PUKEKURA PARK.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 April 1917, Page 8

PUKEKURA PARK.

/ MONTHLY MEETING. . The monthly meeting of , the Pukokura Park Board was held last-night, when there were present Messrs S. Percy Smith (chairman), W. L. Newman;• C. E, Bellringer, R. C. Hughe's and E. > A . Tribe (secretary). CURATOR'S REPORT. Mr. W. W. Smith (curator) reported! With the exception of six days in removing the iron shed and some fences and trees in the sports ground, the staff has been employed in the general cleaning and maintenance of the park. R. Old has been absent for three weeks in the hospital. Ho is improving, hut it will be some time yet before he returns to work. Owing to the dry and hot weather in March, we were kept busy burning the dry rubbish that rapidly accumulates under the trees. Wo have given two day,s to removing the reeds from the upper lake. This is the first year of their appearance here, Patches of pond i weed also occur in the lakes, which will .be mowed out- this week. It is very important to keep these weeds out of the lakes and streams. The hot weather having how lowered much in temperature, we propose to shortly com-, menco to plant native trees and ferns extensively in parts -of the park. Sooner or later some of the decaying anil matured old trees will have to be removed. We propose to plant as close as possible to them, and to clothe the barer parts around with suitable plants when they arc removed. All plants planted during last winter and spring did well until the hot weather set in, sipec when it has heen necessary to jvater many twice weekly. Notwithstanding the long drought, very few plants have suffered any ill effects. The two streams watering the park became very low, but they are now back almost to their normal supply Mrs. Robertson, Avenue Road, sent a collection of flowering plant seeds to the park. Mr. Morshead sent a quantity of bulbs, which have all been planted, and fc packet of native plants seeds were received from some unknown donor in the Kohuratahi district.

Mr E. C. Hughes expressed his disappointment at the steps that had becti placed from the sports ground to the terraces. He thought that something more elaborate was proposed. The chairman stated tha't these were only temporary. IMPROVED BOAT LANDING, I Mr. Tribe brought forward the plans of, a new boat landing in concrete, prepared by Mr. Messenger. This was to take the place of the present unsightly steps. The chairman thought that the idea was an excellent one, but he thought that, in view of their financial position; the matter should he held over ""until after they had had a park Saturcfa;, The provision of the room for the hot water plant had also been postponed, as it was felt that the two things could be done better at the same- time. ANNUAL MEETING. The annual meoing was held subsequently, the same members being present. . CHAIRMAN'S REPOR^ The chairman (Mr Percy-Smith) read his annual report, as follows: The end of the present financial year —3lst March—brings the history 'of the Pukekura ParkUp to its fortieth anniversary; and no one will deny the splendid example the park offers of the public spirit of the people of the province of Tarano.ki, and particularly of the to\vn> of New Plymouth, to which it bears witness. For, from the very 'beginning j± has been through the liberality of the gifts of the people that tiie park has attained its present fame throughout Australasia as the most beautiful spot of its kind in these Southern Seas. We, of ithis period, should never forget the efforts of those who by their foresight and personal labors laid the ofundations that have brought about .the present esteem' in which the park is held. Happily, there are with us still two members of the present Board who took actual part in the strenuous work of laying out and 'building up the result we now sea, •while many have passed on to the other side. Let us never forget the debt weowe to these pioneers, who by hard personal labor with pick and shovel started the work on lines which we —more modern members —have merely had to follow and, complete: complete, that is, so far as it can be said to be complete, for the time- is not yet in which it may be said, "The work'is. done." In this connection it is .not necessary to mention names, for one of our members on the present Board has written and published a full account of the. park from tiie first inception of the idea, and therein given the credit to those to whom it is due. Let us hope that at some future date ihalj history may appear in a more permanent form- The mar'ble tablet in the park itself records the'' names of those who have 'been its chief benefactors from a financial point of view, but at the same time it has a tone of melancholy about it, for it only mentions the. names of the dead.

The. boaters of those names have set an example which others might follow. Many, of our prosperous fellow settlers might do as those departed benefactors have done, and remember the park in their wills, and thus in process of time an endowment fund would accumulate that would enable the Board to carry on without the constant anxiety of trying to make botli ends meet. During the past year another name has 'been added to the tablet, that of Mrs Hulkc, who left to the park v a sum of £IOO under conditions implying that only the' interest on it is to he used. This is a first step towards such an endowment as indicated above, and let us hope it may he followed by others in the same direction. That an increased revenue is necessary i$ constantly borne in on the

