CITY COUNCIL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 3915, 3 September 1874, Page 3

CITY COUNCIL.

The regular meeting of the City Council was held last evening. Present; His Worship the Mayor, SirK.lUmsay, in. the chair, and Messrs Beck, OaiToll, Woodland,' lieeves, Grant, Gibiori, BaiTon, Isaac, Mercer, Fish, Walcer,audProsser.. ".. . DEBENTURES OR CASH. ' . ■ The Secretary to the Water Works Company wrote stating that a considerable portion of the shareholders had not yet replied to the circular ■asking', whether they would take debentures or cash ; but intimation had been given of the intention to take £50,000.in debentures and £10,000 in cash. :• ■ .".-..,..- :'*. " The Mayor mentioned that the Finance Committee were considering the matter of issuing debentures'. "Referred to the Finance Committee,'to report if necessary to next meeting of the Council. ,'■■-: TUB FOOTPATH XEAR THE BOTANIC GARDENS: Application was made on behalf of the.residents in the North-15iust Valley for the Council to" mike a footpath along- that pariof the main road within the Town Belt. ■...-. • ; Mr Reeves mentioned that the residents ofi the. Valley had made the footpath up to that part,: and. supported the work. The residents had no power to" make a footpath within tbe boundary. Mr Fish, on principle, opposed the granting of sums, for the benefit of residents outside the City, wheu there were so niany footpaths out of repair within the City. The Council could give permission, buo should not pay for the work: •- . /■ ... Mr Uhjmon said the proposed footpath would be a great boon rolthe citzeus, as it wquld:give .them a good road to the Botanic Gardens. '■"" : Referred .to.the Works Committee. \ , ,TUE WIDESISa 0* I'EISCES STREET:SOUTII. . Correspondence was read from lessees on the Manse ' and Corporation Reserves. They'a 1 expressed their : willingness to submit to*valuatiou, but some of them conditionally ras" to '.the .appointing--of valuators^ and. alsoHhat the work.be done promptly. .;Jlessrs Guthrie" ~[ and Larnach, &ud..-Me.-isrs Haworth, who had been : . written .to since .theiiirc, expressed their willingness to . • Tnoye back; naming conditions as to arbitration, aiid also" that they receive a- definite' reply'■;within a fort- , >night. '.The resolution of xhe>. Council was to widen . only.asfar.as Police.street, -but since-the fire took replace,- the;Jlaypr, at jthejsujj!{estion.-of -some Council- ' lors, wrote to Messrs .Guthrie aiid Laruach and Mr .JSaworth, . _, , .. ~.'... ~.„.....,;...,.., ; ; ... " The cbfrespohde'nce- was -to -the* Reserves 'Committee,.to prepare"^deed;'of'submission'to arbi-: ■"; tration,; ivith ithe;.exception of the letters of Altssrs ; -Outhrie and Larnaeh :and.of Messrs Haworth; which * referred to a.Committee of the City Council. , ■■ ; - ' 4 CLAlil OX SOE WMEa%ORIWJ COMPANY; '; '. ' '. .Mr Janies Wilsoii wrote, stating that he had a claim ■ • lior cou'ipei&itiou! oil the Water;-Works"'' Company, which that Company had uot made:kn6\vnto the.City ■ Council. ,' .„. ..T""' . . ....-..,. i :■' "' It was re.sblved.thiit'Mr Wilson'be recommended to ■prosecute'his.claiin^upon the Water Works Company before the works are 'traivsferred to the Council on the • -Ist January'next. "■'■ ■:' ■ ~'-! ,z-.'^i> .:-;!..«::/ ; ';TUE LATE'FIIIE IX. I'RIXCES STREET. .'.'; Dr HpcKen .wrote, transmitting the rider,oi the Jury t . \who:enqiured hu^othis fire.,[(;.:';-.;;,-J.i'J £■. : ;. ~ , .The letter was referred-tothoFinanceCommitteep ; to take the/ suggestion:) contained iii the rider;into, ; the same Committee also. to - enquire : ' into the'truth of: the rumours of the' fire being :seen ± .for sonietinie prior, to the riuging^ofr tlie bell. ■. : ■;;%- , '■'."'"'..'■■.'' ' /": tjie baths/■'■;'•■• ■';. ; ;i; . : -'?:-' Mr George Esther wrote conveying- the opinion of - ;the meetiug of Bathers at the' Acheiiaeum;iat the pre- ' yious meeting, _.