DOUBLE HILL ROAD

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 26985, 10 March 1953, Page 6

DOUBLE HILL ROAD

CONFERENCE NOT FAVOURED

A proposal that the Ashburton County Council should be asked to call a meeting of interested Government departments and runholders concerned about the state of the Double Hill road was rejected by the North Canterbury Catchment Board on Friday morning after some members had objected. The board’s soil conservation and reserves committee recommended the meeting. The chairman of the committee (Mr R. M. D. Johnson) said that runholders had lost their access in the January floods through water flowing off Mount Hutt. The Ashburton County Council said that it rated in ridings, and there were not sufficient funds in this district account for restoration. The board was interested because the runs must be occupied. Mr W. F. Young (who is District Engineer of the Ministry of Works) said that such meetings as the one proposed were not very effective, because' the ratepayers tended to think that they had only to state their case to departmental representatives and they would accept responsibility. The parties often got at cross purposes.

“The local bodies are in command end there is machinery for getting assistance,” Mr Young continued. “It is useless to assemble men to look over the same roads and hear the same trouble they have met before.” In this case the Crown Lands Department was the principal land owner, said the chairman of the board (Mr H. B. Anderson). After some discussion Mr#Johnson, who said he agreed with Mr Young, withdrew the proposal.

Professor L. W. McCaskill said it would still be competent for the board ito raise the question again.