PARNELL PARKS;

Auckland Star, Volume XLV, Issue 16, 19 January 1914, Page 7

PARNELL PARKS;

4 SUBJECT OF CONTENTION. ','ss "council and harbour" BOARD. PSESBBVATION OF CAMPBELL'S POIXT. He opinions of the chairman of the jarbonr Board have clashed with those ol the Mayor rt&pectiug the suggestions for tto p'.irchase and exchange of certain properties in the vicinity of Campbell'd Point, Parnell. A few days ago the jlaror anioiinced that the City Council after wiling the locality concerned, jjad declined certain proposals made by jlie harbour authorities that part of CmnpbeU's Point should be cut down /or purposes of road extension, and thai jj Atom for this concession the Harder Board Siiould give the City Council portion of -thu "Kilbryde" estate, which jTacquired seme time ago for the purpose • of exiinguishing the riparian rights. JIB- jGUJfSON'S COMPLAINTS. ■ BREACH OF CONFIDENCE IIfFERRED. In a statement to the Press, Mr Gunj W expresses i egret that the Mayor jioulii have so "• reated what up to the present have been extremely prirate Jnd confidential negotiations between as chairmen of the Harbour joard and Mr. l'arr as mayor of the 'citj. He states t.iat it is entirely misleading for the Mayor to say that the j Moposais would entail cutting down 1 topbea's PodnJ. The whole area feioira 8 s Campbell's Point would not, under bis proposals, be entirely de- : moliied. jlr. Gunson says that the proposals " Ttere ia their initial stages, not having jeen before the Board or negotiated rith by the Council. Much was being done by the Board in connection with the proposed esplanade from Ponsonby to Orakei. The Board was now continuing Quay street eastward for a distance equal to twice its present toA It was this consideration and fle° qnestion of the development of tanl interests that primarily accounted for the suggestions which he conveyed !o the Mayor, as the result of his intijation that at was suggested that the Council should acquire the Gillies' projerty, which "Kilbryde" adjoins. Had it , 5 been for this bhe necessit y ould B ot bave existed. The following points, said Mr. Gunson, had not been stated when, the proposals had been made public:—(l) Ihit the area for public park purpose wnli not be decreased at Campbell's Point; (2) That the property offered in odnnge for a similar area, of lie preset public park was a much more eligible property, adjoining a Property itWs proposed to acquire; (3) That it Tfss only a relatively small area of ' ' t j e point itself that it was proposed io cut down to enable the continuation rf Quay street eastward, still leaving the historic landmark in the back- • ' ' Bound: (4) That it was suggested that (he area of the point, after excavation, • ■ ■ kM be set aside as a public reserve " 'to tie northward of the road, and • ■• prwably increased in area by the Ld-'(5) That the continuation of tay 'street eastward would have proAd anofter outlet right into Hoteon Bay ft* have admirably served ParJ and eastward suburbs; and, (6) above all, that the suggestions were Ejbieet to negotiation, and any rea--52 modification which the Mayor rigjht have suggested would have been inoniaMy considered. i THE MAYOR EXPLAINS. ' A StiTTER FOB THE PUBLIC. 1 ' "I understand," eaid the ■Mayor, "that Ur GmiEon considers that the statement giymto the Press last week with regard to the proposals with respect to ■ Oun&re Point was 'mteteading and oie-H&d. 5 My idea in making the matter known to the public .was that as t!ie City Council had visited the , ! , jHsnd and come to a decision quite opaJy {here W2S m> further reason foT sreray. Indeed, there could be no earay after the Council's decision had ' bees -some to, and' the sooner the public knew what was being done the better. After all; Mr Gorason and I are only trustees for the citizens, and this matter ' M beadred' a stage which, in my dpirnon, justified tie citizens being made j araip-of it." NITORE OF THE PROPOSALS. Mr Parr added that in -view of Mr OmEoa'e complaint of inaccuracy, it was fell to now place fully before the public *bat he had suggested. "It is true, m Mr' Gtinsan eajye," remarked the Ifayor, "that hie proposals were not ?telately final —tbat they were quite give Mid fake. The main and essential {eaijiras of his scheme, however, are Tiat we are concerned with. They had ? pew, fiistiy, that Oajrq&ell's Point, ■"ill a total extent of five acres, should ™ out dawn. The mem: purpose of the demolition of the Point was fcbait spoil be secured! for the deflector, ■viaek is to go out into the tide, and &>r reclamation purposes. About «ti of our park, comprising the whole °ffte Point wae to be cut dk>wn io wfc level and battered .back, and a ■ '; »M wae to be cut ttrrongh the Point **a so cut down. The freehold of the hod on either side of line roadi formely ■Uβ ifor purposes of a park was ™ (jo"to the Harbour Board." Tie adpatttages of such a scheme to ac Hasrhonr Board were apparent," obswed the Mayor. "Instead of having ™_<fredge for spoil for the reclamation, **t having to bring at great cost J*riaJ to the proposed dleflector, the tpM be tipped from wlere . **! in*o tihe eea, at an immense eav°S«cast to the harbocur autJhorities." u D ESmuCTION OF THE PARK. 'Wlatever ilr Gunson may say to ' ai 00 ?*" 11 ?." declared, the 'Mayor, "the Jr 1 IJrt forward involved the dEstrucJ° a oi the present reserve as a fine eea- . e Pwk. Kow, what were the citizens , & for this sacrifice to utilitarian Sim? ■ ! T w ' h ' at waß to he P aid? Mop.y this: That an equal area, namely, . M■ and a half acres, was to be given £!* from what was left of Sir John (Tf ,1 OunjfoeM's property 'Kilbryd'e.' half acres of was otfr <!Ul ' , owri in the same way as itr« Plr v' lea Til three ami a "half th» oh we w "e to get. That was . "* wasiderabion." QQiEPAEISOX OF VALUES. ,s, lellil ror observed that Mr Oumson fchtrtigtht tiat ■■'Kilbryde" was •£** than ibe three and a half aoree to. qn^° Unc '^ olß ooEsid'eired! this open In aay ease, Mr Guueon 1 tiie fact that try the demoli-

