No Aid From Government For Developing Tourist Facilities At Mount Maunganui

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 14931, 19 March 1949, Page 3

No Aid From Government For Developing Tourist Facilities At Mount Maunganui

nnMATN BOARD REPRESENTATIVES WAIT ON MINISTER

(Times Correspondent) While expressing sympathy towards the problems with whP Mount Maunganui Domain Board is faced concerawh ornnino- and other faculties for tourists, the Minister of l D f JJ3 Affairs, the Hen. W. E. Parry., told a deputation from J Sntrd that he could not give financial aid, because of the ?™Commitments that his Government has already under- £ and because any such aid would establish a precedent hi' followed by all other places similarly situated. t 0 The Minister expressed his desire to open up land at v other beaches and suitable places for holiday makers m hi h would, he hoped, have the tendency to lessen congestion 1+ the existing resorts. The Minister considered that the whole of the respon•vvtv to provide facilities for tourists did not rest on the 5 irnment Ke was emphatic that the residents of tourist + had a responsibility as well as the tourist himself. Mr Parry said that overcrowding was a thing to avoid i np-reed that it was far better to call a halt, when camping autSs had been filled to the capacity which the facilities iilri Hermit than to attempt to please all-comers and receive only complaints about the inadequacy of the facilities provided.

At a meeting cf the board the , • Jan Mr S. F. Newton and the S Sg. E. Hutton, turnIS a report on an interview IS S they had had with the _ l h Lr At a recent meeting 01 f h f£ain Board Mr. Newton proposed certain alterations to the fflig method of control o tho Sng ground and foreshore:; uKr Us control, suggesting ha: S was a national responsibility ™3 the lormation of a Domain Sard separate from the Borough rouncil (whose personnel at present States the Domain Board). problems Outlined The two representatives had been J\\ received. The problems facing he council and domain board m nrnv>ding facilities over holiday I noc were explained to Mr Parry 5 the fact that the cost of proving the up-to-date facilities needed was beyond the resources of the domain board at the present time was stressed. "In dealing with the councils ability to meet some of the costs of providing facilities for visitors stated the report, "we referred to ihe manv improvements lor ratepayers and residents which the rouncil will have to provide in the rot-so-distant future, and suggested that so long as the ratepayers and residents were going without essential services, it would be perhaps unw : 'se for the council to finance, to any great extent, the provision of camping grounds and facilities. This would involve a heavy burden on the' ratepayers if the council was to attempt to carry the whole cost The Minister had been informed of the suggestion to form a Domain board apart from the council, and that if this was done the domain board would still require much assistance. The main advantage claimed from such a change was that the members would have more time to devote to the job than would the councillors of a growing borough.

"In asking the Minister if his Department could financially assist the council and (he domain board by way of subsidy or grant towards the cost of providing tourist facilities, we advanced the opinion that the tourist traffic to this town was growing- to such an extent that the problem was a national one rather than one for the inhabitants of the borough," the report added. Mr Parry had expressed pleasure that present-day conditions enabled many families who had not hitherto been able to travel to tour the

country on holiday. He sai'd that the shorter working hours- and general prosperity now prevailing enabled people to get away in their cars and enjoy camping trips. The trouble now was to provide amenities for these people and the need for more and improved iacili'ties was accentuated throughout the Whole country. Mr Newton and Mr Hutton stated in their report that the interview with Mr Parry had left them with the thought that the only alternative was to do as much as possible with the money that came by way of profits from the camping grounds and irom contributions which the council might be able to spare from time to time, instead of endeavouring to cater for the annually increasing multitude of holiday makers which was too large to be properly accommodated in the existing areas. Restriction On Campers

Both council and domain board would have to be content to do no more than was possible with the annual profits from the camps until existing conditions were rectified. The number admitted to the camp? v/ould have to be restricted unti'l more facilities were provided and then gradually increased as improved facilities were obtained. The report continued by outlining vari'ous facts about alternative ways in which domain boards could be appointed, revenue from the camps and expenses of maintenance. It printed out that a separate domain board would have no power to borrow money while the council could borrow to carry out improvements only while i't was constituted as the domain board. Members of the board were asked seriously to consider all aspects of any change in the light of the information contained in the report. It. was realised that a decision would need to be made promptly and members were asked to give the matter thought so that the question of any alteration could be decided on at the meeting of the domain board next month. Little discussion resulted from the reading of the report although the chairman, Mr Newton, did comment that it might be better to carry on as at present. He had come to the decision that, compared with other similar resorts, Mount Maunganui was no worse off. Mr J. J. Steevens remarked that the Government had apparently been able to do much to put Rotorua on its feet, even if it could do nothing for the very popular Mount Maunganui.