CITY COUNCIL RATE UP FIVE PER CENT.

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27073, 23 June 1953, Page 8

CITY COUNCIL RATE UP FIVE PER CENT.

£lB,OOO For More Land For. Aerodrome

ALL VOTES INCREASE BY £23,000

An increase in the general rate from 5d • last year to s|d on the unimproved value was made by the Christchurch City Council last evening. The rate Tor water has been increased by 2s for each £lOO of annual rateable value.

The general rate will produce £352,635 on an unimproved valuation of £16,120,500, against £336,031 rated last year. Revenue from other sources is estimated to total £210,760. The total vote is £589,091.

Six of the nine departmental votes show increases, the largest being of £50,258 in that for the by-laws and departmental committee. The main items responsible for .the increase are:—Coronation expenses £2000; Royal visit £5000; purchase of land for aerodrome extensions £18,000; compepsation for Kerr’s Reach land, £8720; elections and polls expenses £8250; printing of district electors’ list £5105; and revision of the valuation roll £3500. The sum of £BOO has been set aside for the London-Christchurch air race.

The main rates to be Imposed by the City Council are:— General.—s|d in the £, to produce £352,636. Special Interest. —171/250ths of a Id in the £, to produce £45,943. Waterworks.—£3 7s -per cent, of capital value. Libraries.—29l9/6250d in the £, to produce £31,370 (£28,225). Hospital Board.—B4Bl/25000d in £, to produce £77,733 (£93,386). Street Lighting.—3423/12500d in the £, to produce £18,393 (£15,224). Fire Brigade.—s43/3125d in the £ on improvements, to produce £28,144 (£26,722). Redcliffs Drainage Loan.-—1039/1250d in the £, to produce £734 (£711). Sumner Valley Sewerage Loan 3102/3125d in the £, to produce £427 (£420).

Sumner Drainage Loan.—so7/1250d in the £, to produce £249 (£261). Special Rates Riccarton Bush Trustees.—3o9/12500d in the £, to produce £1660 (£3661). Canterbury Museum Trust Board.— 1011/12500d in the £, to produce £5433 (£5742). North Canterbury Catchment Board. —7113/25000d in the £, to produce £19,111 (£11,290).

A sujnmary of estimated expenditure is:— Spent Last Year £ Vote This Year £ Finance and Departmental 96,420 146,784 Baths "land Entertainments 10,372 8,088 Robert McDougall Art Gallery 1.961 2,531 Housing and Town planning 1,983 2,982 Housing 10,863 8,784 Works 294,790 296.136 Reserves—General 46,571 52,671 Reserves—Domains 18,864 19,067 Traffic .. .. ■ 50,022 52,046 Total . 531*,846 589,091