NEW RAILWAY STATION

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2725, 21 March 1916, Page 6

NEW RAILWAY STATION

AND FERRY WHARF

"A TIME TO PLAN AND THINK"

BIG SCHEMES AHEAD

'The completion of the new Ferry \Miarf for the Lyttelton steamers will remind members that this work was part of a scheme for the improvement of the inter-Island passenger traffic," said the chairman of the Wellington Harbour Board (Mr. C. E. Daniell) yesterday at the., annual meeting of the body. "The proposed new Lauibton Station is the. landward centre ■of the scheme. In 'a 'recent interview, the General Manager of the New Zealand Railways assured me that there, was little prospect of the station being built in the near future—that, indeed, the passenger station was but a'small portion of- a big work, and that before the station could be built it'would'bo necessary to reclaim land at the northern end of the railway yards. This information emphasises the importance of the proposals made by Mr. Marchbanks re the extension of the sea-wall from Waterloo Quay to Kaiwarra. In a previous interview with Mr. Hiley,' that gentleman pointed out that the plans of the Railway Department in their scheme of reclamation did-not involve an immediate abandonment of the Thorndon Baths and Esplanade, but only a re-making of the Esplanade and a rebuilding of the bath-house, whereas our engineer's scheme faces now what must ultimately be done—the abandonment of the Esplanade as a recreation o-roa. It will be generally agreed that with the ever-increasing commercial traffic the Esplanade could never become a popular resort.' Still ,th'e Railway engineers say the smaller, scheme will give them the area they now want and avoid any possible conflict with the municipal authorities at that point. They agree that Mr. Marchbanks's scheme is the ultimate goal, and that his method of doing the work is more economical, but as it involves them in possible differences with local bodies, they prefer to defer the matter, while being quite sympathetic to the scheme as a whole. The First Steps Taken. "Following this, I interviewed Mr. J. P. Luke, Mayor of Wellington, who, while enthusiastic as to the desirability of doing the >york; also saw difficulties, but was heartily prepared to face the problem'. The first steps, have been taken—the three . engineers , representing severally the Railway Department, the City Council, and the Harbour Board, are to confer. At this stage it would appear to_ be opportune to state broadly the position as it appears to myself individually; in the hope that the members of board and others will confer, with a view to aiding in the solution of a problem of the vory first importance. First, then, what is Mr. Marchbanks's scheme?'' By reference, to the plans, and maps of the waterfront it will bo noticed that the Harbour Board's works stop at an acute angle at the northern end of Thorndon reclamation. The face line .of breastwork points to Kaiwarra Road. Within this line and bounded by the railway yards and Esplanade is an area of water some sliEy-five acres in extent. Parliament has given the Railway Depart' ment authority to reclaim this area. The plans for 'Wellington - railway improvement show only a portion of this reclaimed in a line generally parallel to the ultimate outer line. The Esplanade and bath-house is shown as being moved seaward, the baths being still wiihin the area marked out for reclamation. Mr. Marchbanks's plan simply deals with the reclamation as a whole, and assumes that the sep-front will bq taken up by shipping—probably for some classes of business the best berths in the harbour—but it ignores the claims of the baths,' assumes that the recreation ground known as the Esplanade' will lyd another and more desirable'location. What of the Te Aro Station? "Here another phase of the problem comes to mind. The railway improve;ment plans, include the closing of the Te Sro Station. This happenbg, what will bo done .with-the land on which Che station stands? .A .reference to maps and tho plans of the water-front show that this station land cuts iff an important section of the city from .direct access ,to the .water-front, and the board, in laying out the area once intended for a dock, but now available for building* sites, has laid out streets, oirtTie assumption that the station was to be' permanent, which thus have no reference to the city streets., , TJnd,er other circumstances, the new streets' would have Wn brought into .alignment with existing streets running at right anglos .to . CWrtenay Place, '"here are three such streets blocked by the Te Aro Railway Station. The hoard's plans provide for three wharves übuttmg on this area, and the freest ]>ossible access to these wharves is important alike for the City and Harbour Boavd. Tenants are now build, ing on some sections of these lands to preseut street lines; hence if alterations are eventually to be made an early decision as to plans would be of value. Then the closing of -To Aro Railway Station would give the Rail, way Department an asset to balance the City s claim for the esplanade, and "a further need of the City, of land at ■ the Thorndon end for tramway f and other purposes (together with possibly a site for a tepid sea bath) which could well bo met if a community of interest can be recognised, and the engineers be given a wide margin of reference. The work is of some magnitude, and will take some yeans to carry out after a . decision may have been come to.' The Port and the Future. ■ "As to this board's part in the work, Following tho completion of the Pipitea wharf, and possibly tho wharf near Taranaki Street, the requirements of the port will, we hope, need still further berthage, ami the proposed breastwork would bo ideal, in that deep water, a sheltered position, and easy access to railway service are all secured. Then the board's plant for doing the work will he available. The dredgo has been so successful in its twelve years' service that probably within the present year little work will be left for it to do, apart from these now works, and it is agreed that for economical service it is excellent. Should the several parties agree, and the reclamation work bo proceeded with, a period of, say, ten years might be assumed as necessary, aiid to provide- funds an allocation by the Railway Department and the Harbour Board of, say, £10,000 to £15,000 a year each would be required. The apportioning of the land reclaimed as outlined would lie about 24 acres to 'tho Harbour Board and 40 acres to tho Railway Department, the. cost of the whole being equitably allotted against each party as arrived at by the engineers.

"A question will be askod, Is this a time in which do the work? Possibly not. But it is a time to plan and think, and prepare for a period of aggressive effort 'which must follow after the war. We may have a period of collapse in values, but we must not have n decrease in the volume of our products. As a nation we must, with increased earnestness, apply ourselves to make our land more productive. Manual labour will have, an increasing value, and in' the _ handling of our products it is essential that- there shall be no wilful waste of mru power, such aa

now blocks 0110 of tlio main ways to this port—the Rimutaka railway blunder, where responsible man tel 1 . -us that we are now spending £12 to do transit work that could bo done at the cost of £2, if reasonable foresight Jiad been used. Our port must grow, and I ask that each member will aid wherever possible the scheme outlined for the 'i'horndon reclamation."