HAWERA BOROUGH AFFAIRS

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 21 September 1927, Page 5

HAWERA BOROUGH AFFAIRS

WORK OF ADMINISTRATION. MEETING OF THE COUNCIL. The. monthly meeting of the Hawera Borough Council wa® held last evening. There were present: The Mayor (Mr E. A. Pao&y) and Crs. A. Reid, W. Butler, G. J. Baylev. E. Alorrissey, W. G. Simpson and W. G. Strange. Apologies for absence were received from Crs. W. G. Walkley and R. H. Leece. The headmaster of the Hawpra Technical/High School, Mr A. Gray, wrote advising that an election to fill the vacancy caused bv the retirement, in rotation, of the local bodies represented on the School Board" of Management would be. held on Friday, September 23. He formally requested that a. member of the council be appointed as delegate. The retiring member (Mr J. B. Murdoch) was eligible for re-election. The Mayor was appointed as the council's delegate. During the discussion, Cr. Simpson voiced a protest against the system of election, but no action was taken. On the recommendation of Cl*. Morrissey, the engineer was authorised to have the bank .graded in the Gladstone Street frontage of Naumiai Park and the hedge cut on the south frontage in order to assist with work being earned out at the park. TENDERS FOR PAINTING. The council went into committee to consider tenders received for re-paint-ing certain portions of the borough buildings according to specifications. On resuming in open meeting, it was reported that the lowest tender in each case had been accepted. These, were as follow: —Borough Chambers exterior, £35 16s (C. H. Brough) ; Borough Chambers, interior, £l6 11s (C. H. Brough); tenants’ office £2 12s (C. H. Brough); library and ladies’ rest room, £2O 15s (C. H. Brough); abattoirs £57 (Sharps and Manning); caretaker’s cottage, etc., £33 (Sharpe and Manning); men’® conveniences, £3 (J. 0. Laing); taxi telephone. 15s (C. H. Brough); public baths, £25 9s (C. H. Brough). The total of the successful tenders amountedi to £194 18s, a.s compaired with £350 nrovided in the estimate® for the. work. FINANCE. The following statement was tabled showing balances of respective accounts as at August 31: —

REPORTS. General Committee. Recommendations, made (inter alia) of the General Committee were adopted as foi low : That borough solicitors be instructed to .prepare necessary by-law on the lines of opinion received from Municipal Association, re an added area, also any amendments requiring attention; that application by Public Trustee for consent to transfer of lease of lot 126. section 37. from Estate A. F. Gungall to Mrs. Margaret Gun gall, be granted and consent executed; that P. A. Macdonald’s request to erect temporary fowlhou.se and cowshed on part subdivision 37 he not acceded to; that P. A. Macdonald's request for supply of water to lots in subdivision 37 now grazed by him be not entertainedi; that proceedings of Taranaki Local Bodies Association as set out in copy minutes of meeting on August 31 he approved, with the exception of items re Enip]oyer s’ Association and re hospital levies: that special meeting be held on 30th inst. to strike rates and deal with any general business requiring attention; that tea kiosk be let to Mrs. Hearn for ensuing year at £2.

Band Room Removal. The special committee comprising the Afayor and Crs. Alorrissey and Simpson recommended acceptance of tlie tender at £27 10s submitted by Alessns Stacey and Hearn, being the lowest of three received lor the removal of the bandroom. The clerk was, however, instructed to allow the tenderers to withdraw if on reconsidering the matter they desired to do so. —The report was adopted. Engineer. The report of the engineer (Air. J. Sturrock) read as follows:

