BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Marlborough Express, Volume LIV, Issue 245, 15 October 1920, Page 3

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

The ordinary meeting of the^ Blenheim Borough Council .was held last ni-drt. There were present: Councillors W. D. Pike: (Deputy-Mayor), Mrs Fred Redwood, A, Curry, T. .Moseley, W. I*l. Gaseoigne, M. McKenzie, J. A. Leslie, F. Birch. STAGNANT WATER. . A letter signed by six residents of 'the locality contained .a" request that the Council take action to secure the removal oi! stagnant water lying on property near Whitney Street. After some discussion it was re,polved that the Council did not recognise any liability so far as the carrying out of certain drainage work suggested in the letter was concerned'1 and that the attention of the sanitary inspector bo called to the conditions complained of. BY-LAWS COMMITTEE. This committee reported as follows: It had approved or the erection of an advertising hoarding on lots 104, ]00, Queen Street, on land owned by Air J.J. Weusley, subject to the provisions of by-law 351. Messrs McCallum, Mills and Coy. appeared before, the committee to urge reconsideration of the refusal of the Council to issue a permit for permanent additions, to Mr Sa.unders's premises in Market Street North with material nob in <:ompliance with the by-laws in the brick area..—After full consideration of the subject the committee recommended that a. permit for such additions be not granted. The committee further recommended that the owners of buildings previously erected under by-law 79,' sub-clause 5, in all eases where the time allowed has expired, be called upon to show cau.se why such buildings .should not be pulled down or removed within fourteen days. Correspondence from and with the Health Department on the subject of the Sanitary Inspector's duties had been considered and approved. Correspondence from and with the Health Department regarding house and trade refuse has; been considered. The Town Clerk reported upon the issue of building . regulation permits for the month of September. A report of the. ranger -for the month o'l> September revealed 22 breaches, of the Act/ of, which 15 were attended by imponridings. The fees and fines totalled £4 15s 6d. A return of the pound-keeper for the month of September revealed 1G impoundings and 15 releases. Fees paid to the" treasurer for the mouth amounted to £1 ss.

The committee recommended that Hallenstein Brothers be permitted to construct a cantilevered verandah over the footpath on Market _ StreetSouth in accordance with details submitted, subject to such verandah being removable at the request of the Council.

A communication had been rec-eived from the. Taxi Owners' Association on the siVb'ject of the alleged misbehavior of.a licensed taxi-driver. It was recommended that no action bo taken. The committee luad • accepted the explanation by a. firm of plumbers in tho matter of opening a public street and connecting a drain with' a public sewer without the requisite permit.

Tlie committee had before it an application by the E. H. Best Company for permission to erect a temporary structure of wood iron roofed, but not enclosed, on the land adjoining their garage, to serve as a shelter for motor vehicles during the construction of a permanent structure; and it had directed that such temporary building l;e permitted under sub-clause 5 of by-law 79, for a joeriod nob exceeding six months.

At the request of the contra-ctoi's, the committee had agreed to allow the boarding enclosing' the Farmers' f'*o-operative Association's new building on Quean and Charles Streets to continue in position until tho 16th inst.

The report \yas adopted after a. discussion regarding the clause--referring to Mr Saunders's application.

FINANCE' COMMITTEE

The Finance Committee reported that tho question of making a contribution towards the expenses of the Progress Committee' of the Chamber' of Commerces was'still'under consideration:; . ■■ ; ' . -~ ...■._.•'.•.,

, The Town do>r.k had beeii instructed to irxvxto tenders, for the s-up.ply; of 'do's' collars for the year 1021., ■ '.; The committee had' had before it the abstract of accounts a.nd balanceshect for the year 1920, togetlier with the Auditor-G-ene-ral's I'epqrt thereon, raid had made arrangements to Tiieet the points raised by the AuditorGeneral. It wasi to be noted that at the 31st March, 1920. there was a. surplus on general account of £1972 11s, plus £1500 (Fire Brigade). It v>'as recommended that the abstract of accounts, and balance-sheet be printed. The committee had no recommendation to make on the circular communication from the Auckland City. Council on the-subject of the Finance Act.

Tljo Town Clerk had been directed to ask the Hospital Board to certify under its common seal the sworn I items in its communication of tlie 22nd April, 1920, relative to., capital expenditure which came within the meaning of section 4], sub-section 10, of the HosDital and Charitable Jnsi-i----tutionsi Act, 1909. The committee recommended that tho hiring fee of £3 for the Town Hall paid by the Yvatorlea, Development Fund be refunded.

