MT. ALBERT'S AUTONOMY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18964, 11 March 1925, Page 10

MT. ALBERT'S AUTONOMY

AMALGAMATION WITH CITY. OPPOSITION OP COUNCIL. SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALITY. The proposal for (lie amalgamation of Mount Albert Borough with iho, city of Auckland was adversely reported upon «t. the meeting of the Mount Albert Borough Council last evening by a special committee of the council. The committee, which comprised the whole council reported that it had collected necessary data, and had fully considered the question, but was unanimously of the opinion that it would not be in the best interests of Mount Albert to join with the city. The qucsion to be decided was that of the. best form of Government and the committee felt that the right method would be to place those services which dealt with the whole Auckland area under a, Metropolitan Board or boards, and for local requirements to be controlled by local bodies. This system had been partially instituted already with the drainage board and the Electric Power Board, and it might easily be extended with advantage. There was such a thing as making the district under one local body so large that it ceased to be local Government at all. The amount of direct representation which any district could obtain in such a local Government was very limited, and it might even have none at all, as was the case with Point Chevalier at the present time. There was nothing to indicate that if Mount Albert joined the city it would be developed any better, quicker or more economically than could lie done hv Mount Albert itself. Indeed, one had only to see the undeveloped condition of Point Chevalier, which had been in the city over five years, and large portions of Remuera, which had belonged to the citv for the last 10 years, to realise that. "In the matter of rates," continued the report, "although Mount. Albeit has no endowments to. assist the revenue, its rates are much lower than those of the city, the latest Government returns available showing that on the capital value, Mount Albert collects only £6 in rates on a stated valuation, where the city collects £9. This means that on existing assessed values, the ratepayers ol Mount Albert would have to pay 50 per cent, more rates. As tho city has been spending at a more rapid rate than Mount Albert and has large loans yet to issue, Mount Albert will be able to spend large sums of money in improving its district and still keep its rates below those of the city. " If Mount Albert should join the city, the ratepayers would have to shoulder and help to pay off the enormous debt of nearly £4,250,000, which, according to the same returns, amounted to £49 per head of the population, as against the indebtedness of less than £9 per head for Mount Albert. This alone should be :* sufficient answer against amalgamation. If the present progressive policy of the borough council is carried on by future councils, there is no reason why the district cannot be brought quite up-to-date in every respect, and Mount Albert will retain its individuality, as Mount Eden and Newmarket are. doing." The report was adopted. ■ I