Township Site Inspected

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30413, 11 April 1964, Page 1

Township Site Inspected

The most likely site for the new Haast township in South Westland was inspected by members of the Travel and Holidays Association during their survey of tourist facilities along the Haast Pass route.

The site is on the main road a few miles inland from the present township, which grew up in a haphazard fashion around the Ministry of Works Camp. The present Haast township site is unsatisfactory for water supply and sewage disposal, has poor soil, and a limited development area. The most favoured of the new sites does not have these problems. Persons who have private dwellings in Haast have no title to the land. Haast is three miles off the main highway on poor sandy soil near the coast. The proposed site inspected by the party is the one most favoured by the Westland County Council’s town and country planning officer, Mr L. J. Holmes, who has investigated likely areas. Mr Holmes took up this position recently. Mr Mark Wallace, a member of the Westland County Council, who accompanied the party, said a number of applications for sections in the township had been received. The merits of the various sites would have to be considered by various Government departments before a decision could be made. “There is not a hope in the world of the new township being ready for the opening of the road,” Mr Wallace said. Tourist Attraction Organised scheduled visits to a coal mine in the Greymouth district could be a tourist attraction, said Mr R. Lascelles, a member of the

South Island Publicity Association. The tours could be made to the most suitable mine, and would have to be properly organised in co-oper-ation with the management of the mine so that they would cause the minimum of disruption to the work. Numerous persons visited the West Coast without ever having the opportunity of going down a mine. “Not Good Enough”

Rusty corrugated iron buildings in a dilapidated state which could be seen along the highway to South Westland were not good enough for a province which hoped Io draw tourists in large numbers, said Mr Lascelles. A few repairs and a coat of paint would make a great improvement. Lack of maintenance of private properties should not be permitted to create a public eyesore. A good deal of attention should be paid to the publicising and development of local tourist attractions on the roule. If a visitor did not know about these he would drive past and miss some of the best. Usually the longer a tourist was in an area the more money he spent. There had to be adequate signposts and a plentiful supply of brochures and other publicity material at hotels, motels and other stopping places. Greater use should be made of plane tables to indicate mountain peaks and other outstanding geographical features, Mr Lascelles said.