NOW APPROVED

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 52, Issue 3276, 16 June 1943, Page 5

NOW APPROVED

PAEROA SCHOOL ADDITIONS another classroom ■CONTROLLER’S PERMIT Advice that the Director of Building Construction had approved of the erection of the additional classroom at the Secondard Department of the Paeroa District High School was received at Monday’s meeting of the Paeroa District High School Committee. The committee has, during the last few months, been very concerned at the delay in the building of the additional room because of the unsatisfactory conditions under which the infant clashes were being taught today. When the additional classroom is erected it will allow redistribution of classes so that the infant classes can be better and more suitably accommodated. Referred To Mr Thorn At the May meeting of the committee members expressed some indignation when information was given to the effect that the Director of Building Construction had granted approval for the erection of an additional room at the Ngatea. District High School while no approval had been granted for the work at Paeroa. The whole matter was therefore referred to Mr J. Thorn, M.P. for Thames who wrote to Monday night’s meeting of the committee as under.— “I had a consultation yesterday (June 11) with the Director of Housing Construction about the room at the High School. He promised to look into the matter again for me and do what he could. I assured him that the position at the Ngatea School could not be as urgent as at Paeroa, and when I explained the conditions in the infant block he agreed that your needs required some attention.

Priority of Jobs

“His difficulty as to fixing the priority given to jobs is that he must take advice as to this from the Education Boards.

“And now another difficulty has arisen—this time from the recent decision of the Government to erect 3500 houses in the next 12 months. This decision was taken to meet the needs of returned soldiers and of very distressing cases among civilians and it will necessitate taking about 3000 men away from defence construction. All this raises the question as to whether homes or school buildings are the more urgent, and it is a hard

question.” Writing still later Mr Thorn stated: “I have now been informed by the Director of Building Construction that as a result of his talk with me he had made further inquiries as to ■the Paeroa school and he had decided to approve of thd®* erection of the additional room. He asked me to notify you of this, so that apparently we are now in a position to go ahead if there is anyone in Paeroa in a position to contract for the building. Materials Available

“At any rate we now know that the materials will be released and that the Government has provided the grant.” Appreciation of the work done by Mr Thorn was expressed by members and it was decided to forward a copy of his letter on to the Auckland Education Board with a request that they take all possible steps to expedite the calling of tenders for the work.