CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22832, 17 March 1936, Page 7

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

MONTHLY MEETING The monthly meeting of the council of the Dunedin Chamber of Commerce was held last night, and was attended by Messrs M. S. Myers (president). J. H. Duncan, M. Stewart, I. S. Cantrell, J. C. Anderson, Newman R. Wilson, A. W. .Teavons, J. S. Skinner, L. Deans Ritchie, H. L. Longbottom, R. Armit, E. J. Taylor, W. E. Mackay, and W. H. Naylor. MANIOTOTO IRRIGATION. The president reported that he had received a letter from Mr W. A. Bodkin, M.P., drawing the attention of the chamber to three projects which were of considerable importance to Central Otago. These were the Maniototo irrigation scheme, the Haast Pass road, and the Queenstown-Glenorchy road. Of these Mr Bodkin considered the Maniototo irriga tion scheme the most important, and he asked that the chamber should support a request that was to be made to the Minister of Public Works (Mr R. Semple) that the work should be undertaken. A committee consisting of Messrs Stewart, Ritchie, Wilson, and A. C. Cameron was set up to submit a report on the scheme. PUBLICITY SCHEME. Mr Stewart, reporting on the .scheme for the expenditure of £IOOO on a publicity scheme for Otago and Southland, said that, of the Dunedin quota of £450, £425 had been promised, and it was hoped that the balance would soon be available. The latest reports were that Southland had made only a little headway, and no definite action could be taken until further information had been received. AIR MAIL SERVICE. The executive reported that to mark the inauguration of the air mail service yesterday letters were posted to the Prime Minister, Postmaster-general, and Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury Chambers of Commerce, expressing appreciation of the service and also the hope that full use would be made of it. QUEBNSTOWN-KINGSTON ROAD. Mr G. H. Mackley, general manager of railways, wrote advising that the department had made application for transport licences over the Queenstown-Kingston road. He stated that the department’s pjroposals for serving the southern tourist resorts were comprehensive, and included the provision of rail cars on the Inver-eargill-Kingston line, including Waimea, ami service cars of modern type. The department would also have available both service cars and omnibuses for use in running tourist services from Queenstown to To Anau and Eglinton Valley, and from Queenstown to Gore as required. The running of the steamer between Queenstown and Kingston would be restricted, except at busy periods, to three days a week, and a special goods road service would be provided to carry goods and parcels on the days when the steamer did not run. The executive reported that in view of these proposals it considered that the department should have a licence to operate over the Queenstown-Kingston road, and if the Mount Cook Tourist Company retained its interest in the Lumsdcn-Milford route it should also have a restricted licence for through passengers only. The executive’s view was endorsed.