VALUATION DISPUTE

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 37, 13 February 1930, Page 11

VALUATION DISPUTE

COMPENSATION CLAIM SEVENTH DAY OF HEARING The Quinton 's Corner case, in which Joseph Henrys is claiming £.40,000 compensation for land taken by proela- j mation, entered upon its seventh day in the Compensation Court this morning. Mr. Justice Blair .presided, and the assessors were Mr. AY. G. Riddell (for the claimant) and Mr. E. Bold (for the respondent, the Minister of Public Works). Mr. A. Gray, K.C., with him Mr. J. J. M'Grath, appeared for the claimant, and Mr. A. E. Currie, of the Crown Law Office, for the respondent. William A. Thomson, land agent and valuer, gave hia valuation of the- Midland llotel land as £(32,835. Mr. Gray: "We have had it that the Government valuation is £39,----500?" —"I don't know what tho Government valuation is." To Mr. Currie, witness said he did not know whether tho Government valuation included the of the licence. Questioned by Mr. Riddell witness said that his valuation of Henrys' property was £17,975. That.was based on comparison with the prices realised for land recently sold only a short distance away. "Do you take into consideration the income derived from it?"—"I compared it with other land sold nearby and made the valuation that way." The present building would, in his opinion, be worthless, because any man paying the price ho put on the land would immediately scrap them and put up a modern building. "Do you say you ignore the income from the building and merely fix your estimate on the prices realised from adjoining sections'?"—" Yes." ■ "Could you lind any other section with buildings on it in the city that would give a return equal to that obtained by Mr. Henrys' for £17,975?" —Witness replied that to answer the question without due consideration would entail guesswork, and he wanted to be as accurate as possible. He would have to go into the matter very carefully. The next witness, Dunbar Sloane, land agent and valuer, said that he valued Quinton's Corner in March, 1929, at £19,260 for the land alone. In October, 1928, the building, which was very old, would have no appreci-. able value, and anyone who bought the land would have to consider seriously scrapping the place. Had the land been 100 ft deep, he would have valued it at £500 per foot on the Lambton quay frontage, and £120 per foot on the Bowen street frontage. STATIONARY AT PRESENT. Giving his idea of the; progress of the northern end of the city, witness said his experience was that it had passed through different phases, not only as a shopping centre, but as a residential area as well. When he first commenced business, there was a big demand for residences in Thorndon at fairly big prices. Then there came a lull, and it was difficult to sell Thorndon property, more especially in the vicinity of Hobson street. People who were looking for shop space did not appear to be attracted by shops north of Woodward street. The north end of the city was stationary at the present time. Mr. Currie: "What is your opinion of the prospects of Lambton quay?" —"Well, to be perfectly candid with you, I don't like the prospects, and I would !not feel inclined to recommend investors to pay big prices for any property there north of Woodward street." ' . "What are the considerations?"— "Principally the anticipation of a new railway station, and the tendency on the part of the departmental stores to establish their places of business south of Woodward street." Tho development of such stores was, he was told, really frightening tho small shopkeeper. Witness described the building on Quinton's corner as an eyesore, considering the proximity of the Parliamentary Buildings and Government Buildings. It was not the only spot in the city that needed attention from the civic point of view, he said, and it was time those responsible were alive to the situation. Referring to the suggested threestory building on the corner, witness considered that no matter how the space was disposed of the return would not be a satisfactory one on the capital invested. The present building was certainly bringing in a great return, but it frequently happened that an old place brought in a greater return than a modern structure. If a new building were put up on the corner, it would not produce anything like tho same as the existing building. There was no comparison between Perrett's corner and Quinton's corner; the . former was easily the bettor. Cross-examined, witness said that he accepted the evidence of a previous witness that the corner was the most profitable position for stalls on "street days," but considered that the figures produced had no bearing on the case. There was an upward trend in values along the Quay, but in comparison with other parts of the city the Thorndon end was stagnant. GOVERNMENT VALUATIONS. Mr. Riddell: "How do you view Government valuations as showing the value of city property? Are they conservative?"—"l must admit candidly that I never take Government valuation into consideration.'' "You say they are no guide to you?" —'I never use them." . "Do you consider that the selling value of a section is always above the Government valuation?" —"As a general rule, it is higher.'' Mr. Bold asked the witness whether he had heard of a proposal to establish another emporium in Bond street. Witness replied in the affirmative. The valuation placed upon Henrys' land by Edward C. Hotter, land agent and valuer, was £18,800. Witness valued the building, including the Chinese fruiterer's shop which had been demolished, at £400. He had considered recent sales in the locality, and, in his opinion, they justified his valuation. He' classed the shopping area from Quinton 's Corner to about 200 yards south as third-rate. It was practically a dead-end, ho maintained. As far as sales were concerned, he thought he had placed the best possible valuation on the corner. The opening of one of the big department stores had resulted in four small shops in its vicinity closing down, and several others were to shut up before the winter. Quinton's Corner was not suitable for a department store. Mr. Gray cross-examined witness at some length as to'prospective values of Lambton quay property. Witness said that Quinton's Corner had no such value; it was known aa "No Man's Land." "MADE A FORTUNE." "Would it surprise you to learn that the late Mr. Quiuton was supposed to have made a fortune at that corner?" —"He may havo. Good luck to him if lib did." Mr. Gray pointed out that J. O. Smith, the lessee of tho building, paid a substantial rental. Witness (emphatically): "I don't know how he pays it." Mr, Gray (dryly): "I bclicvo he pays it b,y cheque." (Laughter.) (Proceeding.) " ]