WATERWORKS SCHEME.

Gisborne Times, Volume XLV, Issue 4141, 19 January 1916, Page 6

WATERWORKS SCHEME.

WHO shall supervise? COUWCSL'LORS~DIFFER IN OPINION. • ( . RESIDENT ENGINEER V. MR'. METCALFE. MR. METCALFE SELECTED.

Consideration was given at the meeting of the * Gisborne Borough Council last night.,to the question of water and drainage works, to be carried out with the loan money raised from Auckland,, and there was spirited discussion as to whether Mr. it H. -Metcalfe should supervise the works, or that the Borough should engage a resident engineer. A report from the special committee meeting hold on January lltli to consider the matter was received. It stated that the question as ,to whether the Council should carry out the sewerage and waterworks scheme under a consulting engineer only, or with the addition of a resident engineer was under discussion as was also the terms upon which Mr. Metcalfe would undertake the works, and after due consideration it was decided to recommend that Mr. Metcalfe should be engaged as consulting engineer, and be instructed to immediately prepare tho necessary plans and specifications, including contractors’ copies, in readiness for calling for tenders, at u fee of £IOOO, in addition to £SOO already due for work undertaken in connection with the schemes. The question of deciding as to whether Mr. Metcalfe should be engaged oo complete necessary surveys, and setting out work and generally supervising and carrying out tho schemes to completion was left for the Council to decided at last night’s meeting, Mr. Metcalfe’s terms for such were another £ISOO, making a total of £2500, or 5 per cent, on £50,000. Mr. Metcalfo 'stated that clerks of works would be required in either case, and would have to be paid by the Council. hut the engineer should have the right of dismissing thorn if not satisfactory; ho'also thought the whole of the works could be accomplished in about two years. Mr. Metcalfe, in the course of his remarks, stated that of the two schemes he favored Mangnpoiko as against Parker’s, as there was more water at Mangapoiko than Te Arai, and he thought the same could be done for the money available. Cr. Muims asked exactly what wotk Mr. Metcalfe had already done for £500? • The Town Clerk presented the account from Mr. Metcalfe.

May: Visit and report Te Arai water supply ... ... ... £SO August: Survey of Kauwaewaka Creek, with plans, estimate cost of pipe line £7600 ... £l5O Survey of site for service reservoir, plans and estimate £9900 £SO September: Drainage, survey of western block, plans and estimate £22,000. Estimate for loan levies ... ... ... £250 Total £SOO

Cr. Munns said that Mr. Wilson had reported on four schemes, and had gone all over the country, and only charged £SO. Mr. Metcalfe had made reports on his schemes, and they had been told that his charges would be purely nominal. Now it turned out that tho “purely nominal’' Charges' came to £SOO. What if they turned down the Te Arai and decided on the Mangapoike scheme? The Mayor: He', has reported on Mangapoike. Cr. Munns thought that comparatively little was to be done for the money. The Mayor: He will have to pay for a resident engineer hereCr. Munns: He is going to pay that; engineer for tho whole t^e? The Mayor: Yes. Cr. Munns: I did not know that It is not in the report. Cr. Bright said that Mr. Metcalfo had promised to put a competent man, now in his employ, in charge. He had not yet got his certificate, hut had sat for it. •

Cr Munns again protested against the charge of £SOO. The Mayor said that Mr. Metcalfe had said that his charge would be only nominal, and they would not quarrel aboil t that. CHARGES NOT EXCESSIVE.

Cr. Brown thought that the charge was not excessive for. a professional visit lasting weeks and with assistance paid for by the engineer. Professional men were not going to give their services and years of experience for nothing. It looked a big sum, but when they came to analyse it with what other professional men charged, it was not excessive. The other maa, he surmised, had only made the small charge in the hone of it leading to something big. ' : Cr. Munns asked would not Mr. Metcalfe have to carry out Mr. Marchant’s scheme?

A member: He would not accept.it. Cr. Wildish said that the meeting had to decide whether they should appoint Mr. Metcalfe as consulting engineer, or employ a resident engineer". He had thought the matter out, and he moved that a resident engineer should he engaged. He thought they could get one for less than the £ISOO charged by Mr. Metcalfe. They were. out to do the best for the ratepayers, and he thought it better to have a resident engineer. Mr. Metcalfe had said that the work could not be carried out for six months yet, as he did not think they could get the pipes before then. The Mayor: What would you give the resident engineer?

Cr. Wildish: Supposing you give liim £7OO a year. Wo get his full services for £I4OO for the two years. He thought that the Mayor should have the assistance of a resident engineer. He paid the Mayor the compliment, of saying he had carried out the work's of the borough better than anyone else.'-. ’

The Mayor: I have not. It was with the assistance of the staff. Cr. Wildish: , The Mayor shoidd have the assistance of a resident engineer. The Mayor: He should have lights. (Laughter). Cr. Lawless seconded the motion. They had been working in the dark without a resident engineer. The Mayor questioned this statement.

Cr. Lawless: Where are we if we want to do anything of a comprehensive nature? The Mayor: Have we anything of’ a comprehensive nature? Cr. Lawless: We have £90,000 of loan money. Members: Oh, have wo ?

Cr. Lawless: “Well, we have £50,000, and I don’t think we are going to stop there.” He contended on principle that, a resident engineer should be-'employed. He spoke against day labour 'systems allowed in the past. He'claimed they would get the most satisfactory supervision if 'they, had a resident engineer. MR. METCALFE WANTED.

