STRATFORD TEPID BATHS

Taranaki Daily News, 13 March 1933, Page 8

STRATFORD TEPID BATHS

.ELECTRIC HEATING PROPOSED CHRISTCHURCH ECONOMY QUOTED. MR. A. E. MOSS SUPPORTS SCHEME. SITE IN BROADWAY SUGGESTED. The suggestion by Mr. E. S. Rutherfurd at the meeting of the Stratford Technical High School board that instead of spending hundreds of pounds in making a swimming bath at the school the board should try to secure the cooperation of the borough council in building a bath in a central position to serve the public a\ well as the school, was submitted on Saturday to the chairman of the primary school committee (Mr. A. E. Moss). Mr. Moss thought the idea worthy of the closest attention and took the matter a step further by proposing that such a central bath should be tepid. Tire school committee controls the only swimming bath that Stratford possesses at present. If the establishment of a central bath were considered, Mr. Moss said, it should be made full size, have ample dressing accommodation, be of sufficient depth to permit of diving from heights with a good margin of safety and have tepid water.

At Christchurch, said Mr. Moss (who is the borough council’s electrical engineer) there was a full-size tepid bath the water for which was heated by electric power during off peak periods at economical cost. The same plan could be easily adopted at Stratford and the water heated during the spring and autumn, if not all the year, at a very reasonable price. Such a bath would have to be in a central position and of full size to attract‘swimming carnivals to Stratford. As far as the school committee was' concerned the revenue received from the baths, including £lO a year from the high school board and £5 a year from the swimming club, did not reach £2O and did not cover the extra cost of cleaning, caretaking and repairs entailed in making provision, for the public to use the bath. Were the baths used solely for the primary school no diving tower, only a portion of the dressing accommodation and no seating accommodation would be needed—factors the removal of which would result in much lower upkeep costs to the committee.

“The proposal of the high school board to build a bath at the school does not concern the primary school committee but, speaking from a citizen’s viewpoint, I agree with Mr. Rutherfurd that three separate bathing institutions in a small town would be an extravagance,” Mr. Moss said, “and I think the committee would be pleased to co-operate in any movement towards the provision of a central tepid swimming bath.”

IDEAL SITE AVAILABLE. Asked if he had any site in mind when he referred to a central position, Mr. Moss mentioned the section north of the fire brigade station which, besides being really central, had a depression that would mean only moderate excavation work It was close to Broadway and the water mains. Adequate drainage was provided by a creek which ran through the section and into which the waste water could be emptied. Mr. Moss pointed out that a tepid bath would attract a section of the public that was at present debarred from swimming owing to the coldness of the water.

The number of swimming pools in the river catered for the cold water enthusiasts and naturally affected the attendance at and the revenue from the present bath as well as discouraging the school committee from attempting to enlarge the bath or going to any expense that was not definitely warranted. Those factors might be construed into an argument against a central public bath, but it had to be remembered that a full size tepid bath with modem appointments would constitute an attraction that devotees of cold water swimming in the river pools could not overlook. Moreover a tepid bath would provide swimming facilities for the public during months when swimming either in the present bath or in the pools was out of the question. Mr. Moss’ idea was that a central bath would be open for use except say, during June, July, August and September when the cost of heating the water would be greatest. Two prominent members of the swimming club have indicated their agreement with Mr. Moss idea of, a central bath. Excellent though the present bath was from the viewpoint of the primary school there was no doubt, they said, that it had to meet the requirements of too many sections of the community. They anticipated that a town both with tepid water would be favoured by a large measure of public patronage and if required, certain hours could be set aside during which high school pupils could have sole use of the bath. The fact that the water would be tepid would ensure large entries for any carnivals, while a roof over the seating accommodation would make for large attendances of spectators despite weather conditions. FRIENDLY BOWLING GAME. COMPETITION AT AVON. The Avon green was the scene on Saturday for a friendly game between teams picked from the Public Service members and from the remainder of the Saturday players. The rest won by 97 to 93 on the aggregates. Details, with Public Service players mentioned first, are:— Hill, Hargreaves, Mills, McCready (s) 18 v. Guthrie, Jenkins, Clark, North (s) 28; Keller, Browne, Von Stunner snr., Robins (s) 20 v. Coleman, Howard, Collingwood, Ansley (s) 23; Lampshire, Von Sturmer .jnr., Munroe, Bulman (s) 24 v. Mantle, Pennington, Adams, HardyJones (s) 15; Stoneman, Smeath, Boundy, F. Jackson (s) 31 v. Newland, Wright, Moss, McDonald (s) 31. Totals, Public Service 93, Rest 97. PERSONAL ITEMS. Messrs. A. V. Messana and M. W. Barker have been re-appointed to represent the Eltham County Council on the South Committee of the Egmont National Park Board. i Mrs. T. A. Chapman, Matau, who has been suffering from heart trouble for 12 months, died at her home yesterday afternoon. She was 70 years of age.