YEAR REVIEWED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 80, 9 June 1945, Page 5

YEAR REVIEWED

WAIMEA COUNTY COUNCIL CHAIRMAN’S ANNUAL REPORT FLOODS INCREASE EXPENDITURE The chairman of the Waimea County Council, Councillor J. Corder, presented the following report at the annual meet-. ing of the council yesterday: — "The objective of the council during • the year has been to keep its existing j roads and bridges in good order, and to carry out any small improvement f works for which material and labour j were available. Expenditure on district roads other than main highways has! been higher than since the commence- . ment of the war. but the council has J been handicapped by the overgrown | conditions of settlers’ frontages, and the i shortage of suitable labour, several districts having been without permanent roadmen. In some districts where applications have been received for a vacant position, houses for the men have been unobtainable. The council has considered a housing scheme for its employees in different parts of the county but in view of the high costs, no decision has yet been reached. Meanwhile one house-—a small cottage—has been purchased and the purchase of others is being investigated. “A considerable amount of work has been done during the past year in the repair of road surfaces and renewal of bridges which have been damaged by floods*. This was particularly the case in the Motueka and Wangapeka ridings. In the Brooklyn and Riwaka valleys long sections of road had to be practically re-formed and gravelled, while in the Wangapeka riding considerable work was necessary to restore the road surfaces on the Tadmor-Glenhope, Tapa-wera-Baton and Glenrae roads. A very considerable amount of maintenance gravelling has been done with the council’s truck. Tenders were invited for gravelling in three ridings, but the tenders received were all too high and were declined.

“A number of large culverts have been installed during the year, these include 3ft diameter pipes at Harford’s road where a short road deviation was constructed; and culverts of similar diameter at Kaka, on the Brooklyn road, Baton Saddle road, and at Windmill creek on the Upper Quail Valley road. A 3ft pipe culvert has also been installed in the Church Valley road, Wakefield, and a 4ft diameter pipe culvert to replace Brooks’ bridge on the Sherry-Tui road. The filling and approaches to these two culverts have not yet been completed. The work of replacing the old kauri truss members in the Pigeon Valley bridge, Wakefield, was commenced early last year and was not completed until the beginning of this year, the bridge gang being frequently withdrawn to deal with flood damage work. “Other bridge works carried out by the county during the year Include: Bromell’s bridge, Glenrae (25ft span on piles in Australian hardwood); Upper Brooklyn bridge (25ft span on concrete abutments), settlers and the Waimea Electric Power Board contributed to the cost of this bridge; a bridge on the Riwaka north branch road (20ft span, birch timber, stud pile abutments); a bridge on the Forest creek road (18ft span), to which settlers contributed in material and labour; Horopito stream bridge (two 25ft spans, heavy rail piles), stringers were contributed by a local settler who also undertook to construct the approaches which have not yet been done; Ellis’s bridge, Kaka (two 20ft stringer spans, concrete and stud pile prer). Two bridges of about 20ft span which were damaged by floods —Bint’s bridge on the Lamb Valley road and a bridge on the Blackbird Valley road—have been replaced. Rickett’s and Fowler’s suspension footbridges, Sach of over 100 ft span, over the Tadmor river have been renewed; Page’s suspension footbridge over the Sherry river has been renewed, and the right bank abutments of Hewitt’s road bridge under-pinned in concrete and the abutments renewed. The superstructure of Foley’s bridge on the Riwaka Valley road has been renewed on the existing concrete abutments. Repairs and maintenance work have been carried out on many other bridges and a number of smaller bridges have been installed. FUTURE WORK “The council having decided to carry out the sealing of the Umukuri road, Riwaka, the road foundation has been strengthened and reshaped, and bitumen and chips delivered on the site. It is hoped to carry out this sealing and the sealing of a short length of road in front of the Riwaka school early in the summer.

