BOROUGH COUNCIL MEETINGS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9186, 16 October 1888, Page 3

BOROUGH COUNCIL MEETINGS.

PARNELL. A special meeting of the Borough Council was held yesterday evening to consider the question of adopting clauses 22 to 51 (inclusive) of the Rating Act, 18S2, and its amendments. There were present: Mr. S. Thorne George (Mayor), Messrs. D. H. McKenzie, McCabc, Gay, McConnell, Thomas, Gilmour, Savage, Lyell, and Eyre. The Mayor explained that the adoption of these clauses would give greater power to the ratecollector to recover the rates, as it enabled the Council to sell property within six months . As several members said they had not read the clauses referred to the subject was postponed until the next Council night. The ordinary meeting of the Council was then held. St. George's Bay Rowing Club.—This club, through their secretary, Mr. Herbert Marriner, applied for permission to erec l ; a boat-house on the high road in Judge's Bay, on the site now occupied by Mr. Bimlon. The size would be 50 feet by 25 feet. It would not in any way interfere with the road as a thoroughfare, as the path is on the other side of the road, and quite clear of the boathouse. Mr. Lyell moved, " That the request be granted," and Mr. McConnell seconded tho motion ; but asked whether the other parties interested, who had boat-sheds and rights there, had been consulted as to whether they were agreeable to give up their claims. It was agreed to grant the permission, subject to the rights of those people, and also that no public inconvenience would be caused, and to be erected subject to the approval of the foreman of works. Gladstone Road Improvements. — Mr. William Pliilson wrote that, owing to the recent improvements in Gladstone Road necessitating the cutting of the hedge in his property, he was left entirely unprotected troin the ravages of the children in the neighbourhood, and he wished to have a fence erected until the hedge had sufficiently grown to form sufficient protection to hfs garden. It was explained that he would put up the fence at his own expense, but a few inches outside his property, and he would remove it when required. The application was granted. NlOiiTSoiL Contract. — The contractor wrote offering to bring the cart at once from Mr. St'jcklcy's, and store it either in his stable or any place the Council might decide. When tendering, he made the price as low as possible.' as, having a plant of his own, he could do the work cheaper, and the Council's cart was no use to him. so he asked to bo relieved of any responsibility of rent for this cart and suggested taat the Council's inspector lock the door where it was stored and keep the key It appeared thht by the contract he was supposed to rent the cart. Mr. McKenzie did not think that if the contractor did not use the Council's plant that he should pay for it. The object of the Council having a plant was that those who had no plant of their own might be allowed to tender for the service. The contract was turned up, and it specified that the Council was to provide the curt, the contractor pay 5 a week for it, and keep it in repair. It was agreed to reply that the terms of the contract must be adhered to. Nuisance in St. George's Bay.—Mr. Win. Johnston again brought under the notice of the Council the disgusting Btate of an allotment in St. George's Bay Road, opposite Cleveland Road, which had long been made a receptacle for filth and house rubbish, and which was now a nuisance in every sense. If the by-laws were insufficient to deal with the matter, the householders (some of themi in the locality would move in the Court for the protection the Council appeared to be unable to give them. He was determined ib should not continue longer without his taking such acbion as he may be advised. It was agreed to call on tho owner of the allotment to fence it in. Remukra Road Board and Ayr-street. —The secretary of the Remuera Board forwarded a cheque for £12. The Board, he said, attended to the footpath on the south side of Ayr-street, and erected a bridge at the bottom, and attended to the approaches thereto. However, the Board not having met for some time, had not yet considered the Council's letter, but no doubt would be willing to contribute some scoria for their share of the cart roadway. The Mayor said he had soen the chairman, and the* Board was willing bo give assistance. The foreman of works was directed to make an estimate of tho cost of the work. Committed Report.