NAPIER HARBOR BOARD.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5007, 13 February 1878, Page 2

NAPIER HARBOR BOARD.

Tuesday, February 12. The Board met at 11.30 a.m. Present— The Chairman (J. G. Kinross, Esq.), Captain Newman, Messrs Vautier, Kennedy, Chambers, Sutton, Ormond, and Robjohns. The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. HARBOR WORKS. The Chairman stated that he had received a telegram from Mr Knowles, Under-Sftcretary to the Public Works Department, stating that he had forwarded Mr Weber's report respecting the harbor works to the eugineer-in-chiet. Mr Carruthers, added the Chairman, was now in Chmtchurch, which would probably cause some delay in receiving any communication from him on the subject. THE HARBOR WORKS CONTRACT. The Secretary stated that by direction

of the board he had sent Mr Weber's report to the contractor, at the same time reminding them of his seriouß position. He had received a reply referring to the correspondence that had passed • between the contractor and Mr Weber about the obstructions offered by the latter, and for the consequences of which the contractor, would hold the board responsible. The following was the correspondence; that had passed : —

Mr Hoadley to the contractor. Sir,— l have the honor, by direction of the Napier Harbor Board, to enclose herewith a copy of the engineer's report of works, dated 28th instant. By perusal of this report you will again be reminded of the very serious position in which you are placed by the non-completion of your contract in accordance with specified time. — I am, &c, 0. B. HoAdley. January 31, 1878, The contractor to Mr Hoadley. Sm,— l have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 31st January, enclosing copy of Mr Weber's report. While expressing my surprise at the terms employed in your second paragraph, I beg to refer you to the correspondence which has taken place between myself and your engineer. On perusal of same you will lind that I have repeatedly complained of the obstructiveness shown me during the pro- } gress of the work, and have again to inform you that I hold the Harbor Board responsible for all consequences arising therefrom. . — I am, &c, John Henderson, Per J. K. Davis, Jun. February 11, 1878. Mr Sntton moved that the contractor's letter be referred to the engineer. Mr Vautier would like to know what the correspondence referred to was. He did not think it had been brought under the notice of the board. Mr Sutton said that referring the contractor's letter to Mr Weber would bring out the correspondence. The motion was seconded by Mr Kennedy and carried. REPORT ON SOUNDINGS. The following report from the engineer on the result of soundings taken by the pilot was read : — The return of the soundings taken by the pilot from the 49th January to date, shows a range from 9ft 6in to 10ft 9in on the bar. The winds during that period have been generally southerly and south-easterly, causing a considerable swell in the bay, and combing the shingle on the bar into ridges. The bulk of the bar has considerably diminished, and the beach at the Western Spit, on a line with the Rangatira Bank, has in proportion increased. The point opposite the Rangatira has increased fully 45 feet in width since my last report. Very little change is to be noticed on the line of beach between the eastern work and the Bluff. The high water line at the junction of the single with the double work has advanced about 12 feet, but the low water line appears unaltered. Very trifling change has taken place on the beach line between Napier and Waitangi, and very little shingle seems to have passed round the Bluff. As stated before, this is evidently due to the deficiency of rainfall, which since this day 12 months, when we had the last flood, has reached only the unprecedented small aggregate of 17 i inches, instead of the annual average of about 45 inches. The beach having been denuded of shingle by the easterly gales in August last, and the Tuki Tuki not having brought fresh supplies, very little only could pass the Bluff. — I have, &c, Charles Weber, Engineer Harbor Board. Soundings. — Depth of water, January 29 to 31, 10ft ; February 1, 9ft 9in ; 2nd and 4th, 9ft 6in; 6th and 7th, 10ft; Bth, 10ft 9in; 10th, 10£t; 11th, 10ft 6in. On February 3rd, sth, and 9fch, there were no soundings taken. PORT AHURIRI BRIDGE. A letter was read from MrKnowles, Under-Secretary to the Public Works department, forwarding the following report from Mr Bold upon the cost of bridging the Ahuriri harbor : — Public Works Office, Wellington, January 29, 1878. Sir, — In reply to your telegram of the 25th instant, 1 am directed by the Hon. the Minister for Public Works to forward to you copies of plans and report by Mr Bold on the cost of bridging the Ahuriri harbor waters from Eastern to Western Spits, as therein requested. — I have, #c, Johx Knowles, Under-Secretary for Public Works. J. Gr. Kinross, Esq., * Chairman of the Napier Harbor Board, Napier. Public Works Office, Napier, November 27, 1877.

