U.S. Drug Firm Plans $lm Chch Factory

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32381, 21 August 1970, Page 20

U.S. Drug Firm Plans $lm Chch Factory

A large United States pharmaceutical manufacturing firm plans within two years to establish an export processing factory in Christchurch at a total cost of about slm.

The company plans to build the factory on an 11-acre site in Ferry Road, but the area is zoned rural; and whether a specified departure from the Regional Planning Scheme can be made to allow the industrial use of the land is now being considered by the No. 1 Town and Country Planning Appeal Board. The appeal board considered the matter yesterday but reserved decision until this morning, so that members could personally examine the site.

The company applying for ' the use of the land, Julius : Schmid Inc., New York, is a ■ large-scale producer of phar- ' maceutical products. Approval for the company 1 to build on the land, next to ! the Woolston Fire Station, has ■ already been granted by the 1 Christchurch City Council, • and neither it nor the Christ- ! church Regional Planning Au--1 thority objected at the appeal ' hearing today. 1 The appeal board was com--1 prised of Messrs A. R. Tur--1 ner, S.M. (chairman), A. E. ■ Kennard, R. S. Martin and G. 1 R. Tutt 1 Giving evidence in support ’ of the application from the company, Mr C. S. Stevens, governing director of C. S. 1 Stevens and Company, Ltd, 1 Christchurch, said he was the New Zealand agent of the 1 firm. If the proposed Ferry ' Road site was not available no assurance could be given that the plant would be built elsewhere in Christchurch, or in New Zealand, he said. If built, the factory will initially employ at least 100 persons and later up to 200. mainly women workers. Raw materials obtained from freezing works will be processed at the factory into membraneous tissue, used for the manufacture of prophylactics and other purposes. Mr Stevens said his com-

pany was the Australasian representative of the New York company, which had been in business in North America since the 1880 s and was a very substantial enterprise. It was now the wholly-owned subsidiary of a company incorporated and domiciled in the United Kingdom.

As a matter of principle the company had now decided to move its processing operations away from North America and closer to either of its two main sources of supply. Australia or New Zealand. The product from the New Zealand factory would he almost completely processed and would all be exported to North America. None of the products would be sold in this country and there would be no competition with any locally produced items of a similar nature, said Mr Stevens.

“In terms of overseas exchange earnings, the operation will return more than double the present receipts derived from the exported raw material. If Australian raw material is also to be processed here there will be a further overseas gain in overseas funds."

Mr Stevens said the Ferry Road site was chosen because of water and sewer services, the site’s nearness to dormitory suburbs from which labour could be recruited, and because public transport serviced the site.

“With the change from exporting from New Zealand to processing in New Zealand it is imperative that a substantial portion of the building programme, namely the cool

store, should be completed in January, 1971. If jhese facilities are not then ready the lamb killing seasod will be missed and the mafxetlng of the company’s products in North America woidd be dislocated.” The application by the company for a specified departure was made in th* name of Mr K. A. Gough, yho made submissions to the board. The rural zoning was not a zoning to protect agriculture because the land was of little agricultural use, being swampy, low-grade grazing land, virtually derelict. Mr R. M. Critehley, the Town Planning Officer of the Christchurch City Council, said the land was zoned rural in the council’s Operative District Scheme. In the reviewed district scheme it was designated with a zoning of Rural The council had passed a resolution for removal of such designation should approval be given to the application by the appeal board. The site formed part of an area within the block bounded by Charlesworth Street, Linwood Avenue, Huinphreya Drive and Ferry Road. Mr Critehley said the granting of the application was in accordance with good town planning and in ’the public interest because:— (a) The nature o! the land limited the present use of the site and it was in the over-all economic interests of the community that land at present uneconomic be put to a more economic use. (b) Undoubtedly the proposed development would substantially improve and enhance the present visual appearance of the area. (c) It would provide a better utilisation of existing public utilities. (d) It would provide employment for persons living in the area, especially women. Mr Critehley said that in granting consent to: a specified departure the council made it a condition that tlm proposed development be substantially completed witbin two years from the date of consent being given by the Town and Country Planning Appeal Board. Mr F. S. Robinson, the Regional Planning Officer for the Christchurch Regional Planning Authority, taid that from a regional planning point of view there was no reason why the application should not be granted.