POWER BOARD.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 18150, 13 August 1924, Page 4

POWER BOARD.

i SPRINGS-ELLESMJEBE. i i -o-*yy meeting of the Springs-EJies-i om Electric Power Board, hold ct Leesi 'O3 0" Hondav. vss attecded by Messrs f J. Cuniusuam ichairiMiO, 11. T. McMillan, I •£. Kcive. J. C. Free, E. H. Howell, J. W. Kirue, J.'S. Sirica, J. Henley, AE. Hunt, G. M»?iaaes3, and J. A\. 1 Kicgan. | A rcsolut:.-.!! o: with tie_ re-

_ f ;...v, 01 t'-c ia:n Mr Lawrenao Birks, j ■Wc'i oiwtrleal en S ir.oer, Public Works Do- I wrtment, was carried. the breaking ot lines, this va~ ia'-d bv the Public Works Department to i>o 1-ac to mm o: the lines being t« fcglJS. M* Free said that as the Pub.ic TVorko Department had pasa.d the lines Ui years -o" ; t should make a furtherinspection £iom crdorins the Board to effect ajtera*he -notion o? Mr McMillan, it tws iecidci to usk tho Department if the lines had bees icsp«ct-jd recently. Mr S. B. Vorscutt waited on tae board velw've' to' e■•)!=« private trouble being c::uevienccd in getting current to a farm m Paparua Countv owned by Mr Stevenson and occupied by Mr Bush. It appeared from Mr Forsciitfa statement tui. a Murr-vy had driven on oral aasuranea to Mr th:i't he would permit him to take the wire orev Mr M-rray'a property to reach Mr Bush's. Mr Murray, it was stated had withdrawn this permiss on, and 31: Stevenson nor: wanted the Board to agree to the lino coming from Board to compensate him. if tho Paparua County loan P°l'- carried. Mr Magir.iiesa tap'ained that the route across Mr Murrs-'s place would require only one polo, but that round tin road irom Halswell v:ouid need seven pol€ 3. t The Board would not entsttsin tae proposal, but decided to write to Mr Bush, with a view to coming to soma mutual ar> r&asjeuiont. . , T<e Hon. Sir Heaion BliodM iorw»>ded a copy ol a oatition in Parliament from a number ox settlers is thr Weedons district,, praying that their lands bs, excluded from tho Power Board's area. I'he chairman poinVj out thai no ra.e was being struck this year. If a rate "» s to be levied next year it would bo under the 19-33 Amendment, whereby ratepayers not within' -ten chains of the Board's main", would r-ot be rated. It had not been feasible to use the 1923 Amendment last year. Moreover, the settlers would be better in the area than cut of it, because the Board's mains might sooner or later come their way, and if they were out of the d strict they could not bo sorVcd with ourrent. Mr Maginnoss said that the Paparua, county mains would run alongside the properties of some of the petitioners. On the motion o£ Mr Henley,, it was decided to reply in terms of the chairman's explanation. , ' #'. • ,i_ Mr Free said that a good par l °t the Southbridgo district had not yet been reticulated, and the people were asking when it would bo done. Mr Maginness suggested "that Mr Free and the cngineor should bring down a concrete proposal in regard to the Southbridgo district at nest meeting-. Mr Neavo said that the last amount ot £6OOO had been raised particularly to reticulate the unserved area at Southbridge. Mr Free said that Messrs Inwood end other residents in their neighbourhood were prepared to take the current now that the capital cost charge has been reduced to 12i per cent. . , Mr Maginncsa's suggestion "was agreed to but on the motion of Mr Free, it waa decided to proceed with the line to serve Messrs Inwood as, soon as the necessary materials were aYttilable and the necessary guarantees and casements were arranged for. Mr Maginness urged that, in the event of the Paparua loan proposal being carried, quotations for material should be secured at once, and the Pub'ia "flforke Department paid tho first instalment of tho cost of its lines in the county that the Board v-as to take over, bo that tho Board secure tho revenue from tho present reticulation: .*,,,. , The Board approved of Mr Maginness s views.

The engineer said he waa making arvangen;ont3 to take, bv'r TA r.W'.D. linos immediately after the poll as suggested. r £he Papurua. members wero authorised to meet, in tho event of tho loan proposal being carried, and make necessary arrangements pending tho nest meeting of tho Board. Mr Msginness pointed ■ out that if the loan proposals were sanctioned, there would probably !b© no rate, but that if the poll was lost a, rato must certainly be Yried, as tho. Payaama wpanse-s' and commitmoritß hitherto would have to ba mot.

The ohairma-n remarked that tho answer to one of the questions in a circular issued to Paparua ratepayers stated that no rate would be collected as the security lor the proposed loan, though such a rato was made for legal security. It, was true that the repayment would bo made out of revenuo, but "if after that the revenue was less than the expenditure-, tlwi another rate would have to be struck and oollootad to cover tho deficiency. Ha the members would make the position clear to the ratepayers. The Paparua members replied that they •had been explaining the matter to their ratepayers at every opportunity, and would continue to do so.

Tho engineer (Mr I*. C. Vicary) reported that 12 new consumers had been connected up during the month, A new had been erected and five two-horse power motors had been aold for milking plants, with a probability of more being required. Th*r« h»d been a, number of breaks in the (

! 11,000 volt line. There had been delay in J i'r.B dolivnry oJ polss due to a strike a.t I the Newcastle- coal mines, but it -vras anxiei- '. patcd th&t deliveries voukl 'O3 mad; vrittnn