“During the year further representations were made to the Government for a subsidy on the construction of a road across the Atuwhero estuary, to give access to MarAhau and a deputation from the council waited on the Minister of Works at Stoke on 13th June, 1944. Later in the month the council was advised that a subsidy of £2 for £1 on the council’s contribution of £7OO would be made available. The proposals involve the construction of about 55 chains of road above high tide level and the provision of three bridges of 20ft, 50ft and 100 ft span respectively. Plans and specifications have been prepared and the heavy timbers are now available for delivery on the site. If labour is available it is hoped to commence the work in the next few months.

“Proposals for the construction of a stock track from Quarantine road to the abattoir, a distance of about 15 chains, are being investigated with a view to obviating the driving of stock on the State highway through Annesbrook. “Plans and specifications have been approved for the widening of Best’s bridge on the Wakefield-Woodstock main highway. This is a narow concrete bridge of 20ft span located on a curve. The bridge will be widened from its present width of lift 6in between the wheel guards to a deck width of .24ft and tenders will be invited for the work. The construction of a concrete ford across the Dove river on the Thorpe-Neudorf road will be put ir. hand as soon as conditions appear favourable. Work on the construction of a 20ft span stringer bridge on mass concrete abutments on Ching’s road, Lower Moutere, is in hand at the present time. ROAD MACHINERY “During* the past year three of the council’s power grading plants have worked an extremely high percentage of possible time. For instance, the 2flw grading plant has worked 87 per cent, of the available working hours in the year at a very low working cost. The annual working cost figures for these grading plants and the council’s trucks indicate the very satisfactory condition in which they have been maintained. The old two-man grading plant was put into work again in the Wangapeka district early in 1944. This plant under normal conditions, was due for renewal, and it is obvious that an additional grader will be needed to meet the demands of post-war traffic.

t In view of the difficulties of obtaining l tenders for gravelling work the council • also requires more trucks, and a gravel : loading plant, and orders have already ■ been placed for some of the machinery i required. , RABBIT ISLAND PLANTATION “The council’s plantations on the island are doing well. The opinions on the health and growth of the trees from experts who have visited the plantations are very encouraging. The council will i require to exercise the greatest care in realisation of the asset to the best advantage. In September local settlers who take an interest in the island, assisted the council by carrying out a considerable amount of work in clearing up growth in the domain and firebreaks surrounding it. Planting of yearling pines was carried out last year along the seaward strip of dunes north-west of the domain with a view to establishing a windbreak plantation, and stabilising the dunes. Blanking in with two-year-old trees is now being carried out. “Abour 3000 macrocarpa yearlings which raised from seed were planted out last year, half being planted on a small reserve in the Appleby riding and the balance on a small piece of land adjacent to the western end of the Rabbit Island. A considerable amount of cleaning up has been done on the island by the caretaker, and very satisfactory work is being done with a horsemower on the firebreaks. COUNTY RATES “Revenue during the past year has been satisfactory and 93.4 per cent, of the rates have beep collected. In my last report to the council I pointed out that the county rate was one of the few items of expenditure which had not increased in recent years—it was actually reduced by one-eighth of a penny in 1940 and again by one-eighth of a penny in 1943. During the past year we have suffered a considerable number of small floods in different parts of the county, which have involved the council in considerable expenditure, and this, together with the high cost of labour and material, has necessitated an increase in this year’s rates.” The report was adopted. Those present at the meeting were Councillors J. Corder (chairman), L. A. Higgins, L. H. Mytton, H. C. Beuke, F. Hodgkinson, E. S. Wratt, C. H. Sutton, G. Manson and J. Hildyard. GENERAL BUSINESS An estimate of the cost of bridging Beatson’s splash. Church Valley road, Wakefield, was submitted by the engineer as follows: Twin 4ft diameter pipes, £172; 12ft span bridge (New Zealand timber), £l6O. The council decided to defer consideration of the matter until its next meeting, the member for the riding to interview interested settlers and discover what labour they were prepared to provide to assist with the work. The sum Q f £2 2s was donated to the Nelson Day Nursery. The Nelson Education Board drew the council’s attention to the overgrown condition of roads at Golden Downs and between Stanley Brook and Thorpe. It was resolved that the property owners concerned be served notice to clear their frontages. . On the motion of Councillor Manson it was resolved that a street light be provided at the corner of Karsden road and the main road at Stoke.