The Times. Published on Tuesday and Friday Afternoons. Motto: Public service. TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 1920. AN AQUATIC PARK.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 9, Issue 536, 1 June 1920, Page 2

The Times. Published on Tuesday and Friday Afternoons. Motto: Public service. TUESDAY, JUNE 1, 1920. AN AQUATIC PARK.

[ Fukekohe is destined to become a good-sized inland tdwn, probably of about 10,000 or more of population. With the splendid back country all round it, |the town cannot fail to make great progress, steadily, but surely solidly. It is therefore desirable tftat the foundations of the public facilities which will be required in the not-far-distant * future should be well and truly laid now, in accordance with the knowledge the science of town planning has brought prominently before us during the past decade. Very often the burgesses and public men of a town have reason bitterly to regret that those who lived before them were not sufficiently farseeing to visualise the needs of the town a quarter of a century, or even a decade, in advance. One of the grealtest difficulties town planners have to contend with is that of providing parks and "brathing spaces" in densely populated a?eas where the land has nearly all been built upon, or is privately owned. But with the lessons of New Zealand cities and towns before them, there can be no excuse for the public men of Pukekohe to-day if they fail to grasp existing opportunities of securing for !the town for all time certain places that would lend themselves admirably to the formation of parks, gardens, and recreation reserves. Take, for example, what is known as "the old mill property," embracing the land on which is "Hickey's dam," at the site of an old mill, and continuing on the other side of the Paerata Road, beingbounded on the noi'fh-eastern side by the Main Ti-unk railway. Through this land, comprising about eight acres, runs a fine stream of clear water, the contour of the land is such that it could easily be formed into banks and terraces and laid out in shrubbery and garden plots. There is also room foi' a sports ground or any other desirable feature. One does not require much imagination to picture this property as a beautiful aquatic park, with its gardens, paths, lawns, band rotunda, tea kiosk, also swans on' the stream, and water lilies growing therein. By patient effort, and no great expense, the old mill property could be (transformed into a haven of loveliness, a refuge and place ol' reci eat ion for the people of Pukekohe for all time. The Pukekohe Borough Council is already acquiring some of the property for the sake of the fine body of water it encloses, though we do not know exactly how the Council will get on. seeing that while they have taken steps to acquire the land, which belongs to one pa.f.v, the water rights ai)e owned by a different party altogether. But this is by the way. What we suggest is tlr.'i':, as the Council is now acquiring part of the! property as a water reserve, and will ( tooner or later be obliged to secure another part in order to junction Edinburgh Street with the I'aerata Road, it would be wise V> make one clean job and acquire the Id. If I the property can be bought at :i re a- j sonable figure and we believe it can' the Council could not lose en the deal, because the value of that particular property is not at all likely to decline. We would like to see the councillors go in a body and thor-1 oughly view the property under dis-j cussion, for we are satisfied that an j unprejudiced survey of the prohabili- ; |.ies would lead to definite action to j secure this propeity befn -e it 'passes ' into other hands and the town loses | wha't should have been it* birth-j right. I