PATEA COUNTY COUNCIL

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XXXXI, Issue XXXXI, 15 June 1920, Page 5

PATEA COUNTY COUNCIL

MONTHLY MEETING

The monthly meeting of the Patea County Coukiel was held yesteiday. Present: Counciilois W. J. Belton (chairman), J. Walker, A. J. .Gibbs, fayior, M. Murphy, Hurley, A l! li.lmshe and G. McGregor.

It was decided to notify Mr Pankhurst, one of die Councils e-nployees, that tne charge for sheep !-..*::ommodatjon would be ls per hundred.

The chairman stated that he had consented to au application by the Patea Borough Coune 1 for permission to construct a water-race under the Manawapou road, aid h.s action was confirmed.

The Health Inspector waited upon the Council, by request, in reference to a notice that had been issued to Mr G. McGregor, calling upon him to make certain alterations to th e saritary arrangements of his house.

Cr McGregor outlined the facts which *-had led up to the action of the Health Department. His son had contracted influenza away from home. A doctor had attended him and reported to the Health Officer. Following this, he received rotice from the Patea County Council to have a trap placed on the drain from the bath and sink. This Cr McGregor held to be unnecessary, and stated that he had been so instructed by the sanitary plumber who installed his drainage system. Exception was also taken to the Health Department ins" string on a pan system being substituted for a pit.

The Health Officer explair-ed the position from his point of view, and urged that traps were as necessary in the country as in a city.

The chairman upheld the Department and pointed out that it had the general welfare in view, and could not differentiate.

Cr Murphy said they must back up the Department in every way they could.

There was no motion, and the.chairman passed on to the next business.

Cr Hurley moved that in future no metal shall be sold by the Council to private individuals.

Cr Gibbs opposed the motion, which he corbidered too drastic altogether, and unnecessary.

The eng'neer said he had put those who wanted metal in touch with those who could supply it, but the freight in such a case exceeded the cost of the metal, and there was a reluctance orj the part of the man who sold -to pay this freight in advance and then wait till he had recovered it from the purchaser. The mofon was carried. CORRESPONDENCE. The Auckland Development League wrote, forwarding a petition favoring a fairer proportion of public works expenditure in the North Island. On the motion of the r j chairman, seconded by Cr Walker, it was deeded to support the petition and to urge at the same time the necessity fior a vigorous policy in- dealing with sources of hydro-electric power. Correspondence was received >; n reference to the conferences on hydroelectric supply for Taranaki.

The chairman said that this was a matter the Council should keep hi touch with as their county covered a large area of the country that would be served. They did not want any outsde body to get control over thendistrict, and at any future conference the Council should be represented.

Tlte Patea Borough Council wrote, asking the County Council to urge upon the Governjnent the necessity for going ahead with the work of building the Patea r.'ver foot bridge, and that as a means to expedite *wie matter, the. Public Woj-J_§ department he asked to complete their eon-* sideration of the plans as soon a 8 possible. '

| It was stated that the County Council had already taken the matter up, and the' letter was received. The Wanganui Sub-Provfncial District of the Farmers' Union forwarded the following remit for consideration;: "That County Councils be empowered under the Fencing Act, to compel owners to keep their road fences in pi-oper repa'r." Cr Gibbs did rot think -there was I much use in having enlarged, powers ! seeing that they cculcl not at present j induce people to cut the gorse on the i roads fronting their properties. I Cr Walker said he would l.ke to see ' the additional power given. He pointied out that in many cases hedges ent croaohed on the roads. _ ! A member stated that the Council had in such a case power to have the | fence cut back. ' xCr Murphy moved5 that the Council I support an amendment of the Act givi ing the Council power to force owners jto keep fences fronting roads in a proper state of repair. Ci* Gibbs objected to the proposal, and held that no farmer' should be required to put up a fence he did not require for hr's own* purposes. Cr Walker pointed out that it .was most unfair to expect a man who had -to drive stock along the road to go to a great deal of trouble m keeping his cattle together and in redrafting them, owing to faulty fences along the roadside. ■■:„_!■ Cr Murphy's proposal was earned. A resolution favoring Saturday afternoon as the universal half-holiday* was; received from the Stratford Borough Council.—The chairman said the matter was one which did not appeal to them. An attempt had already been made to have provision made in an award for the Canterbury agricultural workers for a Saturday half-holiday'and the judge had ruled that it was impracticable. He moved that the letter be received. Cr. McGregor said that if Saturday afternoon became the half-holiday it would not assist product km. The question arose as to whether the proposal by Stratford applied to country workers, and the clerk assured the Council that the application would be general. The chairman's motion was airied.

