Further Town Improvements.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 8198, 26 January 1906, Page 5

Further Town Improvements.

MeMurray and Co.'s New Building. The splendid building which Messrs MeMurray and Co.. Ltd., propose to erect at the junction of Main and George streets, and on which work has already begun, will mark still, another stage in the advancement of Palmerston North from the condition of a bush township to that of a large and bustling centre of trade and commerce. The new building will be a great ornament to the particular locality in which it will be placed and a credit to the town as a whole.

A representative of the Standard yesterday had an opportunity afforded him of glancing through the plans, and was at once struck by the bold and handsome design of the structure. The whole of the now vacant section will be utilised, giving a frontage on Mainstreet of <19 feei: 6 inches and on Georgestreet of 132 feet. The Main street end of the building will be two stories in height and 62 feet 6 inches long, the remainder being only of one storey. The walls will, however, be of sufficient strength and thickness to allow of the building being made uniform with the front portiou should it be desired.

Looking at this hitter portion first it was found that the plans provide for four large and well-lit. sample rooms, and three shops fronting on Georgestreet. On the ground floor of the front portion there is a large doublefronted shop and also a single-fronted one, each opening on to Main-street. Work rooms of ample size are provided at the rear of these. The corner of: the building will be occupied by the suite of offices which are to be used by MeMurray and Co. themselves. A large and well furnished room will be gamed by the main entrance at the corner and will be for public use, while out of it open the private offices of the members of the firm. A suitable strong room is also provided on this floor. The upper storey will be reached through au entrance m George-street, the stairs, part of the way up, being of concrete and forming the ceiling of the strong room. The corner will be occupied by a commodious show-room, another being provided at the opposite end of the building. There will also be too large offices overlooking Georgestreet and three over Main-street-, while various other small rooms will contain all necessary conveniences. A strong room of ample size is to be in an easily accessible position from all parts of the floor. The centre of this part of the building will be occupied by a well, six feet square, which will run from the ground to the roof and will serve to provide light and ventilation to the various rooms.

All of the numerous apartments in the building will be lofty (12 feet from floor to ceiling) and well finished, and should prove very desirable from the business man's point of view. Ornamentation of the exterior has not been forgotten and the result will be very pleasing. The corner of the bottom storey will be cut away at an angle of 45 degrees, thus allowing of a doorway being placed in that position. The roof, the ridge of which will be 33 feet from the ground, will be covered with the ornamental asbestos tiles for which MeMurray and Co. are the local agents, and should prove very effective. The main walls of the buildings are of course to be of brick, as are also some of the partitions. The minor dividing walls will be of wood, covered, however, with asbestos. The lower floor is to be of solid concrete. Great attention has been paid and every precaution faksl to prevent destruction by fire, and the building will be practically proof against the ravages of this element. The contract is in the hands of Mr Randal, of Wan ganui, while Mr Jones has the sub-contract for the brickwork. Mr C. Gill is acting as clerk of the works. The building, as already stated, has been started and will be pushed on as rapidly as possible.