REAL ESTATE.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 18, 22 January 1926, Page 11

REAL ESTATE.

LAND AND BUILDINGS.

ACTIVITIES IN AUCKLAND,

While there are few new buildings being commenced in Auckland city and suburbs, there is ample doing as far as those structures which were started on before Christmas are concerned. In all parts of the city construction works are going ahead, and new additions to the buildings are rapidly taking definite shape.

Opod progress is bring made With the additions to St. Keveu'a Arcade in Karangahape Road. The work there consists of the addition of 12 shops, four flats and four garages, while two stores will be situated on the basement. The flats are placed at the rear of the Arcade on the first floor, and overlook the harbour and Myers Park. The exterior walls are all in position, and the structure is ready to receive tne roof. The flats and garages are ready for the plasterers, and within three months the entire operations on the building should have been .completed. As is the case with the Arcade, the additions are being constructed in reinforced concrete, and will adjoin the present building. There are seven shops in the Arcade at present, and with the addition t,f 12 more this should become a popular rendezvous for shoppers in the district. The building of the new shops, flats and garages will not interfere with the exit from the Arcade, which is the entrance to Myers Park. The work was commenced some time before Christmas, and the progress that baa been made is excellent. Messrs. W. A. Gumming and Mahoney and Son, Ltd., are the architects, and Mr. N. Cole is the builder.

The handsome new garage and showrooms for the Universal Motor Company in Symonds Street is being proceeded with apace. The contractors have laid the foundations and the ground floor, and a start has now been made with the iirst floor. This building will consist of four storeys at the rear and two in the front. It is to be constructed in concrete, and will bo one of the most handsome structures in Auckland. The ground floor, which has been finished, is ready to set up as the showroom, which is on the street level. The work is being pushed steadily ahead, and will be completed well up to contract time.

The block of eight shops and dwellings at the. top of Symonds Street being erected for Messrs. John Fuller and Sons is up to the first storey, and good progress i 3 being made with the interior of the structure. This block of shop? will till a long-felt need in this busy part of the city and will also add considerably to the attractions of the street.

A two-storeyed block of shop 3 and dwellings at the Dominion Road terminus is rapidly nearing completion. There are three shops here, and all are constructed in the most modern style and possess every up-to-date convenience.

The finishing touches are being given to a block of three shops and dwellings in Edendale Road, which are of concrete, and, like the shops abovementioned, are constructed in the most modern manner.

2tir. S. A. Sinclair d'Connor is the architect for the four dbovementioned structures.

Good progress is being made with the new building for the Bank of Xew South Wales at the top of Upper Queen Street. The. vaults and foundations are all in position, And the structure is rising above the first floor. Messrs. Wilson and Moodie are the architects.

Several other minor works are well on the way towards completion, and in all there is plenty of activity in the building world at present.

ALTERATIONS TO LYRIC THEATRE

To spend approximately £10,000 in carrying out extensive alterations and bringing the Lyric Theatre to that stage when the maximum of comfort is provided patrons, and not missing a single performance is something the management might Well feel proud of. For a period of eleven weeks builders frequented the theatre, and even to-day, although there is yet more work t6 be done before the contract is completed, sufficient has been done to entitle the Lyric to be placed with the most tip-to-Wlate in Australasia. The entrance from J Symomls .Street has undergone a reImarkable change, and, instead, of the I ordinary theatre entrance to be mot with anywhere, there is the latest ih Italian marble. Large oak doors, with bevelled glass, swing open, and throw into view the stalls, "fitted with new chairs, the walls tastefully decorated, and the building beautifully lighted with coloured and dimmed lights. The effect is charming. The circle is constructed on j the cantilever principle, with massive j steel tiellis girders, which will withstand I any weight. One item which patrons ! will appreciate is the removal of the poles which hitherto interrupted the view of those in certain seats in the stalls, j the circle has- also been straightened J across, and 1500 deluxe chairs installed. J while the passage-ways are carpeted with lAxminster. The decorative scheme has ! heeii carried out in blue and gold, and the } theatre in every way lias a soothing and 'charming effect, besides providing every I possible comfort to patrons. As a ; matter of fact the whole theatre, except I the outside walls, has been reconstructed

and brought thoroughly up-to-date in every essential. The architect was Mr. H. L. Massey, and the contractor Mr. L. G. Watson.

A NEW CHURCH. The new churcii for the parish of St. Mary's, Merivale, Christchurch, the contract for which has been let to J. and YV. Jamieson, Ltd., at £10,914. will be built entirety of local nibble, and will be lined with Oamaru stone. The walls will bu panelled. Seats will be used instead of chairs in the sanctuary, the floor of which will be in teak parquetry. A handsome tower will adorn tho structure. It will be about 100 ft in height, and will bo constructed over the vestibule. The church will be 117 ft Gin by 04ft, and the roof at the apex will lie 40ft high. One entrance will be on the northern side, but the main door will be close to tho lane. An organ, to cost £2300, has been ordered from England. I

BIG WELLINGTON WORKSHOPS. There is a £30,000 job in Wellington ahead for some contractor (says a Southern paper). It is the construction of the new tramway workshops beside the car-barns at Kilbirnie, and it will cost £30,000 and more. The work, which is now open for tender, is to provide new shops to take the place of those at Newtown, which are no longer adequate lo meet the demands of the city's traction. The council wants the structure finished in 12 months, as the need is there alrcadv. '

The new workshops, on "the southern side of the sheds, will be of irregular shape. Their length will be 435 feet, and at one end they will •measure .300 feet, at the other 175 feet. They will be bigger than the existing sheds when completed.

The shops are to be divided into three sections. Down one side, a long alleyway, the "transverser" runs. Along this the street car is taken, and by dint -of cranes and light, sliding carriages, the car, body and truck will receive attention from workmen. In the truck shop the car under repair will be dealt with by a number of departments, including welders, fitters, blacksmiths and electricians. In the car-body shop will be tho woodworkers, while the paint shop speaks for itself.

The building will be of steel and brick, with many large windows, and the usual overhead lighting. Inside it will be 30 feet high.