Cr. Brown moved as an amendment that Mr. Metcalfe’s proposal in full should be carried out. If Mr. Metcalfe sent his man here the Council would not interfere with him. He thought.it better to have all the work carried out under one head. !Past experience liad not been satisfactory, where one man had devised the scheme andi another had carried it out. The settling tank was an instance of that. Thev had saved £3OO supervising that with' their own engineer, but had lost much by adopting such a course, because wUdo they had a tank now, they did hot have a settling tank. If they had the dual system they would not get satisfaction; if anything went wrong, on© man .would blame 'file other. Under Mr. Metcalfe’s proposal if anything went wrong they could look direct to

him for an answer. A man with a reputation like Mr. Metcalfe could not afford, even for £3OOO, to make a mess of their scheme. His proposal was that Mr. Metcalfe should carry tho scheme to finality. Cr. H. Bright seconded the amendment. He agreed with Cr. Brown, and thought that Mr. Metcalfe’s proposal would bo a very profitable one. j hey were bound to take his plans, and the supervision for another £ISOO would be the loast profitable part for Mr. Metcalfo, whilo tho ratepayers would bo ■relieved or all responsibility. If they had a resident engineer to supervise the work he could noy be expected to have the same experience as Mr. Metcalfe. NEVER MADE A MISTAKE.

Cr. Wade supported the amendment, and endorsed tho remarks of the previous speakers. Ho gave details of Mr. Metcalfe’s wide experience, and said that they should not err because of a charge of £3OOO. It was only the professional charge, and Mr. Metcalfe was a man of repute. Only that evening he had ben told that Mr. Metcalfe had the reputation in Auckland of being a man who had never made a mistake, as far as engineering matters went. It might bo a good tiling to have a resident engineer for tile borough, but be would not let a resident engineer have any-, thing to do in tho carry'ng out of these schemes.

Cr. Hill rose to a point of order, and asked when it had buen decided only to discuss Mr Metcalfe’s scheme, He could not call to mind that tboy had ever decided on Mr. Metcalfe’s sehefne, ,as agurrt Mr. Wilson’s, They had never been compared side by side. No oonortunity had been given them to discuss the two reports, and therefore lie was debarred from stating his opoosition to Mr. Metcalfe’s scheme. When they put the loan to tilt ratepayers they had not said they >ad decided on Mr. Metcalfe’s sei:e

The Mayor: V- "an quote your objections to his sc ,• :ne. Cr. Hill said that be bad intended to move that before finally accepting Mr. Metcalfe’s augmented water scheme, they should place the two schemes before an impartial engineer to arbitrate. - Mr. Wilson had submitted a scheme, for a dam of 2,000,000 gallons, to,the Auckland Council, and therefore mis scheme was worthy of consideration. He thought ir would be disastrous to finally accept Mr. Metcalfe’s scheme at once. He (Cr. Hill) had gone very carefully into the two reports, and there were more “ifs” and “ails” in Mr. Metcalfe’s report than in any report he had ever seen. The report was dated August 1915. He was out and out for Mr. Wilson’s scheme, because he made an absolutely definite report. Cr. Brown rose to a point of order. What had Mr. Wilson’s scheme te do wffch them, when, as a special committee, they had decided to recommend Mr. Metcalfe’s scheme? There was no use wasting time over Mr. Wilson’s scheme when they had come to a definite coclusion at the special meeting. The Mayor said that he had given Cr. Hill the right to make his statement. Cr. Hill said that he had asked a question: Whether it was on the minutes that Mr. Metcalfe’s scheme had been decided on? The Mayor: “It is on the minutes.” He alleged that Mr. Wilson was 500,000 gallons out in his estimate of the water going into the tank.

CR. HILL EMPHATIC

Cr. Hill: I don’t want, in any shape or form, to be associated with Mr. Metcalfe’s scheme. The Mayor: Then you had better resign from the Council. Cr. Hill: I still think that it is not the best scheme.

Cr. Munns said that it was a question of a resident engineer. against Mr. Metcalfe, and he was right out for a resident engineer. A great deal of their loan money, ho contended, was eaten up before they got the spending of it. Tlw did not know what Mr. Metcalfe was going to pay his engineer here. The Mayor said that he did not like the idea of splitting up the responsibility. Ho would like to see an engineer here, but let Mr. Metcalfe carry out his scheme. He would then know exactly how the work was carried out. He would vote for Mr. Brown’s amendment, but would later on support a proposal to have a resident engineer. As far as Mr. Metcalfe’s charges were concerned, ho was charging £3OOO, that was £250 less than the recognised charges on a sum of £55,000. Mr. Metcalfe understood that ho had to supervise the expenditure of tho extra £SOOO. He favored the amendment, because he wanted the responsibility to rest on one man.

RESIDENT ENGINEER AS WELL. Cr. Miller said that ho was quite in favour of having a resident engineer, but not at £7OO a year. He would support, in addition to having Mr. Metcalfe, that some young man should be chosen out of an engineer's office at a less sum than £7OO, and let him grow with the works. Ho thought that Mr. Metcalfe’s charges were nof excessive, _ and they would have value if ho carried out the work, rfe thought at the same time the Government would not restrict them from raising a loan for electric light and trams, and therefore they would want a resident engineer for that. Cr. Wildish, in replying, admitted that they would get a good job.if Mr. Metcalfe supervised the work, but surely there were other capable men in the Dominion to carry out the work.

The Mayor: Mr. Metcalfe probably makes £2OOO to £3OOO a vear. Would you bo prepared to pay a resident engineer that? Cr. Wildish: No, but Mr. Metcalfe may carry out too much. He thought that they could make better terms ; now was the time to go in for a resident engineer; and that would Se/in the best interests of the ratepayers. Ho ventured to sav that if they got a resident engineer he would be a better man than Mr. Metcalfe would send down. The amendment that Mr. Metcalfe should carry out the complete scheme, in terms of lis ofFbr, was then put, aand was carried bv five votes to four. The voting was:— For— Against— Sherratt Lawless Bright Wildish Brown Hill Wade Munns Miller