AUCKLAND POLICE BARRACKS

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22104, 28 May 1937, Page 12

AUCKLAND POLICE BARRACKS

+ QUARTERS OF SINGLE CONSTABLES SMALL CUBICLES IN OLDFASHIONED BUILDING [THE PRESS Special Service.l AUCKLAND, May 27. Uncomfortable, draughty, ill-ventilated quarters are the lot of single constables who live at the Auckland police barracks, which are located on the upper floors of a gaunt, old-fashioned building which constitutes police headquarters in the city. The fresh appearance of the ground floor office is entirely at variance with the unprepossessing condition of the men's quarters. On the lop floor there is a barnlike room about 28 feet by 32 feet, into which 11 cubicles are crowded, each one measuring approxfmately seven feet by eight feet. Into this space arc aranged with maximum effect a bed, a dressing table, and the personal i effects of each man. The occupant of ; a cuicble may stand in the centre of i his allotted space and, with his arms extended level with his shoulders, almost touch the plasterboard which separates his quarters from his neigh- . bour on either side. With plasterboard . divisions about seven feet high, privacy [ is almost out of the question. In an- . other part of the building where , cubicles are located it is doubtful : whether natural light filters through. There are only two bathrooms and r one lavatory for 18 men on the top floor, and on the lower floor there is a ' bathroom with only a cold water tap. In another part of the building there , are three- hot showers. Those men J who prefer hot baths to showers must [ await their turn in two bathrooms. Neither of the two top floors has any ' heating equipment in the men's cu- ; bicles, and the men suffer discomfort \ in winter. In summer the pjace Is ', equally unpleasantly warm. ; Those who are on night duty may i go off their beats at 5 a.m. with wet clothing, and the usual method of dry- ', ing them in the barracks appears to ' be confined to hanging the uniforms over the balustrade or waiting until the owners have the opportunity of ironing them dry. On the first floor is a room euphemistically known at one time as the sitting room. Except for a fireplace and two uncomfortable hard straightbacked couches, with flax seats, there is nothing to diminish the gloomy atmosphere of the place. Given these conditions, it is scarcely surprising that colds are frequent. At present the Auckland City Council is conducting a survey of housing conditions in various parts of the city. » Officers are examining apartment and • other houses to check the possibilities J of over-crowding and unhealthy livI ing conditions.