--.. , . .-,.'•;....,'..-, :, .-■ . ■■■■'■ . 'The Mayor stated that the deputation-from the; '•; :ineeting had waited on him during the kttern6b:i. As "■ '"it wais tliei iiitehtiori'bf the" Couiicirto'forhiii depute.- ■ . ;tion.to the Goyerument^hejpromisedthat tlje'.questfon' '.of dredging the baths would be brought'before| the Gp- ; \vermnent at the sametiine. : *. ", ... '". ' -;' .. •XL'ISAXCE AT TIIK RAILWAY STATIIIX. ; j. ' Jt \va3 xepoi-ted that a nuisance of a disgusting-dc" .scription existed at the Railway Statiou, and that an. ! had been made i£ it, werenot.abated a sumwould issue. ..■ •--•;... ;.' .-.•.•• .■- - SOX-WABILITY OF ABSEXTKES' AOBXTS. ' ". . In a discussion which took place as to a nuisance ex.istinff on the property, of Mr ; Napier, it was mentioned vthat au_ agent lor an absentee freeholder could not be ; .summoned: for a nuisauc i on tlie property, ov could not be compelled to abate the nuisaiice.-. The sugges.tion was made that tlie New Act Committee should introduce.a clause into the Act making- it i;om;>uisory >on agents to abate'nuisances.' .'.:' ':' ~.;? I'KRMISSIOX. . ..;. ■ Tlie General .Government requested permission to •erect wood audirji stables at the Railway Station on the reclaimed land. ■• -• - •"• '„■ ■ ._.:••., Mr Fish opposed the application, saying that if a -firm like, Messrs Uuthrie and- Larnach could erect brick , stables, he did not see why the General Government' could not do so. !La«'-makers could not expect other law-makers to be law-breakers] ; .-:•■.;; Referred to the Works Coiuinittec, with'power to act. -I;-"' .;. - ■-, ■■ '.-.•. .. '--.-.' ' V MACLAGGAS STRKE-r. '. .. ~ A number of the riitepayers in'Msclaggan street. : complained of the bad drainage in that street. ; Referred to the Works Committee..' ; ! ■ ' ' ; high ward. ''.'...'■ . | A memorial from -10 residents in High Ward, in regard to some of the streets in that Ward, was referred to the Works Committee. ... '. Bt-'TCIIKRS' AXD STALL-HOLDERS* MEMORIALS. ••:".: The butchers carrying on business in town, and the stall-holders in.the Uciagon Market; protested agaiiist the allowing of; meat to be hawked round town, men- : tioning among other reasons, that there was no check ' as to whether the meat sold was wholesome "or not. Mr Fish : It is astonishing what,interest they take, in the public health. ....•'- ; The memorial was referred to the Bye-Jjaws Committee. ■~.■':- PRESENTATION. The Mayor reminded the Council that the late Council, as a niark of appreciation of the services rendered by the then Mayor, Mr ilercer, had resolved that an address be presented to him for tlie manner iv which ho had discharged the.duties of his office. Tlie address was as follows: — ' ; "To Andrew Mercer, Esq., Mayor of the City of Dunedin. .. • : "Dear Sir—We, the Councillors of the City of Dun•edin who have held office during the term of your Mayoralty, desire to record and to express to you our .appreciation of the courteous manlier iv which you have uniformly discharged the duties appertaining to .the office of Mayor of this City. " At the Council board your decisions have been at all times impartial, and yuur bearing as Chairman has : been considerate to Councillors. : As a coiwequence, ; .your rulings have been implicitly and • invariably . obeyed. , -: . . ' " Many City improvements have been recently, car- , Tied out, but it is especially a matter of congratulation ' that, during your term of office, arrangements'have ■'< ' been concluded for the transfer of the Dunedin Water ; Works to the Corporation.- . ■ "As regards the general public, the testimony is ■ universal that during your Mayoralty you have been accessible to all, and we are glad that at this juncture ' your old constituency, the ratepayers of High Ward, ; have done you the compliment »i returning you as one of the representatives of the Ward in the new«. ouucil." [Here followed the signatures of all the members of the late Council. | He had very much pleasure in carrying- out the wishes . of the lat« Council in the matter oi presenting Mr • Mercer with the address. . • .. • ' Mr Mekvku replied.. lie was very proud of the ad-