DEPUTATION

The Waitotara County Council notified that it would send a deputation consisting of the chairman (Mr Morrison) and Councillors Burnett, Jones, Ross, and others, to wait upon the Patea County Council in reference to the maintenance of the Watershed rood and County boundaries. ,

Mr Morrison stated that, they had not come in any hostile spirit. They wanted to reason the whole matter out and come to a definite conclusion. Some five years ago the boundaries were altered, and, contrary to the wishes of .the Waitotara County Council, certain properties were included in the Patea county. ♦ The Waiiotara County Council had agreed, but the arrangement had not worked out satisfactorily in practice. Some of these ratepayers, while in the Patea county, had no road access excepting from the Waii totara county, which was not receiving the rates. These ratepayers were a

constant source of worry to the Waitotara Council, which was continuallyreceiving appeals fcr assistance, which, under present conditions, they were not justified in giving. , They had spent about £140 on the road to Berre theaepeople, and considered that the Patea County Council should pay half this amount, but what they wanted in the first place was to have the properties referred to included in the Waitotara county. A further reason for their inclusion was that the owners wished to have a special rating area formed for metalling purposes, and to this end it would be better to have the whole of them in one county.

Mr Ross pointed out that any special rates for which the properties they wished included in the Waitotara couxity were now liable to the Patea county, would be paid even if their request was granted. Would the Patea Council, he asked, be prepared to keep the road in a good state of repair, with assistance from the Waitotara Council, if they decided to retain the properties in the Patea county ?

The chairman: By asking t*aat question you are anticipating a negative reply. The question should come after the first request has been dealt with. Mr Jones emphasised points made byprevious speakers, and said that it was poposed to raise £4000 by special rate, which was to be subsidised by the Government with a similar amount, for metalling, and unless the whole of the ratepayers concerned were in one county two rating areas would have tobe formed.

The chairman said the Patea County Council had always endeavored to deal fairly with Waitotara. With regard to* the boundaries, Patea was not any more pleased than Waitotara. At the time the arrangements were made both parties were familiar with local conditions. He pointed out that the people of the district concerned were treated on exactly the same basis as the ratepayers in other parts of the county. Another point made by the chairman was that the ratepayers concerned in this case derived some benefit from roads in other parts of. the county. In regard to hospital cases, he stated that there was an arrangement between Patea and Wanganui by which they took each other's patients without making, any charge, so that any change they might make in the boundaries would make no difference in this respect. Boiled down, the position was that the rates collected in this part of * the county were not sufficient to maintain the road 3 serving it. A member, of the deputation stated that the road1 which they desired to get control over gave access to 40,000 acres in the Waitotara county, which had been settled for the past thirty years, and the Waitotara County Council was unable to deal with this road in the best -■nterests of tbe ratepayers until they had full control.

In reply to a question, it was stated that the area which the deputation wished to have included in their county was approximately 6000 acres. The deputation then withdrew, and the Council went into committee to consider the position. , ..y*y. On resuming, it was reported'Witt the Council had decided to hand over lo the Waitotara county the areas held by Addenbrooke Brothers and Aymes, Crawshaw and Hardy, totaltfng abou* 5000 acres, together with £55 178.j6d, the amount that had already 'AbeM. offered ior e*spenditure on the road; the eonoession not to be regarded in anj**, sense as a precedent The Council declined to agree to the cession of Moore Brothers' property. •Tha- ohjurman, in conveying this resolution to the deputation, pointed oi.t that the road was a Government one t apd ilie Waitotara Council was not, therefore, justified in.expending-money upon it. " -■-■*-... Mr Morrison sad they Were m SatiS* ted yet, arid asked why 4he. other block eGuld not be handed over? Tha chairman said that the whole of the block* wQuldj to somes extent, Jbeserved by Patea County. The desire to raise a special loan had chiefly ihiTj c Council, and the block excluded was not concerned in the special area. .

Mr .Morrison said he would put the matter before his Council the following day. He complained at the smallness or the amount of money granted They had spent £140 on the road. ' The chairman: But you did it without legal authority.' Mr Morrison: Perhaps we are more sympathetic towards the ratepayers than you are. The chairman objected to comparisons of this kind.

Mr S. J. Tayloi, Waverley, wrote drawing attention to the number of horses wandering on the Kohi.road Cr Walker said that the Waverley Town Board was prepared to join with the County Council in the appointment of a ranger. He gave instances of "the nuisance caused by wandering stock. In one case a horse had died in a drain and it was with difficulty that the owner was induced to remove it. One woman-regularly turned out 15 cows on to the county roads, and there were al_out 20 horses on the roads wmch nobody owneu.

'me chairman suggested that ■ the constable stationed at Waitotara should be asked to taKe action.

It was decided to appoint a ranger for- the- whole county if one can be procured, and, failing that, to engage a drover to ciear the roads of stocis: troiu time- to time.

A resolution was received from the Hawera Borough Council urging that the-duty on children's footwear should be removed.—On the motion of Or Walker, seconded by Cr Taylor, it was decided to support the proposal. The Wanganui Education Board forwarded a circular from the Education Department regarding the education of children in sparsely populated districts. —Received.

The Hawera County Council wrote asking what quantity of metal, if any, t_ie Patea Council would be prepared to take from the Mt. Egmont quarries for one year.—The chairman said they had already notified the Department that they would take 1000 yards. 'If it could be supplied at the present time they could take a great deal more. He moved that they agree to take 1000 yards provided the price is reasonable.—Thy engineer pointed but that Belmont metal could be obtained at less than 18s.—The motion was carried.

