IMPROVEMENT IN FLATS SOUGHT

Southland Times, Issue 23773, 22 March 1939, Page 15

IMPROVEMENT IN FLATS SOUGHT

Draft Proposals For By-Laws COPIES SENT TO LOCAL AUTHORITIES (United Press Association) CHRISTCHURCH, March 22. Far-reaching provisions designed to improve living conditions in flats, apartment houses, tenements and similar dwelling-places are _ outlined in draft proposals for standard by-laws covering such buildings. The local authorities in Christchurch have received copies of the draft from the New Zealand Standards Institute. The proposals will be studied by local authorities interested, commented on and finally issued in a complete form later. Then local authorities will be enabled to enforce them as compulsory by-laws. At the moment it is emphasized that they are merely in draft form and are not to be acted on by local authorities. The proposals apply in the majority of cases not only to buildings yet to be erected, but to those already in use as flats, apartments, rooms or tenements. . The most important provisions are minimum adequate ventilation and lighting for all rooms, whether livingrooms, bed rooms or. lavatories, minimum heights for rooms and minimum floor space anfi air space, prohibition of the use of bed rooms for cooking food, the compulsory provision in all single family dwellings units of a living room, a bed room, bath room, kitchenette and lavatory, the enforcement of fireproof construction in new buildings, such as hotels, hostels, lodging houses, flats or apartment houses, provision of accommodation for motorcars, back court space and clean surroundings, licensing of all lodging houses and restrictions on the number to be lodged in them.