Board. Improvements that would enhance the. attractiveness of the grounds' have frequently to< be postponed or abandoned for want of the wherewithal! to carry them out. and witli the limited mcajs available the Board, can do little.; more than keep the more prbmir.ct parts of the grounds in decent order, with an occasional trifling improvement here and there. Naturally, the whole of the future, so far as improvements are concerned, depends on the question of increased funds. Ptfssibly we may look forward to some aid in this direction when the whole of the Avenue road sections belonging to the borough are let, for the Act under which those lands are disposed of allocates the revenue to the-Public Parks of the town. But the timS must come when ou« fellow-citizens will have to consider the necessity of taxing themselves to provide funds for the upkeep and improvement of the various places of public rotation that are slowly developing in and around our town. A very small municipal vate, which the ratepayers would not feci, would place all the governing bodies in a position to carry out many desired improvements j and such a course would oblige many who now contribute nothing to do their share in adding increased attractiveness to the town.

It may be' convenient to state shortly, for the 'benefit of those interested in the park, the sources of revenue current at the'present time, leaving the detailed account te be derived' from the annual accounts.

In the first place, the Borough Council makes us a grant of £l5O. Then we have a number of annual subscribers (exactly 100 last year) at various rates varying frcrm five shillings to two guineas, producing last year £OS Is 4d. The annual amount derived from "Pukekura Park Saturday," which last year came to £10!) 5s M, a very handsome contribution considering the many calls on the people just now on account of the war. There are occasional contributions from visitors to the park, but very much fewer than might be expected, and the annual amount, derived from this source is very small. From rents we receive £25, and from other sources sums which,-with the balance brought forward, made our revenue £550, leaving a deficit at the end of the year of £2O, after dedudcting Mrs Hulke's legacy, which will' be invested shortly, with liabilities in addition, of , £3s—so thai; wo arc to the bad some £Ol. Improvements that have , been made during the year consist in opening up of some vistas through the overgrown vegetation, notably on the path leading from t-lio Carrington road entrance, where the clearing has allowed of some pretty views over the lower lake. The removal of the old dressing-shod near the sports ground and the clearance of overgwwn and not ornamental shrubs, has also allowed of pretty views over the same lake, seon under the branches of tree?, than which nothing more enhances the beauty of a view. From time to time more might be done, in the opening up of vistas where the so doing doe 3 not destroy valuable trees. The few that have been made certainly, enhance the charm of the grounds. , The electric lighting has been carried up to the band rotunda, and extended round the lower part of the largest lake, making it possible on dark nights for visitors to walk about and still enjoy the music of the band on the occasion; when it plays. A little gravelling has been done on the worst, parts of the paths, but very much more, has to be' accomplished in that direction before they are in a state of comfortable walking after rain. Some of the seats from the sports ground have been utilised in various parts of the park, such as at points of interest and where views may be obtained; others have been arranged sround the band rotunda,' which supply (there a long-felt want.

Through the generosity' of his Worship the Mayor the Bonn] has now in hand—to bo completed in a week or two —an up-to-date hot water supply for the use of the public on gila occasions and for those picnicing in the grounds, a want that has been much felt hitherto. Preparations are being made to erect on the site where, marquees , usually stand when functions take place on the sports ground, a, large rustic summerhouse, to he covered with roses and other flowering plants, where the people can take their teas in the shade, in comfort and with pleasure.' It is contemplated when funds are available, to have a second hot water supply close to this erection, and to build a, small but picturesque building near there wherein to store seats and other paraphernalia usc-d in the tea-harbor.

The coming year, it is hoped, will see the proposed new "lich-gate" erected at the Vogeltown • entrance, which is at present not worthy of that growing suburb.

Tile grcumls themselves, in the parts most used by the pubile, have been kept in good repaii', but it is rogretable that the great length of paths—somosomewhere about three-quarters of a mile in length—have, through want of fwuft, been allowed to deteriorate; so that many pretty parts of the park are rarely seen now by the public. Under the curator's care, the large bed of roses near the tea rooms exhibited a very fine sight in the season, as did those" near the lower 1 lake, in connection with this subject, attention is drawn to the minimis, acts of vandalism committed by a few unscrupulous individuals (supposed to be frequently children), who without thought for the the pleasure they are depriving others of, frequently pick the flowers,' or destroy them. ' People who. do so would be 'shocked to be termed thieves. But they are so nevertheless. It is most -• annoying {o tho Board and the curator that'the care devoted to the beautifying and improvini of the grounds should thus be nullified by theiselfishness of a few persons. The boating on the large lake has been placed under new conditions, and is working satisfactorily. The tea room* continue to attract a large number of people in the season, but the building is sadly in want of renovating.

