TOOK THE RANGE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 53, Issue 212, 20 June 1933, Page 3

TOOK THE RANGE

CITY COUNCIL'S TENANT.

ARREARS IN CH RISTCHURCH.

(Special to the "Guardian.") CHUISTCHURCH, This Day

A City Council tenant disappearing from a worker's dwelling and taking the range and some of the blinds with him!

Other tenants leaving, sub-letting the houses and failing to pay any money to the Council! Altogether arrears amounting to £3OOO in the rents from the dwellings!

These were facts put before the Council at its meeting last evening by Councillor E. H. Andrews. Some instalments, he said, had not been paid for three years, and the By-laws and Housing Committee was of opiniou that steps should be taken to rectify the position.

"Many of the owners of workers' dwellings are in arrears and are not making a. reasonable effort to pay their instalments as they become due," he said. "Repeated requests for payment are ignored. In order to review such cases a housing sub-committee of the By-laws Committee has bet set up, and after examining the records of those in arrears the sub-committee is reluctantly compelled to recommend that it be empowered to instruct, the city solicitor to "take action to have the workers' dwellings in some of ' the worst cases transferred to the council.

Every Consideration. "Every consideration has been given to those who have made an effort to pay off even a part of the instalments due, but unfortunately in many instances mo attempt whatever has been made. The sub-committee recommends the council to pass the following resolution : "That the City Council empowers the Housing Sub-Committee to take the necessary steps to have transferred to the council those workers' dwellings where the owners have not complied with the terms of their "iSale and purchase agreement or memorandum of mortgage, as the case may be."

This motion; was carried after an assurance had been given that no action would be taken in cases where genuine attempts had been made to pay-

Councillor Andrews said that some of the tenants had left the houses, which had come back on the council. Where it was shown, that any effort at all had been mado to pay, the circumstances of the occupiers had been taken into consideration and they had been treated leniently. Replying to the Mayor (Mr D. G. Sullivan, &l.l r .), Councillor Andrews said the form of the resolution was necessary as it stood. If the tenants had shown any willingness to pay they would not be interfered with. In one case a tenant disappeared but took the electric range and some of the blinds with him.

Wondered House had Been Left. The Mayor expressed his surprise that the House had been left where it was. "They did take some of the doors for firewood," said Councillor Andrews. Other houses had been let by the original tenants to others but no money had been paid to the council. Councillor A. E. Armstrong said he knew a number of persons who had struggled along to buy Council houses, but on account of unemployment were new unable to pay even 2s a week. He trusted that the committee would see that persons suffering genuine hardship would not be penalised. Councillor Andrews said that in one case the arrears amounted to £lB2, plus £26 owing to the Municipal Electricity Department. Quite a number of others were owing over £IOO each. There was one case in which no 'payment had been made for three years. The houses would not belong to the Council until the necessary legal steps were taken. The Mayoi : That is .the reply to Councillor Armstrong's statement about cases of hardship.

Councillor Andrews said that in one ease where £123 was owing it was not proposed to take action immediately because the husband was sick and the family could not pay anything. He mentioned six other cases in which amounts ranging from £134 up to £lB7 were owing. In all cases where action was contemplated the sub-committee had endeavoured to have interviews with the people concerned, but some had ignored the sub-committee altogether. People showing any endeavours to make payments were given every consideration and only very extreme cases would be dealt with.