PAPATOETOE AND OTAHUHU.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 15002, 25 May 1912, Page 5

PAPATOETOE AND OTAHUHU.

■ — w ; ; ■ ■•.■.. ;■■■:> ■ -..■'■"..:_> ■ •■•; <i PROPOSED AMALGAMATION.

[FROM ot?r own correspondent.] ? ) At the public school : at Papatbetoe on Monday evening last . an : attendance of over 100 persons met to consider the proposal for the amalgamation with* Otahuhu. Mr. W. F. Massey, member for the district, and Mr. S. J. Harbntt,.chairman of the Otahuhu Road Board, were present by invitation, and they were : the principal speakers.

Mr. S. Hodge, chairman of the local Road Board, occupied the chair. He very briefly outlined the objects to ;be considered by the meeting, which were :• as follows :—The advisability of working under the Counties Act, the forming of a town fioard, going in with the proposed borough of Otahuhu. As to the'first proposal, the chairman" said that the whole of the road boards of the Manukau County had decided to maintain the roadi boards as at present constituted. The county presentatives in that case would have con. trol of the main roads, whilst the several road boards controlled the. side roads. ; Mr. Massey spoke at some length on the new Counties Act. The biggest difficulty appeared to be the dual system of rating, one rate being levied by the county council and another rate by the local road board. Whatever districts were formed, he 'contended they should be large enough to support a fairly good engineer or competent overseer. Regarding the question of going in with Otahuhu, he had not given the matter much consideration, but, right offhand, it appeared to him that the district might be so largo as to become unwieldy. . . .

Mr. H;ixbutfc followed, dealing fully with the several laws governing a borough, and ho made it very clear that an amalgamation would not necessarily mean, that the same rate would bo -struck over the whole district. L In answer to several questions, the chairman said that about £300 was collected in rates in the district last year, and that an Auckland firm had been. asked to give: an estimate for the lighting of the district with electric light. : ; ■ •'.'■..■!•'' It was decided to leave the matter with the Road Board, the question to be decided at a further meeting to .be- called later.