TAIERI DRAINAGE CASES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14379, 24 November 1908, Page 7

TAIERI DRAINAGE CASES

CLASSIFICATION UPHELD. , PARTIAL COMPROMISE EFFECTED. Tho Assessment Cofttt, presided over by Mr H. Y. Widdow-'on, S.M., sat.ofMcfgiel again yesterday in connection with the appeals rnado by Taicri landowners ngnimt ilio classification of their lands fnado by tho Taieri Drainage Board valuers. Messrs MacGregor Mid Duncan and Mr 0. I. l'ayno appeared for tho'board.' Before hearing the objections, his Wor ship said it would bo only fair if ho were to announce tho decisions he had arrived at in respect to Uwse appeals that had already been heard. The decision generally was ae follows: —

"It will bo unnecessary for mo to refer to the original condition and early history of the Taieri Plain, or tho steps that have been taken from time to time,to drain tame and scope with' tho flood water,' as they .are well known and havo already been mentioned iii evidence and by counsel. With a view to effectively dealing with tho present slate of things existing on the plain, ' The Taieri Drainago Act, 1907'—framed upon tho report and recommendations of a Royni Commission—was pasiod.' 'The act abolished tho existing Drainago and River Boards, and constituted _ the district, recommended by the commission, a special drainage district, and established, a beard with very large and extensive powers. Tho hoard ha 3 been duly constituted, and, in accordance'with tho provisions of tho act, has in manner provided by the Land Drainago Act prepared a clarification of the lands within the district. Against this classification tho present appeals have been lodged.' It is claimed riiat the .present appellants' Jands, which have been placed in Class C, cannot possibly ]k benefited either directly or indirectly by the construction of any drainage workn by the'board. The power's of the board are very wide and comprehensive, and, in my opinion, tho act clearly contemplates thai whatever scheme ; s adopted thereunder will be of a comprehensive- character, and ombracing tho whole plain. The inclusion of these portions (n T-he district seems to me an indication of the Legislature. Then, not only is there, as Mr Macphersou has put it, a community of interest with the other parts of the plain, but in view of the comprehensive powers of the board, and consequently comprehensive scheme of its operations, these lands must bo considered to derive some benefit froai tho latter. It may be objected that tho commissioners recognised that these lands, or some of these laiids, would not neccs--earily lienefit, arid that they should be excluded from taxation in. the classification. It appears from their report that tho commissioners intended tho district to be sub-, elantially as defined. They found it difficult io define ' the exact boundaries without survey, ' and consequently approximate boundaries were given. If it wero otherwise it would havo bean as casy-or perhaps casier-to .havo fixed other welUlofincd boundaries. The effect of the appellants' •intention is to ask the court to, exclude considerable portions of the district, and declare them outside the operations of.the board, which would practically mean repealing the act with regard to them. Of course it must be learned.that somo mistake* must occur in any classification. A perfect one cannot bo expected to be made. How can it be expected that any classification will please everybody? Tho appellants are, however, in my opinion, taking too c reuinscribed 'and parochial a view of ti)o position. The act must, be construed in a broad and liberal spirit, and •in such mariner as will best accomplish the object for which it was passed. It has-been further concluded that the operations of tho board with regard to theso lands can only be the maintenance of existing drains, etc. and cannot eomo under 'construction.' 'Hie construction of the drainags works by the board' are olearly .lo' bo read ,in conjunction with, and in the light of, the Powers given by tho special act, and must, in my opinion, refer to tho whole scheme and operations of tho beard. The control and management of existing creeks, drains, and ditches must form port of the board's operations. In view of the fact that tho' boards powers include those of a Drainage Board and County Council, as well as those of a River Board-with special reference to the Rivera Waipori and Taierit and their respective- tributaries and" water-1 sheds, and of which latter river the Silver-' stream, Owhiro, and Mill Creek are tributaries—it i 6 inipossiblo io limit the board's operations as contended,- but'in any event, they must, as I have pointed out, come within the intentibn of the act. Section 32 (2) of 'The Land Drainago Act, 1903' also seems to bavfc somo bearing on, the question. The section empowers a drainage board to rato in certain ways, but there is nothing in subsection 2 referring to any particular method of 'rating. It seems to me, therefore, . that wnon the rating is according to a classification it must refer to the class-- of lands which should bo placed in the 4th or 'D' subdivision of the classification. The present lands do not come within the interpretation of that subsection. Certain matters have been mentioned by counsel—e.g. 'tho exclusion of certain land from the district, etc.,-but.,as they are not matters with winch the court has'any concern, I have not touched upon th,mi, Tho board, in my opinion, ha? acted'upon right prinemles in making their classification in the cases Which hare been heard. The lands in these cases have been classified as <lcrivin» only an indirect bcnefit-i.e., in division 'C' -there are no degrees or subdivisions of indirect benefit mentioned in tho act, and therefore nil Jands-deriving only an indirect benefit, whatever it mav 'l>o, must lie placed in that division. ' Reference has been made to the- private opinion of two of the officers appointed bv the board to wake the classification- that a pan} of the Jsorth' t'aicri might havo been excluded Irani the district. Whatever a person's private opinion may be. as to what the law ought to have been, fli (! provisions of the act as passed have to bo carried out. This rhe classifiers have recognised and done, *nd, us 1 have said; in mv opinion, unon proper principles. The appellants have not, shown sufficient cause whv an alteration should ho made in tho classification Of their lands. I With regard to Mr Cow's case, however, a mistake had undoubtedly bo™ made: it was acknowledged by the classifiers that 30 or 40 acres had been included in claw 'C that should have been in LV Uo would allow 50 acres to be -freed from class 'C With this exeoption, he thought these lands' had been correctly classified."' .Mr ■ MacGregor , intimated that be wished to cluini costs, but, after some discussion, it was decided that the question bo reserved. On the application of Mr Woodhouso it was agreed Io adjourn the court for an hour in order Io allow counsel for appellants lo'hold a conference and consider .thn position of their clients in the liirht of his Wqvsliip's decision. _ On thn court resuming. Mr MacGregor intimated that a. conference had been held. Ihe decision that hud been given would lay down a principle, that would probably alt eel the whole of the district. But other solicitors, who were not present, were representing different parties interested, so that they could only- deal with those parts of the district represented by Mr W oidhouso and Mr Maeasscy, who were present. The position now was that the board had made a pronosal that- would probably dispose of the whole of tho Sllverstream Subdivision-namclv, (hat the whole of the land now classified :, B" in that part of the subdivision above Gordon road be reduced to " C." There was « n l y ., ono section "' tnat P urt classified _ A,' and, as a matter of compromise, it had been agreed that this also bo made

The court then went through tho list of Silvorstream npjiellants, and made tho necessary alterations, those appellants prosent or represented in court formally withdrawing the objections they had lodged., ' The Taieri landowners whoso cases had already been hoard, and who wore directly affected by his Worship's decision, are: — Messrs James Gow, R, Gawn, John T. Gawn, W. H. Jaffray, R. S. Allan.

Before the court adjourned Mr MacGregor said lie would take the opportunity of intimating that tho board would bo prepared to agree to the court reducing the whole of Allnnton to "C." It also favourably viewed a proposal to reduce Outram to "B " -it now stood at "A." He understood that that would settle the whole of the (own of Outram. These .proposals were simply put forward by way of eoniprotnise: it was not admitted that the classifiers were wrong. Mr Wondhonse, inferring to tho case, said ho -thought that the' whole of the matters in dispute in Oulram would be settled there in one sitting of tlic court.. "lie court, at 1 p.m., was adjourned till Monday next, at Outram.