Board’s Architect Gives Evidence

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30810, 23 July 1965, Page 3

Board’s Architect Gives Evidence

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, July 22. Mr Justice Hutchison will sum up in the Supreme Court tomorrow in the trial of Harry Leo Symmans, aged 38, chief architect of the Wellington Education Board, on two charges under the Secret Commissions Act, 1910,

The first count alleges the receipt by Symmans of £6BO 18s as a reward for preparing working drawings, specifications and a schedule for a private architect who was designing a new district high school at Picton for the board. The second count relates to the presentation of an account by the architect for £756 10s to the board for payment without disclosing that a percentage of the money was to be paid to Symmans for work done by him. Mr Justice Hutchinson is presiding at the trial. Mr W. R. Birks, with him Mr B. Horton, is appearing for the Crown and Symmans is represented by Mr G. C. Kent. Giving evidence on his own account today, Symmans said he was appointed chief architect to the board in 1965 and still held that position. Symmans told the Court that in 1962, the Wellington Education Board had a big building programme—much larger than the staff could possibly handle.

A top priority job at that time was the building of the high school at Picton. “NEVER SO URGENT” “I never had another job of comparable urgency, nor had so much pressure brought to bear on me to get it under way,” Symmans said in reply to a question by Mr Kent. He knew it would be difficult for anyone to do the planning work in the time and had suggested to Jackson, the architect, that he would do it in his own time, provided such an arrangement had the approval of the board. “I was not able to do it In my regular working hours because of the pressure of other work,” said Symmans. “I told the secretarymanager of the board, and the chairman, of my intentions. The chairman said he could see no objection to my doing the work in my own time and he would like the job got on with. “I was under pressure to get the work completed from the chairman, from the board, and from the department. 1 worked right through my month’s holiday and at nights and week-ends at home to finish the job. Symmans told Mr Birks it

I was about the middle of 1962 when he approached Jackson regarding the Picton school buildings. He had told Jackson if he could not do the job he might be able to help, provided he got the board's consent. In reply to a further question by Mr Birks, Symmans said he did not tell the board's accountant of the fee he was to get from Jackson. NOT CHALLENGED In his address to the jury, Mr Birks said it was not challenged that Symmans received 90 per cent of the scale fee payable for the work and that Mr Jackson received the remaining 10 per cent for taking responsibility for the job. "The Crown claims that the payment made to Symmans was corrupt,” Mr Birks said. “It was paid for work done for and on behalf of his employers. "The Crown submits that some of the work at least was done in his employers' time.” Mr Kent told the jury that Symmans was prepared to make a sacrifice of his own time and in return had asked that he be paid the usual fee for the work so done. The whole thing had arisen out of a critical situation over which Symmans had no control, “The Crown’s case has progressed far and wide and many circumstances turned over to see if there is not something sinister in them," said Mr Kent. "Everywhere you look you can find a written record’ by Symmons of what he did. The plan carries his name and the account for the fee is in his handwriting. “There is no suggestion of a system. The whole thing arose out of a special case requiring a special remedy,” said Mr Kent.