PRICE OF WALES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19862, 3 February 1920, Page 3

PRICE OF WALES.

VISIT TO CHRISTCHURCH. PROPOSAL TO BUY CANTERBURY HALL. 1 « . The Mayor informed the City Council last night that ho had received an offer, ou behalf of the council, to buy the Canterbury Hall properly,, in Manchester Street, formerly the site of His MaTheatre, and the Alexandra. Hall, which were destroyed by lire. The approaching visit of the Prince of AVales, which had been definitely fixed lor tho middle of Anri), raised the question of providing a suitable building for tho festivities. The effort, of Christchurch should be at least equal to, if not: better than, that of any other city in tho .Dominion ; its civic pride and loyalty must be second to none. The visit of the New South M ales State Orchestra had accentuated the position '•'cry acutely, and Mr H. Verbrugghen, tho distinguished conductor, had • expressed himself emphatically as to tho utter unsuitability of the King Edward Barracks for such purposes, lie submitted ior the council's consideration a proposition that was live, up-to-date and financial, in view of'the reception that must be held and in view of the fact that the city must have an expanded administration block. Tho chairman of directors of tho Canterbury Hall Company had submitted a proposition by which the city could purchase tho hail site and all tho building material as it stood at present, for the share capital of the company, namely, £14.960, witn an additional aura not exceeding £3OO or £IOO to indemnify the company against the architect’s fee for drawingup the plans I'rtr a comprehensive theatre and hall. That sum the company was willing to allow to stand for ten years at 5 por cent interest. He had had expert opinions as to the walls that were standing and other parts of the structure standing. A great hulk of it was considered absolutely sale and could ho used in the scheme.

The frontage, the Mayor continued, would supply ample accommodation for all the city offirxs and a suitable hall for all kinds of civic entertainments and other engagements, such as winter shows, motor 'exhibitions and smallcf industrial exhibitions. Tho Alexandra Hall would be -amplified to supply a small dancing hall, and to he used as a supper room for larger dances and functions. There would also be constructed a kitchen capable of coping with an audience of, say, 3000 or 4000 persons, a reception mom and all the necessary cloakrooms, corridors and lavatory accommodation, ail at a cost, of from, say. £6OOO to £IO.OOO or £12,000. The present building material and foundations were estimated by experts to be worth, in their present sites, £6OOO to £BOOO. if they wore worked into tho proposed scheme. The balance of the site that was not wanted for the civic administration block could be exchanged for the Provincial Council Chambers site, on the basis of exchange agreed to by one of tho recent Ministries, and the Provincial Council Chambers site would then be used for the city’s Victory Town Hall. The Returned Soldiers’ Association, through the secretary. Mr IV. E. Lcadley, had announced that if a niemoHal site in honour of fallen soldiers was secured it would as a body co-operate with the citizens and the City Council in building a Victory Town Hall.

Tho accommodation afforded by those balls might become an absolute necessity to the city as a largo showroom to exhibit electrical exhibits that are bound to be forthcoming during tho period of reconstruction. It had been suggested by several citizens that those halls should be called the ” Royal Assembly Halls,” in honour of the Prince, stnd if the citizens could fix the site of tho Victory Town Hall soon, they would bo able to ask their future King to lay tho foundation stone in honour of those who worked to win tho war. It could he presented to tho city by the citizens of Greater Christchurch, if not by the population of North Canterbury. Experts had told him that part of tho frontage was worth £loo a foot. Ho was convinced that it was a good financial proposition, and that it would be worth wlule for the council to close with the proposal. The proposals will he discussed at a special meeting of the council at Bp.m. on Thursday, when arrangements for entertaining the Prince w’iil also be considered-