The Recreation Ground.

Taranaki Herald, Volume L, Issue 12439, 17 December 1903, Page 8

The Recreation Ground.

« — SCHEME FOB IMPROVEMENT. A BT.G UP-TO-DATE SPOKES grol;j:)

For a long ti •:•> r>^t it has teen palpable that. clcf-^jce its l«o«tiful naUttral sjurroun^i'n^s, tne sports ground in the Bee. is totally inadequate for the requirements of a large centre like New Plymouth, besides which, through defective Urainage, it is always soft, being unsuitable for either gooS football or cricket. The ground is "made" — the original site was a swanrnf— <and, naturally, it has been difficult to dervise a thoroughly effective system of drainage. At present the water is carried off by means of pipes, ihe main one esnfxtying itself after it carries the water tujider the bed of the lower lake. The Board is just now, endeavouring to secure bet1 ter drainage, anjci Mr S. Percy Smitjh, whose interest in the Recreation Gtfoixnji is well fcnowtn, has lcindly consented to place his professional services at the disflposal of his brother members of the Board, and devise some scheme which it is hojped will be an improvement on the present one. The details of that scheme are not now available. Knowing that the question of a better smorts gf ounj3 is one that has at intervals caused some discussion, and remembering that Mr JT. K. Skinner, whose connection with 'the Recreation Grounds Board has been long and praiseworthy, had some three years ago been asked to prepare, a plan for improvements, a representative of the Herald waited nn aim the other day, and cftiring- tne r.ojurse of a cK&t elicited some particulars of the scheme which he had svtgre&ifvd, but which the Board, for various rtr> sons, did not see its way -to di >gt at that juncture. Is the time ripe now for action? A question that t hould receive consideration, for Mr Skinner's plan includes the ukirchese of some land, and, whether there is or is not a land boom which will collapse (pessimists say there is) there is no disguising the fact that values are going up, and that sections everywhere are higher in price than they were three years ago. Mr Sikiimex's estimate of the proposefl work then was £2000; it may possibly cost a little more n.ow. "The longer the work is delayed/ he remarked yesterday, "the more it will cost w,hen the Board decides; if it does, to carry it cut." And that ii should be carried out Mr Skinner has not the slightest doubt. He is a believer ii* centralisation. This is the metropolis of Taranaki, and we should have slports grounds which; would be recognised as' metropolitan par excellence, and on which, naturally, would be held cricket and football mlatcb.es of importance as well as other athletic slports. The great tendency in oMer cojuntries is towards centralisation^ the smaller towns have their own conveniences, but the chief cities are tjie centres of attraction. Mr Slrinner thinks New Plyßnoufti has, if the people are farseeing, great possibilities fri this direction. But to return to his scheme It is a large one, the apaioumt of money it would involve is considerable, ansl in the eyes of several 1 the carrying of it out would mean the destruction of some of the natural beauties pf the Recreation Grouna—beauties which are as sacred to the average New Plyanouthian as Mecca is to the followers of the Prophet. But would the destruction of natural beau- J ty be so great after all? Ancl would n[ot the benefit (monetarily), and attractiveness of a fine sqporU. ground more than compensate for the loss? Besides, is there not so much natural beafcity there now that a little lost would not be missed; and is there mot still plenty of scope for further beautification? As a matter of fact, is not a fine, extensive bright green sward a thing of beauty? All these points sHould be considered by those who, never looking ahead, profess to believe that the shorts ground is fully adapted to presentiday requirements, arid who, unlike the late Sir iGeorge Grey, take no manner of stock in the "unborn millions." Cricketers will tell you that the ground is no good for the King of Sports, and footballers will be equally emphatic in assert- ! ing- that it is "no class" as a place for the winter game. Csitainly for the spectator it has advantages that few grounds ppssess, but the spectator is only, after all, 'hs p fth whe-jl of the coach. What *as occurred* The cricketers have shifted their tents ! to other places, which, while not perfect, are better than ihe fiVrr.-ntion j Grounds, and the spectator who praised the vi>\v fiom =!.e terra '&■* "will have to follow t*e cricks -.ers if he de sires to keep up with !he (mo pomt 1 of the game. Mr Skinner's icloa is to have a tiports ctotiSr.'fi. rovon a«fs in extent, as eorn;oarocl with f-omo two I and a half acres, *,vhich in about tho size of the r*resj>at ground. To pet tihis area, the J.ill on the rig-* hand side of the Liardet entrance gate would halve to be c # it away, fi portion of the lower lake i'tal in. and three sections behind Mr Colter's property acquired, a.g well n'i ih&i part of Filli.i street wlm-ii Mm into Liardet street. The hill in a fair coigD of vantage, but it is too thickly wooflcd to he a perfect one, and it certainly cannot be called a beauty tfpotr— as beauty «pots go in the Recreation Grounds. The Martlet street entrance- wouM have to bo clofcH, antf [ in Mr Skinner's plan it is proposed to nave erected near this f-ipot a gran.fl wtanH. The KPctions belonging to Mr I Cokor couVl be used for tennis awl croquet gro'unflf , horse puflflock, stables, etc. Tho cricket i>fleh wouiil be !in tho centre of the ground (which i would bo aval in shape), and there Would be a football groufctf on either inrle of it. By the way, tlio present i ground would not be interfered with

