PLANNING A TOWN.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1294, 24 November 1911, Page 3

PLANNING A TOWN.

4-CO-OPERATION OF ARCHITECTS ESSENTIAL. 11l proposing the l (oast of the Now Zealand Institute of Architects at the annual- Institute' diimcr on Wednesday even in Mr. W. 11. Morton (Wellington City Engineer) gave expression to some interesting ideas on the subject of townplanning. It was satisfactory (o know, he said, that the Institute of Architects was so well established as to be capable of lending considerable assistance tu municipalities in (his very important ■ business of town planning. Every time o public work was undertaken, there was effected, contemporaneously. an improvement iu the general building scheme of the particular locality concerned. In this connection it should be strongly emphasised that the architects commissioned to. design new rebuilding schemes had a large measure of responsibility, arid n civic officer such as he (the speaker) was liked to feel, on such undertakings, that lie had ilic. goodwill of the architects generally. In t'ne .city, street architecture, generally speaking, was sound, but in domestic architecture the mark of unqualified designers \vas_ plainly to bo observed. If consistent improvement were to be assured, some attention should be givo'i to.the qualifications and the class of men engaged in architectural work. Unless this, were done, work would be done which would not be creditable to tire city, or to the general body of architects. The question was a diHicult one. involving statutory powers, but he hoped that ; a- svstcm of compulsory registration would be 'scsured for the profession of c.rcliiteels. Another point which occurred to him was the idea of enlisting the cooperation of'architects as garden designers. In Wellington the unsightly side and tick wall closs-boaTdttl fences should give place to open fences and hedges, (Hear, hear.)