THE MEMORIAL SITE

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 86, 8 October 1930, Page 12

THE MEMORIAL SITE

BUILDING BACKGROUND

AN HARMONIOUS WHOLE

ANZAC DAY UNVEILING

In about five months the transformation of Quinton's Corner Trill bo effected, allowing a fair margin for the placing of the bronze of the Citizens' War Memorial in position ready for the official unveiling on Anzac Day. The bronzo is expected to arrive in Wellington some time next month, and, though it could be placed in position practically straight away after arrival, it is considered wiser to postpone that work until the surroundings of the site have been put into respectable order. At present the sides of the old buildings, fronting Lambton quay, exposed by the demolition of the Hutt County building, are extremely unsightly, iron, brick, wood, a general assortment of old-time material, but all this will be hidden by the new building to be erected along the short length of street which will join Lambton quay and Bowcn street behind the memorial. When the architects, Messrs. Grierson, Aimer, and Draffin, of Auckland, submitted their design for the memorial a note was made of the necessity of a suitable background of buildings, and a good deal of thought lias since been given to this aspect. The City Architect drew up a design and about the same time the Auckland architects mailed down a suggestion for the background building, The two proposed designs are now under consideration by the council and the memorial architects, and a very satisfactory conclusion is anticipated. The City Council will direct the erection of the new build' ings, which will be of three stories. NEW TRAFFIC OFFICES. In exchange for the land and building taken, the City Council is rebuilding the Hutt County Council's offices, which will be near the Turnbull Library, but the County Council has agreed to finance the third story in orl der to keep the sky line of the background unbroken. Just what will be dono with the new frontages between the county offices and Lambton quay is not quite decided, but probably at least one of the new shops will be retained by the Corporation as a showroom, as for electrical equipment. The upper floors will be used by the tramway department for new traffic management offices, for when the Buuny street station is at last built the present offices, opposite Lambton Station, will be well out of position. Moreover, as Thorndon quay is to bo widened at that point, there must ba considerable interference with the present traffic offices. TRAM AND MOTOR TRAFFIC. The problem of traffic control past the memorial may present some difficulties, but they will not be very serious. Tram tracks will eventually run from Lambtou quay to Boweu street through the deviation, and a new tram stop will be created a little up from the corner, just behind tho memorial. There is bound to be heavy motor trafiic through the deviation street, and tho distance of the tram stop from the quay will be so short as to make it awkward to hold traffic behind standing trams. One suggestion is that the tram tracks should be kept well over to tho south side of the street, vehicular traffic, running either way, being kept to the memorial side, but there are objections to this course. The extra run vouiid the memorial corner—i.e., as traffic now runs, would mean but a loss of a few seconds, possibly a saving, as there would be no waiting behind standing trams, and it. may be that this course will be followed. It will certainly be to the advantage of traniway passengers, and to. motorists also, if vehicular and tramway traffic can be kept'separate. ■ ' ' , GETTING READY FOR BUILDING. The new road work is being pushed ahead as rapidly as possible, and, though a start cannot be made, with rebuilding until tho. design is finally drawn up, the council is investigating the nature of the ground for' foundations It was necessary to. mount the memorial column on piles as it came right above an old creek bed, but the trenching made during the past week shows that no foundation complications are likely to be met. with in tho erection of the street line buildings; the ground seems to be solid enough, mostly hard-packed clay.

The cluttering up of the memorial site witli building material, the crane, left in position, for lifting the bronze, and a shed or two, rather suggests that tho surroundings of the column and base are on the small side, but when the ground is cleared and laid out in beds and shrubberies and the 66ft street is opened at the back the memorial should stand out strikingly and effectively. __