AT POINT HOWARD

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 175, 20 April 1929, Page 11

AT POINT HOWARD

WHARF SCHEME OF LONG AGO A TRAMWAY TO THE WAIRARAPA In extending the facilities of the port of Wellington to the north-east corner of the harbour by the construction of a wharf at Point Howard, the Harbour Board is carrying out, on a scale to suit present-day requirements, a scheme that was proposed 72 years ago.

On January 15, 1857, a Select Committee was appointed by the Wellington Provincial Council to “inquire as to the best place for constructing a wharf between the Koro Koro and Lowry Bay . . . and, further, to take such evidence as they can procure as to the practicability and expense of constructing a tramway from such wharf to the Wairarapa.” The latter proposal is of interest in view of the present scheme to provide access to the Wainui-o-mata Valley by means of a tunnel through the hill northward of Lowry Bay. The members of the committee were Edward Jerningham Wakefield, George Hart, Wilson, W. Allen, and S. Revans. Captain Blair, of the sailing vessel Esther, in giving evidence, said that a wharf 100 feet in length was wanted. He gave it as his opinion that “it would be a very heavy gale of wind that a large vessel could not obtain shelter from.” All witnesses were agreed that "inside of Point Howard” was the most suitable place for the wharf. One remarked that “a considerable quantity of land had been added by the earthquakes to the Government round the coast, and a wharf would be of considerable service.” Captain Doherty said “a vessel of about 350 tons register, drawing 12 feet, might lie there, but much would depend on the build of the wharf.” He thought the “best shape of a wharf would be one built at an angle of 80 degrees, with a T at the end.” He did not think the river would fill up the space inside the wharf, but would, on the contrary, deepen it. Another witness thought a wharf inside Point Howard “would open up the whole of the Hutt Valley, Wainui-o-mata, and principally the Wairarapa.” The wharf “would shortly pay for itself, as the expense of shipping would be reduced one-half.” The committee in their report found that “two very eligible sites exist for public wharves, both near to Point Howard, and one suited for small coasters, the other for large vessels. Such wharves could be .constructed at a very small expense owing to the facilities of the situation and abundance of suitable materials at hand. It would be a very great advantage to the public, both of the Hutt and Wellington, by effecting a saving of from 50 to 60 per cent, in the carriage of produce from the Hutt and Wainui-o-mata, and would materially increase the value of the land belonging to the Government in the neighbourhood.” The committee recommended that the Provincial Government should “give every encouragement for the formation of wharves by giving every facility and security to companies or private individuals willing to undertake such works. This might be effected by conceding a lease of sufficient length at a. nominal rent and binding the lessees to maintain proper accommodation for the public requirements at rates of wharfage not exceeding the Wellington charges.” Present Day Plans. That modest scheme was proposed 72 years ago to serve the needs of an infant community, but the wharf was not built. To-day the seaward end of the Hutt Valley holds a population of many thousands, a.... the eastern foreshore areas are being developed for industrial purposes. Point Howard is to have a wharf, not for small coasters, but to accommodate large tankers which will be able to moor there in perfect security nnd pump their cargoes ashore to the bulk storage plant that 'is to be erected nearby. An approach. 630 feet in length, will give access to a wharf 60 feet by 40 feet, sufficiently large to provide for the needs of the tankers, which will moor to dolphins placed roughly north and south, so that the ships will lie more or less end on to the prevailing winds. The wharf will be served by pipe lines to carry the oil and motor spirit from the ships to the storage tanks. Sooner or later, but in all probability in the near future when the development of the industrial area warrants it, another wharf to provide for large ships and the handling of general cargoes, will be constructed in the vicinity of Point Howard. Access to Wairarapa. The railway to the V. airarapa via the Hutt Valley ultimately disposed of the scheme for a tramway from Point Howard to Wairarapa. Nevertheless, the findings of the Select Committee of 1857 are ot interest even now. According to their report, the evidence taken was “sufficient to show that a line of road may be constructed, the advantages of which to the province it would be impossible to overestimate, especially as opening up and giving value to the small farm settlements and the district known as the Forty Mile Bush and from thence leading direct to the Ahuriri: that from the abundance of suitable materials on the proposed line of road, it could be constructed nnd kept in repair at a less cost than a common road and afford greater

facilities for traffic.” It recommended that “a proper examination of the line should be made and that such a work would probably be best undertaken by a public company, either with a concession of land, or a guaranteed interest on the paid-up capital, and that it should be done as early as Possible to prevent the impediments that might arise from the increased value of land along the line. One witness, a Mr. Ling, said he was constantly driving cattle along, the coast between Lowry Bay and fhe Wairarapa; and there was only one point where he experienced any difficulty in passing. There was a breadth of one chain above high-water mark except at that point. He had been as far as Alsop’s run, and it was possible to make a road on the west side of the lake to Alsop’s. The tide never came up to “Matthew’s” even in a south-easter. Another witness thought "one horse would draw, if you could carry on the road without a greater rise than one in a hundred, at the rate of three to four miles an hour, about five tons.” Another man thought the proposed tramway would be “very expensive to keep m repair.” He knew of “no easier way to the Wairarapa by railway than up the valley of the Hutt, except in having land to buy at a large rate.” The railway won.