MISSING PIECES

A lost model suburb for a model society.

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IN THE BAYSIDE AUCKLAND SUBURB of Õrakei, Paritai Drive, with its mansions and commanding views of the Waitematā Harbour, is an architectural and societal relic of an egalitarian vision - the Õrākei Garden Suburb.

"The broad slopes of Orakei [sic] make an ideal site for a garden suburb... The opportunity for creating a model suburb is unique and now is the time for action," The New Zealand Herald wrote in 1924.

Well-kept homes on tree-lined streets ending in grassed circuses are a lasting reminder of the attempt to create a New Zealand version of the English “model” or garden suburb.

No one today calls it Õrākei Garden Suburb. The name fell out of use soon after it opened, in 1936, as developers and governments watered down the vision. But you can still see director of town planning Reginald Hammond’s 1925 design competition-winning plan reflected in streets that follow rather than fight topography, the green spaces and the mix of state and private dwellings.