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BOROUGH OF WAIROA

.. i ■ A THRIVING TOWN MUNICIPAL ENTERPRISE ACTIVE. The borough of Wairoa is pleasantly situated on the banks of the Wairoa River, about three miles inland from the heads. It is capable of great expansion, and there will never be a lack of building sites, either for business or residential purposes. With wise foreBight the main business street was made facing the river—for this broad, deep body, of water, in addition to its commercial value.' will always remain the chief beauty spot and pleasure resort of the town itself. Tha business thoroughfare facing the river is aptly termed Marine Parade, and in it is to be found the Post Office, Courthouse, shipping offices, and all the principal retail business houses in the borough. The river hank lends itself to beautifying, and although a great deal 1 has not yet been done to add to the. natural beauty of the place, its worth is recognised,'and the Beautifying Society, in addition to ably .assisting m bringing the town • more to the attention of other parts of New Zealand, is also devoting its energies to raising money to improve the parade. From the carm'val,' it is hoped that some of the surplus will go to that end. ' Wairoa has a population of roucUiy 1200 but the district is capable of sup"porting a town of much greater population. It was constituted a borough in 1909, when the Clyde Town District, controlled by the Clyde Town Board, and the Orangitirohia Block, across the Wairoa River, joined hands for that purpose. The council is composed -of a Mayor and eight councillors, who in addition to borough affairs, control the .Clyde Domain, and the. Wairoa Cemetery. A general rate of 2Jd m the !£ on the unimproved value of the 'town brings in. £1350 per annum.

Tho Council's Enterprtsa. , The councillors lave not been lacking, ia enterprise, and through their efforts Wairoa was one of t the first of the smaller towns of New Zealand to have.the luxury of a municipal, electric light supply. A proposal was put before the ratepayers who sanctioned the .scheme, and in June, '1913, tho town iwas lit ,by electricity,, at a cost of i£6b'oo. The current is generated by a isuction. gas plant, and 'the light pro■duced is giving universal satisfaction. i*he number of consumers at the present time is 170, and in addition tho streets are electrically lit. The undertaking has developed to; such an ex•tent that the council has received auithority from the ratepayers to raise an £4000, for the extension of the plant and lines. This' money is not at present available, owing to the war, but the extension will be proceeded with as soon as the council can secure the , loan. There is good prospect for an extension of the supply, and the Wai,roa Hospital authorities are at pre•Bent formulating a scheme to have the hospital buildings lit with electricity.The borough's plant will no doubt have in time to give place to the Government undertaking at Waikaremoana. It is proposed by the Government to harness Waikaremoana for electric current, and when that is.an accomplished fact it will pay. tho borough to utilise the bigger supply. ' On the formation of the borough the council 'raised £9900 foe drainage works, metalling the streets, and kerbing the footpaths. The money was well spent pn tie roads, for the formation is good, jtnd indeed better than most country ■towns. The question of'ah 'adequate water supply is now engaging the attention of the councillors. It.is a big Jnatter, involving the expenditure, of »roany thousands of pounds, but something will have to-be done in the near ifuture. There are many schemes in the rair, such as getting the supply from I'iWaikaremoana or To Reinga, etc.

Ample Open Spaces. The town is fortunate in having with>in its bounds ample open spaces. In idddition to the riverbank, -which can. be tnade an. ideal scenic attraction, there ■ is the Clyde Domain, with an area of about eight acres, situated in the oentro of tho borough. Within the last two /or: three years this, reserve has been [levelled and sown,in grassland otherwise made attractive. ' There is also a ■pleasant little park of about'two acres, opening off the Marine Parade, in .which is situated the Council Chambers. iFor years neither the Town Board nor (the borough had permanent offices, but ithese. were shifted about from place to [place. In 1912 the' affairs of the (borough were transacted in rooms above .a, business place ; in the town. A fire occurred, and the bulk of the borough jiecords -were destroyed.. The' council ithen decided that permanent and imposing offices should bo constructed, and ihey carried a poll.for £1500, with \which to build Council Chambers. When fche loan was carried they arranged to (transfer pertain borough sections for a, ■school reserve site, just off tho Parade, and therein they erected an ornate ferroconcrete building containing a large council chamber and the necessary borough offices. These will adequately serve the requirements of the town for years, and reflect credit on it. The two acres of land, surrounding the offices have ibeen well laid out, and thanks to the .co-operation of the Wairoa Brass Band, la bandstand and seats have been provided. Tho Park is a popular resort ton the many occasions when the band Contributes open-air programmes. Many New Buildings. f The building activity during the past Sew years is an index of the. progress »f the town. There is ample evidence mow that its commercial worth has been [recognised, and the erection of new [banking houses, and the establishment of offices for large commercial, firms ( show that business people have confluence in the stability of the district. It 5s only during the past few years that '(the possibilities of the place have been fully recognised. • During the last six years alone such firms as Messrs. Daljgety and Co., Williams and Kettle, Ltd., /the Hawke's Bay Farmers' Co., • and lihe New Zealand Loan and Mercantile jlAgency Co. have built their own stores land opeued branches. The Marine [Parade itself shows that tho growth of Ethe town has been of comparatively refcent date. It is like as if the place vhas suddenly gono ahead by leaps and jbounds. The Parade is composed _of obviously new business premises, side ;by side with others of great, age, but . ,each year the new buildiugs are mak- . ling up ground, and soon tho Parade, (from end to end, will bo full of sub-j-stantial and ornate structures. During tho past twelve- months tho Union jßank has erected new premises at a icost of £3680 (not yet completed), the jßank of New Zealand has put up new .offices at a cost of £2400, land other new buildings have ibeen. the Clydo Hotel, £5400, and two (buildings for '■ Mr. J. Corkill, ';<at a cost of £1600 each. These have •all beon on the Marine Parade, and in mddition the town has been well sown j-wfth modern and beautiful residences. !.Tho Post Office,- on ,the Parade, is ,ono of the prettiest of buildings, of a [Tecent date, and adds greatly to the sappearanco of tho street. In tho impos/jng tower of tho building a clock and jchimes have been placed, the money to secure which, about £600, was raised vby public subscription. Tho Governiliient intends erecting a now Courthouse in the near future, and that will pA& further to tho architectural beauty jof tho Parade.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19150211.2.13

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2382, 11 February 1915, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,235

BOROUGH OF WAIROA Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2382, 11 February 1915, Page 5

BOROUGH OF WAIROA Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2382, 11 February 1915, Page 5

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