A Tesolutibn, as already published, was received from the Pahiatua County Council urging that the attention of the Prime Minister should be drawn to the unsatisfactory wording of the Housing Act in that it did not make provision for the purchase of land to erect dwellings or buildings erected.—To lie on the table.

Mr F. J. Finer forwarded a cheque for £10 towards the cost of metalling about five chains, block 8. Work agreed to, and a further application by the same ratepayer to have about eight chains of papa placed on another portion of the road was left in the hands of the engineer to deal with.,■■'•

The Bay of Islands County Cou*Bcil forwarded for endorsement the following resolutions: (a) Giving local bodies lull powers to enforce payment of rates by Maoris j (b) providing for tko pay-

inent of native rates by the. General Government.—it was decideo to support the resolutions. The tender of J. H. Hayward, of £200 for Spence road, was accepted. ENGINEER'S REPORT, • The engineer reported as follows: Main Road and General —'Dining the month 'the sealing of the .Manutahi metalling has been cawied on as wea r thei* permitted, but owing chiefly to .- sickness among the men only 60 chains has been completed. The engine-driver and R. Rear don were off for over a week with "influenza, W. Wills for a few days with a bad arm, and A. Marchant for two weeks through a slight operation. The weather was also very broken for the greater part of the period. The overhaul of the road between the one and two-mile pegs south of Patea was held up for the same reasons. General repair work has been carried on as required, north of Patea, but there is skill much to be done. The road along the racecourse frontage is very rough, and has been patched, but really needs to be broken.up to set an even surface. The grader' Has been at work grading in the sides of the road south of Waverley, about four miles being graded, and though in places rather much material has been left on the road, this has made a great improvement. In making up the estimates for the main road last month I omitted to include the resealing ef the Waitotara road and hill, both very ! necessary, to cost (say) £150. This makes the over-estimate up to nearly • £2000, which means that something well over a mile of new metalling must be cut out of the estimates. These were not considered in detail by Council last meeting, but with, say, 100 chains of metal cut out there can be no new work south of the Patea Borough*. .The fact is with the large amount of resealing work in sight the amount provided for main road work is not enough ter-allow of reasonable progress with -pew metalling and tarring. The position of the Moumahaki and Kapara Ridings also clearly indicates that the present levy for the main road is too heavy a load on the present rate. The latter riding has, with the exception of-bridge work, had no improvement work carried out in the last four years, and except \for Government assistance would not have held its own in maintenance. I also consider that: the Council would be well advised to again go into the question of purchasing a motor or steam lorry for metal carting, etc. The Resident Engineer was- in Patea re the estimates during the month, and inspected the Patea bridge, and does not consider there is any alternative but to carry the footway inside the 115 span. Pankhurst is now on the Whenuakura length, and J. Windleburn is on the Moumahaki length, main road. Some information is to hand re bitumen for road work, and from enquiries made this "material is considered by ■users as superior to tar for road work, and I consider this material should be given a trial. The cost is rather more than restar, and a greater heat is required in spraying same on the road, but so far as the experience in NewZealand is concened the longer • life of the material makes up fioi- the extra cost. A small additional plant will be required for heating* this material, "which will come in for tar work, as the .steel drums in which restar is heated are gradually becoming unfit for this purpose. I think that 20 tons wwoud be sufficient to give a sood trial. r*- 5 Patea West District—Metal has been arriving steadily at the Ball roadstation all vthe month, and owing to a -breakdown with Amon's lorry there has been some difficulty in clearing the station. A small quantity has been de- -}_ livered on to Hurley road,, wh'ch is now-about completed. The metalling of the Lower Ball road was*carried out with the Council drays, the whole of i this seven chains being laid, and is ' now ready/for blinding with pit metal: I mere is some correspondence to hand j re the Bail road suspension bridge ! across the Patea river. Tenders have ' been invited for the formation of the ! Spence road, a grade of 1 ia 10 on the ; main road side and 1 in 9 on the sea ! side being obtained. The estimated 1 cost of the work, including the culvert and eight chains of sanding this sid<* ! • is £220. ' j Patea East District—Maintenance ! work has been carried out in tfiis dis- ! trict by the surfacemen, Edgecombe j having agreed to the terms set out by \ ■Council Some improvement has been effected to the Otauto road, which was in a bad state. Mr Broughton called "L r ™ontn in regard to the fencingott ot the trespass road* beyond the -Otauto bridge, and.asked what is be^ mg done, as this fence will stop all ' vemcle traffic. . . - * Waverley Riding—General maintenance work has been carried on in this ! district all the month. Soland has cut the scrub complained of on the Kohi road cutting. The Okutuku road has cut up badly this month beyond the deviation. The surfaceman on this length only gets in one week per month, and though he is doing good work I am trying to arrange with him to devote more time for a while until the road is m a better state. I wasunable to go over the back roads of ibis riding through the month, but will do so at an early date.—Adopted.