TOWN-PLANNING WORK.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19633, 11 May 1927, Page 13

TOWN-PLANNING WORK.

TOUR BY THE DIRECTOR.

CONFERENCES IN AUCKLAND. THE POSITION OF NEW LYNN. The director of town planning, Mr. R. B. Hammond, arrived in Auckland yesterday to begin a comprehensive tour of the North Island, in the course of which he will meet all urban local authorities and discuss with them the procedure to be adopted in preparing town-planning schemes, as recognised by the Act of last year and the regulations thereundef. Mr. Hammond met the New Lynn Town Board last evening. To-day he will confer with the Devonport, Takapuna and Avondale Borough Councils in the morning, afternoon and evening respectively. His conferences with the Auckland City Council and the remaining suburban bodies will be held in the period up to the end of next week. An exception will be made in the case of Otahuhu and the districts beyond it, which are to be taken later.

Mr. Hammond will remain in Auckland until Sunday week next, May 22. The port local authorities will have to play a part in the preparation and carrying out of schemes of town planning and some of the difficulties that are likely to be encountered were discussed by Mr. Hammond with the New Lynn Town Board. He emphasised tha fact that the preparation of a scheme of town planning by January 1, 1930, was obligatory on all city and borough councils and town boards.

Replying to a question, he said that when a large residential subdivision was about- to be made, the local authority could assert its requirements with regard to the main traffic routes, so that they would confirm to the scheme planned. He mentioned that such estates, however, would in all likelihood be dealt with in the zoning proposals when the scheme was being prepared. A great deal of caution would be required in defining the zones and he suggested that the local authorities should take the ratepayers into their confidence and enlist their co-operation. There was no objection to town districts and any other district . having as many shopping areas as were desired as long as the shops were grouped and were not allowed to become mingled with the houses. The chairman of the board, Mr. W. G. Lorie, said one of the difficulties in New Lynn was that in the main street there were a number of shops and in between them some substantial residences had been erected. Mr. Hammond suggested that the board should determine the predominant use to which the street would be put. He appreciated that New Lynn could not support two miles of shops on its anticipated maximum population of 29,000, but the position might be got over by allowing shops to be erected on some of the corners of the residential area, provided their building line was set back to conform with that of the dwellings. INIr. Hammond was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for his address.

AUCKLAND METROPOLITAN AREA. ONE BIG SCHEME ADVISABLE. The opinion that the preparation of one regional plan to cover the whole of Greater Auckland would offer the most satisfactory solution of the town-plan-ning difficulties of the metropolitan area was expressed by Mr. R. B. Hammond, director of town planning, when discussing with the New Lynn Town Board last evening co-operation among local authorities in the preparation of town-planning schemes. Mr. Hammond said such a • regional scheme would probably extend many miles from the centre of the city and would embrace all the local areas. It seemed to him it would be in the best interests of all if the local authorities joined hands and prepared one comprehensive scheme. Looked at from the point of view of the Town Planning Board it would be realised how much easier it would be for the board to examine and approve one schemo which dealt with the whole area than it would be tosee that several local schemes dovetailed into each other. Mr. Hammond mentioned that the Town Planning Act provided for two or more local bodies to co-operate in the preparation of a scheme. There was no compulsion, however, but he thought what would happen would be that if the board received a scheme from a local area it would defer consideration until those from the adjoining local authorities were received. It was essential when two or more areas lay close to each other that their schemes should dovetail.