CITY WATER SUPPLY LOAN.

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 11283, 26 May 1902, Page 6

CITY WATER SUPPLY LOAN.

A meeting of ra.tepayer_.is to be held at the City Council Chambers to-night to consider the proposal to raise a loan of £7000. for the purpose of sinking artesian wells, construction of Bump> etc., in the central yard, and Jaying about 4£ miles of pipe- in the streets, so as to give.a high-pressure water supply in the more central portion of the city. This will "be .very useful for fire prevention, for sanitary, purposes, and for street-watering. • gome such scheme is especially necessary for sanitary purposes, if tbe Council intend to insist, on connections' being-made with the sewers, wherever it is possible for this to be done. Strangely enough, Sydenham is engaged at the present time on a similar undertaking, and the ratepayers in the "model boraugh" have already sanctioned a loan for the purpose. One cannot .help thinking that, although each little'scheme proposed is better than nothing, -it is only playing with a great question, and that by far the best plan would be first to form a Greater Christchurch, and then to carry out a really efficient and comprehensive scheme of water supply for tha whole city, with a reservoir on the Port ffi_s. We think it would ba well for the ratepayers to sanction the small kjan asked for, so that we may at any Tate be able to carry out the modest scheme now proposed if we fail to get the larger. We take it that the reticulation will be arranged so that it will b-» possible to make use of the pipes in connection with a larger scheme, p& that, in any case, the money will not be thrown away. But we do wish that the leaders of public opinion in our midst would address themselves seriously to tbe question for bringing about a Greater Christchurch. Problems of drainage, water supply, lighting, and electric tramways would all be moie economically and satisfactorily Solved if we Were governed by one strong municipality, instead of by four or live weak ones. Christchur—i could then take its proper place in the- forefront of New Zealand cities, and a material increase in the prosperity and well-being of its inhabitants could not i_il to follow..