until the new one was available, when, it wpuld be worjked into the general scheme. Softie i>eraons naturally object to the ai-ea of the lower lake l.einrr durtailaL but, if thougiht advisable, the path that divkles it from that "where the lilies grow" could be demolished, and the two would make a lake as large, if not larger, than lihe one it is proposed to partially fill in. If this were clone, the present outflow from the upper lalce would have to be diverted, and this would be done by means of a tunnel, which «ear the head of the lower lake would give a waterfall, ancl then ejnpty at a < point near what is now known as "the" waterfall. The enlarged ground, woulil also necessitate the construction of some terraces behind the dressing sheel, and in order to get the oval shape, the lower terraces <sverj looking the present sports ground would require to be rim on the bias from the western end, whilst at the eastern side tne present slope where the low seats are and the footpath above would, have to be taken in, and a new path formed. The wide path running past the western ascent to the main terraces would be filled in, and the spot made handy for a pavilion. Mr Skinner informs us that all the paths are on the same level, so that the work of coDnecting i!he terraces on either side of the wide path just mentioned would offer no enginee' ng- difficulties. As we said before, it Would be necessary for the successful carrying o^it of the plan that "the Board shonH acquire thiat portion of Pillis street xttnning from Liardet street along the northern end of the gxoun3, anid lauH would have to be purchased from adjacent pro-perty-owners in order to allow of a detviatioji of the street. "Whilst on the subject of Fillis street, we may point out thiat if tihe Board does -*>o't sooure Mr Coder's sections, in course of time the Council might be asked to continue the street through, to the Carrington E'oa'd, in which event there would be reason to cry over "beauty snots destroyed," as the rofute of the road would be from near the Liardet street entrance right through the hill, across the stream above the waterfall, and out well on the Eecreation Grounds side pf the Carrington Road ©wtrance. If tlie Board held the sections there would never be any need for this road to be opened up. The new ground -would give a cycling traok nearly ■ half a mile ro,uui3, and the crioket griound, being on tine highest ppin't, the drainage would flow away from it in every direction. To get thoroughly effective drainage, the plan proK'ides for a rayer of cinders (cinders are very cheap I all over the oTdtoxul, and this would be cohered by >a top diseasing of blaok soil. As to the destruction of trees, Mr Skinner assures us that there need be no apprehension on that score; the work would be carried out at the proper season, and the trees, with the exception, perhaps, of spme very unsightly pinus insignus, remioved to some other suitable spots, of which there are many. As the carrying out of the scheme would piean €h© closing- of the Liardet street entrance, it is proposed that one should be made in Gilbert street, near Mr Coker's residence. The Fillis street an ; d Carringiton Eoad ones would be still available. There oan be no doubt that if the scheme were adopted we would have a sports ground worthy of the growing importance of the place. The cost is a cjuestion which acts as a steadier, but when it is remembered that the sfwamp whi,ch is the site of the present ground was reclaimed at a cost of £1000 when the town was Smaller aaxd poorer than it is at present, the matter of raising £2000 should not prove an effectual "facer." And while referring to the present ground we cannot refrain from mentioning the debt of gratitude townspeople owe to Mx W. H. Skinner (the secretary of the old sgorts grouncl committee) ami others (including Mr J. M. Lightfoot and the late Mr W. Parker), for the manner in wlhich they tackled an t>p hill task and stuck gamely to it until! it reached a successful culmination. The present plan, if proved acceptable,, might be carried out in a similar manner, if some of our energetic Voung 1 men*— and there arc plenty of them)— would only come forward anfd put their shoulders to the wheel. Mr T. K. Skinner, we may say in closing 1 , has iihorou^-hly thought out this question of a npor'ts ground; he has to a love for the beautiful {idr'p.i the experience, skill, and care of 'ho professional engineer, and his upinien •ihoTilcl receive full Consider a ti-xn.