Council designer takes young achiever award

Wellington City Council Senior Urban Designer Anna Harley was last night named Beca Young Achiever of the Year at the inaugural Wellington Property People Awards for her work on two projects that have helped transform the city.

Anna took a lead role in the recent redevelopment of Victoria Street and provided valuable urban design advice on the Council’s behalf as the Government redeveloped Buckle Street and built the new Pukeahu National War Memorial Park.

The new awards – organised by the Wellington branch of the New Zealand Property Council in partnership with Hawkins Construction and AECOM – were announced in Wellington last night.

Property Council Wellington Branch President Mike Cole says all the award winners were carefully selected from nominations made by their peers within the property sector for making a positive impact on Wellington’s built environment.

"It’s fantastic to formalise the celebration of the people in our industry who are making things happen,” he says. “That is how we will make Wellington the thriving hub that it should be."

Mayor Celia Wade-Brown says the Council is absolutely delighted to see Anna’s work for the city acknowledged by Wellington’s property industry.

“Successfully planning and implementing Victoria Street and Pukeahu National War Memorial Park were a team effort involving many people and organisations,” she says. “Quality urban design and a clear vision of Wellington’s future are essential.

“Anna has brought a strategic perspective to projects and collaborates effectively with other organisations to achieve great results.”

Mayor Wade-Brown says Victoria Street is set to become one of Wellington’s busiest inner city neighbourhoods, and the transformation was an excellent example of how the Council was making the city a better place and also enabling economic growth.

“Council investment has paved the way for a massive rejuvenation of this area,” she says.

Mayor Wade-Brown also congratulated the Property Council for starting the awards and noted work on local and central government projects featured strongly among the list of winners.

ENDS

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