in family types is the single parent family (up 47% since 1996). That means there is a much greater need for daycare facilities etc. Areas that are predominately couples with children are located in Algies Bay-Mahurangi, Orewa, Snells Beach, Manly and Red Beach. The growth in single-parent households leads to a greater demand for smaller apartments causing an overall increase in urbanization due to higher-densities. A further trend is that the number of rented dwellings has increased by 60%. However, even though this figure has increased dramatically, it is still lower than Auckland as a whole over the past ten years. Possible reasons for this include the fact that people can no longer afford to live in the Rodney district as prices of dwellings are increasing due to an increase in the population. Finally, it can be seen that residential dwellings in the Rodney district are generally slightly larger than in the rest of Auckland or in New Zealand.

Education and Business

In examining business and education in the Rodney district, it can be clearly seen that in the northern ward, there are more individuals who have higher levels of qualifications compared to the other wards. However, despite this, the majority of individuals in the Rodney district have lower levels of qualifications compared to higher levels. The overall impact of these trends contributes to economic, social and adverse effects. It can be clearly seen that lower qualifications lead to lower incomes and overall lower economic growth. In order to mitigate these effects, a criteria has been developed including the encouragement of higher qualified individuals by providing increased access to educational institutions which will in turn provide more opportunities for members of the community to be trained. In relation to business, it can be clearly seen that agriculture is the largest industry in both the northern and western wards yet is the smallest industry in the eastern ward. However, in the eastern ward, the largest industry is the in construction. This is mainly due to the fact that both the northern and western wards are rural-based yet the eastern ward is coastal. Therefore, this ward is seen as a more desirable location to urbanise. In relation to the criteria, skills and abilities should be matched to the specific industries in each ward and diversification of businesses is desirable because it provides opportunities to employ and attract independent businesses.

Income and Employment

There have been several trends regarding income and employment in the Rodney District. These include a general overall increase in income for the majority of residents, an increased amount of jobs and employment, working in the highly skilled job sector dominates, commute to work by car is the most popular mode of transport and finally that a high proportion of Rodney District residents work outside of the district.
These trends have both negative and positive effects as further explained in the report and the reasons for these trends are discussed. Income and employment strongly correlates with quality of life, an individual’s happiness and the overall well-being of society, therefore it is important to support and sustain the objectives set out in the criteria mentioned further into the report.

Natural and physical resources:

The natural and physical resources within the Rodney District play a major role in determining the opportunities and constraints for further urbanization. Key trends within the district include the decline in indigenous forests, the loss of prime agricultural land, and the increase in capacity of physical networks such as road and rail. The loss of indigenous forests and agricultural land are both major weakness of the Rodney District, as they need to be preserved in order to sustain future generations. However, the increase of road and rail networks provide great opportunities for further development as they offer connections between the settlements in Rodney District and Auckland City.