Sylvia Park Community Garden
Category:
GREEN NEIGHBORHOOD SCALE AND ON GRADE PROJECTS
Project general details
Nominator
Investor
Supplier
Architect
Outside In
Outside In
Outside In
Outside In
Location (City)
GPS
Country
Region
Year of nomination
Auckland
New Zealand
data
Oceania
2024
Project specifications
The Sylvia Park retail precinct is nestled between residential and industrial zones in Mount Wellington, Auckland. The retailer has used Outside In to create the significant greenscaping that flows throughout the high-profile site. In 2022, we also began implementing meaningful sustainability gardening initiatives. The aim is to transform the 210,000m2 site into a ‘green corridor’. There is a flourishing community garden, where we run an education programme for local school children. A fully circular composting scheme turns much of the food waste from the food tenancies into compost, along with green waste from our plant maintenance. We also capture and filter rainwater. Everything is managed within the footprint of Sylvia Park. The programme is already delivering significant and measurable benefits for Sylvia Park, its tenants, and the local community – and we continue to expand the programme and build upon the ecological and social benefits. Watch how: https://youtu.be/CfQlOpnzTfs
Object type
Roof area (m2)
Year of completion
Project in operation?
community garden
0
2022
YES
Project details
Innovation
The sustainability programme concept, and the role of the community garden within it, is highly innovative. The successful outcomes to date have seen this project move from small-scale to become a retail case study with quantitative measures of success. Along with delighting all stakeholders involved in the project, there is also significant interest for us to design these types of bespoke sustainability schemes for other clients. We are showing what meaningful outcomes can be achieved that benefit the client, community and the environment. The concept shows the retail opportunities that come from facilitating access to nature and encouraging an appreciation of the natural world. It also outlines how investing in worthy sustainability initiatives can allow New Zealand retailers to create a sense of place and foster stronger connections with their community.
Maintenance
We use organic principles to maintain the community garden. Maintenance also offers a teaching tool. With the help of our experts, the school children maintain the community garden once a week. They also water the garden themselves. We follow a specially tailored programme to keep all other plants at Sylvia Park happy and healthy. By using trained horticultural technicians, we can minimise the use of sprays and the need for pest control. With the considerable size of the site, we follow a considered schedule to ensure all plants receive optimal care. Our interior plants are typically watered on a two-weekly cycle, and we follow meticulous quality standards. For interior greenery, we also use a proprietary soil mix that ensures long-term plant health and easy watering care.
Project ecology
Project ecology has been prioritised and there is a minimal carbon footprint. The food waste used in this project is collected, processed and composted within the Sylvia Park site. This comes directly from the food tenancies. Green waste is collected during garden maintenance. Much of the compost used in Sylvia Park’s exterior gardens is generated by these means. We can also use the filtered stormwater when hand watering the planting. The raised vegetable timber planter beds in the community garden were constructed on-site by our team. Two additional beds were supplied by centre management, using fixtures recycled from a retail tenancy. We have minimised the need for travel. There is a permanent Outside In gardening team at Sylvia Park and we can store our equipment on-site. Our horticulturalists carefully select long-lasting plant specimens and ensure these are ideally situated. This helps minimise the need for plant replacements and ensures long-term plant health.
Biophilic design
The scale of planting at Sylvia Park creates a green corridor in a heavily urban environment. The community garden furthers a connection between people and nature. Here, we plant by the season to teach the children about working with nature, as well as ensuring there is plenty of produce for them to harvest and offer to those who need it. This project has transformed a once unused area into a flourishing green pocket. The children love munching on the vegetables straight from the garden. Everyone is invited to enjoy the greenery. The compost bins are located beside the community garden to link the process from food waste into rich garden matter and nutritious produce. Vibrant greenery flows throughout the site. Exteriors are densely planted and create highly attractive areas for users to relax and enjoy. Inside Sylvia Park, planting fills the retail area with lush texture. Nature and natural elements offer comfort and respite, wherever you may be within the site.
Users
This community garden prioritises people. It is used weekly by the school children and maintained by them, and our gardeners, for all to enjoy. Its prime location means that the garden is situated by a pedestrian footpath, overlooked by those using the neighbouring train station, and passed by the many visitors driving into Sylvia Park’s rear carparks. The community garden has allowed Sylvia Park to foster a strong, and very positive, relationship with Sylvia Park School. Centre management are very involved and strongly support the programme. Future sustainability initiatives will expand the involvement of Sylvia Park’s tenancies. It is likely to include specific activity designed to connect tenants of the ‘Build To Rent’ apartment development at Sylvia Park with the community garden and the composting scheme.
Users
public
Source of funding description
Sylvia Park funds the programme, and they strongly believe in the importance of reducing their environmental impact. Adding nature into the site, with initiatives like the community garden, offers a unique user experience for shoppers that can help drive commercial benefits. It immerses them in nature, making their visit more enjoyable. The sustainability programme acts to consolidate Sylvia Park as a retail destination of choice.
Source of funding
private
Please describe aspects of the project contributing to sustainable urban development?
The composting programme uses food waste and coffee grinds from the food outlets, and green waste from our plant maintenance. To date, we have composted 9,107.70kgs of food waste, 2,485.80 kgs of coffee grinds and 206.01kgs of green waste – and harvested approximately 12m³ of premium compost. The compost enriches the soil around the site and the community garden, reducing fertiliser requirements. Its quality is comparable to a commercial product. Our horticulturists lead the school children in hands-on sessions to build an appreciation of nature and where food comes from. They enjoy the opportunity so much that the teachers report higher school attendance on these days. Our aim is to build the gardeners of tomorrow. Shortly, we will add expand the community garden with fruit trees. Long-term ideas include involving tenants of the ‘Build To Rent’ apartment development at Sylvia Park in the community garden and composting scheme – as well as introducing perennial gardens and beehives.
How the project contributes to climate adaptation?
This project sees food and green waste being collected, used and processed all within Sylvia Park – minimising the amount of waste transported off site. Another important initiative is capturing water run-off from the centre’s multi-level carparking buildings in a 25,000-litre tank – reducing the impact on the local storm water system. It is filtered to improve water quality. Shortly, we will plant a small orchard in the community garden. The soil will be enriched with our harvested compost. Many of these trees will be espaliered along the wire mesh fence to soften the border with the train line. They will bring pleasant, natural shading to the full-sun site. The scale of planting at Sylvia Park is significant and multi-layered. It includes mature trees, hedging, ground cover and extensive interior planting. This density of greenery helps to mitigate the urban heat island effect and offers natural air filtration benefits.
How is the project supporting local biodiversity and urban ecosystems?
Greenery fills Sylvia Park to support biodiversity. In the outdoor areas, planting includes approximately 350 trees and 5,000 shrubs. In one dining area alone, there are 110 pots filled with over 330 large-scale plants. The community garden features a series of vegetable planter beds. Once a week, the Sylvia Park School ‘Eco Warriors’ work with our gardeners to care for the plants and learn from them. The children’s first experience of the garden was filled with some trepidation. Now, they are now confident and competent gardeners – planting, picking and munching fresh produce, and loving every moment. Located in a once unused area to the rear of Sylvia Park, bordering a neighbouring train station, the community garden offers a space for anyone to enjoy. The use of flowering species around, and within, it help promote beneficial insects. The ‘hot’ composting system produces a premium compost filled with beneficial organisms and bacteria.
Project video
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