AN UP-TO-DATE TOWN.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1866, 27 September 1913, Page 14

AN UP-TO-DATE TOWN.

, MANY NEW SCHEMES. -. NAPIER MUNICIPAL ENTERPRISES I DESCRIBED. : :.A LUXURIOUS THEATRE.

M'APIEIt is one of the most . .progressive boroughs, in Now Zealand, and in proi ;-t; portion to its . population tho -extent of its ' municipal enterprises is remarkable. When. Napier ; began" to , launch out and went in for its. Marine Parade many years ago, it sot an idoal for itself to "iivo up to. The piiradci.was a formidable undertaking for a- small town, and one that a : less, optimistic peoplo Would havo , thought twico about beginning. However -;Napior 'plunged' in-and- built.it, and few of tho townspeople'havo -' rc- ; gretted the. cost. Later'on the work of improving the town was-- continued •by the asphalting of -all the -principal business' streets, aiul* these aro now probably tlio. clearest of any town, in '. New Zealand.. After, the.parade came tho municipal ■ baths'jand'TaribuV'improvemcnts in conI nectioii; with tho water supply, etc. Within the last year or two.an unprecedentcd boom in municipal enterprise has taken place, and-one Bchouio'after ; another has been' entered'upon.' Tlio town-lias now a>.municipal theatre, . a : municipal tramway system (elsewhere described),. municipal electric light is' i being {installed; a new sewerage system has been installed, a garbage destructor • built,; 'ajul .new plant has been put in at the. water-supply pumping station. . The cost of tlio principal; items in-, this list is.'as follow: — i ' i ''. - ■ . ■ £ . Marino Parade.(about) .70,000 Waterworks : 25,000 { Baths-; ... —••••',: 8,600. ■ "Drainage / ' 35,000 ; Municipal ' Theatro/ (including . ■ ■ ! : v 1and),,.... 33,600, i Electric tramways and- lighting .60,000 New sowago isysteni.. 58,000 : New.Waterworks plant.and gar- . ' " '. bago. destructor .......... 15,000 These aro the principal works \indor- ' taken,'by tho borough sinco its incep- : tion, and tlio. last', four items were all put in: hand within tho last, year or -.two. The Municipal Theatre has now | been *6pened for nearly; twelvo months, i and the receipts are, stated to have covered the interest on the cost of orecting if. The trams wcro opened threo ' weeks ~ ago; the destructor has been ! working' six months, and the electric '. lighting plant will to-day bo in operation for tho first time. Tlio town has this yi/ar voted in favour of rating on the unimproved value, hut this has pot ; yet. coihb into 'effect. The present rateS total 2s. lOJd; in the £ on tho annual ~ valtfo.': The total' indebtedness of ' tho borough is now £I<l short of £300,000.. A Magnificent: Theatre. ■'/ The. Municipal Theatre is a large and *"'V\ndsomc building'that would do credit Sa city threo or four times the size Napier.' "The 'auditorium is; fitted f,.throughout in tho most luxurious style, P and the stago is capable of accommodafcing the most elaborate productions that ' are brought to Ney ■ Zealand. .Tho theatro was designed by. the Hon. W. • Pitt, of Melbourne,- the .architect of ' most- of Australasia's leading " playhouses. It is of brick, and has a handsome * concrete street frontage two stories in height in. tho Renaissance style. Tho street frontage, whilo pleasing to tlio eye, gives an inadequate idea of tho size of the building.' A - wide flight of steps leads up to the ' three | 'cntrance7 doors, giving access to ; the stalls and .dress circle; Tho gallery is reached by a side door. . Passing in from tlio street ono enters a wide