MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21569, 15 February 1932, Page 3

MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS

CITY COUNCIL REPORTS Among the reports to be presented by committees to the meeting of the City Council on Wednesday evening are the following:— RESERVES COMMITTEE. The Reserves Committee recommends that pay sheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £IOBB 10s 2d be passed for payment. GENERAL COMMITTEE. The General Committee will report that authority has been granted to effect necessary repairs to the brickwork on the top of the chimney stack at the Tepid Baths and to reinstate the lightning conductor which was broken off some time ago. The total estimated cost of the work is £ls. Applications for licenses and permits have been dealt with as under: — Food shop, provisional license granted for one month only; electric advertising signs, two; public billiard room licenses, eight.—Granted. An application from the Otago Labour Representation Committee for a permit to deliver public addresses in the streets in various portions of the city in connection with the forthcoming municipal byeelection has been granted on the usual conditions. Consideration has been given to an application from the proprietor of garage premises in Crawford street, between Jetty and Police streets, for the elimination of a portion of the park opposite the applicant’s frontage to afford more manoeuvring room for vehicles passing into and out of the garage. The committee, after visiting the locality and inspecting the park and all loading entrances in the neighbourhood on both sides of the street, has decided that in the meantime it would not be advisable to take action as proposed by tbe applicant. Instructions have, however, been given that the park is to be clearly marked with white parallel lines so that the traffic inspection staff will be able to deal more readily with cases of careless and improper parking. Paysheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £IOOO 7s lid have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment. WORKS COMMITTEE. The Works Committee will report as follows:—Authority has been granted for carrying out the following improvements at the sanitary department’s yard, Midland street: Metalling the yard, £4l; constructing dray bumpers and concrete wheel-ways, £2B; erecting a storage shed for six drays, £69; erecting a corrugated iron fence along part of the section, £sl; total £189._ This cost can be met out of savings in the sanitary works vote. UNEMPLOYMENT RELIEF WORKS. The city engineer has been authorised to proceed with the undermentioned works as unemployment relief measures under the provisions of the Unemployment Board’s scheme No. s: Making of cant on the carriage-way of Leith Valley road at the bend immediately below Hillswick street. This bend is not an easy one to negotiate by motor vehicles, as the cross slope on the road tends to cause the vehicles to avoid the outside of the curve. Estimated cost to the council £IOO. Constructing dry stone walling along portion of the back of the path in Jordan street. Estimated cost to the council £5. Paysheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £6594 6s 5d have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment. WATER COMMITTEE. The Water Committee begs to report as follows:—Authority has been granted the chairman to act with the city engineer in dealing with applications received for the right to cut cocksfoot on the water reserves. Paysheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £1328 have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment. ELECTRIC POWER AND LIGHTING COMMITTEE. The Electric Power and Lighting Committee will recommend that authority be granted to purchase new runners for the turbine at No. 1 power station. The present runners are of a temporary nature, having been designed for the 43 feet dam, and, since the height of the dam has been raised to_67 feet, are being stressed beyond what is usually allowed for such work. The proposed new runners will, besides being more efficient and effecting a further saving of water, give approximately 250 k.w. greater output than the present ones. Preliminary inquiries indicate that the runners will in all probability be of Swedish manufacture, though ordered in England, but before actually placing the order it is intended to make further inquiries with a view to ascertaining whether satisfactory runners can be made in England at reasonable cost.

The committee will report as follows: —Satisfactory arrangements have been made through the Department of Labour to utilise relief workers for widening out corners of the Waipori road on terms which provide for the payment by the department of an additional Is per day per man for camp allowance. It is expected that the work will commence within the next few days. Paysheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £3492 16s lOd have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment, TRAMWAYS COMMITTEE.

The committee will report as follows: — A letter from the Mornington Ratepayers’ Association asking further consideration of their previous application for a reduction in fares on the main line and also the bus service between the terminus and Elgin road, is laid on the table. Your committee is unable to modify its previous report to the effect that the time is entirely inopportune tor reviewing fares on any portion of the tramway system. The Mornington section, 'while showing a profit, is part of the whole city service from which it cannot he dissociated, particularly in matters of finance. If the principle of reducing fares on profit earning sections is adopted, there are other sections besides Mornington which would require to be included in any such reduction. Such action m the present state of tramway finances is manifestly 'inadvisable. TRAFFIC RETURNS. The traffic returns for the tramways for the last fortnightly period as prepared by the tramway manager are laid on the table for the information of the council. As compared with the corresponding period of last year, there was a decrease in traffic receipts of £413. The total decrease to date for the year is now £9749, equal 6.53 per cent. Pay sheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £4,466 lls have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment, COMMITTEE. The Gas Committee will report as folAuthority has been granted to invite tenders by public advertisement for the supply and delivery of approximately 15,000 tons of coal for the city Gasworks during the year ending March 31, 1933. The gas engineer’s summary of the carbinising returns for the works for the month of January, as compared with the returns for the corresponding period of last year, is laid on the_ table. The returns show a decrease in the gas sent out of 158,00 cubic feet, equal 7 ; .56 per cent.

The report of the Government gas examiner on his tests of the city gas supply during the month of January is laid on the table. The report indicates that the gas was in all respects in accordance with the regulations and declared standard.

Pay .sheets and accounts amounting to the sum of £2569 18s 3d have been recommended to the Finance Committee for payment. FINANCE COMMITTEE. The Finance Committee will report that intimation has been received from the Minister of Finance that, in connection with the arrangements made with the Associated Banks for the institution of an exchange pool for Loudon credits, the banks have agreed to provide exchange out of the pool for the debt services of local authorities, payable in London. At the request of the Minister, particulars have been forwarded to the council's bankers of the council’s exchange requirements to March 31, 1933, in the matter of transmissions to London for interest payments for the period named. The sum involved is £32,815. The committee will further report that the response to the invitation to holders of bonds in the council’s two maturing loans of £369,000 to reinvest has not so far been encouraging. The position had been complicated by the fact that other bodies are on the local market offering bonds at 51 per cent.

While the legislation of last session fixed I the rate at 8 per cent., the Minister of Finance has power to increase the rate for good and sufficient reason, and has done so in the case of other renewal loans As there is little prospect of the council making a success of a 6 per cent, flotation while other issues of 51 per cent, are in the same market, there is no option but to apply to the Minister for authority to pay the higher rate, and, although the position is to be regretted, the application has been sent on by telegraph as a matter of urgency. The committee has decided that an application from _ the 12th Battery, and also from the Citizens’ Miniature Rifle Club, for grants from the Andrews bequest should be refused in view of the grants already made to similar organisations this year.