THE DEVIATION CONTRACT.
From: Manawatu Herald - 23 April 1880
In our last issue we were able to furnish the gratifying intelligence that tenders were, at last called for the new railway station at Foxton, and we find that our presumption was correct that although it is styled in the advertisements the "Foxton Station Contract," the deviation and reclamation are both included as part of the scheme. This matter has been so long before the public, so many requests have been made, and so many promises given, that the delay in proceeding with the work had become almost a proverb; and now, although tenders are called, we are reminded of the old adage,
There's many a slip
Twixt the cup and lip.
It would therefore be wise to restrain our gratitude until the tenders are accepted, and the works actually begun. Governments, like maidens, are proverbially fickle, and as the tenders will not be received until the day before the date fixed for the meeting of Parliament, when the dreaded " financial position " will be fully known, it would not be in the least surprising if the Colonial Treasurer were to put his veto upon the work, and if the Government were to act as they did recently in the matter of the Catlin River railway contract, receive but not accept the tenders. We will hope for the best, however, and as the repairs to the old wharf are a part of the present contract, it will be hard indeed if at the last moment the Government reject all the tenders for the Foxton Station Contract.
In order to lay before our readers a full explanation of the works projected, a representative of this journal attended at the Public Works office, Foxton, on Wednesday last, and was courteously shown the plans by Mr J. T. Stewart. District Engineer, who gave him every information.
THE PLANS are, as might be expected, elaborate to a degree. There are no less than 23 large drawings, all of which are covered with detailed sections of the different works.
THE OLD GOODS SHED, fronting the Main street of Foxton, will remain in its present position, and will be used, we presume, for the storage of Foxton goods. There will be one line of rails running from the wharf to the old goods shed, the turntable being re-erected to lead up to them from the wharf. All the other lines of rails, shunts, &c, at present in the railway yards will be taken up.
THE NEW GOODS SHED will be a large structure 120 feet by 30 feet, and will be built near the present wharf. It will hove a loading platform on the southern side 50 feet by 10 feet.
THE NEW STATION GROUNDS will be very extensive. They will be on a level with the present wharf, and will extend from nearly opposite Mr Liddell’s house to a short distance above the present wharf. When the intervening space between the wharf and bank of the river is reclaimed, this will afford ample, accommodation for the trade likely to exist at Foxton for some years to come.
THE WHARF. The repairing of the old wharf is a part of the present contract. The damaged work is to be removed, and three tiers of piles are to be erected, upon which the usual joists and flooring will be laid. The turntable is to be replaced temporarily in its original position. These repairs are to be effected within eight weeks of the acceptance of the tender, under a forfeit of £20 per week. Nevertheless, they are only temporary, for when the new wharf, stations, &c , are completed, the inside part of the old structure will be removed, and the space between the second tier of piles and the bank reclaimed. The new part of the wharf will be 250 feet in length, and will join on to the present structure at the northern end. The exact direction of the present structure will not be preserved, as the new part will be built on a slight angle towards the west, thus carrying the wharf some distance into the river. It is probable that one effect of this will be to cause the current to strike the point opposite the Rev. Mr Duncan's house, and gradually remove it. At the northern end of the new wharf, boat stairs will be erected, which will be a great convenience to persons using boats.
In addition to the extension of the wharf down the river, there will be an additional 50 feet erected up the stream. This will be in reality a cattle wharf, though of course it will be made so that it can be used for ordinary shipping purposes. On the reclaimed land adjoining this part of the wharf, large cattle pens will be erected. From these there will be a "lead " built at the south-western end of the wharf, to facilitate the shipping of cattle into vessels lying at the wharf. At the end of the wharf there will be a movable stage so erected that it will be possible to lift or drop it, according to the height of the vessel or the state of the tide. This should prove a very great convenience. Also, the pens will be so arranged that cattle can be put into or taken out of the trucks with a very small amount of trouble.
THE RECLAMATION. The woodwork part of the wharf will be only 13 feet 4 inches wide. The space between this and the present bank of the river will be filled in, and will thus form the site for the now passenger station, engine sheds, &c.
THE NEW PASSENRER STATION will be a very large affair. It will be built nearly opposite Mr John W. Liddell's private house, on the land to be reclaimed. The street that will be mostly used to reach the station from the township, will be that running at right angles from Main street between the stores Messrs. Liddell and Honore. The building sites on this street will probably acquire a large value, and we fully expect it to become an important business centre. The actual site of the new station will be close to the present slope by the river bank, and when completed it will slightly [t.ench] on the Esplanade, leaving that street some 90 feet in width. The platform of the new railway station will be 250 feet in length, which will give ample accommodation, whilst the bulling will be 80 feet long by about 15 feet wide, divided into ladies' waiting room, public room, ticket office, luggage room, lamp room, besides the usual lavatories, &c.
THE ENGINE AND COAL SHEDS at present in use are to be removed on to the reclaimed land. They will be re-erected on the river side of the passenger station, and will be greatly enlarged.
THE DEVIATION. Included in the contract, as already remarked, is the deviation of the present line of railway. The new line will pass along the land to be reclaimed, and enter the Rev. Mr Duncan's grounds about midway between his house and Mr Liddell's. It will perform a very largo curve, crossing the Lady's Mile, and will pass through the hill at the rear of Mr Chas. Hulke's residence, and join the present line about 1¼ miles from Foxton.
TIME FOR COMPLETION. The time for completion of the whole contract is 15 months. The repairs to the old wharf are to be completed in 8 weeks under a penalty of £20 per week. After these are finished, the contractor will have to devote his whole to the construction of the works on the north side of the wharf, including the reclamation, new stations &c. ; these works are to be completed in eleven months from date of signing the contract. When the new wharf is ready for use, the contractor will be required to take up so much of the old wharf as is necessary, fill in the vacant space, and finish: the remainder of the contract in the four months.
CONCLUSION. The above is a brief outline of the work's included in the long-talked of scheme. The works comprised are, it will be seen, of considerable magnitude. The immediate results of the contract, if the works are carried out, will be to give about eighteen months' employment to a large body of men, and to bring into circulation about fifteen thousand pounds of ready money. The remote results will probably be of an even better character. With largely improved facilities for shipping, extended wharf accommodation, and increased railway appliances, we may reasonably expect that the trade of the port of Foxton, which has been steadily growing for years past, will extend rapidly. As the shipping port of a large and increasingly wealthy district, there must of necessity lie a good future before Foxton, always provided the residents display the enterprise, energy, and unity which are at all times characteristic of prosperous communities.