entrance hall, on eitlior side of, which aro largo and thickly-carpeted ' cloak-rooms for tho. patron's , of the : managor's office, and .the custodian's room. Two doors open into ;■ tho stalls,_ and in the centre of the hall, : an easy flight of, stairs', branching halfway up, loads to'.the dress circle' foyer, and lounge. This is elaborately decor- . ated with a number of fine wall-paint- ; ings of New Zealand'scenery. A heavy ■; blue cuj-pet covers tho ■ floor, and tho i are upholstered. in' blue .plush'. ; It should bo stated' that tho whole of ■ tlio upholstering and carpets through ? tlio building -and the stage - curtain ; ari\ in bluo. On either side of the dross ' circle loungo ar<v tlio ladies'; and men's cloak rooms, and in 'one.corner is a refrcshment stall. The dress circlo itself .'is roomy...ahd is carpeted and fitted ' with tip-up scats in blue plush. It lias . seating accommodation for-250 persons: { The stalls have '.tip-tip seats through-, ; out, but only ;tho .orchestral", stalls are : 'upholstered. In fr.ont and-back stalls j about. 500 persons, are seated. Abovo the dress - circlo is . tlio. gallory, ; with ; accommodation; for about 650; persons. ' Thero -are-in addition four large boxes. . / It will thus bo seen that tho ' theatre .seats'something over 1400 people. The auditorium is handsomely - decorated, tho prevailing colour boing old-gold,, which contrasts pleasingly ' .withtho bluo of tho upholstery and' carpeting. The theatre is fitted with a sliding roof, which'can bo opened -or- closed at a moment's.notice, and will, doubtless bo much appreciated at crowded' performances during tho summer months. ~ Plenty of Stage Room. The stage of tlie new 1 theatro is large enough to. bo counted as ono of the most commodious ballrooms in Napier. Its full measure is'soft. by 70ft., and tho height from'the floor of tho stago to the grid in the roof is 54ft. Tho proscenium opening, through which tho audience looks into this world of inakebeliove, is 25ft. high and 30ft. wide, The fly galleries along the side of tho stagciaro 25ft. high. .At tho -side of tho stage to tlio audience's left'is a . largo isceno "dock 75ft.-long and- 17ft. 6in; wide, and above it is a scene-paint-ing room with a largo paiut frame along ono wall. Off tho opposito sido of tho ; stage aro tlio 13 dressing-rooms which tho theatre possesses. The electric lighting is. worked from a 75 h.p. producer gas plant- at tho Tear of tho building, and is complete enough to give almost any lighting offect which the most exacting of producers call desire. There, aro altogether 2000 lamps iu the building._ Tho stage ■ lighting includes the footlights with 120 lamps, the proscenium lights of ■ another 120 lamps, and six borders of 120 lamps each. Each set of lights is in threo colours, and all have dimmers. In addition thero aro also seven arc Mights', which can be used on tho stage, and stands can lie put in for additional clusters in. the wings. The only fault which local critics havo discovered in the now theatre is that the auditorium is a trifle on tho small side- Still one-eighth of the entire population of tho borough can bo seated at ono time. It is claimed that the theatre is the best appointed ' in New Zealand, and that though the new Opera House ju Wellington may exceed it in siz£, Nttpi<?r will still havo the riiost luxurious playhouse in the Dominion. Tho, 'scale of charges fixed by tlio council l'or tho use or the theatro vartes according to tho nature of tho entertainment given and prices asked for admission. ' The" minimum.

