SLUM CLEARANCE

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVI, Issue 74, 24 September 1943, Page 5

SLUM CLEARANCE

IMMEDIATE ACTION URGED

"People should not have; to live in such bad housing conditions in a country like New Zealand," said the president of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce (Mr. W. H. Hindle) at its meeting on Tuesday. Some years ago the City Council had made a survey which disclosed the existence of slum conditions in some parts of Wellington, he said. Unfortunately, little seemed to have been done to remedy this state of affairs, largely because of the war diverting energy and attention to matters of greater immediate importance. The clearing of slum areas is something that should be tackled at the earliest possible moment, and it might be possible for this chamber to assist, added the president.

Mr. Martin Luckie described the peculiar problem facing Wellington. The trouble went back, he said, to the time when this city was first planned in London and divided into 1100 blocks measuring two chains frontage and five chains in depth. This was done as though the whole area consisted of flat dand. Moreover, the blocks were back to back, on the plan, and this necessitated many alleys and rights-of-way to give access to the sections. "Gradually small houses were built in these alleys and that was how Wellington's slum areas were started," said Mr. Luckie.

The meeting decided to interview the Mayor to see if, and in what way, the Chamber of,, Commerce might assist the City Council in this matter.