First look at refreshed Golden Mile plans

Thursday, 13 February 2025

Mayor Tory Whanau is calling the design a 'game-changer' that would will mark a key step in Wellington's transformation into a more modern, walkable city.

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Wellington’s famed Golden Mile will be more Golden Corner ‒ for eight months at least ‒ with initial revamp work focused on a single intersection.

Having been mired in delays due to the collapse of the Let’s Get Wellington Moving project, spades will finally be in the ground in late April. Construction will only be seen on Cambridge and Kent Terrace intersection with Courtenay Place this year.

The rest of the work along Courtenay Place is still up in the air as no contract has been signed ‒ and will take two years once started. Compensation for affected businesses has been ruled out.

The council has released new designs of what the area will look like, featuring wider footpaths, improved lighting, a rain garden, slip-resistant gravel tiles, expanded outdoor dining space, more public seating and a cycle path. Cars will be barred from Lambton Quay to Courtenay Place, from 7am to 7pm.

Other roads in the Golden Mile, including Manners St, Willis St and Lambton Quay, are not in the project’s scope at present.

The released design for the Courtenay Place section of the Golden Mile.

The project, jointly funded by NZTA, is a win for mayor Tory Whanau, who labelled it one of her non-negotiables when funding cuts loomed last year.

Transport and Infrastructure manager Brad Singh was unable say when a contract for the rest of the work would be signed ‒ opening the door for the next council to potentially ditch it if not resolved by October’s local body elections.

The entire project is forecast to cost $116 million. The council would not release the breakdown for the Courtenay Place section, citing commercial sensitivity.

Whanau remained confident a contract would be signed. There was still some negotiation around the conditions.

What the area looks like now - not that flash.

“It would be irresponsible to sign us up for something without absolute certainty.”

Whanau said her idea for business relief packages for disruptions would not be happening, but there would be at least two months’ notice before construction work began.

She met with the Mayoral Business Group this week to discuss the possibility of renting out empty spaces month-by-month to allow for pop-ups, similar to what is being done overseas.

When the Courtenay Place section begins, a single lane of traffic will be available at all times. New, larger bus stops will be placed either side of the street ‒ one at the intersection between Manners and Cuba, and the other at the Cambridge/Kent intersection.

Tory Whanau says will mark a key step in Wellington's transformation into a more modern, walkable city.

Bus diversions for the the Cambridge/Kent intersection will be in place once the Wakefield St work is completed, which The Post understands will be in August.

The northbound left-hand turning lane will be closed from Cambridge into Courtenay, and north/west-bound buses will be diverted along Wakefield St until the intersection at Taranaki St, where they will resume their normal route at Manners Street. Temporary bus stops will be placed along the diversion route.

Vehicles with permits will be able to access loading zones from 7am to 7pm. The street reopens to all vehicles after 7pm.

The design, created in partnership with mana whenua, includes a large wooden seating area called ngā ūranga, located outside the St James Theatre, and a self-watering rain garden outside the Tasting Room.

Tasting Room co-owner Duncan Gillespie said the pictures of the changes looked nice, but some hospitality businesses along the strip were already barely hanging on.

“By the time this is done, some will go.”

The end of the eight months would fall right in the middle of the Christmas rush and nobody liked to sit outside for a drink with jackhammers and dust, he said.