STREET-WIDENING

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 176, 22 April 1929, Page 11

STREET-WIDENING

IMPORTANT FACTS ABOUT BOND STREET STATEMENT BY MAYOR Some important points in regard to the widening of Bond and Parish Streets were made by the Mayor, Mr. G. A. Troup, in a statement to the Press on Saturday. “The widenings of Bond, Parish, Mercer, and Taranaki Streets were all decided upon by a previous council, not by the council over which I have the nonour to preside at present,” said Mr. Troup. “When the question of widening Bond Street came before the last council, somewhat over two years ago—that js, toward the end of the council’s term — I voted with the minority against the proposal on every occasion, because I con. sidered that the width should be a full chain. Of the two Labour members at present on the council, one voted for the proposal and one against it. I mention these facts to show that, in spite of the present adverse criticism of Labour, its representaives can by no means disclaim responsibility, and on the other hand, the decision to widen certainly cannot be placed on the shoulders of the present Mayor, as an examination of the minutes of the council will clearly establish. “Upon entering upon my Mayoral duties I found that the agreement between the Bond Street Company and the City Council had been duly signed and sealed. The agreement was entered into constitutionally by the council on a majority vote, and as Mayor I was in duty bound to honour it, notwithstanding that previously, as a councillor, I had on every occasion recorded my vote against it. This explanation I make, not so much to disclaim responsibility, but rather to show, and to emphasise, that in spite of my opposition to the proposal in its initial stages, the transaction from the point of view of city improvement has been well worth while. Narrow Lanes now Two-way Streets. “Bond and Farish Street, although called streets before the widening took place, were really lanes or rights-of-way, of insufficient width for two ways of traffic, and dangerous to pedestrians. Since the widening from 18 feet to 42 feet in Farish Street and 43 feet in Bond Street, footpaths have been provided on both sides and there is room for vehicular traffic in both directions. Who will say that this is not a decided improvement upon what formerly obtained, that is, the removing of two rights-of-way and replacing them with streets giving safe ingress and egress for both pedestrians and wheeled traffic? No Power over Building Designs. “The nature of tbe buildings erected since the widening took placed’ continued Mr. Troup, “I admit is disappointing, but under the terms of the agreement tim council had no power to demand either loftier or more ornate buildings. Even in Lambton Quay the council had no power to prevent buildings of the same height or design from being erected. Economic conditions govern the class of buildings which go up in this street, and I have no doubt that in time, if the anticipations of the promoters of this company are realised, with regard to values, the present buildings will give place to more imposing ones. Praise For City Valuer.

“The other criticism levelled against the scheme is the price paid by the council for the Nimmo property. The price paid does seem at first sight to be heavy. This was negotiated for by the city valuer, Mr. F. N. Martin, the negotiations extending over a long period, every precaution being taken by him to safeguard the interests of the city. Neither the Mayor nor any councillor took any part in the negotiations. Mr. Martin substantiated every claim mtde, not only in regard to the land taken, but also with regard to the alterations required to the building after cutting off 26 feet of its width along the entire depth of the property, the disturbance and loss of business during the process of demolition and rebuilding, as well as the loss to the tenants for the same causes. “The city has, in my opinion, a valuer of outstanding ability in Mr. Martin, an officer second to n ye in Ne.z Zealand. As Mayor of the city, I have the utmost confidence in any recommendations he makes, as have also the councillors. The council has acted throughout on his advice, and is prepared to take the full responsibility for any decision made regarding this purchase. z Cheaper Than Mereer Street. “A comparison of the cost of widening those two streets with that of Mercer Street, in the same vicinity, shows that the cost in the former was very much Ises per square foot than for Mercer Street. As the land required In Mercer Street was purchased from the Department of Education when Mr. R. A. z Wright was Minister of Education, and as Mr. Wright was an exMayor of the city, and, further, as the matter was decided by an Arbitration Court set up, it cannot be contended that an excessive price was paid. The respective prices per square foot of land taken, including all costs, compensation for buildings taken, and all costs of altering the road, were as follow: — Praise for City Valuer. “Tbe other criticism levelled against the scheme is the price paid by the council for the Nimmo property. The price paid does seem at first sight to be heavy. This was negotiated for by the city valuer, Mr. F. N. Martin, the negotiations extending over a long period, every

precaution being taken by him to safeguard the interests of the city. Neither the Mayor nor any councillor took any part in the negotiations. Mr. Martin substantiated every claim made, not only in regard to the land taken but also with regard to the alterations required to the building after cutting off 26 feet of its width along the entire depth of the property, the disturbance and loss of business during the process of demolition and rebuilding, as well as the loss of the tenants for the same causes. “The city has, in my opinion, a valuer of outstanding ability in Mr. Martin, an officer second to none in New Zealand. As Mayor of the city, I have the utmost confidence in any recommendations he makes, as have also the councillors. The council has acted throughout on his advice, and is prepared to take the full responsibility for any decision made regarding this purchase. Cheaper than Mercer Street. “A comparison of the cost of widening those two streets witli that of Mercer Street, in the same vicinity, shows that the cost in the former was very much less per square foot than for Mercer Street. As the land required in Mercer Street was purchased from the Department of Education when Mr. R. A. Wright was Minister of Education, and as Mr. Wright was an ex-Mayor of the city, and, further, as the matter was decided by an Arbitration Court set up, it cannot be contended that an excessive price was paid. The respective prices per square foot of land taken, including all costs, compensation for buildings taken and all costs, of altering the road, were as follow:— Per sq. ft. Mercer Street £5 6 9 Bond and Parish Streets .. £2 4 3 “And in addition to handing over the land required for the widening of Bond and Farish Streets at no cost to the council, the company made a donation of £5OOO towards the cost of reconstruction of footpaths, kerbs, channels, and paving. which Work cost altogether £5289 9s. 9d. All alterations to buildings were also borne by the company. “An important fact, of which sight must not be lost, is that the company could have forced the council to have widened the street by declaring its intentions to rebuild, in which case they would have rebuilt to the new lines of streets determined nnon. leaving the council no alternative but to pay for the additional land required for the widening. ns well as the whole costs of altering the street and footpath formations, nnd eventually the responsibility of taking Nimmo’s property for the bottleneck at Willis Street could not have been left. And probably everyone knows. Nimmo’s were not nnrties to the development scheme, ns they Jiad declined to join the company. Important Facts. “The facts which I wish to establish." concluded Mr. Troup, “are these: — “(1) That the council has obtained two greatly improved streets at a reasonable cost. “(2) That the council could have been forced in any case to enter upon a street widening scheme for Bond nnd Farish Streets at a greatly increased cost to the city. "(3) That the increased values of this property, .due to the widening, will in a very short thne more than pay interest on nny expenditure made by the council. “These are facts which, in my opinion, should be known to and well considered by the citizens.”