THE COAST ROAD

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 155, 3 May 1940, Page 4

THE COAST ROAD

DEFINITE confirmation of the forthcoming visit of the Minister of Public Works, Hon. R. Semple to the Whakatane district for the purpose of going' more fully into the proposed new coastal highway, has come to hand and all interested in the subject will take careful stock of the pros and cons, which may tend' to influence the Minister's mind. The scheme to bring- the main highway through the town of Whakatane, over the headland to Otowairere Bay and from thence via Ohope to Opotiki, is too well-known to need further ventilation here. However there remains still that small section of opposition, which we understand has become more modified since the project was first raised. The Hon. R. Semple has" prove.n himself a practical and a progressive Minister and can be relied upon to see the proposal from a utility viewpoint. He will readily see the force the idea of bringing a road directly through a town whiesh is likely to grow with the cultivation of the far-reaching Ranaitailsi Plains. But what is more likely to weigh with him will be the reduction of mileage as compared with the old route. By bringing the main highway through Whakatane, and taking it along the coastline a distance of nearly twenty miles is cut off the circuitous route to Opotiki and the East Coast. This aspect will not be lost on the Ministerial mind. From the town's viewpoint the advantages are legion. Not only will a centre which has been ignored for years be linked with the highways of the country,, but the overflow population "living at Ohope Beach would be less than seven minutes (car transport) from the business section. New building sites on the pleasant hillside above the Heads would be made available for much needed houses, a constant stream of visitors and others who at present never see or hear of Whakatane would be shown the progressive: nature of the town, the attraction of its harbour and heads, and the historic Maori landmarks with which the foreshore abounds. All these points and more must be borne in mind when the Minister visits and inspects the line of the proposed new roadway. In view of the widely-signed petition which went forward from this district praying for the inception of the new route there can be no doubt that businessmen, householders and residents in the immediate country areas desire almost without exception the favourable consideration. of the Minister of Public Wrks, to the new proposal which will go such a Ipng way towards putting this town on the map.