j dress, and more especially so because of his associations , j for the past 20 years with the City. The Reserves Committee, among- other things, reported :— As to the instruction of the Council to request assistance from the Government in widening lMnces street, that this matter stand over till His Honour tho Superintendent returns to Dunedin. As to the application by the Provincial Government for a change in the proposed site for a Museum, that the Council endeavour to mako arrangements with the Government with a view to granting .thorn the use of portion of block XXIX (Chiuanian's garden) for a site. As to Mr Burton's letter re dairies in the City, that power bo obtained in the new Municipal Act to deal with this and kindred matters. As to the application by the Government for use of ground in Haitian d street on which to erect cottages for the immigrants, that a reply be sent that it is the intention of the Corporation to offer the land for lease by auction shortly. The report was adopted. m'AN'OK. The Finance Committee reported :—" The amount paid for day labour during tho last fortnight—£3oo odd—appearing very heavy, your Committee has instructed the Surveyor to prepare a return showing the cause of the employment of so many men, with a view, if possible, of substituting contract work where practicable. " Tho Town Cleric has been instructed to write again to the Buncdin Water Works Co., requesting to be furnished with the respective amounts of the purchase money required in bonds a-.d cash. " Tlie account rendered by the Dunedin Water Works Co. (£-23 10s) has been referred to tlie Surveyor to piss, if correct. " "Sour Committee has passed for payment, accounts as per warrants attached, amounting to £1233 11s Sd." Mr Fisu commented on the impolicy of having so much day labour. Between the 40 men now employed and those proposed to be employed tlie number would be S9. As much work should be done as possible by contract, which experience proved was the cheapest way. There was no reason why the bulk of this wo. k should not be done by contract. He would ur^c that the matter receive serious consideration, as they wore drifting into expenditure which they did not see the end of. . . .. • Mr Beck thought the matter should be referred bark to the Committee to report, devising some means of systematically employing men. He ' showc! cases wnore the time of men w..s lust through want of system. He also made the. suggestion that portions of the streets might bo let in contracts to old servants of the Corporation. The Mayor said the increase was only eleven on the ordinary staff; the others were employed at the stonebreaking machine. He did not consider the large amount of day labour so alnriningan increase as might be inferred from the remarks of Mr Fish. The report was adopted, with the exception of the clause referring to the employment of day labour. That clause was referred to the Public Works Committee for consideration. ■ '.'.: LOP box STKEKTV The property-owners in this street sent in the follow - . ing memorial:— . '''•"That'some' short time since your Council was memorialised to reduce tße gradient of Albert street and make London street passable for traffic. A deputation also waited on tho Works C.anmittee in reference to th« above matter. ■ "The Committee kindly promised to consider the application of the memorialists in reference to Albert street, and promised that no expenditure should be incurred on London street until the memorialists had been consulted in reference thereto. "Your memorialists now; beg