tion.of five acree at the Point the -wkole j value- of' the neighbtmahood: for park; purposes would be eadly deteriorated. Obviously, "ElbrydV' ne it etoodi, and "Kilbryde" aeit ■would; be after the HaribxMir Board's opora±H>ne had: fbeen caTrred out on either sid»e, wouM! tbe two dSSerent prapossfewiß lor paiikjpurpoees. US A NtFISBEELL. "Put in a miteiheH," eaid tie Mayor in conclusion, "the scheme .suggested to mc mvolv€B tie destruction of the Point to the estent of over 400 ft inland, and the throwing of thcaffiamiß of tons of earth into the barbaur to provade cheap reulamia.tion for the harbour authorities. The eug-goetton that *he City Oouwril is blocking a big improvement .will not hold water for a minate. Citizens should go and' ccc for themeßivee." BAIT OF ROAD EXTENSION. "1 wish to emphasise the fact," said the Mayor, "that it was not a small area but five acres of the Point which was proposed to be cut down and used for spoil or batter. It is true that the bait of the extension of a new road eastward was held out to the city, but there are two observations to be made with respect to this. Firstly, it is quite unnecessary to demolish Campbell's Point. This new road could much more easily bend round the point than pass through it. Mr Bush, the city engineer, who visited the spot this morning, agrees with mc entirely in the opinion that the road may be quite easily taken round without destroying the Point. "In connection with this road, added the Mayor, "I may state that it is quite a thing of the future. I have pressed Mr Gunson at several interviews to name approximately a date when the road would go round to Parnell. At our last interview he was unable to guarantee that it would go there even within the next twenty years. COUNCIL NOT A EESISTER. "It is therefore moonshine," commented Mr Parr, "to say that the Council in resisting the wholesale cutting down of Campbell's Point is blocking this new road. If anyone doubts this let him go and examine the spot." The Mayor added that he had arranged to have flags placed along the course of the proposed road and also further flags showing the three and a-half acres which would have to go. He felt that the matter had reached a stage when the public should decide for themselves, and the fullest information should be placed before the people.