LOCAL BODIES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 82, 8 April 1931, Page 2

LOCAL BODIES.

ONEHUNGA COUNCIL

The Onehunga Borough CoimciL ,* met last might, the Jiayox, Mr. E. Morton, presiding.

Loan Balances.—The Local Government Loans Board declined to eanctkkn the council's proposal to pay for the new chlorinators from the (balances in the waterworks and new drainage area loan accounts, on the ground that its precedent consent was required, and that the life of the chlorinators was only about 15 years, and the other two loans were 36 and : 33 years respectively. The council accepted this reply as final and decided to pay the balance of £300 in the 4in waterworks loan account into the sinking fund account, and the balance in the new area drainage and waterworks loan account to be transferred to the district fund account as a set off against the sanitary inspectors salary for work done by him during the drainage contract.

Scheme No. s.—The Minister of Labour, the Hon. S. G. Smith, advised the council, through Mr. W. J. Jordan, M.P., that necessitous old age pensioners may foe employed under scheme No. 5. Mr. Jordan added, however, that such employment depended upon there .being no others unemployed. further, the regulation, governing the stoppage from the old agepension if over £52 per annum is earned will apply. The foreman of works reported that the whole of the works entailing labour only would soon ibe finished. His suggestion that ithe council should propose to the Local Employment Committee to obtain from all local bodies the number of uneniployed that could foe absorbed over a given period, and the conditions under which they can foe satisfactorily employed, also to ask for a subsidy, on materials, was not adopted.

Church Property.—By employing.No. 5 scheme labour, the foreman stated that he could erect a pipe fence on the Queen Street frontage, and a single stone rockery on the Grey Street frontage of the Anglican Church property at an estimated cost of .-635. A letter was also received from St. Peter's Church- vestry submitting the conditions under which they were prepared to allow the council to remove the loose stone from this section. The council decided that it was prepared to clean up the section and erect a rockery wall on the Grey Street frontage, two feet high, in return for the right to remove all the loose stone.

Crown Mortgages. — The Inglewooi Borough Council asked for a contribution. toward the cost of £400 incurred in their recent successful action against the Crow.ni to obtain payment of rates owing in respect of property mortgaged to the Crowm. The Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal had decided in their favour. Tine Mayor, Mr. E. Morton, stated that the decision of the Appeal Court had been given against the Inglewood Borough Council and in favour of the Crown. The town clerk confirmed this statement and he quoted a communication from the Superintendent of State Advances and the Municipal Association of New Zealand , to that effect. The council agreed to contribute £2 %/.

Mr. W. J. Jordan, 50 , ., wrote in re* spect of this matter that he was. pressing the State Advances Department to pay, ■arrears of rates owing to Onehunga. The Government, however, was * using every; endeavour to cut down expenditure,. and therefore there was not much prospect of success.

Finance.—The town clerk submitted % brief statement of finances ae at Marohi 31 i last as follows:—Rates struck for the year ended Martin 31, 1931, £32,535; arrears at April 1, 1930, £4492; total of rates collectable, £37,027; amount collected during 1930-31, £30,257; five per cent rebate allowed, £778; arrears at March 31, 1931, £5992. The percentage of rates collected was 84.4 per cent; in 1929-30, 90 pee cent. Arrears on April 1, 1930, £4492; collected during 1930-31, £2795; percentage collected, 62.2; in 1929-30, 70.4. Overdraft at March 31, 1931, £801 1/7. Relief Works.—The Mayor eaid the statement was very creditable considering 1 the amount of work done and the extra cost of toole, etc. in connection with the mimfoer of men employed under scheme No. 5. Messrs. F. W. Momtjoy and S. Vella supported the Mayor, the latter remarking that the council ihad the value of the overdraft in new tools and other implements purchased for the relief workers.