Hamilton City River Plan 

McIldowie Partners were engaged by the Hamilton City Council in 2014 to facilitate a community consultation process and then to design a response for the development of a 16km stretch of the Waikato River through the City of Hamilton in New Zealand. Under the leadership of Mayor Julie Hardaker, the aim of the project was to create a tourism destination, a recreational artery for the benefit of all resident and visitors to Hamilton and to stimulate economic growth and strength for the city.

This process highlighted about a dozen centres of innovation, culturally significant changes to the interface between the city and its natural water feature and major lifestyle changes evolving around the parkland spaces linked to the river.

The River plan was developed through a collaborative and wide consultation process and has been unanimously embraced as a 30 year vision for the fourth largest city in New Zealand.