HARBOUR BOARD NEW WORKS POLICY

Evening Post, Volume LXXXV, Issue 49, 27 February 1913, Page 3

HARBOUR BOARD NEW WORKS POLICY

• "TO HASTEN SLOWLY." j Tho Harbour Board met last evening. There were present : The Chairman (Mr. R., Fletcher), Messrs. J. G. Harkness, J. Cobbe, C. T. Daniel], J. Trevor, J. W. M'Ewan, A. Macfarlane, W, T. Hildreth, C. W. Jones, M. Cohen, R. C. Renner, J. -E. Fitzgerald, and P. C. Freeth. The chairman moved : "That the board favourably consider the question of the erection of a. store on the land lying along the waterfront between the King's wharf and the proposed Pipitea wharf : And the engineer be instructed to prepare sketch plans and furnish an estimate of the cost." He said the site was a very valuable one and more shed accommodation was badly wanted — especially during the wool season. Such a shed would take 6000 double dumps or 4000 to 5000 bales of loose wool. It would be 4007 cubic feet capacity. Such a shed would cost about £14,000 approximately. Mr. Cohen approved. The board should. not be placed in the position of having the head of the Railway Department refusing' to take wool for v/ant of accommodation. Tho board should be kept free from such embarasament when a time of pressure arrived. The Chairman said that once during the season the board handled 245 trucks of wool from 2 p.m. to midnight. The motion was carried, but not until a discussion On policy had been raised by Mr. P. 0. Freeth suggesting that the board should be better informed as to the board's policy of Avorks present and future. He had seen some reference to this in the press and sundry j>ersons had taken upon themselves to criticise j the board's policy. The chairman had replied, also through the press with his characteristic energy j but it seemed to Mm that in . this question of a general policy the board might devote some time to discussing it— matters requiring to be done and so on. The discussion might be in committee. The board, he thought, had not yet arrived at that state when each individual member could speak with any authority as to what its policy was to be. He felt that the board was not sufficiently in the_ confidence of its chairman and executive as to a general policy. Mr. Jones did not think the board was far ahead of present requirements of stores and sheds— in fact, it was be* hind them. He readily supported the motion, however. Mr. Hildreth pointed out that the policy of the board had been to keep just ahead of requirements and no more. If it were doing that then it was doing good work. So long as it pursued the sure and safe policy it had pursued of late years then there was no probabilities of the port charges being raised. It would be a shipwreck policy to spend ahead of requirements. The Chairman said he was always prepared to give any information to any member of the board. The board had a pjfdidy and it was carrying it out. The berthage rate had increased and there had been a large increase of tonnagd and yet ships never had had better despatch nor laid less time at the wharves. He was- willing to tell all he knew* but the board was not prepared to spend large sums of money before it saw some return for it. The policy was to hasten slowly. ■'=' '-■'"■■ i^,j