SUGGESTED NEW ROAD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18130, 30 June 1922, Page 9

SUGGESTED NEW ROAD.

«» FORT ST. TO SHORTLAND ST. THROUGH OLD POST OFFICE. WORKS COMMITTEE'S VIEWS. The provision of a continuous thoroughfare from Quay Street to Welles!ey Street. | East., via High Street and Lome Street. in order to relieve the lower portion of t Queen Street of heavy traffic, formed the subject, of a statement presented to the j City Council last evening by -the Works Committee. The matter was brought up '< at tlia last meeting oi the council by Mr. jJ. A. C. AHum, who asked that oon!si deration should be given to the pos- ; j sibility of securing a portion of the dd ] post office in Short-land Street., and tie fact thai tie railway station was to be removed from its present site. The committee said the question had been considered en previous occasions, and Ihe cost of the proposal was disproportionate to the benefita that would accrue. It first, dealt with the question j of widening High Street, which is re- \ ported separately. Tne proposal for a road through tie" old post o&ce site from Shortiand Street to Fort, Street was not new. Representation Imd been made to the Government with respect to tie desirability of giving the land for such a scheme. If tie GoTemment would give the land the council would be recommended to undertake the work. Land and Buildings Cost £S»,000. A report by Messrs, Samuel Vaile and Sons, in regard to the value of tie land stated : —" We have carefully considered the valna of the eastern part of thß old j post office site, fronting Shortiand Street] and Fort. Street, each 55it. by a through j de£th of 137 ft. We think the SbotrOand Street, frontage is worth £550 per foot, and the Fort Street frontage £525 per foot, making a total of £257625 for the land- j The \alue of the building upon it and the cost of repairing what would be left could be more accurately estimated bv an architect, but we believe that this would amount 'to not less than £12.000, making the total cost of the acquisition of the ; iand and buildings £55,620. We think it j osr duty to point out that if you made Bigh Street 55ft- wide from Fort- Street j to Victoria Street, it would be narrow, i ' crooked, and ste>ep. and we do not think i ] it wonld relieve Queen Street." Havins: regard to tie local character, of, the work and its great cost, tie committee could not recommend the council to ask the ratepayers to vcrte financial authority to defray tbe cost involved, that was, pr>e»snming the land was not given by the Government. A plan prepared showed that it was impossible to obtain anything like a continuous road through from tbe Har- : hour front, to a southern point in the city parallel to Queen Street. The proposal in relation to the Shortiand Street and High Street connection devolved itself into a purely traffic facility in that- immediate vicinity. This, the committee was of opinion, was highly desirable provided, as intimated, ~it can be - negotiated on reasonable terms. The committee regretted that, the circumstances were such that no simple or easy method could seemingly be devised by which these obviously desirable works could be put in hand. IS the position altered by a change of attitude on the part of the property owners, it would ' report further to counciL Existing Outlets. i Another feature having bearing upon tbe proposals was the fact that to the west of Queen Street there were two traffic outlets, at present largely unavailed of, namely, Albert Street and Hobson Street. Both these streets would be found i of greater usefulness when the Prince's Wharf, now under construction, was completed. There was no doubt that the de velopmect of port, interests to the west- • ward of Queen Street would largely spread the commercial interests of the community over that area These two latter streets must, during the near future, assume more the character of retail trade and commercial centres. On the eastern side of Queen Street the development of railway station interests, and in the course of time, fie necessary erection of a new station, "would change the character of the recently-widened Beach Boad. This, too, a* was already evident, would become a retail shopping area, with attendant commercial interests. In the consideration of the important matters under review, ihe committee had not overlooked any of these conditions, nor other matters affecting the city's growth and development. Traffic conditions in Queen Street, which were frequentlv referred to as "congested," were really not so. but at the same time it was recognised that more efficient and organised traffic -control was necessary. The report was adopted.