The Department of Corrections has today lodged an application with the Auckland City Council for planning permission to redevelop the Mt Eden Prison site.
Corrections’ National Property Manager, William Whewell says preparation for the redevelopment is important because, at over 120-years-old, the Prison is well past its use by date.
“Mt Eden Prison has successfully served the Auckland region for many years. However, its design was developed in the mid 1800’s and the building is inconsistent with modern Corrections practice,” says Mr Whewell.
“While the Department has been working hard to maintain the site in a safe and healthy manner, we have got to a point where incremental repair work is no longer economic and preparation for the redevelopment is the most prudent approach.”
Mr Whewell says the Mt Eden prison building is of significant heritage value, and the Department has been working closely with the Historic Places Trust and Auckland City Council to ensure the redevelopment plans will protect the site’s heritage while making best use of its strategic location.
This year, as part of the process begun in 2004, Corrections aims to complete designs and cost reviews of the project and obtain planning approvals. If appropriate, this will be followed by a request for construction tenders to enable the department to prepare a case to apply for future funding from the government. No decisions have been made on future funding.
In the first phase of the redevelopment two new accommodation blocks are planned to replace the existing old Mt Eden capacity. Associated work would include a secure site entrance point for the whole complex and other modern security features, on site staff and visitor parking, and a new prisoner services building containing visitor facilities.
The redevelopment would also see the refurbishment of the old Mt Eden Prison building for administration and staff use, allowing the more unsightly features such as razor wire to be removed from the heritage area.
The completion of the Spring Hill Corrections Facility later this year, which will accommodate 650 sentenced prisoners from the Auckland Region, has allowed Corrections to make some strategic decisions about the type of prisoner proposed to be held on the Mt Eden site. The location of the site makes Mt Eden an ideal location for a dedicated remand facility, and the proposed design is working around this principle.
Project Information Sheet - May 2007 (PDF: 4.19MB)Mt Eden Prison Site Redevelopment - Questions and Answers (PDF: 30KB)
The following links are graphics for print reproduction.
Mt Eden longview and caption graphic (ZIP: 3.8MB)
Mt Eden overview and caption graphic (ZIP: 3.0MB)
