PAPARUA COUNTY OFFICES

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29177, 11 April 1960, Page 10

PAPARUA COUNTY OFFICES

Minister Opens New BuildiLg The Paparua County Council’s new offices on the Main South road at Sockburn were described as “a beautiful looking building and a magnificent effort” by the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr Anderton) at the official opening on Saturday afternoon. Declaring the building open, Mr Anderton said: “I am here to congratulate the county council on providing its staff with the amenities which it has needed for a long time.” He said that in New Zealand today many counties were becoming municipalities because of the increase in population. This increase was creating urban areas inside counties and it made it absolutely necessary for a county to have some place to do its work “as it officially and administratively should do.” He said counties around Christchurch must realise that unless local government was capable of administering the affairs of thousands of people the progress of the country would be impeded. Mr Anderton said his home town of Auckland was an example of growth in New Zealand cities. “It grows out of its pants every three months.” The Government policy of encouraging industry to come to the South Island meant that Paparua county and the counties around it would have much bigger populations in the next two years, Mr Anderton added. Recent Expansion The county chairman (Mr J. H. Weaver) said that over the last 10 years there had been great residential and industrial expansion within the county. “This brings with it many problems to the council and the members of its staff, not the least being the need for adequate office accommodation and the means by which it shall be provided.” • He said the method adopted by the council of setting aside funds over a period of years had proved to be a prudent one. “The cost of this building and its furnishings—£2B,ooo in round figures—has been provided without the need of a loan or any substantial increase in rating.” Mr Weaver said the building, of more than 5000 sq ft, had been designed to provide adequately for present and future staff requirements and for the convenience of the people, “to whom it really belongs.” The president of the New Zealand Counties* Association (Mr A. H. Hansen) said the growth of population in the country brought with it a challenge to all forms of local government That challenge was'to provide the services for the people that local government had “the honour and responsibility to represent.” Mr Hansen, who is chairman of the Dannevirke County Council, said the Paparua County Council had met the challenge by providing better facilities* for its staff. “This building will help the staff to carry out its work more smoothly and efficiently as the years go on.” Credit must go to the county for the steps it had taken, Mr Hansen added.