“A NECESSARY EVIL”

Evening Star, Issue 21720, 15 May 1934, Page 2

“A NECESSARY EVIL”

BUILDINGS MARRED BY PDSTS AMD POLES GROUND DUCTS TOO COSTLY Unsightly though they are, the expense of putting underground power and telegraph .wires that mar the appearance of city buildings precludes any immediate change. Several re-cently-erected Christchurch buildings built, along imposing lines, suffer in this respect, but though the departments concerned view the matter sympathetically they declare that it must remain a necessary evil for some time to come. Further, it will be practically impossible to do away with a certain minimum of poles and wires. Diverse opinions on overhead wires and poles and the practicability of their removal were given to a reporter, who showed a number of Christchurch men a photograph appearing in the ‘Sun’ of Bowron’s Buildings at the corner of Manchester and Hereford streets. Wires stretched along botlr frontages and two poles were prominent. “ Put the wires behind buildings, over buildings, or underground,” advocated one section of those spoken to. But think of the cost,” retorted niliers, chiefly engineers, who knew the conomics of the situation. “ Wc are greatly behind in matters of this sort in New Zealand,” one man said. “We are nothing of the sort,” replied another. And a dozen other conflicting assertions were forthcoming with equal spontaneity as the reporter went from one man to the next. . Too many people, it was said, keenly advocated underground ducts without the slightest idea of how expensive such systems were. There would be a different story to tell if bodies such as the municipal electricity department began to sink much of their wiring and ratepayers were asked to foot the bill. ' Mr J. C. Fairbairn, district telegraph engineer, said that the Telegraph Department had been for several years following a policy of placing as many telephone cables ns possible underground. Essentially local wires had to be placed on posts, however, though where a number of wires went Into one large building they were kept from sight. Main telegraph and toll lines had to be placed on posts. It was misleading, said an electrical engineer, to say that New Zealand lagged behind other countries in respect to hiding wires and poles that spoiled the appearance of city buildings. In Christchurch poles carrying power lines ranged from 26 to 35 feet in height, and were certainly not erected without regard to the surroundings. He had seen in Seattle poles 60 to 100 feet in height. Streets in cities all over Western Canada and the United States were marred in a like manner. It was the reporter’s inference that Christchurch people would have something to say if poles of such dimensions were erected in this city. How opinions differed! Thy very next man interviewed was an architect. ” Why.” he said, ”wc are on the edge of beyond here. If

we lived in a decent city we would have everything underground.” Poles and wires were a necessary evil, said another architect, Mr R. S. 1). Hannan. The Town Planning Institute, the Institute of Architects, and the Roadside Beautifying Society all deprecated the use of overhead wires, hut realised that lack of money made comprehensive changes impossible! All the departments had acted sympathetically when approached regarding the placing of posts and wires in particular places.