HARBOR BOARD.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 7167, 28 December 1894, Page 3

HARBOR BOARD.

The Harbor Board met kai- evening, there being present : Messrs Townley (Chairman), Hepburn, Sievwright, A. C Arthur, Capt. Tucker, Gray, and Matthewson. Mr R. Little, Kaiti, wrote requesting permission to connect a one-inch pipe from his residence with the water pipe from the spring supplying the engine shed tauk.— Agreed to, providing the Board has the right to stop the supply at any time and that 5s per month be paid. The Harbormaster reported :— " I have the honor to report to you that the damage to the breakwater is not improving. Y\ ell down towards the end and on the eastern side the bottom blocks are now commencing to slip out, and the top tier is also showing si«ms of weakness by several vertical cracks, which is a sign that the foundation is shaken. The "decking of the town and Kaiti wharves has suffered through the late dry and hot weather, and I have had to remove a number of the planks and replace them with new ones, and more repairs are still wanted. The beacons in the river and boats are in need of painting, and a new buoy is in hand for putting out in the bay to relieve the cue out there, which requires cleaning and tarring. The channel along the line of breakwater and the river keeps good. Up to date Mr Sellarp, contractor, lias got about £60 worth of timber and ironwork from the Board. Soundings this day at high water : SOOft out from end of breakwater, 25ft ; 200 ft out, Usft ; end of breakwater, 22ft Gin ; half way up, 15ft 6in ; big crane, 12ft; buoys in river, lift 3iu. Steamer arrivals 26, depatures 27, sailing vessels arrived 6, departed 7." The Chairman said that with reference to the breakwater, Mr Carr, engineer, had not replied stating whether he had forwarded the plans to the Marine Department, lv the meantime the breakwater had been left to itself, and, according to the report, was not improving.— Mr Gray said that practically for the last six months. Mr Carr had Lept the affairs of the Board in abeyance.— The Chairman said it was moat unsatisfactory. It was not right to leave the matter in abeyance, for according to Mr Carr's report they should make some protection to the pier. He thought they should represent the matter strongly to the Government, and if they could not get them to do anything, the Board would have to do the work themselves. They should tumble the blocks they I had in the yard over the pier to serve as a wave-breaker apvon. Unless they did something, the breakwater was likely to fall to pieces Their revenue this year was between £5000 and £6000, and under the new Act they could get an overdraft to that amouut. He flid not think it would cost this much to throw the blocks overboard. The damage was now going on right to the end of the breakwater, and unless something was done there would be a collapse. -- Mr Gray thought that Government would do something if the matter was put plainly before them.— Air Sievwright moved that the matter be left in the hands of the Public Works Committee, with power to take Buch action as they deem necessary. — Carried. The Chairman said the account was in credit £1566. Tenders for the building of ;i punt lor dredging purposes were then opened. The punt is to carry the five ton crane. Ihe tenders were as follown :— 7. SiOlara and Son, i-»9i"j ; Humphreys and Davys, £225 ; .John Soinervell, £22.V1s G<l. The lowest tender was declared informal, no sureties being mentioned as bondsmen. The Chairman said that with the service of a plant like this, the Napier Harbor Board had kept their inner harbor open for fifteen or sixteen years, and had reclaimed a largo area of land. A dredge of this kind woui.l ' enable the Harbor Board to do what limy ; liked with the river, and get such boats as the Australia in. He proposal that the tender of Messrs Humphreys and Davys be, accepted. It was no use their putting works on one side and on the other if they left the channel full of mud.— Mr Arthur seconded the motion.— The motion was carried unanimously.