The Taranaki Herald. DAILY EVENING. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1917. THE NGAMOTU BEACH.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 145999, 4 December 1917, Page 2

The Taranaki Herald. DAILY EVENING. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1917. THE NGAMOTU BEACH.

Chief credit for the “discovery” of the Ngamotu beach must, we believe, be given to Stratford, for ilr. Charles Curtis, when a resident of that town, was the first individual, or one of the first, apart from fishermen and Maoris, to erect a summer residence there and maintain a pleasure boat, and it. was the Stratford school which inaugurated the practice of bolding annual picnics on the beach. That was many years ago, and it was quite a long time before local people began to realise what a delightful beach it is and how great an asset to the town. A few years ago three or four young men started camping on the beach during the hot weather, and their example led others to follow. But it was really not until the tramways were working that the movement Ngamotuwards became very pronounced, or about eighteen months ago. Then it occurred to a few beach enthusiasts that Ngamotu might be made an extremely popular resort ■ if bathing and camping conveniences were provided for the public. The Ngamotu Beach Committee, or a few of the members, conceived the idea of erecting a pavilion on the lines of the one at the mouth of the Hcnui River, with the result that a company was formed and the building project carried out. The lease of a portion of the foreshore was obtained from the Harbour Board, and a number of cottages were erected in addition to the palladium. These cottages are available for letting to holiday makers and the demand for them is many times greater than can be met. Private individuals, too, have erected cottages, and their number is constantly being added to, some four or five being in course of erection just now. Our object, however, is not to unduly praise the Ngamotu Beach Committee; they have only followed the very excellent lead given by the East End and Kawaroa Committees, though they have gone, a step further in providing cottages.

jJSPliat we wish particularly to to now if> the fact * that the Railway Department is standing in the way of a great development of the Ngamotu beach as a health and pleasure re•sort. When the railway between town-aud the breakwater was constructed no one seepis to have been far-sighted enough to see that some day New Plymouth would become the Brighton of Taranaki and attract thousands of people annually from the inland districts to derive health and pleasure from the sea breezes and the bathing. So the line was constructed along the sea front without protest, though the late Mr. Arthur Standish aud a few others advocated that it should follow the Mangaotuku stream and thus avoid the beach. Now we have to accept the position as wo find it. The lino follows the foreshore and leaves but a very narrow strip of land upon which cottages can bo built; in fact in one or two places {here is no room even for a carriage way. What is required is that the Railway Department shall provide for the setting back of its line or at least its fence as far as possible. It is of course recognised that before very long the railway line to the port will have to be duplicated aud that the Department must keep this in mind. But it should be possible to spare a strip of laud, at any rate from the Belt Road to the Bayly Road, aud if necessary a 1 compensating strip might be taken on the land side. The Railway Department is itself interested, or should be, in the development of the beach, for in the days to come there will be a great and profitable passenger traffic due solely to the attractions the beach offers, and instead of two or three score of cottages along the foreshofe there will be hundreds, if the Department will co-operate in the direction indicated. The Borough Council also should lend its assistance, foi quite an appreciable proportion of its tram revenue is directly due to the popularity of the Ngamotu beach.