NEW BRIGHTON IS CANTERBURY’S POPULAR SEASIDE RESORT.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19255, 17 December 1930, Page 10 (Supplement)

NEW BRIGHTON IS CANTERBURY’S POPULAR SEASIDE RESORT.

M Mecca oj Holiday Makers.

The word Brighton does not conjure up a great deal in the mind of the resident who. is accustomed to the beauties of his borough, but to the many tired city dwellers working in the heat and bustle of the town in the hot summer months, Brighton brings visions of cool seas with whitecapped breakers rolling in a vast expanse of wide clean beach covered with golden sand and fanned by a gentle breeze. Dotted in the surf are bathers almost as far as the eye can see; on the edge hundreds of tiny tots outdoing the screams of the wheeling gulls overhead. ; New Brighton's greatest advertiseI ment is her children. Sunburnt, healthy kiddies, almost a thousand of them attend the three schools in North, South and Central Brighton. They excel in sport and study, and always at the top of the list New Brighton has her place. What lucky children they are, with the freedom which unequalled beach and spacious domains afford them to play in. Every* sport is catered for in the borough, the latest addition being golf. Brightonites are justly proud of the Municipal Links in thpir Rawhiti Domain, a fine eighteen-hole course laid out over one of the most picturesque links in New Zealand. The initiative of the Mayor, Mr J. H. Shaw, coupled with the help and co-operation of the City Council, was responsible for these fine links. What was a waste covered with lupins, to-day has brought in approximately £6OO revenue in less than one year. The revenue for many years to come will be used to further develop the links, which should eventually be a source of profit to the city and borough. Miniature golf is also catered for, a fine links being laid out in the shelter of the surf pavilion. The daddy’- of the local sports clubs is Captain A. W. Owles, who has the welfare of them all at heart. A Fitting Entrance. The access to New Brighton is by a fine concrete road which was not obtained without much perseverance by the. Borough Council. The much discussed Sea View Road bridge over the Avon is no longer an argument—but ; is a growing reality' in concrete, and | will be finished in 1931. It is the full

•width of the roadway and will be a fitting entrance to the borough. The council having obtained these two hard fought for objects, has now turned its attentions to the streets within its precincts. An extensive programme of tar-sealing is to be put in hand and a road roller and spraying plant are on the way from England The initiative here is again that o] the worthy Mayor, Mr J. H. Shaw. ' The Pier is the borough’s best know* land mark. It caters for the bather the fisherman, and provides refresh ments. The dressing sheds can accom modate five hundred bathers,and an provided with plenty of fresh wate:

J showers. At the end of the Pier many lines are generally out for the unwary herring, cod, or flat fish. A great variet}*- of fish are caught. Within the j last few years a few schnapper have been bagged. a Sea View Road, the principal street r and shopping centre of the borough, presents a neat appearance with its | row's of brick shops. The shopkeepers for the benefit of 'the week-end holidaymakers shut on Wednesdays at noon and keep open all day Saturdays until y nine o’clock. Needless to say Saturt day evening is their busy time. The y street is lined with cars and the foots' paths are thronged with shoppers, e many of whom come specially to New it Brighton just to do their buying for d the week-end. Several attempts have 11 been made to make New Brighton

a shopkeepers shut on Saturdays at noon, but they have tenaciously clung to e their late night, on which their existv ence depends. Analysing the figures v of any shopkeeper in Sea View Road it will be seen that gross takings on n a Saturday are almost equal to lg the balance of the week’s trade, i. Brighton Band. One of the most progressive bodies in the borough to-day is the Municipal di Band. Approximately three and a half ir, years ago, through a fire in the drill h- shed, their assets were very meagre, n- To-day, with the co-operation and help re of the Borough Council, they have a er spacious band room of their own. The

r finance for the room they raised by a r carnival on the foreshore. No lack of t musical instruments and a membership 2 of thirty-five playing members able to 2 compete with the best bands in Christchurch, give the borough a band to be t proud of. The driving force at the , back of their sudden rise is their ener- * getic conductor, Mr J. A. Nuttall, who deserves praise for his successful leaders ship. This year to raise funds they are holding a two days’ carnival on the a foreshore. It will start on Boxing Day 1 and finish late on the following day, > Saturday, December 27. The object is e to provide new uniforms for the mem- :- bers. Like most New Brighton carni- ;, vals and galas there will be many and v varied sideshows and games. The forer shore will ring to the familiar cry, e “ Four for sixpence and nine for a bob,” n intermingled with the noises of

squeaker balloons and the cries of excited children. Above all will be heard the stentorian exhortation of many other showmen to “ Come along this way,” etc. South Brighton, with its tidy bungalow’s and neat gardens and, in the less frequented parts* its smaller cribs nestling in a wealth of golden lupin and broom, has a charm of its own. On one side there is the estuary, ? lined with the majestic pines of Pleasant I Point Domain. On the other side, a short distance over the sandhills, there t is the beach, and on the far side rise i the green and brown Rort Hills. ! The popularity of Pleasant Point is increasing each year as a picnic ground and pleasure resort. There is a splendid children’s playground with the most improved equipment for the kiddies. Set in the shelter of the pines, it certainly is the ideal place for them to spend a happy day. -Near the entrance to the domain are excellent tearoom, -which in the summer evenings resounds to the strains of jazz for cabaret dancing. The genial host and hostess, Mr and Mrs Pickles, are always ready for visitors, and make all welcome. A shopping centre has been established, and is rapidly extending. A very commodious hall has been erected at the corner of Bridge Street and Estuary Road, and it forms an excellent rallying place for all the activities of the district. South Brighton is destined to carry a large population; its development is proceeding apace, roads are being opened up and new p homes built and new residents arriving. The South Brighton Surf Club is now a P reality at the end of Bridge Street, and, ° like most of the other improvements in the district, was due to the initiative e and hard work of the members of the e South Brighton Progress League. Of 0 all the local bodies in New Brighton, r . perhaps the South Brighton Progress e League deserves the most praise. The e members meet on the first Tuesday of y. each month and hold lengthy debates •g in the best of spirits on the problems j. of the district. South Brighton’s greati- est problem is transport to give cheap d and easy access to the most remote parts. The present means of transport is a bus operated by the Tramway Board.