SANATORIUM DELAY CONTINUES

Chronicle (Levin), 7 August 1947, Page 4

SANATORIUM DELAY CONTINUES

w APPROACH TO GOVERNMENT ABOUT LEVIN SITE

"It has been pointed out to the ' Alinister • of Health, Miss M. Howard, . that the committee has been fonr years trying to arrive at some finality regarding a site for the new sanatorium, and that we are now quite naturally becoming very anxious over the delayy* ' . stated Mr. J. A. Nash, chairman of the Western HospitaJ Distriets; Joint Sanatorium Committee. in an interview yesterday after a meeting of the committee had discussed the site question in committee. ' The site selefited by the committee for its sanatorium, which has been estimated to cost in the vicinity of £500,000, is at Levin, bnt is native owned and existing legislation prohibits the sale of Maori land. It was earlier reported that the Maori owner objected to the land being taken for sanatorium purposes, but Mr. Nash said that this was not the cause of the delay. It was for the Government to overeome the bar- ' rier created by the prohibition placed' on the sale of native land by legislation. Mr. Nash said he had reported to the committee that he had written to Miss Howard on the subject and more recently had interviewed her in Wellington. Miss Howard told him that, as it was a matter concerning Maori land, she would have to put the position to the Minister of Native Affairs, who subsequentlv arranged to have- an inter.view with the Maoris coneerned. As soon as Miss Howard had received a reply from the Native Minister she would advise the committee regarding the aequisition of the l£nd. During the course of the meeting the

- V managing-secretary, Mr.. A. J. Phillipps, mentioned that the • committee, witli a building pl-ogramme which might approach £500,000, had not been invited to join the regional planning cbuncil, which apparently had operated in ignorance of the eommittee's existence. He had written to the council aequainting it with the facts and had arranged to attend its uext meeting as delegate.. He reported that 'the committee 's contribution rowards the council 's expenses would be about £2 a year. ■ The committee confirmed Mr. Phillipp's action. . Patients in the Otaki sanatorium, the majority of whom ' come from within the "eommittee's distriet, are likely to be deprived of their weekly cinema entertainment unless the committee ean raise the sum of £1000 for the purchaseof new equipment. It was decided to Imake an approach to the National I Tubereulosis Assoeiation with a request that an appeal for funds should be orga'nised through its branches in Wellington, Wanganui and New Plymouth. A branch in Palmerston North is in the process of formation. The Minister of [ntcrnal Affairs, Hon. W. E. Parry, has indicated that he would f avourably consider. a grant from art union profits for this purpose if the committee ffrst endeavoured to raise some of the amount by public appeal. The National Library Assoeiation is • to be asked for a financial grant towards the purcliase of books for tl\e committee 's sanatoria. The report of the medieal superintendent, Dr. G. F. Wilson, indicated that of 99 patients in the eommittee's sanatoria on July 21, 61 were Maoris.