CITY COUNCIL HOUSING SCHEME

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27576, 5 February 1955, Page 3

CITY COUNCIL HOUSING SCHEME

Sir,—Surely the time has arrived when the Christchurch City Council should relax same of its building regulations and specifications to enable" the price of housing to be reduced. The council seems to have given up the ghost as far as workers’ homes are concerned, and seems to be taking on the land agency business. It would be interesting to know what prices were paid for land the council is holding for building purposes and what prices it expects to sell them for.—Yours, etc., LAND SHARK. February 2, 1955. [The Town Clerk (Mr H. S. Feast) replies as follows:—“The Christchurch building by-laws are based on the New Zealand Standard Code, which is designed to ensure a reasonable standard of building now and in the future. The practice of purchasing and developing land for sale as building sites has the full accord of the Government and it is suggested that the large number of applicants for the sites already sold is an indication that it is performing a useful purpose in assisting people to acquire homes and can be claimed to represent a substantial contribution to that purpose. The selling price of such sections is limited by law to the actual cost of purchase and development plus 5 per cent, to cover administrative charges, so that in effect the council makes nothing whatever from the sections. Incidentally, it should be noted that the council is still erecting cottages for aged people.”!