SOUTHBRIDGE

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume XLVI, Issue 3271, 13 November 1928, Page 8

SOUTHBRIDGE

LAST NIGHT'S TOWN BOARD

MEETING.

A monthly meeting of the Southbridge Town Board, held last night, was attended by Commissioners J. Griffin (chairman), T. H. Bennett, M. Maw, A. D. Harrison, G. Hill, A. J. Beamsley and J. H. Hampton.

Mr J. D. McClure offered to accept the positions of dayman, hall caretaker, poundkeeper, and dog and cattle ranger at the same rates of remuneration and conditions as in the past. He was willing to pay £4 a year for the lease of the barracks ground.

Mr I^eClure was appointed to the various positions and his offer for the lease of the barracks ground was ac-

cepted

The chairman reported having represented the Board at a meeting of local body representatives held at the Ellesmere County Council Chambers, Leeston, at which Mr R. T. McMillan had been appointed to the vacancy oh the Springs-Ellesmere Power Board The meeting had been held on an inconvenient day, but all the local bodies concerned were represented.

The chairman also reported having made some investigations at the Deeds Office in Christchurch in regard to the title of the land occupied by the Town Hall and swimming bath. At one time this land belonged to a company, from which it had been purchased by the Town Board. It was the Board's desire to have the two properties brought' under the one title. Some f ur< ther information was needed by the Deeds Office, but he thought this could be supplied and that the title could be fixed up shortly.

Cmr. Hill, chairman of the works committee, reported that Mr Hamilton had finished shingling Taumutu road and the lower end of . High street. Patching had been done on other streets. If the finances would permit, he would like to see some shingling done on the street past Mr Chapman's place. When the Post and Telegraph Department's men were putting in a new pole opposite the Church of England they seemed to have got into a shingle patch below the water raca, Since then a considerable quantity of water had been soaking away into the shingle. He had interviewed tho Postmaster at Leeston about the mat-1 ter and had received an undertaking that the foreman's attention would be called to the complaint. So far nothing had been done, though he had since spoken to one of the construction men.. The hole required filling and ramming with clay to prevent the water getting away. Grading hail been done between Hill's and Flood's corners by Mr H. 6. Hubbard free of cost to the Board. Cmr. Hill moved and' Cmr. Harrison seconded a hearty vote of thanks to Mr Hubbard for his work. \ The chairman said it was impossible to make a first-class job of the road owing to the rough nature of the shingle. He thought it would be a good thing to have some of the stones broken. Cmr.' Hill said he would like to see some grading done on Taumutu road. Possibly they could engage Mr Hubbard to do the work. The chairman mentioned some gorse and broom grooving on O 'Connell street (leading to the Catholic Church). It seemed that the seeds h/vl beon carted there with shingle. It should be grubbed out, as it was spreading. The works committee is to have the clearing done. Keplying to a question asked by the chairman regarding the finances, the clerk (Mr C. D. Thompson) urged the practice of economy, as the expenditure upon shingling of late had been fairly heavy. The chairman thought the money had been spent upon very necessary work, and that the streets attended to would not require much in the way of repairs for some considerable time. Members were agreed that the street now most in need of attention was St. John street. Accounts for payment totalled £79 14s Id. The chairman said that a Tequest had been made to him that day for the use of the Town Hall one evening a week for skating. The question of damage to the floor had been raised, but the applicant had assured him that no damage would be done as the skates had fibre wheels. He was already using halls elsewhere on other evenings, and no damage had been done to dancing floors. It was proposed to use the Southbridge Hall on Wednesday evenings. ''Let's take all the revenue we can get,'' said a member. The other commissioners agred with this view. Permission to use the hal? could be withdrawn, it was pointed out, if it was found that the floor showed signs of damage. Cmr. Harrison called attention to the unsatisfactory sanitary convenience for gentlemen at the Town Hall.'

It was agreed, on the motion of Cmr. Maw, that the hall committee should give the matter attention.

A member mentioned that the stray stock nuisance had been fairly bad lately, mainly at night. Several gardens had been Taided. He had spoken to the ranger, but had been told that he could not impound stock found on the streets at night. It appeared that the only remedy was to prosecute the owners of the stock.

"It is a very annoying experience to have one's garden destroyed by straying stock," remarked another member.

The chairman said ho would speak to the ranger about the matter. NEW TOWN HALL. j Cmr. Bennett brought up the question of building a new Town Hall, j Since the previous meeting the plan of the proposed building had been displayed in his shop for residents of the district to inspect. All who had seen it were satisfied that a new hall was badly needed. The main question was how much were they going to spend upon a suitable building and how was it to be financed. The Board must make a definite move. It was estimated that the plans obtained were for a building that would cost round about £3,600. He thought that the Board should apply to the Local Bodies' Loans Board in Wellington for permission to raise a loan and then place proposals before the ratepayers for their sanction. The chairman asked whether members thought the plans were for an over-elaborate building. Were the ratepayers likely to give their sanction? Cmrs. Hampton, Maw, Hill and Harrison did not think the plans could be curtailed without spoiling the building. All the accommodation shown in the p^an would be needed. Cmr. Hill said he had spoken to many ratepayers, who had said that if it would not mean more than a |d rate they would not object to the raising of a loan sufficient to build a hall of adequate size. The chairman thought the Board should set a financial limit of about £3,500. He was afraid that if they set out to spend £4,000 there was a chance of the proposals being rejected. In drawing the plans the architect had kept in mind a proposal that tlje building should be made a memorial to the men from the district who had served in the Great War. He thought, therefore, that they could very well look for assistance from people residing outside the town district. Cmrs. Hill and Harrison thought the building could be erected at a cost of £3,500. Members had no doubt that the revenue from the new building would be very much greater than that obtained from the present hall. Cmr. Bennett advocated holding a bazaar after harvest. A good deal of money could be raised in that way. The architect's estimate was £3,600. "We should get to work right away," said Cmr. Bennett. Cmr. Harrison moved and Cmr. Bennett seconded that application should be made to the Local Bodies Loans Board for permission to raise a loan of £3,600 for the building of a new hall and for furnishings.—Carried unanimously. The Board decided to engage Mr A. S. Lyons, resident solicitor at Leeston, as legal adviser, and to set the preliminaries in train this afternoon.