THE MAYOR IN REPLY

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 67, 20 March 1931, Page 8

THE MAYOR IN REPLY

The above statement was shown to the Mayor (Mr. G. A. Troup), who made the following reply:— "So far as the board was concerned," said Mr. Troup, "the position was that it asked in the first place to be allowed to carry out the terracing of the site under the No. 5 scheme. This terracing was.not included in any contract, nor would the board have carried it out under ordinary circumstances during the next five years, as the total cost, of the work, amounting possibly to over £2000, was altogether beyond the finances that they had available. Approval of this was given by the Unemployment Board, and the condition was attached that the work should be done through the City Council, which has a very direct connection with the work, Ihe Mayor of tho city being deputy chairman of the Board of Trustees for all time. . The funds for the work were collected under the chairmanship of the Mayor, being known as the Mayor's Fund; in fact, the Mayor and tko City Council took the initiative in (he scheme When it ranie to accepting (lie lender for the erection of the Campanile, it. was found that the whole work could be done at a cost of £.18,(5!)". The Government had promised £15,000 for the skeleton of this work. It was found by the board that it would not bo only economical to proceed with the whole of the work, but that it would also be advantageous to proceed with the work at the present time, for there were many unemployed masons. To do this the board had to economiso in every possible way, and it was decided, with the agreement of the Unemployment Board, that the foundation work could be done out of contract, and bo done by the unemployed in this way, as between. £200 and £300 would be saved for the fund. "When it was pointed out that the rate of 14s was unfair in the circumstances, the board agreed to pay the difference between that and tho standard rate of 14s 8d per da}'.

"From tho foregoing it will bo seen that the excavations of the Campanile, which were included in the contract, is a very small part of the work that will bo done on the Mt. Cook site, and it certainly was going to provide much more labour than to hang the erection of the CampauDe up in any way. The large and important work is the terracing of the site, which is not included in any contract whatever, and will provide employment for four times as many men as the excavation work."