THE UNIVERSITY SITE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14767, 24 August 1911, Page 4

THE UNIVERSITY SITE.

The Government evidently intends to lose no time in pushing through' Parliament the University Site Bill, which will hand the Metropolitan Grounds over to the University College Council. The Lands Committee yesterday, by five votes to four, refused to postpone the Bill for a week in order to hear evidence, \ although the Auckland Citizens' League is hard at work in the attempt to prevent the building over of one of the few open spaces left in the heart of the city. The petition hurriedly circulated by the League is being freely signed, and there can be no doubt whatever that public opinion has only to ,be aroused to display it-self strongly. against what the League very logically regards as the unnecessary filching • from Auckland of an open space. A strong point is made, in this connection, of the fact that when the College requires extension it can only be extended at the expense of Government House and its remaining grounds, so that, the ultimate fate of the whole area is bound in with the present fate of the Metropolitan Grounds. It is worthy of notice, in these days when; verbal crusades are being waged. against slums and much enthusiasm professed on behalf of town-plan-ning, that there is such energy displayed in legislatively seizing, upon an open space in the centre of the city, and such promptitude displayed in dropping the Town-Plan-ning Bill because the Government cannot have its own way in " townplanning"- details. Auckland is bound to become a huge industrial and commercial centre, a metropolis containing some hundreds of thousands of people, of whom a • very large proportion will earn their living within five or ten minutes'. walk of the Metropolitan Grounds. Yet although there are a score of localities where the University College could be conveniently established, and one locality peculiarly suited as a college site, and although there is only one Metropolitan Ground available for the recreation of the future generations of a great and crowded city, town-planning enthusiasm is not sufficient to prevent a highly-organised effort to deprive the people of this much-needed breathing space. The Citizens' League, which cannot be denounced as in any way opposed to education, is doing a public service by its strenuous efforts to ' retain the Metropolitan Ground for the use and enjoyment of the great mass of our people and ought to have the strong support in its good work of all Auckland members who believe in having. open spaces and public parks where they will be mo_t sorely needed when the city attains its full growth, and the rising tide of industry completes the submergence of the ridge between Queen-street and Mechanics' Bay—a submergence visibly proceeding under our eyes.