Work on the Waihi Road paths is approaching completion. The best grade obtainable for the channel is I in 600. This has to be adhered to or water would pond up. The grade of the old road surface runs contrary to this in a pox-tion near High- Street. It is observable as a little hump on the road. The consequence is that tliei-e is here a rather .steep Hank. 1 tried it out with my motoi'-cycle and sidecar and concluded that it was not dangerous, formation of Scott Street is proceeding. I decided when we wei'e at it to remove all black soil, as we usually do, and leave tlie‘formation ready for metalling at some future date. My list is cleaned up as regards unemployed men in the borough, who have dependents and who require relief work. .Nolantown water pipe work: East of Tawhiti Hoad the pipes are all laid excepting in Scott Street. Trenches have been kept deeper in some places where the road surface will require to be lowered later on. The very wet weather has given us rather an anxious time with the Collins Street sewer which is, as previously advised, insufficient in size. We were unable to use our pumps to full capacity if overflows were to be avoided. This held back the sewage in the tributaries, and we had an overflow, which, however, we managed to manoeuvre out of danger. The old Camberwell sewer, which was laid in peatv ground, lets in a great quantity of underground water. It let in so much this past month that it could not cope with the quantity and overflowed at one point. Fortunately the rain ceased before serious trouble occurred. The pump could have handled the quantity if it could have got to it. Reconstruction of the sewers in this area would be prohibitive in cost. If something has to he done in the immediate futui-e, probably the work which would give the best return for the money would he. the laying of an additional sewer along Collins Sti-eet from Union Street to High Street. This part gives trouble every year, whereas the Camberwell Road newer and tributaries only give trouble once in a very long while. Some winters we escape comparatively lightly. In the newer areas the pumps have been

able to cope with the quantities of sewage successfully. The pumping plant continues to behave well. The report was adopted. On the recommendation of the AYorks Committee the engineer was instructed to have a slip cleaned away and a hand rail repaired on a. track on the Waihi reserve.

On the motion of Cr Alorrissey the engineer was authorised to proceed with the work on the Collins Street sewer to the extent of £2OO.

Inspector

The inspector (Air. L. Hunt) reported, ' inter alia, that house inspection had been carried out in Caledonia and part of Collins Streets, the usual notices being sent to owners or occupiers, one notice being served on an occupier to demolish an, outslied. Six building permits were issued, the total .•alue being £3lB. Fines for contravention of by-laws totalled £4 10s. Fourteen drivers’ licenses were issued. All the necessary guard fences on subsection 37 had been erected and were preving satisfactory. The report was adopted, and the inspector was instructed, in accordance with the recommendation of the Works Committee, to ascertain if roof water from any buildings is being led into Camberwell Road sewer.

Sanitation

The sanitary inspector (Mr. F. G. Coleman) reported as follows: Daring the' month two plumbing and l two drainage permits were issued. Two drains of a total length of 95 feet were inspected and tested. Eighty-three premises were inspected, including three butchers’ shops, three fruit shops, and 1 two fish shops, and six premises used for the keeping of animals. On© case of diphtheria, on© case of pneumonia, two cases of tuberculosis were notified during the month.—The report was adopted.

Librar.v

The librarian (Miss M. F. Newland) reported that 13 new member® joined during the month. As 12 left, the number was about the same as for •July, viz., 540. This was 40 ahead of July, 1926. About 60 new l>ooks were bought, including works on biography, history and travel. The shelves were rapidly filling, and space would be needed in tb© near future. Three boxes of novels which were finished with were called for by the secretary for the hackblock workers, and thanks offered to the council for giving them.—The report was adopted, ABATTOIRS. The town clerk (Ah- H. S. Elliott) reported, inter alia, on the work at the abattoir as follows: Stock slaughtered, 12 bullocks, 83 cows, 73 heifens, 494 sheep, 25 lambs, 15 calves and 58 pigs. Fees and rents totalled £ll6 0s 5d (£lO/ 3s 9d and ,£g IBs 8d respectively) tlie lees being £9 ]9.s more than in August, 1926. Total fees for five months ended 31st August are £4 2s 9d in excess of those for corresponding period of last financial year. WANDERING STOCK. The ranger (Air G. H. Blackwell) reported that between August 11 and 31 six horses and cows had been found wandering on Campbell - and Glasgow Streets, Dixon Avenue and AV:aihi Road. Several owners had been warned in connection with tethering animals in the streets.

Dr. Cr. General 4128 6 0 Water 372 9 O Gemeterv 67 10 6 Hospital 29 7 1 S-iwcia.l rate : Orieinal area 1427 17 6 Added area 7 0 3 Deposits 9 0 0 £4000 Loan .. 1453 9 7 £1524 15 1 5970 o 3 1524 15 1 £4445 10 2