Opening the entries to the Here Awards each year is always an exciting time, though we’re particularly excited this year – our fourth awards – with a record number of entries and some stiff competition.

‍

We’re excited by the number, but we’re especially excited by the variety, with strong contenders in each of our five categories – from luxury apartments and houses to affordable housing, and sections ranging from tiny infill sites to expansive pieces of land with extraordinary views. There’s a mixture of projects designed by some of the country’s most awarded practices, but also studios fresh out of the box.

‍

By the time you read this, the rōpū – Oli Booth, Prue Johnstone and Here editor Simon Farrell-Green – will be on the road, driving from Tāmaki Makaurau to Te Whanganui-a-Tara via Papamoa and Te Papaioea Palmerston North, Taupō and Haumoana. It’s one hell of a roadie, with some bloody good houses – be sure to follow along on our social channels @thisishere.nz and use the hashtag #hereawards2024.

‍

With grateful thanks to our returning awards partners Città, Resene and Blum – and welcome to our event partner The Hotel Britomart.

‍

South East house

Roberts Gray Architects

Waiheke Island

Inspired by pedestrian bridges on hiking trails, a perfectly square, prefabricated house for multiple generations hovers on pilottis above a wetland. A series of identical rooms revolve around a circular courtyard, defined by function, fitout and relationship to site. An exterior of macrocarpa contrasts with an interior treating common and special materials with equal care.

Unbuilt

‍

Herne Bay Apartment

Four Walls Architecture

Herne Bay, Tāmaki Makaurau

Working with three existing plumbing stacks, Four Walls has reconfigured a 1980s apartment to accommodate multiple generations. Flipping the plan to improve the flow and connect better to spectacular views, the architects have created clear spatial boundaries. Materials are kept to a reduced and consistent palette, selected to create a sense of refuge and quiet warmth.

Reuse and Renovation

‍

The Pinecone

Lloyd Hartley Architects

Ponsonby, Tāmaki Makaurau

Stage one for a blended family with four teenaged children is an adults’ retreat: a minor dwelling clad in shingles at the rear of this inner-city site. Centred on a sanctuary-like bathroom and containing a bedroom and office with interiors inspired by Parisian apartments, the building frames what will eventualy be a meeting space between the two dwellings.

Unbuilt

‍

Manaaki

Ockham Residential

Onehunga, Tāmaki Makaurau

The largest apartment complex in Auckland outside the CBD has been developed in partnership with iwi, creating 210 homes on a 7887-square-metre site; 72 percent of residents are first-home buyers. Close to mass transit and cycle networks, it encompasses four five- and six-storey pastel brick buildings around a landscaped courtyard. Facilities include a 12-metre swimming pool.

Density

‍

Bush Block

Patchwork Architecture

Titirangi, Tāmaki Makaurau

A simple rectangle, this house floats above the bush to avoid extensive excavation, and to steer clear of an overland flow path. Instead of a garage, storage comes via a “bus stop” – a space for the young family to park bikes and bins. Access to the house is via a narrow bridge. Efficient planning provides three bedrooms, living, bathroom and laundry on 121 square metres.

New House

‍

Matuku Moana

Studio Brick Architects

Papamoa

A small house on a subdivided lot, named after the white-faced herons that nest here. Simple in form with fine detail, the house has two distinctive feelings. Downstairs is light and playful; upstairs is moody and textured. Efficient planning makes the most of the small footprint, raising questions about how much room a small family really needs.

New House

‍

Hills Residences

Edwards White Architects

Hamilton East, Kirikiriroa‍

A thoughtful approach to adaptive reuse. Edwards White has transformed a 1970s laboratory building into luxury apartments. The design capitalises on views of the Waikato River and incorporates luxury amenities and finishes. Sustainable design elements, including solar hot water and rainwater collection, complement a focus on creating a vibrant urban community.

