Hiwa takes honours at 2025 Property Industry Awards

Hiwa Recreation Centre at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland has been awarded the prestigious Rider Levett Bucknall Supreme Excellence Award at the 2025 Property Council New Zealand Property Industry Awards, held at Spark Arena on 13 June. The award recognises Hiwa’s outstanding contribution to student well-being, architectural innovation, and community impact.

Hiwa also received the Colliers Project Leaders Education Property Award, and an award for Excellence in the Holmes Group Tourism and Leisure Property category.

Judges praised Hiwa as “a building that works hard to keep people moving,” acknowledging its transformative role in promoting health and well-being through design. The 26,000sqm facility, located in the heart of the University’s City Campus, was selected from more than 100 entries across 11 categories.

“This is a once-in-a-generation project,” said Simon Neale, Chief Property Officer at the University of Auckland. “It was humbling and a great honour, and a real reflection of the hard work put in by an amazing group of people in one of the toughest construction environments.”

Hiwa is a bold physical expression of the University’s commitment to holistic student well-being. The six-level facility includes a world-class aquatic hall with a dive tank and eight-lane, 33-metre pool, a rooftop multi-sport turf, a running track, climbing wall, and the southern hemisphere’s first glass sports floor with LED markings – capable of transforming into multiple sports configurations at the touch of a button.

“There is a lot to be said about Hiwa – it is an exceptional building,” Neale added. “With more than 500,000 visits in its first few months, it is already transforming the lives of our students and communities and will continue to do so for decades to come.”

The project was delivered on a compact 6,500sqm site, requiring the demolition of the previous structure and the creation of a vertically stacked facility. The design demanded innovative engineering solutions to protect adjacent heritage buildings and maximise usable space. The result is a dynamic, inclusive environment that supports physical and mental health, academic achievement, and social connection.

“Hiwa is not only a project for the University but also for the whole city of Auckland and for Aotearoa New Zealand,” said Neale. “We are proud of the contribution we are making to the landscape of Auckland and to the future of student life.”

University of Auckland Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dawn Freshwater, said the news was “well-deserved recognition for everyone involved in Hiwa from day one until today. Winning three awards including the Supreme award is a proud milestone for the University. Hiwa reflects our commitment to student well-being and our ambition to be a truly world-class university. Congratulations to everyone who helped bring this visionary project to life.”

Sean Smith, associate director of Campus Life, has led many visitors through Hiwa over the past six months. He says their reactions to the facility have been overwhelmingly positive.

"I'm so proud to be a part of the community that made this aspirational dream a reality. The positive impact of Hiwa on student well-being, campus experience and academic success will be immense."

Director of Campus Life, Brendan Mosely, agrees. "Research has shown that university students who participate in sport and recreation make friends more easily, have better career outcomes, lower rates of physical and mental illness and even better academic outcomes."

Leonie Freeman, chief executive of the Property Council described Hiwa as the “physical manifestation of the importance the University places on the holistic well-being of its student cohort; and the project sits at the heart of a strategy to encourage student activation and engagement on-campus.

“Bleachers at the building’s entrance provide a great meeting spot for students to hang out, to work and study, and to sit and chat over lunch. And, while there you can’t help but to be drawn into the energy of the place and think, I’d like to be part of this. I’ll think I’ll go for a walk around the track, take a swim in the pool or try out one of the sports on offer."

Hiwa’s development was made possible through decades of planning and the support of past and present student levies.

“I like the idea that former students can see how their contribution has helped bring this structure to life," said Leonie. "And as their children reach university age, they could potentially make use of something they were a part of long ago.”

Neale said Hiwa’s development and success reflected the spirit of collaboration and partnership in which it was constructed. “It’s the embodiment of what can be delivered with a true partnering approach to construction.”