NEW STREETS IN BOROUGHS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14686, 20 November 1909, Page 11

NEW STREETS IN BOROUGHS.

DEPUTATION'TO MINISTER. U

(From Oub Own Correspondent,)

WELLINGTON, November 19J.Mr C. Allison, Mayor of Christchurch, and_ Mr W. H. Cooper, a member of thai Christchurch City Council, • supported by Christchurch members, waited on tlio Minister of Public Works (the Hon. R: M'Kenzie) to request that the Municipal Corporations Act sh'onld b3 amended to. give councils the right to say in what direction and situation new streets should be formed. This power was taken away from councils by a recent amendment to ■ the Public Works Act. It was also proposed that discretion should be allowed to councils as to compelling new frontages to be put back in old streets of less than the required width. At present' when people subdivide their properties they have to pu f back the frontages 33 feot,' and in some streets this has had a. curious result. Frontages have been put back' at intervals .on both sides of the street, and a battlemented appearance has been given to the thoroughfare. The cases of Edgeware read, Mcrivale lane, and Hill' 1 road were quoted in this connection. It '. was also suggested that the councils should be allowed to raise a loan to pro- ' vide compensation for street widening without the necessity of a poll. The Minister said h'o recognised that some alteration of the law should be made to meet the case of the streets ■ivhich had beon instanced. Ho' had. to', consider, however, the case of other towns.besides Christchurch. He would-: be quite prepared to meet the deputation if possible, but he would have, to do it very guardedly and carefully so as not to interfere with vested interests. The' question of raising loans was a pretty big proposition, and ho could not say ofthand what the effect would be. There would bo an amendment of the Public Works Act brought down this session,, and he might be able to make provision , for it then. - Ho was anxious to assist!:.'; the local bodies, and ho thought it would".' meet the ca£o if plans of the proposed; new streets had to be submitted to the | 'ocal body and approved by them before the streets were made.

The deputation agreed that that would be satisfactory. It was' elated that that. was .the law prior tc 1900. The Minister suggested that the depu- ' tation their requests in writ-'' ing, and he would see what could bo done... .:. -v