NEW POST OFFICE SITE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 138, 6 August 1941, Page 4

NEW POST OFFICE SITE

IT would be interesting when the new Whakatane Post Office is finally built to produce a, complete history of the movement from the days when it was first mooted to its actual'realisation. Step by step the project has shuffled along the difficult departmental path. Barriers of red tape have been overcome in spite of the 'steadily in view campaign which for some years delegated the: plans to the dusty back shelves of the P.W.D. It would be interesting too, to tot up the number of times that the building has been 'definitely promised.' Well, it seems to be all. part of the great game, and nobody appears to take any great offence at the delay. The war, of course, is a legitimate excuse for curtailment of the programme of publilc buildings, but on the other hand it can also be a very handy excuse. A certain Borough Councillor has the habit of citing the case of the squeaky wheels' which draw greatest attention to their condition. Perhaps this has had something to do with the purchase of the site from the Harobur Board for £2700. The news at any rate, is most welcome in that it marks another step towards the desired goal, but it can scarcely be expected to meet with the whole-hearted approval of the Chamber of Commerce, which only a few months ago, declared its almost unanimous approval for another point of the Strand. The P. and T. authorities claim that they are looking to the future in selecting a site which it is anticipated will one day become the centre of the town. Other arguments they claim are that it is midway from the Heads to the bridge in a straight line, thus affording a central focal point which will become a natural hub as the town expands. So patent have these reasons been to the engineers who played their part in making the selection that it was considered advisable to clinch the deal by making the purchase from the Harbour Board without further recourse to local opinion. It seems, that it w r ould be wise for Whakatane to bow to the inevitable and accept the new position. There may in fact be points in the selection by outside officials which are difficult for residents to comprehend. In any case there is much satisfaction to be gleaned from the fact that at long last the site has been annexed, and' Whakatane's next duty is to press for the calling of tenders and, to see the construction under way. Plans, we understand, for the new building have already been compiled. Here is the new cue for the Chamber of Commerce, for though its wishes, with regard to site have not been met, it can at least claim that its representations have drawn attention to a public amenity which is long overdue. Representations for the construction of the Post Office are probably necessary before the next weighty movement is completed,, and knowing the habits of Government deliberations, the best advice is 'the sooner the better.'