“JUSTIFIED ITSELF”

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 356, 17 May 1928, Page 16

“JUSTIFIED ITSELF”

TOWN-PLANNING WORK ASSOCIATION’S MEETING "In the first year the Auckland Town Planning Association has justified itself,” said the president, Mr. W. J. Holdsworth, at the annual meeting held last evening. It has already won the recognition of local bodies.” Mr. Holdsworth said that the number of occasions on which the association’s advice and opinion had been sought was gratifying evidence of its standing. The object during the coming year should be to extend its membership and activities. The annual report stated that although the official recognition which the association had received was fully appreciated, it was felt the general attitude of the local bodies showed more anxiety to preserve the status quo than to adopt the true spirit of town planning. A change of front would only be accomplished by the creation of a sufficiently influential body of .public opinion to give an unmistakable lead to the local authorities. SERIOUS DIFFICULTY Unfortunately, a very clear lead in the right direction was not given either by the Act or the regulations. Thus at the very outset the association had been confronted by serious difficulty, in that it was committed to the promotion of a policy which was not yet generally recognised as desirable, and which must meet with considerable opposition, since it involved an entirely new point of view, demanding radical changes in the customary processes of local government. The membership had reached a total of 148, and the financial position was satisfactory, the balance in hand amounting to £97. The report and balance-sheet, and the reports of the technical and publicity groups, and the sub-committee on the preservation of volcanic hills, were adopted. Mr. W. Page Rowe and Mrs. Page Rowe were accorded a motion of appreciation, and the association wished them a pleasant trip abroad. Mr. Page Rowe, in reply, urged that the association should not lose sight of the need of keeping in touch with the most up-to-date ideas on town planning. He also referred to the urgent necessity for revision of the Town Planning Act. so as to ensure close cooperation between town planning associations and local bodies. The president, Mr. W. J. Holdsworth, and the vice-president, Mr. G. W. Hutchinson, were re-elected. The following were elected members of the executive, in place of those retiring by ballot:—Messrs. C. K. Grierson, T. Bloodworth, P. E. Powell, L. A. Eady, P. Chambers and Professor C. Knight.