Helping shape a better connected, future-ready Whakatū.

Bridge to Better is a significant infrastructure and urban design project focused on transforming Bridge Street into a more connected, resilient and people-friendly part of the city.

Funded by a record investment from central government and through the council’s Long Term Plan. It’s our chance to future-proof the heart of the city while addressing inner-city housing, climate resilience, transport choice, and the vibrancy of our public spaces.

Bridge to Better is also a kaupapa of revitalisation and reconnection– to place, story, and possibility. It’s a city-shaping project grounded in the recognition that how we design our public spaces reflects who we are and what we value. Through this mahi, we are restoring mana to the centre of Whakatū by weaving the values, narratives, and aspirations of tangata whenua into every design decision. This is a chance to re-centre Bridge Street as a place of life, movement, and identity – built on the whakapapa of our shared story and identity.

We are embedding a design ethos that acknowledges both the place that was and the place we are becoming. Guided by cultural experts and practitioners, strategic pou have been established to drive design decisions such as Tūturu (genuine), Toitū (sustainable), Tūhono (connected), Matatū (prepared), and Tūranga (belonging). 

The cultural design framework for Bridge to Better celebrates and expresses tangata whenua identity in our built environment. It honours the depth of connection between people and whenua – and makes space for those stories to be seen and felt again in our city – to enhance the public realm for all and strengthen the sense of belonging in Whakatū Nelson City.