HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 3614, 18 November 1924, Page 5

HYDRO-ELECTRICITY.

LOAN REQUIRED. £4OOO TO BE RAISED. On the 10th, inst., the occasion of the third adjournment of the last Borough Council meeting, the Council went into the financial position in respect of the hydi'O-electiric installation. The statement presented disclosed the f act that the cost, as far as it was possible to estimate it, had exceeded the Engineer’s estimate of £7OOO by £3638. When the original loan was raised the Council still had power to raise another.' 10 per cent that is, £7oo—without having to go again to the ratepayers. It was stated that with one exception (the power house) the contracts let had not exceeded the estimates, being rather under than over the figures. The dam, however, had cost £1961, as against an estimated cost of £9Bo, while the pipe Hue, which was to have cost £1236 had exceeded this by over £350. Cr. Berry and the Town Clerk had gone thoroughly ■ into the costs of the scheme as far as it had been possible to do to date, and they presented the following statement:—

The figures, representing labour only, as supplied by the foreman, Mr T. Byrne, were. ias follows: — ■ I Excavating foundation of dam £259 Constructing dam 385 By-wash, excavating and constructing 192 Track formation ... ••• 120 Excavating, building and installing machinery in power house' ••• ••• 999 Installing pipe line ... _ ••• 496 Clearing storage basin and burning of timber 106 Total ••• ...£I7BB The unexpended balance at the bank was £IOSO. Or. Thompson asked how it was that they had been so wrongly informed—that was, all those councillors who were not on the 1 Finance Committee, which, latter must surely have known. Three months ago the mayor stated that £IOOO more would be required to finish the scheme. The extra expense oouldi not have been incurred since that date. Who was responsible for the false statements. The Council should find out. Cr. Berry said the Lighting Committee had no financial statement before them. It was not fair to the Lighting Committee if this had been kept from them. The Mayor said he understood the shortage would be £IOOO. Then the Town Clerk told him £2OOO. Things never seemed to have readied such finality that the correct figures might he arrived at. The Clerk here said he would like to point out that the discrepancy had not occurred in respect of the estimates and contracts for machinery that were > let. Any dity lerence that appeared in these items were differences in exchange. The only other items were wages, cement, carting and praying for the' stuff going to the power house and dam. Some items for September, such as wages and sundries, etc., were here quoted- by the clerk as showing how very quickly they made a hole- in £IOOO. When he prepared the original estimate showing £IOOO as the deficiency he had no accounts lor wages and sundries and' was unaware of what these would amount to. There were other things which he, could not forsee. These had gone on mounting up. In short, the difference, or discrepancy occurred not in the materi als for which the Engineer was re'sponsible, but in the labour and sundry materials and gravel contracts which the Council to- a certain extent had had the handling of. *Or. Overton, considered the best thing was to thrash the matter out systematically. Was the Finance Committee to blame ? As a member of this he could say that when the ac- • counts (as compiled by the clerk) came before them, all they could do was to pass them for payment. The Finance Committee had nothing to do with the ordering of supplies. The committee, if any, that was concerned With this was the Lighting Committee.

