HUNGAHUNGA DRAINAGE BOARD

Matamata Record, Volume VI, Issue 232, 10 April 1928, Page 5

HUNGAHUNGA DRAINAGE BOARD

»: MONTHLY MEETING. The monthly meeting of the Hungahunga Drainage Board was held on Saturday, March 31. Present: Messrs. F. E. Hughes (chairman), Newman, W. Mathers, Thompson and Harvey. Maisey’s Drain. The chairman said he had been -over Maisey’s drain with Messrs. McCabe, Hendry and Bath. Mr. Maisey had misled the board. To carry out his idea would mean sending the water over neighbours’ farms. He had since gone over the country with Mr. Sims and it was found impossible to make the proposed alterations. The only way was to proceed with the original scheme. The clerk said it would be necessary to serve notices. The Chairman : That will mean further cfelay. Once the plans are in we can call tenders for the work returnable when the period for the notices has expired. Vickers’ Classification. Reporting “on Vickers’ classification and the taking over of a drain, the >chairman said he and Mr. Mathers favoured taking the drain over provided it was deepened two feet and ■.widened to a two-foot bottom. Mr. Mathers : Others use the drain .and it is too much to expect Vickers Bros, to bear the whole cost of keeping it in order; The Chairman: The classification will have to be much different from what it is. One of the Vickers was •classified on the Waihekau, into which he had no outlet. The ‘ A land would have to be reduced. The recommendation that the drain be taken over was agreed to, the conditions to be as named. Crawshaw’s Outlet. Referring to Crawshaw’s outlet, the chairman said the water could be taken to No. 1 along a much better line. The cost would be about £6O and he suggested that the settlers be written to and asked if they are prepared to finance the work. Four settlers were affected and if they lodged the money with the board the work could proceed. The improvement would make the land of the settlers, and the board could not assist except by allowing the cost of planing the present drain towards the cost of the new work.

; It was decided to write to Mr. Marks, giving him particulars of what was required, and asking him to communicate with the other settlers, Messrs. Sealey, Carley and Howard Bros.

Hallett’s Bridge. 1 Pealing with trouble about which '* Mr. Hallett had complained, the chairman said Mr. Hallett’s bridge across the Waihekau was on a bend and the water washed out near the c N bridge. Mr. Hallett wanted the Waihekau straightened so as to give the 7 water a straight run. Mr. Hallett was prepared to contribute £5 towards the cost. It was a serious thing to remove a bridge and the cost would be about £IOO. The Waihekau had a 12ft bottom and the bridge was on piles. The board had put up the bridge across the stream. i in reply to Mr. Harvey the chairman said the board’s responsibility with regard to a bridge ceased when the bridge was erected. Mr. Thompson : The amount promised by Mr. Hallett is not much in the circumstances. The, matter was left in the hands of the chairman with power to act, Mr. Hallett to be advised that the board accepted his offer, which included supervision of the work. Peraunui Contract. The chairman said he had gone over the top section of the Peraunui contract. Mr. Crevich was to be notified that he must proceed with No. 3 contract at once. In making this and other inspections 53 miles Lhad been covered in one day. The £2500 Loan. The secretary to the Employees’ Fund, New Zealand Hairy Company, wrote stating that the board’s application for a loan of £2500 was still under consideration. It was expected that a decision would be reached on April IQ. The chairman said the difficulty was that a drainage board security was not a trustee security. The New /Zealand Co-operative rDairy Company advised that it was contributing £ls this year towards I;he cost of 'Cleaning the Peraunui drain. A cheque was enclosed.—Received. '■ - Blackberry. *~ Mr. Wallace wrote complaining of the blackberry on the Wairere outlet, W which he had a cleaning contact. The blackberry increased his work and he asked for consideration. Mr. -Harvey : 'Notices should be

sent out calling upon the owners of property to clear the blackberry before contracts are let. The contractor in this case had done very poorly and those responsible should be made to pay for the extra work involved. The Chairman : The job at 2s s*d would have been all right if there had been no blackberry and only weed. The next tender was 3s Bd. I do not think the contractor should be made to suffer for the negligence of the property-owners. Mr. Thompson said the board would have to adopt safeguards in future.

Mr. Harvey moved that the contractor be allowed 3s per chain from the Peraunui junction to the Wairere—a distance of 168 chains.

General. Mr. Wadham, Chudleigh estate, wrote stating that the Waipuna drain, at a distance of about five chains from his outlet, was gradually silting up and required deepening about nine inches so that the water could get away. He trusted that the board would attend to th'is matter when the drain is let for cleaning this autumn. The chairman said he was going to suggest that tenders be called for the drain. It was decided to do this and advise Mr. Wadham.

Mr. T. A. Cooper, Peria road, Matamata, wrote asking for particulars of rates owing by him and reminding the board that he had been promised some consideration for work he had done to his drain last year. The clerk said he had informed Mr. Cooper that there could be no allowance, and the full amount owing had been paid. Members smiled their approval. The chief surveyor, Lands and Survey, wrote acknowledging plans and specifications for the proposed drain through the soldiers’ block, Matamata North. The plans had been forwarded to the chief drainage engineer for approval. It was noted that the application to the State Advances Office for a loan of £250 had not been successful. He understood that it had been suggested to the board that an application be made to the Public Trustee. The clerk said the Public Trustee did not favour drainage boards, but the clerk did not think there would be any difficulty in getting the money from another source. He already had some of it.

H. Kirk’s tender of 3s 6d for cleaning McLaren’s drain was accepted.

Different Times.

The chairman said that two contractors, who had agreed to clean a drain in his area for 2s a chain, on Ending the work unprofitable had decided after cleaning 38 chains to throw up the job. So that they would not do this he had agreed, after see-

ing Mr. Mathers, to increase the price to 2s 4d, but even at that figure

they would not make anything. It was bad policy to allow more than was first agreed upon, but the circumstances were exceptional. Mr. Mathers : In the old days if a man took a contract he saw it through no matter how little he made.