CITY BUILDING. AND TOWN PLANNING.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXI, Issue 21, 26 January 1911, Page 3

CITY BUILDING. AND TOWN PLANNING.

SCIENTIFIC LINES., !AN IMPORTANT MOVEMENT. (BY TELEGRAPH — PHESS ASSOCIATION.] DUNEDIN, 25th January, i In social and humanitarian work in the Old World to-day nothing is of such 1 moment and 'significance as the movement apparent in the larger cities towards the provision of healthy conditions for their inhabitants by tho adoption of scientific methods of city building and town planning. The old idea was to leave everything to 6weet individual will and spontaneous growth. By that means grew slums, breeding poverty and destitution. The new idea enforces the duty of the individual to the body politic and restricts indiscriminate bad building. That New Zealand should come into line with some of the older countries in this direction, and take the necessary measures now, when the conditions are still elastic, was the idea endorsed to-day by the annual meeting of tha New Zealand Institute of Surveyors. Mr. C. W. Adams, of Wellington, editor of tho Surveyors' Journal, broached the matter, and, by reason of the special study he has made of the subject, gave some very interesting information relative to the growth in Old [ World lands of this movement. It is tho idea of the institute that New Zealand should establish a lead in this matter over the Australian centres, aad ! Mr. Adams made mention of the fact ! that the Hon. George Fowlds and the i Hon. Dr. Findlay had, by their public ' utterances, given indications of tie support they would render any scheme for greater efficiency in town planning. The motion passed by the meeting was: "That this meeting recommends for the favourable consideration of the council of the institute the desirability of legislation in the matter of city building and town planning on the lines of the Town Planning (English) Act." LAND-OWNERS AND FREEDOM. There was no necessity, Mr. Adame pointed out, to go outside New Zealand for examples of the pernicious results achieved by the system of allowing landlords perfect freedom. Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin contained instances of the evil wrought. Slums wert being created, and jerry building permitted. Drainage was nob properly attended to in the first place, and after the owner had exercised his own sweet will it v*as frequently impossible to effect proper drainage. In one district of Dunedin a mail had . a long, narrow area available for cutting up. He put in three or four side roads, but instead of taking them in right into his boundary, and so giving his inside neighbour direct communication, he left a narrow strip of a few links wide, for which the unfortunate inner man had to eventually pay an exorbitant price. In the Lower Hutt, too, there had been for years two roada separated by a section, and the lack of through, communication involved a circuit of some miles. The same thing could be found everywhere, and could have been obviated by some general system enforced by authority. The lack of such a system threw_ tremendous extra, expense on the municipalities on account of subsequent necessary purchases and thenecessity for revising the drainage system. IN OTHER COUNTRIES. Mr. Adams- proceeded to outline the plans that had been adopted in Germany, America, and England for the improvement of the towns and _ cities. Ger-many-had taken a lead in the matter, and in many towns the civic authorities prepared in advance plans providing for further extension into the suburbs. On these maps were shown where the leading roads ought to go, and where the owners of the land cut it up they were required to conform to the plan. They had no say in tie question at all, but if an owner had serious objections to urge his case was taken before a special court, and tried. Experience showed, however, that the owners generally did not object, as the system increased the value of their property. ' Further, despite the known heavy general taxation of Germany, there were 1500 of the smaller towns where the inhabitants paid no rates at all, and of these there were 500 where municipalities paid to householders yearly bonuses ranging from £5 to £25. This result was achieved by reason of the municipalities having acquired land which was used to benefit tne people as a whole. Reserves were laid out and everything done to increase the beauty of th& town. Referring to Berlin and other towns, Mr. Adams told how the buildings were regulated. In the heai*t of the city 25 per cent, of each section would perhaps be free of buildings, in the next zone 35 per cent., then 50 per cent, and 60 per cent. No jerry-building, of course, was allowed, and each building was supervised as regarded type and style. Turning to England, it was shown that there had just been passed a Town. Planning Act, which it was desired should be copied in New Zealand. This aimed at eliminating slums and jerry-building, and was undoubtedly a beneficial measure, though not so advanced as the German Acts. In America modern meMiods were being increasingly applied. Chicago had settled down to deal with the question inearnest, and the commercial club there had had committees working for three years preparing an exhaustive report, which had just been- published. GREED AND BLINDNESS. "We want to adopt this matter in New Zealand now," concluded Mr. Adams. "Australia is already effecting improvements, "particularly in the case of Sydney, which provides a glaring example of a splendid site spoiled , by greed and blindness. Here we will be having the same result. It is already apparent in many cases, and the law should certainly receive attention. Our cities should be made beautiful and our and gardens interest-ing. In America many cities have no fences round private houaes, which are all thus available for public beauty. The measure naturally provides for a lengthy view into the future, but the thing should be done, and I feel it will come. x\. practical suggestion that might be made- is that the power of veto or decision in any matter should be in the hands of a court of three, say, the Sur-veyor-General, Chief Engineer of Public \vorks Department, and the city engineer of the particular town concerned." The meeting was unanimous in supporting the motion, and much interest ■was displayed in the remarks of Mi*. Adams.