Sir, — In accordance with the instructions conveyed in telegrams quoted in the margin hereof, I have the honor to submit a report upon the cost of bridging the Ahuriri harbor waters from Eastern to Western Spit.

The accompanying plan A. shows several lines of soundings taken in 1870 by Mr Jas. Rochfort, the record of which he has been good enough to place at my disposal. Since the time Mr Rochfort sounded, 1 find, after testing, that the depths have altered only in a slight degree, hardly enough to preclude the employment of the record for the purpose of this report. The red line on the plan (A) before mentioned indicates the site for which the estimate has been prepared, and the diagram B shews the positions and lengths of the suggested spans. If the harbor interests would be not thereby interfered with, the length of bridging could be much shortened by adopting a site nearer the line CD., and the cost reduced. Estimate. Heart of totara superstructure, with jarrah piles — 15 spans of GO feet -j 2 spans of swing ! o lofinn 40 spans of 25 ... f £12 ' 600 Approaches aud contingencies J I have, &c, (Signed) E. H. Bold, District Engineer. The Engineer-in -Chief, Public Works Department, Wellington. The following report from Mi* Weber on the same subject was read : — In reference to the site recommended by Mr Bold for the Port Ahuriri bridge, shewn on the annexed tracings, upon which I have been instructed by the Chairman to report, I have the honor to state that the line proposed is on the average about 400 ft north, that is, nearer to the Heads, than that pointed out by Mr Blackett, the Colonial Marine Engineer, in April, 1874, and referred to in my report of the 29th January. This arrangement would allow of considerably less wharfage accommodation, than Mr Blackett's line near the telegraph poles. The size of the spans, viz., 17ft at 60ft, and 40ffc at 25ft Mould meet Mr Blackett's views, if I remember rightly. — I have &c, Charles Weber, Engineer Harbor Board.

The Chairman said he saw it was intended to have wide spans, giving ample space for water to run through, and also two swing spans for vessels to pass through. Mr Orinond said they should ask the Government to let the board have the plans. After all, they could do nothing until the opinion of the marine engineer was obtained.

NUISANCES. The following letter from Mr Saiusbury was read : —

Napier, February 6, IS7B. Dear Sir, — I am in receipt of yours of the Ist instant, with accompanying paper. If the Harbor Board, being the owners of the lands in question, allow them to remain in such a state as to cause a nuisance to the inhabitants of the neighborhood, I am of opinion that the Council of the borough has power to call upon the board to abate such nuisance, and that if the board fail to do so the Council can cause the nuisance to be abated and recover the cost of doing so from the board. (Section 237, Municipal Corporations Act, 1576.) The question, I think, will be whether the land is really a nuisance or not. The word "nuisance" has a variety of meanings, but for the present purpose it may be defined to be something which is either injurious to health or so offensive as to detract sensibly from the enjoyment of life or property in the neighborhood where it exists. The '

word "offensive" may mean offensive to the sense of smell. — I have, &c, G-. E, Sainsbury, _ Solicitor to the Board. C. B. Hoadleyj Esq ; , t Secretary to Harbor Board. frMr Ormbnd thought they might very ' well let the matter stand over for a time. The Chairman thought so too; He noticed that the Corporation had refused to allow private sections to be filled up until the "contract for the roads through the swamp was completed, so that there was no immediate hurry. > / Mr Vautier would point out that it was not the Corporation that wanted the nuisances abated, but it was the inhabitants in the neighborhood. If those inhabitants were to get, a medical practi-, tioner to look at the places and certify that they were nuisances, the Corporation would be bound to enforoe the abatement/ of those nuisances* , , '•' The Chairman : Unless we got another" medical practitioner to certify that the places were quite sweet. ■ Mr Vautier did not think that was so very likely. The board then adjourned. •