During the coming year it is hoped to extend the electric lighting along one of the- main paths of the park, leading to (he Carringtnn road entrance from"the band rotunda. Also, it funds permit, to make a new boat landing opposite the band rotunda of a more permanent character than that now perishing there.. It ia. to be hoped that means wiil be found to complete the new lake commenced some years ago, for it has capabilities of beauty surpassing many of the existing' one.?. The hill paths ought to be repaired and made more easy of perambulation by visitors;, and more gravelling done on the main paths. The tea rooms, the. curator's cottage, and (th'er buildings sadly want painting and repair.

The accomplishment of ail these things depends on the response of the ipnblic at our next Tnkeknra Park Saturday"—tho people linvc never failed its yet, ami, notwithstanding tho 'BJ*»J Wlis jfi tk? Dubllc B«fc«» ie these

strenuous times of war, it is hoped they will not do so this next time. THE SPORTS GROUND. The above name- is now somewhat of \n m.snoimer, for. through various causes football, and .cricket have departed, partly, no doubt, due to the absence of our young men at. the front. So far a* "football is concerned, tho centre of aetiity has been moved from New Plymouth, and the question rise will it ever return? * Some years ago a considerable portion of our revenue was derived from that source, and its cessation caused much embarrassment to our finances, eventuating in the institution of the "Pnkekitra Park Saturday" to supply the dencieney. The grounds were 'let to >i body of young men some time ago with flic idea of placing them under the management of those more in touch with sports; and under thoir supervision extensive improvements were made at a considerable cost. Biit the removal of the centre to other parts caused their revenue to so fall off that they could not fulfil their obligations to this Board. While* sympathising deeply with the lessee* on account of the loss of the sport, and of their, monetary loss, tho Board had to take back the 'grounds into their own hands. The result has not been satisfactory, for in the absence of any revenue from the ground itself, our means do not allow of keeping the place up as it should be; our small staff is indeed unequal to keeping up the other parts of tho park, without .the addition of the sports ground. To tide over this difiiculty, arrangements were made during the past year with the. authorities of the Technical College to take over the ground and keep it in repair. So far this scheme has not been successful, and jossibly the arrangement will have to be "terminated.

The writer's own view is, that the ground will have to .be Maid down afresh, if it is to be used again for sports. But this raises the question, are we justified in so doing, since the removal of, football sports to another place? In view of the probable scarcity of food-produc-ing crops before- {he enil of the*'ycar, the writer thinks the whole area should be devoted to producing some crop; at any rate for the ensuing year; and this, it' properly done, would leave the ground in good condition for again laying down (a crass, and,' after 'covering cxperiej,

any pvofita might be devoted to the Red Cross or other patriotic fund. THE BALAXCE SHEET. The balance-sheet showed the roeoipH to have been £550 4s lid (viz., Park ■Saturday collection and subscriptions. £174 6s 7d; borough subsidy, £l5O- - receipts £2O 7s lid; sale' firewood, ■■CI 10s; rents, £25; refund of labor, £4 14s; hotel collection boxes, £1 IDs •id; collection box in park. £3 Is Id; special donation-,, £l.%"> 12s nd). The special dnnationa were:—Mrs Walker £o, C; H. Burgess £25, N. T. Slander £l, late Mrs. Hnlke £IOO, C. Potts; £2, 11. and W. Weston £2 2s. Kx'jienditnro included: Salaries £174 wages £1S!) Is fid, tools and repairs £ls 2s Sd, hot water plant £l7 18s. bird food £7 2s, pipes and sundries £l7 4* 2d, purchase of boats £S. The bankbalance showed a'credit of £73 15s 3d, but it was pointed out that Mrs, Hulke's bequest of £IOO had to be invested, and ' there were really other outstanding accounts, so that there was actually a de•bit- balance of about £OO,

DISCUSSION. In moving the adoption of the repor! and balance-sheet Mr. B.C. Hughes considered that the names of donors of subscriptions should be pnblishel. The chairman deserved a hearty vote of thanks for the detailed report. It was the most comprehensive they had ever had, embracing not only last year's work but the work proposed for the future. This should stimulate interest in the park. Mr. Newman soeonded, stating that .the report in addition went back into the history of the. park. Mr. C. E. Bellringer drew attention to the fact that the centre of football had not been shifted, having been at Stratford for many years. The position w"as that the matches now had to be distributed between New Plymouth, Stratford and Hawera. The motion was carried. Discussion took place on the question of holding Park Saturday this year. Members were agreed that this was necessary, and arrangements will probably be made at an early date. The chairman said that the socalled pergola was being proceeded with. It wa9 eight feet high, rising to 13 feet in the centre. Some time later it would have to be covered with wire netting. He had been promised sufficient roses to plant the whole thing. On the chairman's suggestion it was decided to instruct the stall to prepare land to grow bird seed, which last year cost £7/2s.