AS OTHERS SEE US.

Hokitika Guardian, 16 April 1921, Page 2

AS OTHERS SEE US.

CANDID CRITICISM. (To the Editor). Sir, —The people of Hokitika are very proud of their town, and one can see a genuine anxiety that visitors shall carry away a good impression. The question “Wlmt do you think of Hokitika ?” is so often asked that perhaps it would be interesting to some of your readers to know what impression the town gives to •a stranger, like myself, interested in to .vn-planning. Hokitika has great natural beauty. The charms of mountain and forest, river and open sea lie all around it, so that the eye rests with delight on every aspect. The town itself, however, is disappointing. On all sides one sees neglect: streets unformed and untidy; houses, outbuildings and fences unpainted, and many buildings of old, rusty corrugated iron, tenantless and forlorn, left as blots on the landscape. The narrow main street gives promise of being a first-class slum at some future time, unless steps are taken to widen it or to develop the business portion of the town in some other direction. The. beach is beautiful, but the beauty is spoiled by relics of the past in the form of sunken chimney-base-ments, remains of farmer buildings that have been washed away by the sea, and various other things that either offend the eye or cause the feet to stumble.

Yet Hokitika has great possibilities. Its streets, on the whole, are wide and lend themselves to beautifying. There is plenty of vacant land where ‘choice spots could be secured, while prices are •still low, for playgrounds, small resting and playing places for mothers and children, and gardens. Cass Square could he made into a place of beauty for all and of special delight to the children. On the occasion of my visit it looked distinctly shabby. A litter of soiled lunch papers showed that a picnic had been held and that neither the picnickers nor the townspeople had had enough civic pride to see that the Square was cleaned up after the day’s outing. I saw crowds of healthy, happy children in Hokitika, as everywhere along the Coast; but if, as is certain to be the case, the opening of the tunnel and increased shipping facilities bring a large population to the Coast, the children of the next generation will suffer from overcrowding and lack of space.

It seems to me that Hokitika, in common with other towns on the Coast, is content to look back upon a glorious past and be content with a rather sordid present, while waiting—like the immortal Micawber— for “something to turn up.” Undoubtedly the time is coming when slie will be a busy city, and, unless she wakes up, she will be confronted with all the difficulties aiid problems that assail other cities where due foresight lias not been exercised and provision made for future expansion. It is while the town is small that plans can be made and development guided along right lines, so 1 would urge the people of Hokitika to beautify their present town and at the same time prepare for their future city. Beautifying would naturally begin with cleansing—with the gathering-up of rubbish, the compulsory provision of sanitary dust-bins by householders and their collection by the Council. Streets should be formed and drained, Hedges clipped and houses and fences painted. Each householder should take a pride in making the exterior of his home as neat and dainty as the interior. The wide streets lend themselves to tree planting and could he transformed in a few years into beautiful avenues, with grass and seats on either side, leaving ample room for traffic. The corners of the streets should he rounded. Small open spaces should he cleaned and planted, and every available piece of land around buildings should be made beautiful with shrubs and flowers. Already the grounds around several of the public buildings have been transformed in this way, and the lesult is delightful. All school grounds should lie beautiful with flower borders. I would like to see a Beautifying Society formed. If it were affiliated with the Town Planning Association, its members would be able to read all the latest and best literature upon town beautifying and planning as well as to receive help and advice from experts whenever necessary.

In arranging for the future, the first necessity is that the Council should construct a plan showing in which dilution development can best proceed as regards residences, factories, business premises, etc. All these should be kept as distinct as possible from each other as their functions and requirements are all different. This is called “zoning” or “districting” and is the first step in modern town-plan-ning. By-laws can be brought into conformity with the plan, and in this way the foundations are laid for future expansion along right lines. By the time this stage has been arrived at, the people themselves are usually so interested that their co-operation can be looked for, and once this is gained civic pride lias begun to develop and townplanning and beautifying are easy. Hokitika is one of the historic towns of New Zealand ; it lias a name and a fame carried far beyond the confines of the West Coast. Everyone knows of it. Even people who have not been there speak with affection of Hokitika: how much more those who have experienced the restful charm of the place and the unstinted kindliness and hospitality of its people. There are those who are wmking with unselfish devotion for the good of the town they love and who deserve the utmost support that can be given to them.

1 am etc., DAISY E. PLATTS-MILLS, M.D., President of the Women’s Committee :f the Greater Wellington Town Planling Association. Wellington, April 13th.