chargo for a single night is £15 4s. 2d., and the maximum £28 6s. 2d. Tlio theatre was opened in November of last year, with a performance of "Tho Geisha," by tho Napier amateurs.- Tho Amateur Society is now having scenery painted for- "The Toreador." Tho theatro building cost £22,000, but the land ,and etceteras brought tho total cost to £33,500. ■ Modern Drainage Plant. Descending from art to utility, tlio next''borough'enterprise about which something should be said is the now drainage system. Drainage by gravitation in Napier has never been entirely satisfactory, as the fall in a good portion of the town is very .low. In the original drainage system gravitation was relied oh'entirely, and .the sewers had their outlots at various points, most of them into the river at tho. back of the town.' Tlio result was that when tho.tide receded.the adjacent mud-flats 'were frequently left in an unsanitary state.- To remedy this state of things the municipality decided to install a pumping plant, which has now been erected near the car depit on a portion of the old rccreation reserve. Tho Iwhole- of the sewage from tho town is 'brought down to this point, and is then pumped out to Port Ahuriri. The ■ drainage station is housed in a reinforced concrete building, and tho plant-is most ingeniously arranged so that once the' power is turned on the whole apparatus i works automatically, and adjusts itself instantly to aiiy increase or decrease in tho volume of matter to be dealt with. The plant was designed by Mr. Midgloy Taylor, of London, and may bo described as a pumping 3ystcm with automatic ejectors for tho low-lying portions of tho town. Two sets of vortical thr.ce-throw ram pumps have been installed, with four sets of twin-cylinder air compressors. Tho whole of the machinery is electrically driven with automatic starting panels. Tho four air compressors are for workj.ig tlio cjcctor system and' fetching tlio sewage from tiio low-level parts of the town to a septic tank at the pumping station. 1 They are arranged so that according to tlio pressure in the pipes first one and then another compressof is automatically put in opera-' | tion. If tlio load is. small ono machine can manage it,- but if it be-, comes heavier click goes another switch and another compressor is in action, a still further increase sees tho third machine in action, and another call -starts the fourth. As tho load decreases again' ono machine after another is shut out. Tho working of the pumps is governed by floats in tho sepI tic tank. -, "When tbeso reach a certain point one pump "is automatically switched on, and another rise sees tho second pump' in action. The power for tho plant can either bo generated at the tramway and: electric light power-house or at the garbage destructor. From the pumping station tho sewago _is taken iu an 18-inch main to a receiving tank at the eastern mole of tho inner harbour. "With tlio ebb of the tide a dischargo valve is opened,' and tho sewage flows into the entrance channel, of tho harbour and is carried well out to sea by tho'six-knot current which runs out. The sewage pumping station is under tho chargo of Mr. A. A. Hastings. <. A New Destructor. : Tho garbage destructor is, housed in a concrete and iron building immediately adjoining tho sewage station, and its tall ferro-concreto chimney, 80 feet high, makes a . prominent land-mark. ■ Tlio plant, which is entirely modem, consists of a two-cell destructor manufactured and erected by Messrs. Hughes and Stirling, of. England. The garbago is burnt under forced draught, and everything, bottles, tins, and what-not, is consumed, tho refuso coming out in tho form of clinker. The averago quantity dealt with at present is about 8 tons a day, but tho plant could easily put through from 12 to 15 tons in an eight-hour shift. Attached to tho dcstructor is a Babcock and Wilcox boiler, and tho steam generated in this is used to operate ono set of the sewage pumps. Tho destructor, which has cost the municipality £5000,.. has now been running for . six months.. Prior to its erection tho garbago of the town was carted out and burned on tho mud flats to the west of tho town. • • , , Water Supply Improvement. Tho town water supply is obtained from" artesian..boros. It was a lucky thing for Napier, that such' an extensive artesian supply-should be, availablo, as otherwise-the 'district would have had to go far afield to suitable surface supply. Tho water from tho municipal bores discharges into a receiving tank at the pumping station in Vauticr Street'and is pumped by steam-operated pumps to' two reservoirs on the hills which are of sufficient elevation to give a pressure of 1201b. to the square inch

