A PROPOSED PARK.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20716, 8 November 1930, Page 8

A PROPOSED PARK.

COX'S CREEK SCHEME. NEED FOR PLAYING AREAS, LAKE FOR, AQUATIC SPORTS. Residents on the slopes surrounding the shores of the Cox's Creek inlet and boating men residing in the locality hav« shown considerable interest j|i a proposal to reclaim a portion of the area inside the causeway. The scheme, which is shortly to be submitted to the City Council, provides for extensive playing areas on the landward side of the road crossing the inlet, and better provision on the seaward Bide for the accommodation of pleasure ,boats. A petition, which al. ready bears the names of 1000 residents, is to be presented to the City Council in support of the request for assistance, and Mrs. E. J. Sexton, of the Grey Lynn Women's Political ' Organisation, who is taking a leading part in the movement, stated yesterday that it was very evi. dent that the whole of the residents of the district would be behind the proposal. The present state of the creek was regarded as a. distinct menace to health and many of those who had signed the petition had expressed tho hope that an early start would be mado to remove the present unpleasant conditions. The area which it is proposed to improve comprises about 28 acres of mud flat, partly covered with mangrove. At low tide the creek is confined to a narrow bed and the rest of the area exposed to the summer sun has produced conditions which have been the subject of serious complaint. The area within a line from Rawene Road to the Herne Bay headland is part of tho freehold which passed to thp Auckland City Council in 1913 with the absorption of the Grey Lynn borough. Long before the amalgamation this property had been marked as a possible park area, and the municipality has still the riparian rights of the surrounding land. An effort was made more than four years ago to have the area improved, but without, success. Since that time many more fine homes have been built on the land surronnding the creek, making the need for playing space greater. Pilling In Large Space. The tentative scheme which the proponents are putting forward provides for the filling in of about 12 or 15 acres immediately southward of the main road causeway. This would provide space for football, bowling, tennis, croquet and other games, as well as for children's playgrounds. In additon to this it is suggested that the course of the creek inside the concrete bridge be diverted so that it would flow through the Regina Street extension embankment at a point much nearer the Welt End Road than at present. With the provision of a half, tide wall the spreading bed of the creek, extending to the eastward, could be turned into an attractive lake, which could be used for canoeing, model yachting and water sports. It is estimated that there is at least 6ft. of soft mud overlaying the firm bottom of the estuary outside the West End Road causeway, and removed by means of pumping, this material would go a long way toward filling in the area for the sports ground. The deepening of the bay would provide a better mooring ground for the great number of pleasure boats quartered in the region, and in time a bdat harbour capable of accommodating about 250 boats could be provided. Question of Finance. Finance has also been considered by those behind the scheme. It is suggested that a share of the money collected by the Government through the unemployment levy will be allocated to Auckland (or the purpose of providing work for the unemployed. It is hinted that this money will be given to local bodies in the form of a subsidy in the proportion of £2 to £l. Acting on this assumption the Cox's Creek committee will suggest to the City Council that the sum of, say,, £IO,OOO, be provided, and this, with a subsidy of £20,000 from the unemployment fund, would enable the scheme to be proceeded with, thus providing work for a veiy great number of men. It is further estimated that with the deepening of the yacht anchorage the boatowners would be prepared to pay from 30s to £2 a year for mooring sites, and this revenue would, pay the interest and sinking fund of a large sum of money which could be devoted to the scheme. It might be argued, said one' of the committee, that there was no justification for spending all this money at" the one spot, but it* nad to bo remembered that vast of money had been spent in other parts of the city, while nothing had been done for the West End area. With the steadily increasing population there was a growing need for parks and playing spaces, and the carrying out of the proposed scheme would not only provide for local needs, but would also improve the most unsightly spot along the entire foreshore.