Want to see what the Gracefield Innovation Quarter might look like in 20 years’ time?
We’ve been working on a Masterplan for the Gracefield Innovation Quarter and planning for the future of this iconic site.
Our aim is to use the Masterplan to help transform GIQ into a vibrant, supportive and connected innovation community that contributes to a better New Zealand - for everyone.
Developing the Masterplan
In September 2020 Athfield Architects Limited (AAL) and Wraight and Associates Landscape Architects (WA) were engaged to work with the GIQ community to development a masterplan for the site.
The GIQ Masterplan looks forward to what GIQ might look like in, say, 20 years’ time. Using feedback from stakeholder engagement last November, our Design Team has developed an aspirational plan that will help inform the future redevelopment of the site. Now we want to share what the Masterplan looks like - and we want to hear from you.
Design of the Masterplan
Following our stakeholder engagement came an intensive period of work from the Design Team to create what you can see today. This is an aspirational pathway for significant site transition over a 20-year period. The Masterplan sets a “stake in the ground” that interprets and reflects the GIQ briefing and stakeholder engagement to date, and provides a foundation to prompt broader engagement, iteration and refinement.
We are now providing an opportunity for stakeholders to explore the Masterplan design. Feedback is open between Monday 21 June and Friday 16 July 2021.
Background on Gracefield
The Innovation Quarter in Gracefield, Lower Hutt, is a high-energy environment with world-class, state-of-the-art facilities, workshops, pilot plants, labs and equipment.
Set on a 10 hectare site, GIQ is home to over 200 world-leading scientists, researchers and technicians. It has 34,000sqm of laboratories, office space, workshops and pilot labs, including a well-equipped machine shop, rapid prototyping facilities, glassblowing, materials analysis and testing laboratories, a supercritical fluid extraction plant and world class measurement facilities.
While the facilities and activities on site have evolved over the years, the vast majority of buildings are no longer fit-for-purpose. We are currently addressing this as part of a programme of work transforming GIQ into a vibrant, connected and supportive innovation community.
Check out this page for more information about the history of the site
