CIVIC AFFAIRS

Evening Star, Issue 24226, 20 June 1942, Page 8

CIVIC AFFAIRS

COUNCIL COMMITTEE REPORTS Following arc the principal items in the reports of the various committees to come before the meeting of the City Council on Monday night:— Manufacture of Char. The Gas Committee reports that numerous requests have been received relative to the manufacture of char at the city gasworks for motor vehicles. It is not possible to manufacture char in the vertical retorts, but the work could be carried out in the horizontal retorts if the necessary labour were available. Only fit young men could undertake this work, and as this type of labour is not available the requests have been declined. Coal Tar Pitch. . Inquiries have been received for supplies of pitch, and although the distillation p.ant is designed for the preparation of road tars only, it is found that it is possible to make a soft pitch in the plant. The selling price of-, the pitch has ,been fixed at £lO a ton, this price being the same as. that fixed by the Wellington Gas Company for similar material. Drainage Board Loan. The Drainage Board has received authority from the Local Government Loans Board for the raising of the board’s renewal loan, 1942, of £66,800.. .. This loan is required to repay a maturing loan of £BO,OOO. The interest rate has been fixed at £3 5s per centum per annum, and the sinking fund at £4 8s Id per centum per annum. The term is 17 years. Warrants of Fitness. The report of the chief traffic inspector shows that in spite of, the shortage of petrol, 1,055 warrants of fitness were, issued at the testing station during May. This represents an increase of 25 over the total for the previous month. Carbonising Return*. The gas engineer’s report for' May shows that the total gas ' made amounted to 31.593.000 cubic feet, and the gas sent out to 31,478,000 cubic feet, an increase of 1.073.000 cubic feet, or 3.5 per cent. Coke sold amounted to 571 tons, and tar sold to 1,602 gallons. Footpath Reconstruction. s The report of the Works Committee recommends that authority be granted the city engineer to proceed with the work of constructing new kerhing and channelling and repaving the footways on, both sides of Princes street between Rattray street and the Octagon, and in George street, between the Octagon and Moray Place. The cost of this work is estimated at £1,320 for the kerhing and channelling and £1,890 for repaving the footways. The kerhing and channelling .work will be put in hand immediately, in order that the repaving work can be undertaken during the comiim street paving season. A report prepared by the.city engineer shows that the whole of the footways m the retail business area of these two streets require attention, and that the blocks now recommended are considered the most urgent. •