Reuse and Renovation

‍

Whareroa

Bossley Architects

Kuratau, Lake Taupō

A place to gather, fish and enjoy a slower pace of life for a busy family. Triangular in form and tucked into the hillside, the plan picks up on the angles and orientation of the site, taking in views of the lake and forest. Timber linings wrap around curving walls beneath a living roof to create a sense of warmth and security. Light stalks bring light deep into the plan.

New House

‍

Rainbow Point Renovation

Fraser Cameron Architects

Taupō

The sensitive renovation of a late-1960s house, including a new carport and entry, replanned kitchen, dining and living spaces, an extended and updated northern sunroom and verandah, and new pergola framing to complete the exterior. The result – previously a bach and now the clients’ permanent home – feels more like itself, as though it was always meant to be this way.  

Reuse and Renovation

‍

Haumoana House

Glamuzina Architects

Haumoana, Hawke’s Bay

Designed for a young family returning to their rural roots, Haumoana House connects intimately with the outdoors and provides opportunities for different modes of living. A deep square plan is excavated and eroded horizontally and vertically to create dimension, weight and variation in floor levels. Terraces and courtyards capitalise on views and light, and respond to varied weather.

New House

‍

Strip Mall

Spacecraft Architects

Te Papaioea Palmerston North‍

Home for two of the city’s few inner-city residents, with deep affection for much-maligned Palmy. A series of linear blocks will eventually fill this site, with courtyards in between to ensure sun, views and ventilation. Stage one houses this enterprising couple’s bike shop, graphic design studio and home – all their eggs in one basket.

Density

‍

Karaka Tower

Arête Architects

Eastbourne, Te Whanganui-a-Tara

An annex to an existing family home offers more than an additional bedroom and art studio. On a nine-square-metre footprint, the stacked modular volumes were prefabricated, then helicoptered into place through the tree canopy. Exposed interior framing has a treehouse feel; the outlook to Te Whanganui-a-Tara is unhindered. A calm place to rest and create.

Small Project

‍

Walker Box

Micah / Architecture

Brooklyn, Te Whanganui-a-Tara

A tower of concrete block reaches to eight metres to grab winter sun and views down to Happy Valley. An infill dwelling on a tiny footprint, built on a scrap of land where once there was a decrepit garage and a derelict garden. A quirky box of a house with intimacy, generosity… and a bit of fun.

New House

‍

Berhampore Perimeter House

Studio Myla

Berhampore, Te Whanganui-a-Tara

Mark Leong and Lucy Coote have created a nurturing family home in direct dialogue with the street by restoring and extending a two-bedroom brick house in a U-shaped perimeter design on a narrow corner site. Domestic spaces are carved out from the boundary through a series of nooks; openings are deliberate, allowing a sense of engagement and retreat.  

Reuse and Renovation

‍

Lillypad

Common

Ōtautahi‍

A unique infill dwelling on a 4.6m-wide site previously occupied by one of five 1970s Shepperd & Rout townhouses destroyed in the 2011 earthquake. The top level’s gable draws inspiration from the villa across the road, acknowledging the ecclectic inner-city neighbourhood. Dark external cladding contrasts with a honeyed timber interior – a delightfully urban response.

Unbuilt

‍

RHR House

Three Sixty Architecture

Ōtautahi

An experimental house on a site prone to both inundation and earthquake-induced movement, the overall composition is brutal, but simple, reminiscent of a boat moored next to a wharf. The stacked, elevated floor plates raise the house above the flood zone, pushing the upper level to the highest point to enhance views.

New House

‍

Verdant House

Pac Studio & Steven Lloyd Architecture

Wānaka

This family home and studio offers an alternative to the assumption that houses need to be monochrome to be sensitive to the landscape. Positioned in the centre of the site with secondary buildings at the boundaries, the house is organised around a nine-square grid, cut away to create courtyards. Soft hues inside create a warm backdrop to views of the garden and mountains.

New House‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