City parking likely to cost more

Press, 10 February 1981, Page 6

City parking likely to cost more

More 5c coins may sooni be needed for Christchurch parking meters. | The Christchurch City Council's policy and finance committee yesterday approved a recommendation to raise meter charges as soon aS possible. • - Parking fees for meters with a time limit of 30 arid 60 minutes would be raised from 5c for 15 minutes to oc for 10 minutes. , Meters with a time limit of 120 minutes would rise from 5c for 30 minutes to 5c for 20 minutes. ’ Parking meter fees were last raised in 1975. Costs have since doubled, and in some cases risen three fold. In 1974 it cost $2B-;to run a meter for a year. This year the cost is $9O. The Mayor of Christchurch (Mr Hamish Hay) said the council could expect “a cry of anguish” from city retailers because of the increases. Cr D. C. Close that

higher charges could encourage a faster turn-over of customers in shops. Changing the meters for the higher charges would cost about S3OOO. Councillors said the work should be done aS soon as possible, to offset an expected $112,000 deficit in running parking meters this year. The meeting recommended the approval of a new schedule of licence fees after the annual review. The new fees, which, would apply from April and June., would be raised by between 16 per cent and 25 per cent, depending on when they were last reviewed. i . It also supported a recommendation that tipping charges for high-sided‘ trailers at the 'Bexley tip Be-low-ered because of complaints about increases approved by the council in December. . After a recommendation from the Metropolitan Refuse Disposal Committee the coun-

• cil had> agreed to’ increases • which meant the charge for high-sided trailers rose from r $1.50 to $l2. t Because of the complaints i about the size of the increase s the works and traffic cbmi mittee.: resolved that the i charge should be lowered, to s $6. it also resolved that the charge for tandem axle trail4 ers and flat deck vans should . be increased to $6. J Square lights ' i The committee recome mended that a request from r the Christchurch Cathedral - Centennial, Committee for t lighting, buildings in Cathedral Square be rejected. - . The committee had asked o the council to consider light- . ing the Square and setting ; tip. an illuminated cross for s Christmas and to mark the v centennial celebrations. The general manager of a the Municipal Electricity Dee partment, Mr J. H. Donald, i, reported that lighting for 12

buildings in the Square would cost between $45,000 and $65,000, a running cost of about $3O a night. A less ambitious scheme would cost between $30,000 and $42,000, with running costs of up to $22 a night. Although the buildings concerned could be asked to contribute to the cost, foe lighting would be less effective over Christmas when Daylight Time was in force. Lighting could also detract fr.om foe Cathedral, Mr Donald said. ‘ Refuse costs . ■ The meeting' recommended that foe council should consider foe costs involved ift bringing foe opening of foe Waimairi landfill site forward to December, 1983, with the draft budget for the next financial year. ,•:? - . .An Jeariier.'meeting of foe committee had endorsed foe

principle of funding for an earlier- opening of the site. The City Treasurer, Mr. F. M. Sqwden, reported that foe revised proposal for the landfill site and two transfer stations to be completed by 1983 and a third transfer station to be completed by 1987 was estimated to cost $B.B ’• million. An extra $160,000 would be needed by 1983 for foe revised programme. . •' - . • If foe council had to meet al! of foe extra costs of the scheme from 1982 to 1984 and if It proceeded with its capital Works programme, he recommended that the council ask the .National Provident. Fund to increase its allocation of public issues for fobsa years. This would give foe council a better chance of raising foe amount needed. Sports, loan , The meeting recommended

that the New Brighton Association Football Club be lent $12,000 at 5 per cent interest to complete work on its $lOO,OOO gymnasium and sports complex. . The chairman of the committee, Ct Vicki Buck, said she supported the loan from foe Sports Club Loan Account -because foe complex would not be finished for nearly two years without IL The club had gone a long way by itself, and the facilities would be open to the public. trip ■The committee recommended that a programme for-the Town Clerk, Mr J. H/ Gray, to an international city managers’ conference in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in September be approved. Mr Gray said he would, be away for about eight weeks and foe trip would cost about $4500. • ‘ ?