FLOOD MENACE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 16, 30 October 1940, Page 3

FLOOD MENACE

POSITION AT ALLENTON. RIVER PROTECTION WORK. CLASSIFICATIONS ALTERED. ASSESSMENT COURT’S VIEW. “Apparently it would have taken a major flood to have overflowed and ‘ damaged Allenton before the protection works were constructed,” commented Mr H. Morgan, S.M., when giving his decision at the conclusion of a sitting of an Assessment Court yesterday. Mr Morgan took the view that the residential area of Allenton, which •had not been flooded since 1868, should) not be placed in the same class as farm lands which had been liable to flooding. The Magistrate upheld the appeal involving 271 ratepayers of Allenton against the classification of their land for river protection rating to the -extent of altering most of the classes in which the land had been placed. There seemed to be no land in Alienton which was subject to frequent flooding, and lands in that district which had been classified as Class A (land which would receive direct and immediate benefit from protection) was wrongly classified, said Mr Morgan. Class A land was reduced to Class B (likely to receive less direct benefit; than Class A), and a section of land running for about half a mile along the bank of the Ashburton River placed in Class B was reduced to Class D (all other land which is not subject to rating). With the exception of one small area, the classification of all land classified 1 as Class C (land to receive indirect benefit) was not altered. Mr R. Kennedy appeared for the Ashburton County Council, the River Board controlling the area, and Mr L. A. Charles for the appellants. The hearing occupied the full day. Harold Wilson Harris, engineer to Waimakariri River Trust, said that Mr Royds, who classified the land, had obviously gone to a vast amount of trouble. He had put 100 per cent, more work into it than any other river classification job in New Zealand. Ln the main he (witness) agreed with Mr Royd’s decisions. Until the river-bed was cleared the danger to Allenton was real and obvious. As long as the river was left in its present state the danger was increasing.

To Mr Charles, Mr Harris said that Allenton had been exceedingly lucky.

Flood Insurance.

Albert Freeman,- land valuer said Mr Royds’ classification showed very careful work. Rates levied to protect properties were to be regarded as flood insurance.

Mr Charles said that all told there were 271 appeals lodged out of 350 ratepayers. Allenton consisted of 608 acres out of 45,000 acres classified- —1.3 per cent. The classification must* be on the basis of benefit, replacing the section in the Act which referred to

liability to damage. It must be on a wider basis than that given by Mr \ Royds—in levels and configuration of land. Rates struck on various propei’ties must' reflect the benefit they were receiving. If they did not so reflect them the classification, was wrong. A classification which compelled a property in Allenton to pay 23 times asj much as a similar property in the County without receiving 23 times the benefit was wrong. “We ask for no more or less than that we should be so classified as to pay our fair proportion,” said Mr Charles. Anomalous Position. An anomalous position, he said, was that though subject to rates Allenton had no representation on the ,eontrolling River Board, yet on the classification made it was liable to pay 30.5 per cent of the rates to be levied in the whole district.

The Ashburton County rated on the capital value which in Allenton was about £570 an acre, compared with about £25 in the rest of the district. Taking the matter simply on capital value Allenton would pay 23 times as much as the remainder of the district. The whole idea of classification was to provide a just and equitable basis of ratingj the classes being A land, which received or was likely to receive direct benefit, B land which wq»s likely to receive less direct benefit, C land which was to receive indirect benefit, and D, all other lands.

There had been considerable talk

about a flood', but that flood had never come along, said Mr Charles. Frank L. Davie, surveyor, gave evidence of having taken levels in the Allenton district.

Edward Eggleston, a retired employee of the 'Government Valuation Department said that he had been, over the Allentoni district. He would first find the direct and immediate benefit in any classification. He would not put in the same class land which had not been flooded for 70 years and land which had been flooded tfsveral times in that neriod. He would certainly have classed B land as 'B, he said.

Reginald A. 'Collins and Raymond J. Tucker, both of Ashburton, gave evidence that in many years’ residence near the Mill Creek they had seen no flooding there. After hearing submissions by counsel the Magistrate gave his decision.