THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1899.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11198, 19 October 1899, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1899.

I The subject of the destination of Freeman's Bay is now to be settled, ' find we hope it will be borne in mind i that the settlement will be irrevoci able. The expanse of the Bay, when j the present reclamation works are I completed, will be devoted either to j being a public park and recreation i giound for all time, or will be cut ■ up into building allotments. The ' question now is, Which plan is to be adopted 1 It must be obvious that a very : strong case indeed can be made out | for constituting this area into a re- ! creation ground, where the various athletic clubs of the western part of ; the city can carry on operations, and which will be an open breathing space in a somewhat overcrowded locality. Perhaps it may be news to many members of the City Council, in whose hands is the final determination of this subject, that all over the world municipal authorities have recognised it as their duty to provide open spaces as a hygienic measure affecting the cities they control. They have also recognised it as a duty to provide land for recreative purposes. They , have even gone so ■ far in some cases as to spend considerable ;. amounts ' in providing bands to play for the gratification of ell who may assemble to hear them,

There are many cities at Home whose inhabitants bitterly regret that the opportunity was not taken many years ago to secure open spaces. In many towns enormous sums have been paid to repurchase land which could have been secured a few years~ago for a trifling amount, before buildings had been erected and vested interests created. We do not know of one place which regrets having secured recreation reserves. These ideas are now recognised in Australia, and they have even penetrated to the cities in the South of this colony. They have not yet reached our civic authorities, who do not even deal honestly with funds left them in trust. On Auckland there is a special obligation and inducement to attend to all matters which shall increase its amenities. Its future, as we have often pointed out, lies largely in its being a desirable place of residence. Nature has been lavish in its kindness to us in this direction. The scenery around is as beautiful as the imagination can conceive. Scarcely an element of the picturesque is wanting. Through culpable greed and carelessness, and want of foresight, we seem doomed to lose one of the chief adornments with which nature endowed us, and the lovely volcanic hills are being torn to pieces by private owners, and gashed into scoria pits. Few places in the world are more beautiful than the environments of Auckland, and as time goes on, and there is a greater population in these Southern seas, it will be made the home of many whose means permit them choice in their place of residence. But our civic authorities must be on the watch, not only against the destruction of any of our beauty spots, but to secure any means of adding to the attractions of the city.

The western part of Auckland is exceedingly destitute of open spaces for recreative purposes. Indeed, it has none at all. The Western Park is agreeable enough for strolling in, but it has absolutely no level area, and therefore it is useless for many essential purposes. The Domain is at the extreme eastern part of tie city, and even it has but a limited level space. As regards Freeman's Bay and Ponsonby, it would seem that unless the new reclamation is secured, there never will be any public place at all. We need not recall the history of this matter. The ground belongs to the Harbour Board, who have been for some years engaged in reclaiming it. Latterly, this work has been greatly expedited and carried out in a much better manner by an arrangement with the Gas Company, and the work is now within measurable distance of being finished, when its destiny must be decided upon. The Harbour Board have spent a large amount of money on the work, and we believe that it is valued in their books at about £20,000. The Board do not consider that it is their duty to furnish the city with a recreation ground. The statute under which they work limits them to the special interests of the harbour. The Board are quite right in this. The obligation to obtain a recreation ground for the western part of the city is imperative, and it lies upon the City Council. But it may reasonably be expected that the Harbour Board, as interested in the welfare of the city and of its people, should facilitate as much as possible the acquirement of the Freeman's Bay area by the Council for public purposes. It is quite unnecessary to specify those public purposes. But we may remark, as appropriate at the present time, that we have no land on which a parade of volunteers could be held except the Domain Cricket Ground, and that is inconveniently distant from the city.

At a meeting of the Harbour Board on Tuesday, a report was brought up from a committee recommending that the land in the Bay should be offered to the City Council on lease for the purpose of a recreation ground. That report was remitted to the committee with instructions to recommend a definite yearly rental to be charged to the Council. The Council, in its turn, will no doubt seek to make arrangements with the different atheltic bodies that propose to use the ground, in order to recover at least a portion of the rental which they have to pay to the Harbour Board. There is no objection to this, unless the Council mjakes excessive demands. But the Council ought to remember that in making Freeman's Bay an open space and a recreation ground for all time for the western portion of Auckland, it is securing a vast benefit for the whole city.