BATHS FOR OTAKI.

Shannon News, 22 March 1927, Page 4

BATHS FOR OTAKI.

PROPOSAL NOT ENTERTAINED^.. (Otaki: "Mail.") Betwen 30 and" 40 persons attended at the Lyric theatre on Wednesday night for the purpose of considering the erection of swimming baths for Otaki. Several apologies for unavoidable, absence were received. Mr. Brandon, who was, voted to the chair, explained the object of the meeting, adding that. Mr. Reardon, convener, had taken much .interest in swimming matters generally, he 'having largely assisted in the formation of the Surf Club here. All would agree 'that anything for the benefit of Otaki should receive every consideration,- and'-the boys and,girls of to-day, whoAWOUld.sbethe citizens of to-morrow,, were.-.worthy* of that consideration. . Mr.t-.Braaidon pointed out that Otaki had the;sea and, river for bathing purposes, „ and;r-that v the question of finance had to be considered when the erection of baths was under discussion. .He could -'assure r all that the Council could notj-assist <in.,the. proposal, it being.far too short .of funds.-, •Mr. Brandon then., called upon .Mr. Reardon, to address the meeting.

Mr. Reardon said that swimming had been a life-long trouble to him, he having been connected with various swimming organisations since a ,boy, while he had also been- captain of .clubs. He; referred to '• the formation •of the SurfClub- .which, had,-, started off well at Otaki, but which had since, faded away 1 and died. There was,.he considered,- no better exercise than swimming, while the facilities for obtaining baths in ©taki were very favourable. Mr. Reardon referred to the loss of; life,; due,ftppeople being unable to swinv.and ,said that it was pitiful, to see so .many young, lives lost when by a little i.enejgy. they could have been saved. . There were, ;he ; said, five school baths in Wanganui, and it was that town's proud .boast that it had turned out ,a record number of swimmers eaoh year for the past; four or five years. He admitted .there were sea and river facilities here for swimming, but 1 what was :wanted,_ he maintained,, was organised; swimming. This .matter was not a Council one,' but purely. a ; community, one,.,and all were interested. Surely if a small village, like Rangitaua had baths Otaki could be supplied. He thought baths-could easily be ! erected on the sehpol>grounds, and during school hours be under the control of the head master; .after hours they could be left in the charge of isome, one else. There was an, ide&L.site next to the school, and this, Mr. .Reardon, thought, might be, procured at; very low; cost. The Government; gave-, a ,£2OO grant, while the Education Board would, supply plans and estimates; free.. He thought that all local bodies—-Council, Chamber of; Commerce, and sportsj bodies generally—should take an interest in the. project, and if all combined the work of finding , necessary money should not.be a.hard one., he not seeking remuneration; he was willing., to do his best' free of ! charge. His labours would be • well rewarded by seeing the erection of baths. The chairman- said all had.listened with, great interest to Mr. > Reardon's remarks and he would, now like *to hear a discussion on the project. In. answer to Mr. Fearnley s Mr. Reardon stated that the cost depended on che size of baths, excavation,- etc. What was wanted were baths 75ft > long. He estimated that the cost of, suitable baths would cost £750. to ing fencing, cubicles, etc. Mr. Brandon pointed out that : about four years ago Mr. Davies jhad given a similar estimate for the erection .of. baths.

Mr. Rear don: If you think the time inopportune to have bathsj say so.. Speak out, speak .your mindsj I do not mind.. There was no fear of hurting his feelings. Mr. Fearnley stated that he had already expressed himself in .favour of baths, and felt that no matter what natural facilities there were .there was nothing like a confined space, to reduce danger to a minimum. Various strokes could be accomplished at baths, but not so readily in the sea. It would, however, be foolish to enter | into the scheme unless it could be seen that it could be carried through in ; a reasonable time. There was the matter of school ground improvement which was now under discussion, and, the cost here was going to be great-r-anything Crom £2OO to £SOO. It would be impossible to put both schemes under way nt the same time. If bathswere erected they would have, to be maintained and kept clean, and he doubted if be would be in favour of baths till the school ground improvement jwas more fully discussed. r He really thought it would be hard -to find money y at the present time, while so many things, had been started and 'allowed to lapse.' He instanced tree-planting oh Tasman Road and the rest resort. The latter wanted only a few pounds to improve it yet could not'get it, therefore he thought it would be impossible to get a larger sum. Mrl Brandon said what was wanted was an expression of opinion on the baths, and invited further discussion. If thought desirable a small committee could be appointed, and a report brought forward.-" It was wonderful how the people of Otaki had in the past for various objects. Mr. Looser asked, how was it proposed to raise funds? Mr. Reardon thought that the Maoris would help largely, while a series of concerts, a bazaar, and the like, could be held. There was a prolonged, silence, : and Mr. Brandon, to test the feeling.,of .the meeting, moved pro forma, that .steps be taken to provide swimming baths for Otaki. Mr.Cockrell seconded, but mentioned \that he considered the scheme too big, while he thought school ground improvements should first be attended to. The motion, on being put, was lost. Mr. Reardon thanked all present for attending, and for the interest ed, and stated that he was sorry the scheme" had not met with a better.reception. Votes of thanks to Mr.- Reardon, the

Chairman, and to Mr. Morse, for -the free -use of the-room, were POXTON BATHS. Foxton is to ..have, swimming baths on a site in Eastern Park. The bath will be 35 feet wide by a length of 75 feet, built of reinforced, concrete and of *the< varying depths shown on the plan •commencing at three feet.; six, inches for. the conveniencei of children., The bath ; wiH be lined, with a special water -proof plaster, which .will .finish a glossy white smooth .surface; this scheme will obviate the necessary and unusually very expensive lining with glazed tiles.