ELECTRIC LIGHTING

Evening Star, Issue 15020, 31 October 1912, Page 3

ELECTRIC LIGHTING

FOR PORT "CHALMERS. Port Chalmers wants electric'lighting. A Special Lighting Committee was recently set up by the Borough Council to investigate the practicability of having the town electrically illuminated by Waipori power. The proposal to extend Waipoii power to the Port was mooted some months ago hy the city electrical engineer (Mr Stark), who foresaw the possibilities of selling much power in the eeaport town for other purposes than lighting its streets. The lighting of the streets chiefly concerned the Borough Council. The "streets and many of the houses in the town are at present lit by coal gas, supplied by the local gasworks, which is a privately-owned concern. A few years ago negotiations took place between the Gas Company and the Borough Council relative to municipalising the gasworks, but nothing came of it. There is at present a contract in existence, and it expires at the end of this month, for the street lighting of the town from the gasworks. The lighting of the town under this contract, which was entered into about a. year ago, costs over £2O per month, the items being 40 lamps at 7s each, 6 lamps at 12s 6d each, town clock 355, extinguishing the lamps 255. The lighting is done by one of the corporation day men, and last July the cost to the hoTough was £3 9s sd. A special meeting of the Borough Council was held last night. There were present the Mayor (Mr D. A. De Maus). Crs Fail, Powell, Scollay, Isbister, Ashev, Mawson, Lunn, Anderson, and Stevenson.

The business before the meeting was consideration of the following report submitted by the Special Lighting Committee in respect to the proposed lighting of the town by electricity:—Your committee have to report that they have had two interviews with Mr Stark, the electrical engineer of the City Council, who entered fnJly into the details of the scheme, he purposed putting before his committee for their acceptance. We herewith submit the main teatures of the scheme for your consideration : " The reticulation of * the street lighting within the borough is to be done at the expense of the Borough Council, and is to oe paid for by adding 20 per cent, to the cost, and this cost is distributed over a period of 10 years; or, at the option of the borough," the cost price can be paid in cash, with no percentage addition. During the contractperiod of 10 years for the street lighting the rates charged for electric lighting to boroughs in this district will apply, with an allowance to the borough for lamp renewal costs. Some arrangement will be entered into with a representative of the borough for collection of accounts, answering urgent telephone calls, and small like duties, such as it would not pay the corporation to send a man from Dunedin to attend to. The borough are relieved of all responsibility of contracts with the exception of their own street lighting or other service they may require for themselves. The street lighting poles that are put up for the council's use are to be used by the corporation for the accommodation of wires to private consumers without a charge, and the corporation are to maintain these poles during the currency of the street lighting contract. The borough are .to give the corporation exclusive right, so far as they legally can. to distribute electrical energy within their borough. The borough are to give the City Corporation the privilege of erecting pole's, but such privilege is to be safeguarded by the usual conditions a 6 to restoration of footpaths and other damage done. The above is subject to the approval of the corporation's Lighting Committee and the council." Having gone fully into tli3 matter, and taken into consideration the benefits to be derived from the scheme, not only for motive power purposes and the lighting of the town, but also for the private consumer, we recommend that the scheme be adopted. It appears to your committee, from aIL the information so far obtainable, that the cost of reticulation would amount to about £I,OOO. This, spread over a period of 10 rears, would be an annual charge of, say, £"100, and the cost per lamp would in addition amount to £5 3s per year —the same cost as in Dunedin. A site will be required for a sub-station, and the spot that appears most suitable is near the uig quarry.

The Mayor moved the reception and adoption of" the report, and Cr Asher seconded the motion.

Cr Mawson thought they would all endorse what the committee said about bringing the electrical power into the borough, but he could not see that the council, in view of the present overdraft, would be justified in entering into a lengthy lighting contract, such as the committee recommended. Nevertheless, he believed the council should give every facility to the bringing of electrical power into the town for power purposes and for private lighting. Cr Lunn said he was not in favor of the report, and as a member of the committee who drew it up he did not sign it. He had the interests of the town at heart, and would be pleased to meet the Gas Company on equal terms after so many years during which the Gas Company had liad all their own way. He then went into details respecting the present lighting of the town, and stated that about £l4O had recently been expended in the purchase of new lamps and fittings. It would be a mistake to enter into a 10 years' contract with the City Council, for the electrical engineer had told him the transmission wire would come to Port Chalmers whether the street lighting contract were entered into or not. The City were likely to have a large surplus of power shortly, and naturally thev wanted to dispose of it. After the electricity came to the Port, then more advantageous terms could be arranged for the lighting of the town, both gas and electricity being then available. Cr Lunn, after quoting figures respecting contract prices for gas lighting of other towns, moved as an amendment—"That, seeing the transmission wire will be put in whether the council enter into a contract with the Dunedin City Corporation or not, the mutter of lighting the streets of the borough be considered when the power is brought to Port Chalmers, in about 12 months; that, however, every facility be offered the City Council to bring the transmission wire to Port Chalmers, and that the borough council grant a site for a sub-station at the old quarrv." Tie mover said that electricity was unrivalled for power purposes, but gas had in many places been reverted to for lighting purposes.

Cr Mawson seconded the amendment. Crs Powell, Fail, Scollay, Isbister, and Anderson were in favor of the adoption of the leport, Cr Anderson stating that the reason why gas had been reverted to as stated -was in cases where the electricity was generated by steam power, and was theretore more costly than the Waipori hydro-electrical power. Cr Asher said Cr Lunn was in error in respect to figures quoted. The wiring of n h o e on toWn f ? r eleCtl ' lcit y WOUld COSt about £B2O. and the 20 per cent, additional would total about £I,OOO. The bringing of electricity to Port Chalmers was the greatest boon the town could experience. (Hear hear.) It was not a matter so much for the present as for the future. The introduction to it of electric power would confer a greater benefit on Port Chalmers than probably the opening of the railway did. the cost of reticulation would add £IOO per year to the cost of lighting the town for the first ten years. But even with that amount added the annual cost of lighting during the decade, referred to would only amount to £2BO. Lighting by gas at present was costing at the rate of £2BO annually. After 10 years from now the reticulation charge of £IOO per year would be paid off, and then the cost, of the street lighting of the borough bv electricity woidd amount to only £157 per annum. " Cr Stevenson said that the electrical i power from Waipori would not he brought to Port Chalmers if the council did not enter into a street-Kghting contract such as the Special Committee's report recommended the council to enter into. He was prepared to stand by that statement. It would not be a business-like proposition for the City Council to extend the power to Port Chalmers without the street lighting as it would not pay. 6 ' His Worship thought the present time most opportune for bringing in electrical power By entering into a lighting contract the council would be making electric lighting for household purposes available to ratepayers.

The amendment was lost on the roic«s and the motion was carried with only one