NEW SPORTSGROUND.

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 325, 5 January 1937, Page 6

NEW SPORTSGROUND.

KING EDWARD PARK. Soil Mounds May Disappear In March. It is only a matter of time until there will not be 16 mounds of soil in King Edward Park, bounded by Portia and Regan Streets, on the site of the new sportsground being constructed by relief workers. Mr. M .Hartigam foreman on the job, told a “Central Press” reporter yesterday that he hoped to commence demolishing them and using the soil as top-dressing on the levelled area some time in March. This would suit the sowing of grass seed, he added, but of course many influences might upset his calculations. The weather was an uncertain factor to contend with, and, further, it all depended upon the number of men who would be under his charge for the ensuingthree months. House To Be Removed. “A great deal of work has to be done,” he said, “before the mounds 1 can be attacked. In the first place, before the seven-foot cut that must be made at the Regan Street end can be started, a house which is at present occupied will have to be removed.” It is understood in this con-

nection that the notice to quit served the Borough Council has almost expired, and that as soon as another dwelling is available the tenant will shift out. The work will then proceed. However, it is the southern end of the ground on which the men are concentrating their efforts, and the clay they are shitfing from the present cut is being used for a six-foot filling near the boundary of tne borough yard in Portia Street. Men On the Job.

Yesterday there were 27 men on the job with wheelbarrows and two horse-drays. To-morrow there will be niore, because what is known as rhe two and a-half day gang commences. The greatest number of men engaged at one time was 83, but that was in the height of unemployment, and the gang is gradually diminishing as the men are absorbed in other channels. The foreman has quite a lot to say in favour of the men as workers. It has been said of him by a wag in the gang that “he never remembers what he forgets!” If some of them at one time were a bit “tough,” it was only to be expected, he remarked with a grin. His faith in them was ntit misplaced, either. They were working with a will, notwithstanding that the holidays were just over, which, of course, had its compensations, as anyone would have noticed, because they were never at a loss for a subject of conversation in the intervals of filling their vehicles. Transformation Effected.

Since August last, when the job was started, a transformation has been effected, but there is much yet to be done before the grounds are fit for sports to be held. The formation of terraces on the north, east and west 'sides of the area will in itself be no small task. It is proposed at present to provide a grade of 18 inches for the terraces (25 feet in width), of which a four-foot strip in front will also be graded. The outside edge of the terrace on the east side, will be protected by a sod wall. The surplus clay from the mounds and the northern excavations will be used for a filling on the western side of the ground and also on Portia Street.

No. 1 Aground has a fall of a foot in seven chains, and No. 2 a somewhat bigger grade. The authorities do not anticipate having trouble with flood-water. The foreman stated that during the job the” ground had been affected litlte by rain, while on the western side a drain had been'made to carry the flood-water off the adjoining grounds straight into the Patea River. Further, before relaying the top-dressing soil from the mounds, the clay surface would be systematically “picked” for its full surface. As the trees which were planted on the northern and eastern sides grow up, shelter will be provided for spectators on the ground, while it is proposed when the job is completed to plant a hedge on the western side as a breakwind. The main gate will be at the corner of Regan and Portia Streets.