—A committee of the whole Board, which met on the 4th instant, and accompanied by the overseer of works and foreman of waterworks, viewed the bridge leading down to Judge's Bay, decided that it should be renewed, the cost to be raised by subscription, Mr. Lyell undertaking to raise the necessary money and see the work done. They then visited part of the narrow street called Tararua Terrace, and decided to put a drain through from it across the road to Mr. Turk's house to join the drain down to Judge's Bay, and the work was now done at a cost of say 28s, including pipes. The committee visited Albion-street and adjoining properties, and decided to recommend the Council to carry out the recommendation of the foreman of works at once, Air. Otway engaging to lav pipes through his property free of cost if the pipes are supplied. The Town Clerk interviewed the propertyowners, and Mr. Abbott promised to contribute £5, and the church property £5 if the work is done at once. Tho report was adopted. Kike Brigade. — The secretary of the Brigade wrote that the fire-plugs are in a very dirty state. A report was also forwarded as to an alarm of fire by a chimney in a house in York-street. They asked that on turns out of this nature they should be remunerated by being paid, say, for one hour. The Town Clerk reported that tho tire-plugs had been attended to, and, on the motion of Mr. Gilmour, it was agreed that if the Brigade are called out by an alarm they bo paid for one hour. In the superintendent's report there was an objection bo receiving as a member a man over bhe age of 45 years. It was Mr. G. Fowler who was proposed, and ho wan rejected. The captain did not think it advisable to have a man over •15. Curiously enough the secretary at the last meeting had asked to be allowed to receive members over that age. Mr. McKenzie moved that the captain of the Brigade be requested to" recruit up to 12, the specified number, and that a roll of the Brigade be furnished to the Council. Accounts.—Accounts were passed for payment to the amount of £30, and ordered to be paid. The statement of accounts showed :— General account debit, £828 JOs ."id ; water supply account credit, £71 3s 3d ; water loan account credit, £92 ;te 2d; drainage account, £83 14s 10d. St. Stephen's Cemetery.—lt was proposed that a letter be written to the trustees of St. Stephen's Cemetery, requesting that a wicket gabe be placed on the right-of-way leading into the cemetery from Judge's Bay. The motion was agreed to. DEVONPORT. A special meeting of the Dcvonport Borough Council was held last night at the offices, Devonport, when there were present: The Mayor (Mr. M. Niccol) in the chair , , and Messrs. E. W. Alison. K. Cameron, W. H. Brown, \V. l'hilcox, H. Pitts, T. J. Duder, J. Mays, and Ii- H, Dudcx,

On the motion of the Mayor the following resolution was confirmed : " That sections '21 to 51 (both inclusive) of the Rating Act, 1882, as amended by the Rating Act, 1882, Amendment AcL, 1885, shall apply to the recovery of all rates now due or which shall hereafter be made for the purposes of this borough." The ordinary meeting of the Council was then held, and the following business was disposed of: — Encroachment on Beach Road.—Mr. J. W. Harrison, surveyor, wrote as follows:— " I have'the honour to state that I have, in compliance with instructions, dated October '2nd, made a survey of section 15a to determine the amount of possible encroachment on Beach Road, with the result that I find the boundary-line between said section and Stanley-street to be 485.1 links, which ought to be 439.7 links. This represents an encroachment ot 45.4 links on Beach Road, the encroachment running out to a point at the southern angle of section 15a. I may state that from the information I have been able to obtain at the Survey Office, the amount of encroachment is very clearly defined." The letter was received. Postal Matters.—lt was decided, after some discussion, to write to the Postmaster in Auckland, asking him to arrange for a postal delivery at bunnyaide, and also asking for a reduction in the postage to Devonport. Subsidy. — A notification was received from the Property Tax Department that a voucher for the payment ot l 140 12s 6d, 75 per cent, on account of subsidy due to the Council, had been forwarded from Wellington. The debit balance of the borough accounts was stated to be £487 4s Bd. Rival 'Buses.—Mr. J. Morley wrote complaining that the rival 'bus was running during his hours. The Town Clerk was instructed to place in the hands of the police copies of the several time-tables, and instruct them to compel the 'buses to start at the proper times, and from the proper places. Mayor's Salary.