233
26 -
building areas, it is doubtf 1 whether it will be possible to effect any apreciable reduction for sometime; certainly not so long as development on the mainland continues at its prosent rate. Another minor alteration is in the title of
the cxccutive officers of the Architectural and Buildi ngs Ordinenec Offices from 'engincer' to 'architect'
*
It is not unusual to regard the amount provided under Public Works Extraordinary as the criterion by which to judge the size of the staff of the Public Works Department. It is one of the factors, and an important one, but it is by no means the sole onc. I have already referred to th: work that has to be done by the drainage and Rods Offices in the preparation of new arcas. The Buildings Ordinance Office is concerned almost exclusively with private building, and the amount at present going on is very great. Morcover the general
standard of building in the Colony is gradually being improved, this incvitably means closer inspection of plans and buildings by the Buildings Ordinance Officc. Another office which ir closely bound up with private building activity is the Crom Lands and Surveys, for it is this office which does all the
spade work in comcction with land sales.
Then again there is the architectural Office,
9
half of whose work is maintenance and half constructional.
The former is more or less constant, whilst the latter depends on
the programme of extraordinary works. Some of the letter may be financed from loam, but however they are financed before they can be proceeded with, or even seriously discussed, drawings and plans have to be prepared and estimates of the cost worked out, and this preliminary work falls on the architectural
Office.