Yet if 238 cubic yards of giravel at £2 5s a ton was required instead of 100 yds, and more money was going into the dam and pipe line than wias estimated on by the Engineer, were! the Council to stop the work? He contended that no particular coml mittee or councillor was bo blame. The Mayor said that on 4th October the clerk wrote the Prime Minister stating that approximately £2OOO more would be required to- pay for the scheme. He (His Worship) was unaware at the time of the. clerk’s having done this; About a month later he said they would need £3OOO. The whole thing- wafe in the Engineer is handfei. Cr. Salmond asked was any money paid away that was not accounted for. Being told there was not, he contend!edi that’it was no use. ’squealing’ now. It seemed a lot of working costs had doubled. The best thing was to. get to work and secure, the money required. He ’could not see. that any of the councillors were, to blame. The. scheme was left In the Engineeris hands to carry through. All the Finance Committee had to do was to examine the accounts, and see that they were paid. *Or. 'Thompson: "Dr. Overton asks who is to blame. Seventeen weeks ago the Mayor said the. pipe line would be completed in a fortnight, from that time, but time went on into weeks and there was no end in sight. Was it not the Mayor’s duty to have called a meeting, when possibly the Council might have, remedied it. It was a disgrace that part of the line Laid down should 1 have had to be pulled up and) be. relaid. I do not approve of letting things go without an explanation; The Mayor: The only way of getting an estimate Was from the clerk. His figures rose, from £IOOO to £3,500. as stated.—Cr. Berry: The clerk did not know what accounts were yet to. come in. The Mayor: The Engineer put a man in charge, and they were, told he was a good man. The Council had no responsibility. Cr. Salmond: Look at the item “Clearing' of storage basin and burning of timber, £lo6.’’ This was al> eurd. A lot of money had been wasted that could not be. recoveredi It must be admitted the hydro-electric scheme was a good one. —Cr. Thompson :Tlie pipe line is not a good job. Cr. Gavin considered all the. councillors to blame. They appointed their engineer, and if they thought too. much money was being spent anywhere they should have called him to account. The estimates for machinery seemed to have been all right, but they were at sea in regard to labour. The Mayor: Until a week ago I had no idea how expenses were mounting up —Cr. Thompson,: I called your attention to the expenditure on tiie pipe line, from the laying of the benching and you tried to screen the Engineer. The Mayor then gave a resume, of what happened from Die time it was agreed to do the. pipe line by day labour. In brief, it was decided that he and Or. Thompson (Cr Salmond's name was added later) get a man to take charge, but as they failed to secure a suitable man the. Engineer appointed a foreman. Why, he .asked, had not Cr. Thompson exercised himself about the. pipe line till about the last day?—-Cr. Thompson made a fully explanatory reply in which he stated that he was appointed one of the small sub-committee, whose business was to secure, a man for the job. Once that man was- secured (Mr Aldridge eventually appointed one) it was. his business to work from the plans. He (the speaker) had no further duties after that. Cr. Overton said it appeared to be pretty clear that the discrepancy came in on the dam, pipe Line la nidi power house.; and the. Council decided to employ the man recommendjed by their engineer. (Cr. Thompr son: I objected to the wage). Hie Council 1 determined to get a good man so they had to pay a good wage and no one had interfered with him. No good would come of wrangling fuE ther about the matter. They must get to business and secure the od(ditional money. In order to. make quite sure they were borrowing sufficient for their needs lie would move that; the loan to. be 1 raised lie £4OOO. Seconded by Cr. Gavin and! carried. The Mayor said lie regretted the. edit cumstances ,buit at least they had the consolation of knowing that the plant was thoroughly up-to-date and sound; and he was sure the public would rather have the. light than grudge the money. Arrangements were, then made as to how the balance of the first loan lying in the bank would be disbursed, pending the raising of the second loan.

CONTRACTS. National Electric £1958 9 0 Do . do 148 17 0 Turnbull & Jones (retiou 1639 4 0 lation) Additional 6 14 7 Metropolitan, Vickers (meters, fuses, transformers) 440 19 9 Gossans and Black (pipe line 1100 0 0 Additional 147 7 11 Bruce Railway Coy (poles) 593 6 3 Additional 11 14 6 £6046 IB 0 W ages 1579 19 9 Cartage and packing 1 ... 1034 7 6 Briscoe & Oo. (cement,&c) 320 0 2 Freight 66 14 4 Timber 96 13 0 Interest., etc. • 154 2 1 Advertising contracts 9 3 6 Sundries (local]) 79 10 3 (Outside 224 15 10 £9611 19 5 Additional — Wages due and estimated 291 0 5 Sundry acs due 226 14 11 £10,129 14 9 Engineer (estimated and and including £192 10s paid 505 0 0 £10634 14 9