Appeal Board Reserves Decision On Shingle Pit

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29956, 18 October 1962, Page 19

Appeal Board Reserves Decision On Shingle Pit

An appeal against a refusal by the Paparua County Council to allow a shingle firm to open a shingle pit in Sockburn was argued before the Town and Country Planning Appeal Board (Messrs C. H. Taylor (deputy-chairman), G. Wakelin, W. F. McArthur, and G. Tremaine) yesterday. Decision was reserved.

The appellant, Blake Brothers, Ltd. (Mr B. S. McLaughlin). applied to the council (Mr C. G. Penlington) late last year for permission to quarry on land proposed to be purchased by the company at the intersection of Wilmers and Halswell Junction roads. Permission was refused.

In reply to the appeal the council said that permission was refused because the appellant was not the owner of the land, but wanted to purchase it for quarrying purposes.

Also it had been the policy of the council to refuse permission for further quarrying in the Sockburn area. It considered future quarrying activities should be restricted to the Waimakariri river-bed. where there were ample supplies of shingle, rather than in areas which might become urbanised. The council also said there were several quarries in the area, and it was anxious to avoid further extension of the industry into the area. The grounds on which the appeal was based were that quarrying was a conditional use in a rural zone; that there were several pits within a short distance of the land in question, which was eminently suitable for quarrying; and that adjoining land was also used for quarrying. Mr McLaughlin said the area of the planned pit would be about 20 acres. There were at least seven shingle pits in the area. It was difficult to imagine any place where there was a greater concentration of shingle pits. It was in such a mess at present that one more pit would add little to the mess.

The shingle at the site was of a high grade, superior to that obtainable from the Waimakariri river-bed. Further, there was a danger of valuable equipment being washed away by the Waimakariri.

If the appeal was granted, the company was prepared to fill the pit when it was exhausted, so that the land could be used for other purposes.

Alfred Dyhrberg, the Paparua County Engineer, said the land was very suitable for industrial use. In building on a filled pit it was necessary to sink pilings through the fill to the solid base. Decision was reserved. SHOP AT BRIDGE

Decision was reserved by the board on an appeal against a decision of the Eyre County Council not to allow a fruit and vegetable stall to be built at the northern end of the Waimakariri river bridge. The appellants, William Gerald McElroy and Adrienne Rose McElroy (Mr R. J. de Gold!), had applied for permission to open a fruit and vegetable stall in premises known as the Waimakariri service station building on the corner of the Main North road and Tram road. This was refused by the Eyre County Council because it considered it would increase the traffic problem in the area by causing vehicles to enter and leave the traffic stream. Traffic in the area was likely to become more congested and there was every possibility in the future of the corner being widened. The establishment of a stall was also contrary to the undisclosed zoning scheme of the county. Mr C. G. Penlington opposed the appeal for the county council. The appeal against the council’s decision, which was made on April 9 this year, was on the grounds that the decision of the planning authority in refusing permission was contrary to the principles of town and country planning, and that the stall would not increase traffic hazards in the area. Witnesses gave evidence of the traffic density in the area and the possible effect of a stall on the corner. The board then reserved its decision.