In 2002, I wrote A Sense of Closure for Architecture New Zealand, examining the controversial intervention on Auckland’s historic Grafton Bridge. The article was an opportunity for me to consider the relationship between architectural heritage, public safety and the responsibility of design to respond to changing social needs.

Following the removal of the original safety mesh in 1997, the bridge became the focus of a tragic rise in fatalities. The subsequent introduction of tall glass safety screens presented a significant architectural question: how could the bridge be made safer without losing the openness, views and sense of exhilaration that made it such a distinctive structure?

Through the article, I explored the intervention both as a physical alteration and as a broader question of public reassurance. The glass screens provided a necessary protective barrier while retaining the visual connection to the surrounding landscape and the original concrete structure. For me, the project demonstrated that architectural conservation is not simply about preserving what exists, but about understanding how a place must continue to serve the people who use it.

A Sense of Closure considered how a carefully judged intervention could respect the integrity of a historic structure while addressing an urgent human need, allowing Grafton Bridge to remain a significant part of Auckland’s architectural and civic life.