in tho lower part of the town. Tho water works originally cost the borough £25,000, but an additional £10,000 has lately been extended in putting in new machinery at the pumping station. The new plant is now in course of installation and comprises two turbo multistage centrifugal pumps each of which is direct coupled to a 75 horse-power electric motor. When these new pumps aro in operation the present plant will be used as a stand-by. \ Electric Light To-night. Tlie new tramway system is described iu a soparato articlc, ■ but something

should be said here of the new borough electric light and power supply, which while being worked in conjunction with thy tramway power-house is otherwise an independent enterprise. The powerhouse. giant comprises three engines, one of which is intended to operate the cars, :i second will supply the current lor the electric light and power services, the sewage systorii, end tlio new water supply pumps, while the third one will bo held in reserve so as to be available either in case of a breakdown or a demand greater than the other two engines can cope with. The machines are identical, and are what aro technically known as two-crank tandem vertical gas engines, direct coupled to 250 horsepower generators. Tho gas lor. the engines is obtained from two bituminous pressure gas generators. The gas is formed by forcing a current of air through a mass of' incandescent coal. On leaving the generator tho gas looks like smoke, but is in reality carbon monoxide, and highly inflammable. It undergoes a long and tortuous journey to tho gasometer, 'in tho courso of which it is cleaned and dried by a variety of treatments'. To begin with it is- run through a series of drums, which catch all the rough dirt, and then it is dried in two inoro drums. This over, it is whirled along on its passago by a swiftly, revolving fan, which"takes all the tar out of it, and passes it over to a contrivance where it is forccd through water in order to wash out any remaining dirt. Finally the gas lias to struggle through a tightly-packcd box of. sawdust, and, this over, it emerges,, feoling no doubt like a human being who has been through a Katzcnjammcr Castle, and is allowed a rest in tho gasometer until drawn forth for slaughter in tho gas engine. The electric light wires aro now being erected through tho town, and the current is to bo turned on for tho first time to-day. A chargo of Bd. a unit is being made for current for lighting purposes, and 3d. a unit for power. About forty houses already have been wired for electric light,'and are waiting to switch on this evening. Competition between tlie borough electric light supply and tho Gas Company will probablv be keen. Tho company is an old-established and well-managed concern, and many of the townspeople hold shares in it. ■ . r The town is protected against lire by a good water supply, and an efficient fire brigade. There are two principal fire stations, and a number of out stations scattered about in different parts of tlie town. The brigade .'is a volunteer one Tho average number of fires is stated to be about twenty a year. Tho meat supply of the borough comes through tho Municipal Abattoirs, which aro situated a mile or,two

ing there are also threo slipper baths, and a douche bath supplied with hot or cold salt or fresh water, and seven hot and cold fresh-water showers. The borough is well supplied with reserves. The Botanical Gardens.on tho hills havo an area of 12 acres, tho whole of which is planted. In the town itself thero are tho Clive Square Oardens, and the old rccreation ground, originally set aside as a town hall re-, servo, but now partly used as the sito for the fleetric tramways depot and powerhouse, cte. In Napier South there is the borough park of 20 acres, presented by the syndicate which carried out tho reclamation work, and the. McLean Memorial Park, which was recently opened and dedicated to tho memory of tlio late Sir Donald M'Lean.

out of town, near Awatoto,land were erected at. a cost of £6000. The Municipal Baths. Napier's beach is beautiful to look upon, but it is not ovcr-safo for, bathing except for strong swimmers. It is exposed to tho full force of _ tho Pacific, and the under-tow lias at times vory decidedly to bo reckoned with. To supply the town with facilities for saltwater bathing tho borough council in 1002 took a poll of the ratepayers for a proposal to . borrow £3000 for the erection of batbs, but- tlio decision was unfavourable. In January, 1908, a scheme to borrow £0000 for baths was approved, work was commenced in November of the same year, and tho baths were opened at the end of 1909. The baths aro on tho beach, but aro above sea level, and a little distance back from tho sea. The swimming tank is 100 ft. in length with a breadth of 60ft., and holds 216,500 gallons. Tho. water to fill tho. tank is drawn from a salt-water well 25ft. below the engineroom floor by a 10-iiich centrifugalpump worked by a 35 horse-power gas engine with suction .plant. The engino

pumps 200'J gallons a minute into the bath, and costs about sixpence an hour to run. It is thus capable of filling tho whole tank in about two hours. - An overflow pipo has been laid from the baths to run a stream of water through the channels at the side of the ronclr, in the town, with-a view to economising the supply of artesian water. Tlie batbs aro being continually supplied willi fresh salt water, as 2000.gallons an hour are always running into the tank. There is accommodation at the baths for SOO spectators and 130 bathers at one time. 'Iliero are 57 '•Itbiclrs and tivn large dressing-rooms, ono for cach sex. In tho baths builcl-