UNSIGHTLY AREAS IN CITY DISTURB AMENITIES SOCIETY

Evening Star, Issue 26154, 16 July 1947, Page 6

UNSIGHTLY AREAS IN CITY DISTURB AMENITIES SOCIETY

Although the City Council has been stressing the need for cleaning up all unsightly buildings and sections in the city in preparation for Centennial Year, there are a number of “eyesores” for which, the municipal authorities are responsible, and which should be tidied up or removed immediately, in the opinion of the Dunedin Amenities Society. Speakers at the society’s meeting last night claimed that there had been difficulty in finding out which civic department was responsible for; each " offeluding area, and that it was unsatisfactory for one department to be “ sheltering behind another.”

A party from the ‘ Evening Star ’ main traffic from the city to, Maori accompanied the chairman of the soci- Hill, the 1 Star ’ was shown an untidy ety, (Mr George Simpson, and Messrs section alongside the street. It was S. P. Cameron and A. C. Cameron on bought by the council some years ago a toursof the places this morning. to enable Corrie street to be widened. SECTION. The widening has not yet been done, At Corrie street, the narrow lane although a house has been demolished, leading from Royal Terrace to Duchess and the better part of the section could Avenue, through which passes the .be levelled and surfaced to provide part

at least of the proposed widening. This area is the responsibility of the works department. RUBBISH TIP. In Maori road, leading from Russell street, there was an ugly section which was onpe a ;rub'bish .tip. ' Overgrown with docks and .thistles, and littered with, remains of food and old iron, it was an unpleasat contrast to the adjoining beauties of Jubilee Park and the Town Belt. There were no notices to say that the tipping of rubbish was prohibited. The works department’s responsibility, it was stated. TRAM TERMINUS. The area behind the Mornington tram shed, where many visitors to the city will go to travel on the steep Maryliill cable tram, had been “ just tidied up,” but nevertheless there was little in the scene to excite the tourist. A lazy spiral of blue smoke was rising nearby from a smouldering heap of rubbish, which was” comprised of old bits of paper, scraps of crayfish, and old tins, while fragments of paper littered the grass along the car line, tramways department. RESONSIBILITY disclaimed. At the meeting of the society last night Mr Simpson said that the superintendent of reserves (Mr M. R. Skipworth) had visited various reserves with Mr S. P. Cameron and himself. When they came to a very untidy rubbish dump in Maori road Mr Skipworth said it was not his department’s job to clean that up, as it was the responsibility of the works department. Mr Skipworth also said that the responsibility for the untidy state behind the Mornington tram shed was the tramways department’s. In fact, commented Mr Simpson, it was difficult to find out what did come under the jurisdiction of the reserves department. He felt the time had come when there should, be a better understanding between the various departments. Support for Mr Simpson’s remarks came from .Mr S. P. Cameron, who said he felt that one authority should be responsible for tidying up the streets and public property near the streets, and that possibly the department concerned could be debited with the cost of such cleaning. With the approach of Centennial Year something would have to be done, and it was very unsatisfactory for one department to be sheltering behind another, lie said.