TOWN PLANNING BOARD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20690, 12 April 1929, Page 6

TOWN PLANNING BOARD.

GRATIFYING RESULTS. IMPORTANT PROPOSALS SUBMITTED. EDUCATIONAL PROPAGANDA. (Peb United Press Association.) WELLINGTON, April 11. Coincident with the increasing population of the Dominion in cities, borohghs, and towns has been the interest shown in the question of town planning. • At a meeting of the Town Planning Board held to-day the chair was taken by the Undersecretary for Internal Affairs (Mr G. P. Newton), in the absence of the Minister of Internal Affairs (Mr P. A. de la Pcrrelle). Reference was made to the retirement from the board of Mr W. T. Neill, the late Surveyor-general, and Mr W. E. Bush, the city engineer of Auckland, who is leaving the Dominion this week to take up an appointment in Brisbane. Resolutions were passed placing on record the board’s appreciation, of the very valuable services rendered by these two officers to the cause of town planning in the Dominion, Authority was granted for the Director of Town Planning to attend a meeting of the executive of the Counties’ Association on April 17. The_ director was instructed to hold local inquiries and report to the board in connection with appeals which had been lodged, under section 34 of the Town Planning Act, against the decision of certain authorities to refuse to issue building permits on the ground that the proposed buildings were likely to interfere with the amenities of the locality affected. The director reported that in accord anee with the decision taken at tho last meeting of the board, he had been activel.v °ngaged in visiting the larger centres o' population in various parts of the Dominion. He had already completed a tour of the South Island, and was gratified with the wide public interest shown in the subject. During the nest six weeks he had accented invitations to visit and address meetings in 30 towns in the North Island, including a meeting of the whole of the authorities in the Auckland metropolitan area, to discuss the formation of a joint regional planning committee. Invitations had been received from a number of other towns which it had not been possible to accept in the time at present at his disposal. The board had under consideration the amendment of the Town Planning Acl, and regulations to enable effect to be given to its proposals in respect to regional planning; the extension of tho time limit' within which town planning schemes have to be submitted to the board; revision of the compensation and betterment provisions; and wide powfers to enable local authorities to maintain effective control over buildings and land subdivision within their areas, pending the final approval of their town planning schemes. It is hoped that finality will be reached on these matters at the next meeting of the board, which is to be held during tho» first week in June, go that the necessary recommendations can bo made to the Government before the meeting of Parliament. The director reported that he had been approached by tho Auckland University College authorities for his opinion in regard to the syllabus, of the School of Town Planning which’ it is proposed to establish in conjunction with the School of Architecture. As this was a matter in which the Institutes of Architects, Surveyors, and Civil Engineers .were deeply interested, he had invited these bodies to appoint representatives, to confer with him on the subject, and also upon the steps to bb taken for > the formation of a toyyi planning institute for the Dominion. It was decided that the Director of Town Planning should approach the Director of Education with regard to the possibility of publishing informative articles on town planning in the school journals, the delivery of a* series of lectures to the students in the various training colleges, and possibly, in due course, the inclusion of town planning in the curriculum of the primary and secondary schools.