MORE NEW ROADS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIII, Issue 58, 4 March 1909, Page 8

MORE NEW ROADS.

COUNCILLORS AND RIVER

BOARD MEET.

■ The members of the Lower Wairau River Board and. the.. Blenheim Bor<ough Council met this afternoon to inspect and confer on the proposal by the Council to construct a road leadingfrom Alfred Street'to High Street East. The members .of the Board maintained tile- opinion given vent to.at;themeeting last night that by permitting the suggestion of the Council to be put into effect the town would be endangered jn times of flood. The ; representaives of the1 Council pointed out that during, the highest floods there would be little or no current against the town bank, the force of the river striking the bank •on'the other side. It was also pointed out by Cr. Griffiths that the bank on the opposite side of the river was considerably lower than the bank on this side, and, furthermore,, that if: the height of the present embankment was reduced as proposed by the Council, the concrete wall which would be erected to strengthen it, would be higher than the bank was at present. All the Councillors maintained their belief that by forming the road and erecting a wall the bank would riot be weakened. The members of the Board were prepared to ■sanction the construction of the road provided the bank was not touched. butiHie Councillors declined to agree td th^tjpro^iaji^kijfiji^g as their reason for :i6 dorfigviiiat 4t>wouid; mako the property" adjoining the road un--sightly. 4 They also stated that if the?je- was^any- }ik»lihopd of the town fceirig'dtpiangered uhey would not seek "to construct the. road. The Borough foreman stated i^ifbet he was prepared "to stake what;little he had, that the longest day any man lived in Blenheim, he would not see the wall carried away. He showed the gentlemen present that the foundation. of the bridge which connected Alfred Street with the station practical! acted as a groin, and turned the flood water from the town bank, and that any water that encroached upon the bank would practically be dead water and would' not detrimentally affect the bank, the other side of the river.receiving the full force of any current that was running. The Councillors stated that if they had desired to interfere in any way with Bradford 'Quay they would have considered the Board . quite right in refusing to ■grant their applicatidn, as the water ran right into that bank with' all its force. The Chairman of the Board said he had not desire to hamper the Council' in any way, but he would hardly care to take the risk of permitting it to touch the bank in any w_ay. . ,No definite decision was arrived nt in connection with the matter. •