—The Mayor then left the room, and Mr. Brown was voted to the chair, after which it was moved, " That the Mayor be voted a salary of t'so for his services during the present vear." Messrs. R. Cameron, K. H. Diuler, W. Philcox, and E. W. Alison, all spoke warmly in favour of the motion, .and pointed out that Mr. Niccol not only fulfilled his duties very creditably, but spent a considerable amount both of time and money in the service of the borough. The motion was carried unanimously. The Mayor, on re-occupying the chair, returned thanks to the Council for their action. On the motion of Mr. Alison it was resolved to ask Mr. Niccol to allow himself to be nominated for a further term of oMice, it being understood that Mr. Niccol would accept the motion as an expression of the wish of the Council. The motion was agreed to. ONEHUNGA. The ordinary foi'tnightly meeting of this body took place in the Council Chamber last night, when there were present: His Worship the Mayor (Mr. C. C. I , leming), and Messrs. Austin, J. J. Shuldrick, Dunwoodie, W. Shaldrick, Jackson, Hastie, and Burden. Minutes.—The Town Clerk read the minutes of the previous ordinary meeting, which were confirmed as read. Correspondence.—The following correspondence was received and dealt with as tollows : —From the foreman of works pointing out the advisability of taking up some of the culverts in Queen-street, and of putting in their place inverts. The present culverts were often choked, and this state of affairs would be remedied by building inverts. On the motion of Messrs. Shaldrick and Burden, it was agreed that the owners be notified that the improvement desired might be made. From Mr. Burford, calling attention to the unformed state of Forbystreet, and pointing out that though the Council failed not to collect the rates, the street was sadly neglected. Referred to the Streets committee to report. From the Public Works Department, stating that Mr. J. S. Clendon, of Remuera, had been appointed a commissioner to hold an inquiry into the question of the future maintenance of the Bridge. It was agreed, after a lengtny and animated discussion, " That a committee, consisting of the Mayor, Messrs. Jackson, Dunwoodie, and Hastie, be appointed to consider this question, and report to the Council/' Special Meeting.—The Council then resolved itself into a special meeting to adopt the provisions of the Rating Act Amendment Act. 1888. On the motion of the Mayor and Mr. Burden, its adoption was agreed to. Financial Statement.—The Town Clerk read the financial statement, as follows :— Credit balance at last meeting, £647 10s 8d ; since when had been paid away £6 Is, and paid in, £19 Is. leaving a credit balance that evening of £680 10s Sd. Waterworks Account.—From this account £6 lls 6d had been paid away since last meeting, leaving a credit balance that evening of £34 0s Sd. Wharf Charges.— The consideration of the correspondence on this question had been referred to the Finance Committee. Mr. J. J. Shaldrick, ou behalf of this committee, moved their recommendation that a committee be appointed to go thoroughly into the matter, and to report at the next meeting of the Council. Agreed to. Fire Brigade.—The Finance and General Purposes Committee recommended that the sum of £99 16s be granted for the establishment of a fire Drigade. The Mayor pointed out the advantages to be derived from such an institution; the insurance companies had agreed to lower the rates of insurance immediately on its establishment. He moved the adoption of the committee's report. Mr. W. Shaldrick .seconded the motion. Mr. Jackson objected to passing the whole thing in a lump in this fashion. He moved, as an amendment, that the various items, shed, hose, uniforms, etc., be treated separately. Mr. Burden seconded the amendment. Mr. Hastie did not consider that the whole of the place should be taxed to bear the expense of maintaining such an institution. The Mayor uaid the brigade would go a long two miles; then, there was a possibility of their obtaining a bonus from the Insurance Companies' Association, which would be a help. The amendment was put aid lost. Spealiing to the motion, Mr. Dunwoodie remarked that with the aid of the proposed brigade, fires in Onehunga in the future would be of a less destructive nature than they had been in the past. Not only would the residents have the advantage of a reduction in their rates, but also enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that their properties and those of their neighbours would be so much safer. The original motion was then put, and declared carried on division. The Onehunga Reservoir.—His Worship took to remark that the reason of the reservoirnot having reached their expectation was, in his opinion, owing to inefficient engineering. He had learned with horror and dismay that the reservoir was not to be cemented. It was the usual thing, ne had been told, to cement reservoirs, and he hoped the councillors, if at any future time difficulty from this point arose, would not forget that he had told them of this. Mr. Jackson said he had every confidence in the engineer, and thought the Council should trust to him.