respectfully to4call the attention of the Council to the works done since, and now in progress, in this street. It has beenkerhed aud channelled from Scotland to Albert streets, and, at present, the footpath.from Scotland, street, to Victoria street is being prepared f r asphalting. " Your memorialists bug respectfully to inform the members of the City Council that, in the opinion of your memorialists; London street; at its present level, is iitterty unfit for traffic ; and recommend,, if the street is to bcpermanoaitly formed, that, the gradient be uniform from the top.of Albert street to Victoria street; from Victoria street to Scotland street; and from Constitution street to George street; but that, until the permanent level;ofitho street has been fixed, no unnecessary expenditure should be. incurred." ■ The memorialwas deferred to be considered with a motion of Mr Beck, which'is' to bo moved at the adjourned niee-.ing.4 -; ■.--'■"■- :- ■- ■■ ' ' IXCOMG ASD OUTLAY. : . The following statement of present ordinary Income and Outlay of the Corporation under date September Ist was laid.-on the table :— Income.—Kents (for next year), £8000; Liccnsi rig Act Fees, £3000 ; Auctioneers, £400 ; sundry Licenses, HSOO ; Building Fees, £2.i0; Town Hawkers and Market, £ISO ; Dogs and Goats, £350; .Theatres, £120; Fines from K. M. Court, £100; Country Coaches and Drays, £100 ;..Country Hawkers, £20; Rates, lod, £0400. , Total, £22,220. , - , Outlay.—lnterest; £0208 ; Sinking Fund, 1 per cent., j £787 ; Street Lighting, £2S00; law Costs, £250; j Assessor,, £200 : Advertisiu.r, £450 ; Printing and ! Stationery,.£2so; Main Road, £1500.; Day Labour ''Maintenance, £2000; Salaries (iriclu'iing' gardener), j £3550 ; b'alary of Officer in charge of: the D. V. b\ U. Engine,. £150; Salary Watchman, £100; Contingencies, say, £400 ; .Necessary for Maintenance Metal, £750 ;'Available for New Works,'or to pay Interest onaNewLoan, £3705.—T0ta1, £22,220.' ■"-': ■ Corporation indebtedness at present date, £-79,000. ■'. /PUBLIC WORKS. ' ! The Public Works Committee reported, among other matters:— . . . i "' "As to letter from. Provincial. Government askingCouncil to give employment to immigrants, that 15 or 20 be employed at North Cemetery Road at 7s per day. " That the request contained in the memorial from Grange street residents," asking that the street may be repaired, nothing Having been done since it was handed over to the Corporation three years ago, be complied with. "As to clause of Surveyor's report estimating cost of placing road from Uegent road to Town Belt m i>roper order at £50 to £o"0," tlidt'ttie" necessary'work of mctal-liug-iiie road be proceeded with. ■ - .. '■As to clause regarding Mr James Morrison's claim for compensation-tor damages in York place, that :£ls bepaid him..:: .':.'.' " ...':'.,.:,: '■:;..:'"'■■••:' Messrs Sparrow and "Co.'s application for permission for- chimney : stiiek- oil-the reclaimed land has teen agreed to." o-'.".- ... ■' ; The, Surveyor has, with tlie concurrence of your Committee, arrahgedVith Mr Campbell for payment to him of the sum of. £50 for the removal of the pound from Hi. David street to site on Town licit.; this payment to cover any claims MrCainpbel may have in respect to the. cancellation of his 'unfinished contract for the erection"of "the pound at St; 1 avid street. ; ' It was, after a prolonged discussion, resolved not "to employ immigra'ite, ana that the Government be inffyrnicd to that effect.: The ..other clauses given above "wore adopted. : A" clause recommending an offer toMessrs iirown, Ewing, and, Co. for ten foot of land at the junction' of' Manse and Princes streets, was referred back to the Committee. .-.;,..-■•;.•-••• .V ...•..;■.,;; /.-ADJOUUXMBST......; .... .■■.•-.;■ , The Council adjourned till Friday evening ait seven o'clock, when the remaining busine.->s will be taken up.