SEATOUN PARADE

Evening Post, Volume XCII, Issue 42, 18 August 1916, Page 3

SEATOUN PARADE

THE EROSION TROUBLE

LOAN TO BE ASKED FOR

The action of the sea on the wall along the Marine Parade at Seatoun has proved a source of trouble to the Miramar Borough Council, and the question of effectively coping with1 the erosion difficulty was again brought before the council at its meeting last night

In April last the Engineer (Mr. Fox) submitted a scheme,-but the council did not see its way clear at that time 'to go on with the work. Since then Mr. Furkett, superintending engineer of the Public Works Department, had reported on the matter and had outlined a scheme to prevent erosion.

Last night the Borough Engineer brought down a report in which he stated 'that the best way to deal with the trouble would be to build groynes first and later build the retaining wall upon the gravel, etc., held by the groynes. Details of the cost of the work as set out in the report were as follow:—Repair of existing wall and buttresses, £140 ; rock to protect same, £440; two temporary groynes of timber, £100; eight permanent groynes of concrete, £1440; rock wall, £550'; filling and roadway behind wall, £360; water main and sewer, £136; concrete coping on wall, £280; 10 per cent, for contingencies, £344; total, "£3790

He proposed that the expenditure should be spread' over, say, three years as follows:—First year, repair and protection of existing wall and two timber groynes, £748; second year, concrete groynes, £1584; third year, rubble wall filling, water main, sewer, and coping, £1458. "It would, however, be necessary if the first two experimental groynes proved efficient within a, few months after .'they were completed, to build the remaining groynes without delay. To carry out the proposed work on the parade it would be necessary to raise a loan, as to do it out of the district fund would raise, the bank overdraft beyond the legal limit some time before the completion of the scheme.

The annual charges on a loan of £3800 would be £238, which would necessitua'te a rate of |d in tha £ on the whole of the rateable property in the borough. If the area to the south and east of Awa and Seatoun Heights roads respectively were declared a special rating area, it would be necessary to levy a rate of fd in the £ on that area, the unimproved value of which was £191,000. The Mayor said thafc to raise such loan it would be necessary to, get authority from the Government. The council would need to be very careful in the matter. He was surprised that the cost was so small, and he felt sure that the proposed work would be effective. Councillor Underwood thought that the borough should complete the whole of the wall which'was begun some time ago. He favoured the scheme outlined in the report. Councillor Hawthorne said they should consider very carefully what they were going to do if they wanted ratepayers to sanction a loan. He would like' to see the work' carried out, and he thought that the rate should be spread over tho whole borough. . Councillor Pollock also thought that the rate should cover the whole borough. i After further discussion the principle was confirmed, and later Councillor Hawthorne moved :^-"That a vote be taken to raise a loan of £4500 to carry out tho work, the rate to cover the whole borough." This was seconded by Councillor Pollock -and carried. Councillor Tracy, further moved : "That a pol) of the ratepayers be taken." This was carried, and the Mayor stated that the matter would be gone on with immediately