The_committee had approved of tlso i'ol']c-ivin.<>- payments as s.'Sfc cut in orders on treasurer: —PaymeTtts since List me-e-tin^ of the committee: OU'ev fclian gas, £5039 Cs 7d; jras, £1097 Cs 8d; now recommended for nayineut: £15,053 13s lid and £959 9s SO. respectively. Ilia Town Clerk had been directed to recover from the person liable the expends of the borough in pulling down a buildin/jc behind the- Club Hotel erected contrary to the by-iav.-p.. The committee had declined to re-(jof-aiise responsibility for the claim of 1.2s for the supply of plants in connection with the gas undertaking. The report was adopted. Council-, lor MoKenzic dissented, on principle, inthe case of iho Town HaHr-efund. The last clause of the report was nl-o ciianenged, rmd it, v.-as carried on Ihe casting vote of the Deputy Mayor.

FI.RE BRIGADE. The report presented by the Fire Brijjnde Committee stated that, the K. H. Best- Company having, intiro.nted that ifc wjis prepared to deliver the motor chassis on order, the committee had directed that the e'hairmaji take delivery of the .same and arrange, for its suitable storage. To meet the requiromentsoorlr tlie Brigade upon the installation of the waterworks rotioulation. the eominitieo had d'rt-oted the. Town Clerk in ohtain 3000 feet of host ?.\ in:>> fir--liose for delivery afier the Ist April noxt. ''INSTITUTE AND RESERVES / CO?,[MITTEE. Tin's comniittee reported that it had aiiJt/hoi"i.v:-d tiie librarian to ]iiu'uliitfc<-?

IS selected hooks, as per list, and office requisites. The committee recommended that the fee for the luring of .the Town | Hall, £1 10s, for next Baby Day, ha j iofunded. ' i

The committee recommended that | Messrs-Pike, Ga&coi«ue, ajid j 3:1 rs Redwood, niMnbers of tlio Beau- \ tilying Society,, be el^c-tea men-;l)er.s j of'the Institute and Reserves' Coir.- j mitteo as represou to. t ives of tho 8c- j ciety. Tho iir-t tyro clauses of tho report Avere adopted after an animated discussion, in which Councillor Curry i questioned the methods of the com- | nn'ttc-e in relation to the- duties, and office requirements, of tho librarian, and Councillor Moseley (its chairman) spiritedly replied. The latter denied that there had been an excess of "red tape,", and insisted that the' committee had been pursy.ing businesrJikemethods and should not be baulked by tho Council. Some uncertainty arising as to tne status of the- nominee* lev tho representation of the Beautifying Society on the Reserves1 Committee, tho last clause was referred back to. tho committee for- further consideration. WORKS CO3IMITTEE. The Works Committee recommended that tenders be called for tho gravelling of Arthur Street. It was recommended that about. 110 feet of -tin. drain be constructed at ! an estimated cost of £13 io take roof , water from tho southern side of the ! ; Town Hall into the Arthur Street I sewer, and that Mr J. Adams, be perinitted to pass l-oof^ water only from [ the northern side of his^iew braiding I adjacent to the Town Hall, _ conditional upon his paying one half of the j cost of the future maintenance thereof. It was further recommended that filling be placed between Mr Adams's new building and the southern wall of the Town Hall at an estimated cost of £9. The committee recommended that i quotations be obtained from the • several blacksmiths of the town for the borough's smithy work. The committee reported that it met members of the .Wair.au Road Board ,at the Taylor footbridge1, but^ were j unable to a'rriye at any, satisfactory . conclusion.' . .' ; A 'return, of* ,vvo'!!ks-executed-'by the 'borough Forem'an>on private property from/'.■ tk£; Ist Jari nary, .. IQIB,-,to', the30tlv Sopteniber, 1320, had been submitted. * The ..committee- recommended that in the future no such works be executed on private property unless the Council so directed.

The Borough Foreman had been directed to give effect at tho earliest possible moment to the formation oi; a roadway and footpath crt Monro Street, on laud recently dedicated to the public. The Town Clerk had been directed to confer with tho Eorough < Solicitor, as. to the Council's responsibility, on tlie subject of the dangerous condition oi: the Wairan Road Bridgel. The Town. Clerk had been directed to repent his application to tho li'osj'ital Board for payment of £3 10s Gd, expenses incun'ed in constructing aculvert at the entrance to the Mntevnity Hospital, on Weld Street, at the lequest of the■• Board. .The report was adopted. Councillors ilcKenaie and Mrs l?edwood failed to secure the elision of the words "unless the Council so directs" from tho clause prohibiting the carrying out of work on private property.