TOWN PLANNING.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 213, 8 September 1926, Page 8

TOWN PLANNING.

VALUE IN CITY IMPROVEMENT.

CRITICISM OF THE BILL. PROFESSOR KNIGHT'S ADDRESS. The worth, and even the necessity, of town planning for the improvement of cities and towns was ventilated in an impressive and convincing manner by Professor C. R. Knight, professor of architecture at the Auckland University College, in a most interesting address, delivered at the Leys Institute last night. Mr. W. Cecil Leys presided, and, in his opening remarks, referred to the fact that the City Fathers had not felt it incumbejit upon themselves to be present to hear something of the all-important subject that was to be discussed. Professor Knight said that a great deal had been heard in the past on the question of town planning. Comparisons had been made, and were somewhat unfavourable to New Zealand cities with the great cities of the world such as Paris, Brussels and Washington. The final argument was possibly the introduction of town planning legislation in England. That country was now making big efforts to correct the errors of the past. The growth in the colonies had been different. In most cases the cities were planned on the traditional Roman lines—that was the gridiron plan—roads at right angles to one another with square blocks of real estate easily divided. Examples of that type were yet to be found in Adelaide, Melbourne and Christchureh. It was a simple form of planning, but there were several serious objections to that style. The first thing was the lack of diagonal arterial roads, a costly matter to rectify when the city grew apace. The f eeond fault was a certain monotony of effect, and a lack of variety and contrast. On the other side, however, there were found the advantages of generally wide streets. That type of city plan was obviously only applicable to flat, level country. They found the early settlers faced with the'plan of a city on irregular ground, and they failed lamentably. Whatever was originally thought of was .-.oon lost in rapid haphazard development. The main roads in such cases followed the valleys —the easiest grade —or possibly they followed the cattle tracks There was a distinct advantage in that, and an examination of the plans of such cities as Sydney. Wellington and Auckland would show that the main roads had been well plnced from many points of view. A natural fault under the circumstances has been that they were not the wide, spacious thorougfifares of tlie gridiron plan.

Early New Zealand. Referring to the early history of New Zealand, the speaker recalled the fact that an early plan of the city of Auckland was prepared by Mr. Fulton Matthew, the Surveyor-General at the time. It waa full of interest, and showed ability. It had several faults, however that possibly prevented its gradual adoption. It was fascinating to study the remarkable growth of Auckland. There was some disappointment in the early days about the location of the city. Pro fessor Knight dealt at length with the alteration of the foreshore and the population of the city of Auckland in 1841 and its subsequent rapid increase to the present day. The growth of Auckland was not an isolated instance, as al.l the other cities of the Dominion had progressed apace. "I say quite emphatically," said Pro fessor Knight, "that the introduction of town-planning into New Zealand marks an epoch in our history. It means that we are ever so much more fortunate than other countries. We realise that our towns are small to what they will be, and that what lies before us is infinitelj greater than what lies behind. Let us unite in a determination to let our future development be ample and adequate, and in Auckland let us be determined to have the best possible city."

Influence of Country.

'_he Act before Parliament, continued Professor Knight, had received much criticism. Many believe that various clauses would have to be amended. They had to accept the underlying principles of the Government. The actual procedure under the Act was still to be published. It did, however, provide for both regional as well as city planning. The influence of the country would be of importance, and would affect the towns concerned.

Particulars regarding traffic, industries, population, housing, and indeed anything appertaining to civil life, had to be laboriously collected, for it was on the accuracy of the information that the success of the scheme depended. This could be done only by studying facts and figures of the past in order to obtain a guide for the future. Each city was a problem in itself, but future requirements could be ascertained from a study of past requirements.

A development plan would have to be prepared in every case, showing all the proposed changes. The three most important were the problems of communications, zoning, and the provision of parks and recreation grounds. Every method of transport would have to be considered under the heading of coin munications, and great attention would have to be given to the roads of tile city. An Important Phase. "Zoning ie, of course, one of the most important phases of town planning," Professor Knight continued. "It allocates certain areas for certain uses, and it must of necessity have clear definitions and classifications. By this method areas unsuitable for housing would be determined —in Auckland, for instance, there is Freeman's Bay—and it will keep certain noxious industries apart from the city proper. Fancy having your house alongside a glue factory." The question of the provision of parks throughout the city was vital. "Auckland is rich in parks," said the Professor. More Playgrounds.

"What will be needed here in the near future will be more playgrounds for the children—little areas nt more than a few sections, with swinss and the necessary apparatus for the kiddies to enjoy themselves. One has only to see them playing at Myers Park or Victoria Park to realise that this step is most important. The ideal thing would be for every estate to be provided with a chjjdren's playground, but the cost of road frontage is the chief trouble. A child should be able to reach a playground from its home in about five minutes, and in England a method has been arrived at that makes this possible. The problem has been solved by placing houses along the greater part of the road frontage and leaving spacious ami artistic entrances to the parks " Professor Knight illustrated by lantern elides the beautiful as well as useful results that had attended town planning in other parts of the world.