CITY LOAN PROPOSAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18567, 27 November 1923, Page 9

CITY LOAN PROPOSAL.

TOMORROW'S POLL ISSUES.

TOTAL OF £710,000 NEEDED. 57ATER, TRAMS, DRAINAGE. REVIEW BY THE MAYOR. The city loan proposals to be submitted 'to the ratepayers at a poll to-morrow were explained to a largo and interested audiftnee by the Mayor, Mr. J. H. Gunson, at the Town Hall concert chamber last evening. The address, which very fully covered the operations of the departments concerned in the proposed loans, was fol-io-wed with the closest attention, the emphasis laid on the fact that the amounts required for tramway and water extensions would not have any bearing on the raws being received with applause, Mr. J. H. Upton, a former Mayor of the city, presided. The following loan proposals were under review — Waterworks ... .„ £300,000 Tramways _ ... 280,000 Drainage „ _ ._ 120,000 Quarry ~. M . 10,000 Total £710,000

The Mayor dealt first of all with the tramways proposals, prefacing his remarks under this heading by an explanation of the position of the current loan accounts. He showed that the total capital authorised to date was £1,445,000, the work under the current programme accounting lor the expenditure of £320.000, of which £65.000 was expended on the Great South Road extension, £31,000 on ten new- cars, £26,100 on the Remuera and Onehunga duplications, an 3 £22,100 ou the Old Mill extension and the necessary duplication of tho Grey Lynn line to giva access to the Zoo. Gut of the appropriation, £69,000 had been set aside for the Edendale extension and six new cars, £54,000 for the new depot at Freeman's Bay, the total of £320,000 being made up of various items of equipment and contingencies. The ■works under that programme were being carried out expeditiously and should be completed by November," 1924. In the Event of Rejection. In the event of tho tramway loan being defeated there would be a cessation of capital work on tramways account, involving en interruption to further continuous development of the system. This was a position which the council felt should not arise, and it had determined as a matter of duty to submit a follow-on programme, calculated to occupy a further three years from the end of 1924. To make this possible, the loan of £25Q,000 was necessary. Preliminaries would take 12 months, and unless that time was granted for such follow-on programme, there must be a retrenchment of hands and cessation of development work in the tramway system as from November next.

The proposed programme as set out by the Mayor, included the following items: Twenty new cars £70.000 ; macnetic point controls £6000; additions to Roskill workshop for maintenance and overhaul, and for the building of new cars. £32,000; Mount Eden extension. £23.000; Dominion Boad extension, £25.009; double track to Point Chevalier, £54,000: Remuera extension to city boundary, £23.000; Heme Bay duplication, £7.000; Quay Street loon. £11.700; Albert Street, extension. £21.000: Plant and miscellaneous, £7000. Total £250.000.

" The four extensions involved are deemed to be warranted," said Mr. Gunson, "particularly when it is estimated that the programme will take until the end of 1927 to complete. It will be realised that any failure now to vote authority, such as is required, will greatly retard, firstly, the putting in hand, and', secondly, the completion of these necessary develooment works to cone with the everincreasine demands of the public in the matter of tramway facilities." ?

Development of Water Supply. Perhaps the most interesting portion of the address to many of the ratepayer* present was the description by means of a number of lantern slides of the areas in the Waitakeres, from which the city's •water supply is drawn, and others which it is proposed to develop. A section of the slides was devoted to the Waitakere dam and reservoir, and the main and auxiliary dams and reservoirs at Nihotupu, while the remainder dealt with the Huia watershed and stream. _ A locality plan made clear the location of the three streams with which this part of the address was concerned. Mr. Gnnson stated that the total capital invested in the water account to date was £891,289, of which £197,000 was due to the recent works at Kiho'ttrpu. The total cost of the two impounding dams at Nihotupu, including all the preparatory work for a period of some years, was £226,115. The speaker showed that there was a prospective balance in the water account at March 37 next of £31,632, quoting this as an indication that the department could to-day meet interest and sinking fund in the proposed loan. After showing that the total daily summer consumption drawn from the reservoirs was 6,7&5,000 gallons, Mr. Gunson said it was quite certain that if no steps were taken to develop the Huia resources or otherwise augment the supply, in from five to seven years, tho council, during air* long period of dry weather would be again faced with the necessity of restricta portion of the supply, as the present storage capacity in in extended dry Bummer would be insufficient. It was the obvious duty of the council to avoid that, and for that reason it was seeking authortv to proceed with the Huia scheme, which would add 500 million gallons to the present storage capacity of 820 million gallons. This proposal involved the large sum ef £300,000, of which £150,000 was required for the impounding dam, including all head works, lines, jetty, plant, etc., £100,000 for the pipe line, Khyber Pass Reservoir to Titirangi, and £oO.UW for the pipe line, Titirangi to the Hma Valley. The dam would be on a site of sufficient elevation to enable the water to gravitate into the city reservoirs, the most economical type of service. It was estimated, continued Mr. bunson, that, with this additional storage accommodation, added to the minimum summer flow of one million gallons in each of the three streams, there would be ample provision to meet all the city's requirements for the next 15 years, after which it. might be found necessary to take a further step in the progressive development of the water resources of the Waitakere Hills. This could be done by the development of the Lower Huia or Lower Nihotupu, or by going further to the westward.

Need For Drainage Extensions. | The next issue touched on was ihat_oi I £120,000 for drainage extensions, lne "Mayor showed that during the xast eight vears the drainage works earned out from capital account in the city had involved a total cost of ;i169,957, for which approximately 56i wiles of sewers had been constructed. He explained that, on April 1 last, there was a cash balance in drainage account of £10,500, and in loan account an unissued balance of i-lW which had since been placed thus providing £27,500 for expenditure on drainage during the current year. the programme for which the new authorisation was required represented work in various parts of the city, but principally Point Chevalier and Remaera. The final item was a proposal to borrow £10 000 to provide adequate and modern quarry plant. Mr. Gunson explained that the council had recently taken an assignment of the quarrying rights of an area adjoining the present quarry at Mount Eden, and by this means -was assured of an adequate supply of metal for the next 20 years, the stone heine the beat that the Auckland district could produce. The present machinery nd crushing plant was now obsolete, and of insufficient capacity, and to develop the quarry and meet the increasing demands of the city, it was proposed to mstal a new plant, with a maximum capacity of 000 yards of metal per annum, at a post of £10,000. A very hearty vote of thanks was aci'wJsd tie Mayor.