BALCLUTHA BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20318, 28 January 1928, Page 9

BALCLUTHA BOROUGH COUNCIL.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) BALCLUTHA, January 27. The ordinary monthly meeting last night was attended by the Mayor (Mr S. V. White), and Crs James Guest, J. 1. Walter, J. L Gormack, Alexander M’Neil, George Hunter, D. Watt. Charles Stokes, J. R. Copland and Robert M'Lintock. CORRESPONDENCE. Fred Freeman, managing director of the Otago Farmers’ Co-operative Association, wrote enclosing plans for the reinstatement of the premises recently damaged by fire. He regretted his inability to comply with the suggestion of the engineer that the main entrance should be in Renfrew street in place of Clyde street. —Granted. W. H. Taylor made application for an extraordinary supply of water to garden nest baths, leased from the council.Granted at 10s a year! . The Otago Farmers’ Co-operative Association, New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Company, Wright. Stephenson, and Co., and Donald Reid and Co. applied for renewal of local auctioneers’ licenses.— Granted. , . ... • -The Inspector of Explosives, Wellington, wrote forwarding copy of the regulations under the Explosives and Dangerous Gooas Amendment Act.—Received. William Roy, secretary. South Otago Hospital Board, wrote complaining of the discolouration of the water coining through tho borough pipes to the Balclutha xiospital, and asking that the hospital engineer be notified when there was any closing oi opening of the valves on the main leading to the hospital.—Cr Gormack said it sometimes took hours to clean the tank and cisterns at the hospital owing to the cause mentioned. This would be obviatca if notice were given of intention to Hush tho main.—Cr Watt said there had been complaints from other parts of the town. —Cr M'Neil thought it would help if Uo water were left longer in the reservoir before being reticulated. —The Foreman stated that the present flush valves t were absolutely useless, and required replacing with larger ones, also the tank needed cleaning out once a fortnight in place of once a month. —Cr Gormack said it really needed a filter on top of the hill and another reservoir to make the system right. —The Mayor suggested that tho_ foreman co-operate with the Water Committee and submit a report.—On the motion of Cr Hunter this was agreed to. . W. D. Snowball, district superintendent, Department of Agriculture. Dunedin, wrote drawing attention to the Noxious Weeds Act Amendment, 1927, pointing out that the control of weeds within a borough must in future be undertaken by tho local authority —lt was decided to appoint the foreman of works as inspector of weeds within the borough. Tho Green Island Borough Council forwarded a remit suggesting that the Main Highways Act be amended to enable tho board to take over and be responsible for the main arterial roads throughout the Dominion.—His Worship said the Highways Board was at present flying about the country spending money, but from what occurred on its visit to Balclutha the other day it could not see anything, because it spent so little time in a place.—Cr Hunter said he had attended tho meeting with the board, and he could not see that there would be any hope of getting more than a subsidy of 30s to 20s.—Cr Watt agreed.— Received. A. Charles Begg wrote that at a meeting of sheep breeders and others in connection with the annual ram and ewe fair, held on the Balclutha Show Ground, it was considered that the charge made by the borough of fid a head per ram was an overcharge, and it was decided to ask the council for a reduction.—His Worship stated that a deputation from the _ breeders had waited on him and explained that it wa s trying to make tho fair a _ success, for the benefit of town and district and thought the council should assist. At present. it seemed, the best of the rams went to Burnside, and an effort was to be made to prevent this and have them sold locally —Cr M‘Ncil said he could not understand why fid a head should be considered too much for animals that sold_ at from 3 to 12 guineas.—Cr Watt said it was not the breeders who would benefit by the reduction but tho A. and P. Society, which charged the breeders 2 S fid a head on rams sold.— After considerable further discussion it wa s decided, on the motion of Cr s Guest and Stokes, to reduce the rate for this year only to 3d a head. REPORTS. The Treasurer (Mr E. R. Lothian) reported that receipts since last meeting totalled £574 8 S Bd, including a deposit of •C 7 CO. The financial position at date was: District fund account, debit balance, £925; d<->posit< held at date, £1945: total, £2870. Rates outstanding, £3329.—The report was adopted and accounts amounting to £955 5s 4d were passed for payment, Tho Traffic Inspector (Calder M'Kenziel reported that at the last sitting of the Magistrate’s Court he had obtained three convictions for breaches of the by-law^

had one case adjourned, and had several cases pending.—Received. The Waterworks Engineer (John Shed dan) reported that since last meeting (held two months ago) there had been pumped into the tower 2,225,000ga1, and the reservoir had been cleaned out twice. So far the automatic gear was working satisfactorily, the only trouble being that the 16 h.p. motor healed up rather badly, once in particular when on opening the door in the morning he found the room full of smoke, but no damage was done. —Or Gormack said it seemed to him that a 20 h.p. motor was needed in place of the 16 h.p.— Received. WATER AT TOSHVALE. Cr Watt moved in accordance with notice previously given—That the motion of December 20 authorising the laying of a water main in the Main South Tosh - valo, and the ordering of the water pipes bo rescinded, and the matter of a waver supply to Toshvale residents be reconsidered.’’ In speaking to the motion the mover said it had occurred to him that they had been going rather fast, and that no permission bad been received from the County Council to open up the road for the laying of mains. It was outside the borough and that permission would have to be obtained; also, instead of buying new p.pe s as proposed, he thought it might bo better to make an offer to the Hospital Board for the secondhand pipes they had for sale. There was another aspect of tne matter, and that was that some of the six signatures of residents of Toshvale placed before council as willing to take th ® already had the water from the hospital main, and that those connections had been made without the authority of th council. Hence the council could not get the support for this Main South road maio it had been led to expect.-Cr M Neu seconded the motion, which wa s carried. WATER EXTENSION. In discussing the advisability of going ahpad with the main along the Main South road, Cr Gormack warned the conned that if it put down a 3m pipe it would soon require a new reservoir at North Balclutha to give the requisite pressure for extensions to Toshvale and Rosebank. It was near the limit now. Cr M’Neil said the proper solution was to form a Greater Balclutha, build a new reservoir, and supply the whole of the hill suburbs with water. He was afraid, though, that there were too many interests in the council against that course. On the motion of Crs Stokes and Walter it was agreed to grant the applications for water at Toshvale, and to put down a Sin main as far as Mr S. Wrights, application, to be made for permission to the county council. It was left to the Works Committee to again approach the Hospital Board regarding purchase ot second-hand pipes, with power to act. GENERAL. The matter of dealing with water in the cellar of the Carnegie Library was left to the Library Committee, with power to act. , . .. It was explained that the automatic electric pumping plant at the power house had not been taken over from the contractors yet, and the question of the position of the waterworks engineer was left in abeyance. The Reserves Committee was deputed to deal with the question of giving entrance from Tinto street to the county council s new gravel lifting plant at the nverhank. At a special meeting the council decided to adhere to Saturday as the statutory half-holiday.