THE TWIGGER ESTATE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXX, Issue 15041, 8 July 1909, Page 5

THE TWIGGER ESTATE.

THE PROPOSAL TO SELL

CONDEMNED BY A PUBLIC MEETING.

A meeting was held at the Alexandra Hall last evening for the purpose of entering a public protest against the proposal of the Charitable Aid Board to dispose of a portion of the Trigger Trust Estato by auction. Thero was an attendance of about seventy persons. Mr H. E. ttusbridge was in the chair, and with him on t.ho platform wore Messrs T. E. Taylor, 11. 0. Ell, G. VV. Russell, G. Witty and G. Laurenson, members of Parliament, and Mr S. A. Staples. An apology was received lor the absence of Mr T. H. Davcy, M.P.

The chairman explained the object of the meeting, and said that he considered the matter a most important one, and one which affected the whole- district.

. Mr Ell said that the older residents of Canterbury know how jealously the reserved for Canterbury College and for primary education had been retained. This was the first, occasion on which it had been proposed to sell reserves of this description, and if the sale took plaee it would be useless to expect landowners to donate further endowments. \\ cllington Citv was in receipt of £18,300 a vear, Duucdin £9OOO a year, Auckland Harbour Board £14,000 a year, and Auckland City Council £IO.OOO a year, from reserves and endowments. The Wharcnui and Tamai Settlements and others of the kind round Christchurch had let readily, and there, had heeu frequent demands that further opportunities should bo given to working men to lease building sites, and there was no doubt if perpetual leaseholds were granted of residential sites, with periodical revaluation, there would be a good demand for them. Ho moved—" That this meeting of citizens desires to enter its protest against tho proposal of the North Canterbury Charitable. Aid Board to sell a portion of the Twigger Estato endowment, believing that the best interests of tho people would be conserved by tho Board retaining possession of the land and disposing of it by way of perpetual lease, with provision for revaluation. By so doing facilities would bo given a large number of wage-earners to secure ;; site for a home on easy terms." (Applause.) Mr Witty said that as the Twigger Estate was in. his electorate he would shirk no responsibility in the mat/tor. The Christchurch parks, tho old age pension reserves, the Waimakariri River'reserves and the educational reserves wetje all of great benefit to Canterbury. Ho did not object to tho principle of selling, but he objected to an unprofitable sale being made. The Government valuation of the Twigger Estate at present was £12,680, and the rentals which the Board were receiving for it amounted only to about £2 per aero, or about 1| per cent on the capital value. It should certainly be possible to earn a larger percentage than that. Some portions of the estato had been sub-let for £4 per aore, and at a Government valuation of £ll6 an acre the land ought to bo paying something between £4 and £o per acre. The estate was blocking the progress of tho district, and something should have been done years ago to improve the return from it. lie understood that isqme time ago portions of the estate were offered on Glasgow lease, with a stipulation that buildings to the value of £6OO were to he erected, but with only a twenty-one years' term with right of renewal for only ten years, it was hardly likely that anyone would accept such a proposition. He could not see why the Board should not let the land on the same terms as the Government, ior thirty-three years, with a right of renewal. The Board would surely earn more in that way than under present conditions. If the Board was composed of members elected directly by the people the present conditions would never have arisen. Ho would suggest, that, the land should be sold, if it was sold, to the GovcrnI merit, for tho purposes of workers' homes. (Applause.) Mr Taylor said'that had the Board been elected by popular vote it certainly would not have dared to propose the sale of the reserve. Even if it was right for the Board to sell at all, j it could not have made this proposal at J a more inopportune time. Suburban I sections were a drug on tho market, J .and if the land was put up at auction I now it would simply go into tho hands lof speculators. The present position I of the money market was such that the I average artisan was unable to finance the buildings he might require. He believed it would be a fatal mistake to soil any public reserve. The principle was quite unsound, and he believed tho Board had come to a similar conclusion, and would abandon the proposal to sell. He huped, for the financial well-being of the Board, that this was the case. While the land would make excellent sites for workmen's dwellings if disposed of to tho Government, he did not think that leasehold allotment* for residential purposes were popular in this country. hi tho Home Country tho principle of purchasing tho rental interest in a residential site was established, but he was afraid that ii land in Christchurch was cut into quarter - acre sections it would be many years before it would be taken up on Glasgow lease. Thr> difficulty of raiding money to build a house on a. leasehold property would be recognised by everyone. If anyone purchased from the Board it ought to be the Government, which could apply tho settlement leasehold principle, and that would be a good thing for the city. Tf the Board was determined to sell it should hold the land for at least ten years longer before doing so. hi saying what lie had said he did not depart from his leasehold principles in any degree. He thought the "Lyttolton Times " deserved the thanks of the city

