By Rough Milne Mitchell Landscape Architects
Hanmer Springs Thermal Pools & Spa is a multi-million dollar, award-winning establishment that attracts thousands of visitors annually. RMM have a long standing relationship with the pools, which began with the design of an overall master plan for the resort in the 1990s. The staged roll-out of this master plan has seen us have a continued involvement in the development of their facilities ever since.
For Hanmer Springs a design narrative was established to showcase and portray the native flora and fauna local to the area, creating a uniquely ‘South Island’ spa experience. The combination of both hard and soft materials provides an appropriate range of tones and textures that are particular to the alpine context.
Features of the development over the years have included theraputic pools, sulphur pools, water slides, freshwater pool and hydrology pools, all of which has been designed with careful consideration to the landscape context.
Our most recent involvement has been the design, detailed documentation and construction observation of the Cascade Pools and installation of the Conical Thrill waterslide. A feature of the construction of the Cascade Pools was the innovative spatial arrangment planning and construction techniques to prevent impact on the root zones of historic and iconic Redwood trees that border the pools.
We are a landscape architecture practice with studios located in Christchurch, Auckland, Nelson, Wānaka and Dunedin. Over the past 25 years, we have developed a reputation for excellence through our collaborative style of working and highly skilled team. Our focus is to create innovative, sustainable solutions that connect people to their environments.
Our expertise and adaptable structure enables us to work confidently in a wide range of fields. While we concentrate on delivering the best service for our clients, we continue to foster our team's professional growth and broader industry support.
At RMM we're passionate about working with our clients to realise their vision. Our design response begins with ensuring that the site is fully understood. From the initial concept to detailed design and project management, the design process ensures that the aspirations and vision of our clients are realised. We offer a fully integrated design service, at a variety of scales, to suit every budget.