Totnes, Devonshire (preliminary statement).—The main road through the town, which is steep and very narrow in places, cannot be widened satisfactorily without interference with the ancient and picturesque buildings, which are an attraction to visitors, and a bye-pass road has, therefore, been approved from near the Dart Bridge to the western end of the town, which would enable east and west traffic to avoid the narrow main road. Lands alongside and near the Dart are reserved for walks and other recreative purposes.

Woodford, Essex (scheme).-Provides for a new road, 60 feet wide, to facilitate east and west communication, and also for the widening of existing main roads. The section of the North Circular road through the area was constructed during the preparation of the scheme.

STATISTICS OF ALLOCATION OF LAND IN APPROVED PRELIMINARY STATEMENTS AND SCHEMES.

The statistics of the allocation of land for various purposes on the basis followed in previous years, but distinguishing in the case of proposed open spaces between public open spaces and private open spaces of various kinds, are as follows:

The figures show a relative increase in the proportion of land allocated for industrial purposes, due almost entirely to the extensive industrial area on the Tees in the Preliminary Statement of the North-Tees Joint Committee, and an increase in the proportion of land zoned for a density of twelve to the acre, as compared with either higher or lower densities.

The area of existing open spaces is comparatively low in consequence of the abnormal extent to which existing open spaces happen to have been excluded this year from areas of approved

statements or schemes of which they would normally be regarded as forming a natural part (e.g., parts of Epping Forest in relation to the Woodford Scheme). This is largely fortuitous and liable to affect the significance of the figures for a particular year.

The figures of proposed open spaces take no account of areas of land (sometimes extensive, like Golf Courses), over which the town planning Authority secure a first option of purchase, if the land comes into the market, but which are not definitely ear-marked as open space on the plan.

COUNTY COUNCILS AND TOWN PLANNING.

BUILDING LINES.

IMPROVEMENT AND

The Minister is glad to observe that County Councils are displaying an increasing interest in town planning matters, with which they are closely concerned, not only on account of their road powers, but in the interests of their own building developments or other statutory uses of land which may sometimes be extensive. There is still need, however, for closer collaboration between County Councils and Local Authorities preparing schemes. While the County Councils have not at present expressly any town planning powers, their powers of prescribing improvement and building lines under the Public Health and Roads Improvement Acts of 1925 on roads for which they are responsible, are essentially of a town planning character, and it is highly important that proposals for the exercise of these powers in town planning areas should be considered at the same time as, and as part and parcel of, the town planning proposals. The road system in a town planning area should be planned as one whole, and it is obvious that the plan as a whole will vary according to the proposals in contemplation by the separate Authorities, e.g., a projected bye-pass road may render the prescription of an improvement line on a main road superfluous or reduce its depth. or the town planning Authority may desire a deeper building line on a particular county road on special town planning grounds which may not directly concern the County Council.

While, however, the road plan should be prepared as one whole and in collaboration between the interested Authorities, this does not mean that the County Council should necessarily forego the independent exercise of their powers under the above-mentioned Acts in the town planning area and merge them in the town planning scheme. The plans can be prepared in unison, and each Authority carry them into effect by the separate exercise of their respective powers. As the law stands at present, the right course is that, as regards roads within the juridiction of County Councils, these authorities should fix the necessary improvement and building

lines under the general law. They then have full powers to take whatever steps are required, including the payment of compensation where necessary, for securing observance of the lines, whereas at present they cannot expressly be given such powers in a town planning scheme. There is no obstacle, however, to a contribution by a town planning Authority to compensation in respect of improvement and building lines fixed by a County Council, where contribution is agreed upon, as the town planning scheme can itself clothe the town planning Authority with the necessary power. It is of advantage, for the convenience of owners and others, that improvement and building lines fixed by a County Council under their separate powers in a town planning area should be shown on the scheme map, and this can be done by distinctive notation, just as existing streets are so shown, without any operative powers in the scheme itself.

Cases may also occur (and an instance has already come to the Minister's attention) in which a County Council may wish to make provision in a town planning area for a new school or other building, or perhaps an extension of an existing institution, on sites which they are in a position to specify for the purpose, and may find the sites reserved for open spaces or other special purposes under the scheme, if they have not examined the town planning proposals betimes and made their views known to the promoting Authority, or, where necessary, the Minister. The land would not then be available for building purposes, and difficulty might be encountered in modifying the scheme so as to render it available, in view of the interests that may have been created in its reservation for the special purpose (especially if an open space) for which it has been assigned in the scheme. The relatively small proportion of land which is usually reserved for open spaces or similar special purposes in a scheme makes such a situation uncommon, but it is obvious that it may arise, especially in quickly growing localities, and it cannot be avoided except by the vigilance of the County Councils or other Local Authorities concerned and their action in bringing their views to the notice of the proper Authorities.

