BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Grey River Argus, Volume XXXII, Issue 5350, 21 November 1885, Page 2

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

An emergency meeting of the Borough Council was held yesterday afternoon. Preaent— His Worship the Mayor fin the chair), Crs. Cameron, Ashton, Blackmore, Lahman, Campbell, Sheedy, and Perotti. His Worship ezplained that the object of the meeting was to consider the report of the Cobden Bridge Committee, so as to allow the report to be submitted to the Grey County Council for its approval. The report of the committee was read and considered.

The report was the outcome of certain correspondence from the Public Works Department. On the 2nd June last the Resident Engineer wrote that he estimated that the gross sum required to complete the Cobden bridge would be about £3400. This amount was supposed to include— the sum required to meet Mr, Blair's award, the probable cost of sinking cylinders to a greater depth, the construction of stone embankments around the river piers to provide against the action of scour, the completion of south approach) and the cost of inspec-

tion, including a liberal amount for contingencies. On the 31st October a letter - as received from Mr C. Y. O'Coiinar reporting that the cylinders of pier No. 5 had been sunk to the solid rock and bolted to it on the up stream side, and that, if all went well, the bridge should be finished by the end of the year.. The letter recommended that, in consequence of the expense being more than had been anticipated, it would be necessary for the Council to apply for a grant out of the L 50.000 voted last session "to complete works aiready commenced." The next clause intimated that L 15,000 further would be required to finish k the bridge, the increased cost arising out of the emptyingand filling with concrete of pier No. 5, the cost of which was not estimated sufficiently. On the lOih November a reply was received from Mr O'Connor to the effect that as the Road and Bridges Act had been repealed no further grant could be made under its provisions, except in the case of bridges commenced with money already granted under the Act, and which, if not completed, would be of no value or utility ; but as the Cobden bridge came within the condition of the grants, Mr Richardson had consented to make a grant ofLSOO. The following is the report of the Cobden Bridge Committee : — "Your Committee have the honor to report that after giving the matter of raising another LISOO for the completion of Cobden Bridge mature consideration, they have decided that the Council be recommended to give debentures for the sum o f L 125, payable in ten annual inst a i men t s of Ll2 10s each, being repayment o f onefourth of the last instalment of the amount voted under the Roads and Bridges Construction Act. The original application being for L 10.500, and that the Government be requested to give a special grant for LIOOO, in aid of the work. "In support of the demand upon the Government tor the LIOOO it should be pointed out— "That it is an utte^ impossibility for the Council to pay the sum from its ordinary revenue, and that it is out of the question to further tax the ratepayers in regard to this work. " That the Council had made all reasonable provisions for the erection of the bridge, having in addition to a special jrrant frnm Government of LSOOO, applied for L 10.500 under the Roads and Bridges Construction Act (one-fourth of which amount the" ratepayers agreed to pay in ten | equal annual instaiments), making a total of L 15.500, although the amount of .contract was L 14,746 19s only. I "That owing to the faulty designs which had been prepared by the Government engineers, a sat of piers was carried a ay during a flood in the river Grey, and for which the contractor was awarded damages to the extent of £1750 by Mr W. N. Blair. - "That the Resident Engineer, Mr F. W. Martin, who is superintending the . work, stated in a letter dated 2nd" June (copy hereto attached), that an additional * sum of £3400 would be required to com- \ plete the bridge ; adding, that in naming the sum he had made ample provisions for contingencies,. approaches, &c. ""'-•: "This sum, as Government is aware, was raised with considerable difficulty; three-fourths of the money being granted by Government, and the Greymouth Harbor Board- agreeing to find the other one-fourth. "That the Council were altogether taken by surprise at Mr Martin's demand for an additional LISOO, after his confident expression of opinion of June 2nd, and that the work must come to a standstill unless Government consents to give the said LIOOO to overcome the difficulty. "That the foregoing resolutions be communicated to the Grey County Council for approval, and upon the assent of that body being obtained the Government be written to forthwith." The report was agreed to, and the meeting adjourned.