ST. KILDA AND AMALGAMATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16946, 7 March 1917, Page 5

ST. KILDA AND AMALGAMATION.

MEETING OF OPPONENTS.

Another meeting—this time promoted by ->' tho residents of St. Kilda. who ore against ' amalgamation—was held in the St. Kilda '* Coronation Hall last evening, when there # was again a good attendance of the public. s Cr Dove, who occupied tho chair, said the anti-amalgamationists understood that the Mayor was refraining from taking any part in the campaign, and did not approach him to take tho chair. It came as a great surpriso to them when they learnt that ho was to take th« chair at the meeting of thoso in favour of amalgamation. Although ho did not know the attitude of the Mayor, Mr M*Farlano had told him (the speaker) that he could not conscientiously tell tho ratepayers that they would benefit because ho knew that that part between the main road and the Crescent would not benefit ono penny by amalgamation, but rather the reverse Or Dove admitted that the rates of bt. Kilda must increase, but that was a thing which must naturally follow as improvements were carried out. Mr R. W. Hall was tho first speaker, louching on the water supply, he said the other boroughs were suffering from lack of water pressure, as well as St. Kilda. Ho pointed out that a two-storey house in the city had recently beep burnt to the ground for lack of water pressure, and that a similar unfortunate occurrence had happened at North-East Valley. Tho water supply - was inadequate for tho city, end consequently also for St. Kilda. Their requiro- ' ments as regards a fire brigade could not ' bo compared .witu those of the city. "Was there ever an occasion," asked the speaker m tho borough when the local fire brigade was unable to cope with a fire?"—{VoicesYes and "No.") Ho believed he was , correct m saying that the boroughs which had amalgamated with the city were also continuing their local libraries, and then there were the school and Sunday school v ,' ?*• , KiMa had a horary of some 600 or 700 books. The speaker £sked what - had been done at St. Clair, which was * amalgamated to the city. Three thousand pounds of patriotic money had been absolutely washed into the sea. Then there ~ was the tramway through the centre of tho borough. If the.city could see such a tramway paying as a business proposition it would be put in. Touching on the question of two houses on an eighth of an acre the speaker asked how many houses weri so built in the city, .where they did -not . have the rating 0 f th e Bn im P roved value? ! Ihe only people who wero opposed to tho unimproved ratmg had an axe to grind.— (Applause.) It was the only system which should be put into operation m every °°« n £y m -' the ™ rld - Mr Hall then moved al ' :n *, option- of this meeting of bt. Jidda, residents, amalgamation with the city would.not bo desirable at the present * juncture. J H ;,. l ' owden seconded the motion. i He stated that the unimproved value had hit some people very hard. It had knocked out the speculator. It was' only fair to say that some people in St. Kilda, and more especially Musselburgh, would have to " l pay more than if they .went into tho city, Si-j %. 6* cater number would pay less iNo doubt the city departments had £170 000 in the renewal funds, but the city had large , dead assets, and whether this renewal fund ~ should bo applied to wiping out those dead assets he was not prepared to say. As a matter of fact, thero was an ample margin ' for the rates to go up in St. Kilda. As i regards the valuations, there was a great - ' amount of discrepancy, but with the next ,} valuation all these discrepancies would bo smoothed out. i -* «??,?- C - Jon., said he thought that the people who had forced Buch an s ~ election on the public at an'inopportune >| time like the present should be called on V to pay the expenses of (both sides. The amalgamation proposal, he ventured to say, came from those whose rates were gomr to i I , ce Sr, lf the y i° ined the city.—(Ap- ~ planse) They could just as easily charge ' those favouring amalgamation with the city " with selfish motives as regards rates It had been ctated that St. Kdda was an overtaxed non-progressive borough, "' but m the last 10 years they had doubled ; their population. Their borough showed a k greater ma-ease than any other borough * m the South Island. What had ' the city offered? So far as he could see the city had offered them nothing at all. J-ne city Iwd : to supply them with ' gas for all time, and the same thing ap plied to water, electric light, and trams. If. however, amalgamation were earned allv these agreements would become null and > void. It was for them to say which was tot better wicket. Musselburgh had had most oi the quota of loan money spent, and -li2 considered the residents in that ward should see that the residents of Park Ward had their quota spent, and not bo left to toe mercy of the City Council.—(Applause.) The speaker said he believed in tne prin- / ciple of amalgamation, and that some day ' St Kilda would amalgamate, but ho thought that, the present system under which amalgamation took place between a borough and a city iwas lopsided. Six_ out of eight councillors were against amalgamation at tho present time. On the other hand, a body of men who baa not lifted one little finger in the municipal interests of the borough were telling them to amalgamate. _ Ho was quite sure that their own council would some dav assist the borough of St. Kilda to join the city.— (Loud applause.) The motion was then carried with accla- / mation, and but two or three dissentient voices.