✨ Government Office Construction Guidelines
INSTRUCTIONS TO ACCOMPANY THE PLAN OF THE SITE FOR THE NEW GOVERNMENT OFFICES, TARANAKI.
The site may be regarded as nearly level or with a fall of 1 in 60 from the S.E. corner and about 7 feet above the highest spring tide, the mode of forming foundations here, is to lay the sills on Puriri or stone piles about 3 feet long.
The building can be lighted from any of its fronts but the best fronts are towards Currie and Molesworth-streets. The front facing the river may be called the back front as it will face the backs of the houses in Brougham-street; the front towards Molesworth-street faces and will have an uninterrupted view of the roadstead, and the Post Master thinks it desirable that his office should have a view of the road-stead and also a verandah or other shelter for the public while waiting for the delivery of a mail.
The chief approach will be from Currie-street and the best view of the building will be from the Beach.
The accommodation required is stated in the Schedule appended hereto, the dimensions are to be understood relatively and not absolutely, the same remark applies to the grouping, for example Land Commissioner’s, Survey Office, ante-room between for the convenience of both, Registrar of deeds as near as circumstances admit.
The Council Chamber is intended to serve also for the sittings of Supreme Court and it is thought advisable to arrange the Resident Magistrate’s Court with reference to the Supreme Court that on an emergency the two might be thrown together; these should form one story open to the roof, the other offices may be arranged in two stories.
Proper attention must be paid to ventilation, and provision must be made for warming the whole by means of hot water.
The total amount to be expended on the building including every charge is £4,500.
The material must be timber except in cases where stone or brick are indispensable, such as strong rooms for deeds, or cells for police office. The covering for the roofs to be galvanized iron tiles.
The designs should express the character of the material and not pretend to be what they are not; this remark is not intended to exclude sanding on painting which really preserves the timber, but imitations of masonry which let in the wet and destroy the timber.
The drawings to be made to a scale of one-eighth of an inch to a foot for plans elevations and sections, the details of construction to a scale of ½ of an inch to a foot.
The drawings to comprise a plan of each floor, an elevation of each front, and at least one longitudinal and one transverse section.
A specification to accompany the drawings describing the materials and mode of construction, and an estimate of the cost.
SCHEDULE.
| Size | Area |
|---|---|
| about | |
| Superintendent | 16X16 |
| Clerk to do. | 16X12 |
| Provincial Secretary | 12X12 |
| Provincial Attorney | 16X12 |
| Land Commissioner | 16X12 |
| Ante-room | 16X12 |
| Survey Office | 16X24 |
| Registrar of Deeds | 16X12 |
| Clerk to do. | 12X12 |
| Treasurer | 16X12 |
| Auditor | 16X12 |
| Meteorological | 16X12 |
| Speaker of Council | 16X12 |
| Clerk of do. J | 16X20 |
| Library | 16X12 |
| Committee room | 70X35 |
| Council Chamber | 20X35 |
| Magistrate’s Court | 16X12 |
| Judge’s room | 16X12 |
| Resident Magistrate’s do. | 16X12 |
| Clerk and Bailiff | 16X12 |
| Post Office | 16X24 |
| 16X14 | |
| Cellarage to do. | |
| for mail boxes | |
| Store keeper | 10X12 |
| Record keeper | 10X12 |
| Inspector of Weights and Measures | 12X12 |
| Inspector of Brands, of Scab, and Cattle | 12X12 |
| Police Station | 12X12 |
| 2 Cells to do. | 10X8 |
| Strong room for records | |
| Housekeeper rooms— | |
| Parlour | |
| Bedrooms, (2) | |
| Kitchen | |
| 4 Washing Closets | |
| 4 Water Closets |
PRESENT PRICES OF MATERIALS AND LABOUR.
| £ s. d. | |
|---|---|
| Bricks, per thousand | ... 10 0 0 |
| Lime, per bushel | ... 0 5 0 |
| Timber, per hundred | ... 1 5 0 |
| Ploughed and tongued imported per hundred | ... 1 10 0 |
| Galvanized iron tiles, per ton | ... 56 0 0 |
| Wrought iron in straps and bolts per hundred | ... 0 0 8 |
| Masonry rough in random courses per perch | ... 0 10 0 |
| Bricklayer, per day | ... 0 8 0 |
| Mason, do. | ... 0 8 0 |
| Carpenter, do. | ... 0 8 0 |
WILLIAM NORTHCROFT,
Provincial Secretary.
Nov. 18, 1862.
Taranaki Provincial Gazette 1862, No 26
✨ LLM interpretation of page content
🏗️ Instructions for New Government Offices Construction in Taranaki
🏗️ Infrastructure & Public Works18 November 1862
Construction, Government Offices, Taranaki, Building Specifications, Architectural Plans
- WILLIAM NORTHCROFT, Provincial Secretary