lor having called public- attention to the proposal that was on foot, and lio only hoped that the matter would bo settled amicably by the Board retaining the reserve. The Board should get at least -C4 all acre from the land, and he felt like making it a 'sporting offer of that amount himself. When the prosof population was keener and the leasehold system for residential 6ite«i came more into vogue, ho was sure tho Board would draw a large and increasing income from tho Twigger Estate. (.Applause.) Mr Russell said that ho conk) conceive of nothing more unwise than for a public body to part with anything in the nature of a reserve at this early stage in tho history of the country. Ho was not speaking from the point of view of a land nationalise!-, but from tho standpoint of tho public good. To his mind they should look very much further ahead than five years. Hobart had trebled its population since his boyheed's days. .Melbourne aiid Sydney had grown enormously in recent years, and in view of such growth who could sav what Christchurch would be in a hundred years. It was the duty of thcfeo in control of reserves to hand tiiem on to the coming generation. Canit terhury College received £16,000 to fj 17 OCO a year from its endowments. When he first joined tho Board he found portions of the endowments were being sold, and almost his first action was to move that, not another quar-ter-acre ol any endowment should be sold. That motion was carried, and those reserves were ver.y valuable to-day. It

the Twigger Estate was sold outright, the money would bo spent and gone lor ever, but if the estate was retained it would go on earning money for ever. He -wan opposed to the proposal that part of Riccarton Racecourse should bo sold, and that with the purchase money Deans's Bu.vh should bo bought. Let them buy Deans's Bush by all means, hut he would never be" a party to telling a portion of a public reserve to any proprietary racing club. (Applause) Tho TwisrgeV Estate, when Christchurch had a population of 000.000, would be in tho heart of tho city, and the people of that great city that was to lie would bitterly resent the action of those of tho present generation if they allowed «uch reserves to bo sold. (Applause.) < Mr Laurenson said that he had nothing to say against the Charitable Aid Board. 'lt did a great deal of good and work, and got .more kicks than halfpence. Tt was struggling against insufficient funds, and there was a temptation to realise on reserves. Thero was only one thing to counterbalance such a. strong and natural temptation;, and that was a strong public opinion against it. He trusted that the result of tho protest which was being made that evening would be to induce the Board to reconsider its determination. Lyttelton had had experience, of the value of public reserves, and of the folly ot porting with them. Fully a third of tho Borough Council's rccenue came from the rental of and (.me reserve which had been parted with was now the site of the town of Southbridge. Had it been retained it would now have been of incalculable value to Lyttelton. While leases which carried with them no right, of renewal or compensation for improvements were not of the sort to induce the improvement of property, leases which carried thewe lights would give every inducement to a leaseholder to improve his holding. The best row of housed in Lyttelton. save one, was occupied by tenants who held Glasgow leases from the Borough Council. The very best row of houses in the town was that on the Orphanage site, owned by tho Charitable Aid Board, and tho rental for 3J acres there was £B4 per annum, which capitalised at 5 per cent meant a value of £520 per acre. Surely the Twigger Estate, in the neighbourhood of all the workshops and near to the city, would be worth as much a.:» land at the extreme end of Lyttelton.

Mr S. A. Staples said that ho had pleasure in supporting the resolution, and lie did so on principle. Public bodies had no right) to dispose of land given them by private owners. Such' benefactions were rare, and it was unwise to discourage possible benefactors. The Government bought Wharenui for £7 an acre, and now, a little over ton years later, it would not; s-11 for less 'than £2OO or £250 an aero. The chairman said that he believed there were many wage-earners who would be glad to get residential bites on leasehold. Tho workers were beginning to see the advantages of the perpetual lea.se for residential sites, nob only in Christchurch but throughout New Zealand. He entirely concurred with the motion. Tho motion was carried unanimously, and a vote of'thanlwi to the chairman concluded the meeting.