Nigel McKenna

Nigel McKenna’s name is synonymous with superior development in New Zealand, and his catalogue of achievements gives you some insight as to why. His pursuit of excellence is born from a long-held affiliation with the land, construction and a profound will to deliver beautiful places where people can be their best. With over thirty years’ experience in the field, coupled with intrepid innovation, Nigel McKenna continues to make his mark on the country’s development landscape, leading Templeton Group to become the country’s foremost developer of new homes and environments for New Zealanders.

‘Nigel’s enthusiasm for innovation and his ability to identify opportunities others would consider too complex, or simply unattainable, has identified him as a leading light at the forefront of better management and urban planning.’

Our far-flung island nation had long appealed to McKenna, so, in 1987 he made the move here permanently and quickly asserted himself as a serious performer in development. Wellington’s Shed 5 and Dockside were two of his larger maiden developments in the capital. Following his project management of Auckland’s forty-storey Metropolis for six years, McKenna eventually made the City of Sails his home.

He began taking on projects others would not, armed with vision and know-how, his name is behind the country’s most-loved buildings and precincts. The Beaumont Quarter is one such project. On the land deemed by others as too problematic to develop, McKenna delivered a design-led and much-celebrated medium density housing project, which continues to exemplify superior design and engineering, twenty years on.

Within a quick walk from the Beaumont Quarter, The Lighter Quays constitutes arguably the city’s most impressive project, which again saw the collaboration of international and local engineers, designers and architects, led by McKenna. The area was transformed into a premium master-planned residential community, producing Auckland’s most valuable real estate per square metre.

Further east, the Viaduct is Auckland’s foremost entertainment district drawing tourists and locals to the popular collection of restaurants, bars and residential apartments, developed by McKenna. By the completion of the project McKenna had put Auckland at equal status with the cities he drew inspiration from

“I love the challenge of understanding the environment we’re working with, and how we work with the land.”

McKenna’s achievements have been widely celebrated, with multiple awards for his work to date. A former Ernst & Young Property Entrepreneur of the year, he has received in excess of 20 individual awards from an array of organisations, from the Institute of Architects and the NZ Property Council to the Ministry for the Environment. In 2006 Nigel was awarded the Auckland City Blue Stone Award for his contribution to the city.

“A common theme to all his projects is a strong focus on design to ensure that the outcome achieved is not only aesthetically attractive but also functional and viable.”

The son of a builder, McKenna was exposed to the industry from a young age and developed a love of the trade watching his father run a small building firm in rural Ireland. A young McKenna completed a first-class honours degree in construction economics along with further qualifications in construction engineering and building management.

He went on to gain a qualification as a chartered surveyor and was later to be a founding member of the New Zealand Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. Armed with technical expertise and an uncommon ability to recognise opportunity, he ventured into development, starting with small residential projects.

In the ensuing years, he has delivered world-class award-winning hotels, including Sofitel – Lighter Quay, Sebel, Quadrant, and Rydges Wellington — curated spaces where guests live to play, love to stay, and long to return. He produced celebrated master-planned communities like Stonefields, Long Bay and Bremner Ridge, which have proved to be master classes in superior design and urban planning. Widening his scope, McKenna undertook the rejuvenation of much-loved heritage buildings, with the DFS Galleria project and Chambers & Station- a former council chamber and fire station, producing six luxury apartments with the utmost sensitivity and restoration of its heritage values.

In what he describes as his ‘passion project,’ the McLaren building is McKenna’s next heritage venture. He will embark on revisiting the historic former garage and birthplace of legendary New Zealander, Bruce McLaren. It’s a true legacy project working alongside the McLaren family, celebrating the McLaren name and putting the hugely significant building back on the map.