IMPROVING HOUSING

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 58, Issue 4191, 31 May 1939, Page 12

IMPROVING HOUSING

ON WAIKATO LAND SETTLEMENT FARMS. GOVERNMENT TO SPEND £6OOO. The Hon. W. Lee Martin, actingMinister of Lands, speaking to settlers at Kairangi on Monday, announced that Cabinet had approved of an expenditure of approximately £6OOO for the improvement of housing on the three schemes inaugurated by the Waikato Lapd Settlement Society at Kairangi, Karakariki and Wharepapa. The improvements would be undertaken as soon as possible and it was anticipated that the homes of the settlers would be improved considerably. “At the present time I do not think the houses are fit for a man to house a family in,” said Mr G. Headifen, one of the settlers. He said several of the houses did not have a partition between the bedrooms. Further, many houses were not weatherproof and they were very draughty. Mr K. Pearson, one of the settlers in the hutments, said the hut accommodation urgently required improvement. He said, however, that there were several holders not yet allocated and-it- might be wiser !or the Government to build houses’ on those and allot them rather than spend money on the huts. Mr Lee Martin said if expensive homes had been erected in the first place the valuation of the land would have been considerably higher. He said it was the Government’s intention to line the huts.