VALUE OF CONSULTATION WITH OWNERS OF ESTATES.

The Minister continues to receive evidence of the overwhelming advantages of the frank discussion by Local Authorities of their town planning proposals with estate owners, as soon as they have the general outline of their proposals in mind, and always before the proposals are given definite and formal shape. The Minister's experience in dealing with preliminary statements submitted to him for approval shows that more satisfactory and successful proposals always result where the Local Authorities take estate owners

into their confidence in the shaping of the proposals, without leaving the views of the latter to be ascertained by formal representations and objections, when the preliminary statement has been actually prepared and deposited for local inspection. Failure to adopt this course has been found, on the other hand, not only to arouse suspicion on the part of affected estate owners, with the consequent loss of goodwill which might otherwise have been obtained, but to result in the adoption of proposals which are subsequently found to be unnecessarily detrimental and therefore expensive, or actually misconceived, and the discovery may not be made until it cannot be rectified without much difficulty, if at all, in view of the extent to which the development of neighbouring owners may already have proceeded in reliance on the Local Authority's own plan.

It is a safe assumption that a much better (and less costly) scheme will be obtained with the collaboration of estate owners than can be got without it. Estate owners as a body have always, so far as the Minister is aware, been found to be responsive, when properly approached with sensible proposals, and any disposition to unreasonableness or obstructiveness on the part of individual owners is likely to be checked by the general body of owners themselves, when called in conference. The Minister is glad to be able to say that he does not find many instances in which Local Authorities have failed to follow his advice as to the supreme importance of frank discussion of their town planning proposals with the estate owners affected, but he hopes that the occasional instances which have occurred of failure to observe this cardinal point in town planning procedure will not be followed by other Authorities in the future.

ELASTICITY OF ZONING. RECENT EXPERIENCE.

The Minister does not doubt that the result of the approval of preliminary statements and schemes, and their use as a basis for the guidance of development pending the settlement of the full schemes, has generally been to induce a sense of confidence and stability which has fulfilled its purpose in encouraging the types of development for which the areas or the different parts of the areas were planned. Some cases have, however, come to his notice of misunderstanding of the proposals in approved statements. In particular it has sometimes been assumed that areas have been reserved as exclusively residential, and complaint has been made that houses have been erected and acquired in this faith, when it was clearly shown in the approved statements or schemes that power was reserved to allow other types of buildings, particularly shops and public buildings, in the areas, by special consent. The underlying object of the proposals has been to declare the areas as primarily and predominantly residential, but to recognize that

provision must be made for the entrance of shops and other buildings on suitable sites or under special circumstances. In planning extensive areas over large parts of which estate development has not commenced and is not in early prospect, it is not found practicable to forecast the detail of development, as distinct from its general trend and outlines, with sufficient certainty to enable the sites of shopping centres, schools, and similar special buildings to be determined with precision beforehand. Nor has it been thought fair or in the general public interest to place an absolute ban on the erection of industrial buildings over large areas of land, whatever the circumstances and whatever the character of the industry concerned. Service industries will be required; provision may have to be made for the reasonable expansion of industries already established in the area; and even new industries may at times be reasonably permissible in special circumstances and on special sites where, for instance, they are essentially innocuous in character, or where they form the nucleus of new, suitably planned, and selfcontained settlements in the outskirts, or require a special location outside the general industrial areas for reasons peculiar to the industry itself.

Complete segregation of different types of development is not generally practicable, even if it is always desirable. Endeavour is Inade, however, to prevent sporadic or unnecessary intrusion of buildings which do not conform with the primary and predominant use for which an area is allocated, by imposing on the developer the necessity of obtaining special consent to the introduction of the non-conforming building, thereby providing a means both of securing the suitable location of any non-conforming buildings admitted and a measure of protection of the essential character of the area which, while not being rigid and absolute, should be sufficient in practice to prevent wanton or serious injury to residential interests and promote as sound and workable a relationship of the different properties as is reasonably practicable, apart from actual ownership of the area planned.

In short, town planning is recognised to be a more or less continuous process within the fixed framework of the larger outlines of development, and Local Authorities should not rest content with their approved preliminary statements or schemes, as the case may be, but should use the power of special licence entrusted to them for the purpose of defining additional shopping and similar sites as development reveals the coming need for them, without waiting till development has proceeded so far as to render their (inevitable) introduction a cause of grievance and disappointment to those who have already settled in the locality. The Minister knows that many, if not most, Local Authorities are in fact taking this course. He cannot but think, however, that even the small amount of dissatisfaction which has come to his notice might have been largely avoided, if the course indicated had been more widely followed.