NOT WANTED

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19364, 30 June 1937, Page 13

NOT WANTED

(Continued from page 4) Cr. H. 11. Dc Costa said that through the bungling of the Turf Club and the council, the Minister had refused to grant an application for racing on tire domain. Mr. Langstone was probably the only person in the Dominion who did not favour racing on the Park. Nobody in Gisborne objected to it. He would not say that the Minister was pigheaded, but it was unfortunate that he should adopt that attitude. Cr. H. E. Maude said it. was futile going any further, for the Turf Club had withdrawn its application and the Minister had definitely stated that lie would not allow racing on the Park. If the board pursued the matter further it was possible that the board would penalise the Turf Club, and the Minister might not only refuse racing on the Park but might possibly also go further and, although he did not think the Minister would do so, might ask his co-Minister to refuse racing on the Makaraka course as well. The only thing the board could do was to "sit tight and try to soften the Minister. Unless the board was prepared to ask the Minister to take over the Park, the best thing to do was to carry on as at present. “Sudden Complete Somersault” Cr. G. Bradley Smith said there appeared all of a sudden to have been a complete somersault on behalf of the Turf Club. The club should have written to the board on the matter. The Mayor had no reason to doubt two accredited members of the club, although he doubted whether one of them was a committee member. He had understood that the message the Mayor received was an official one from the club. The reason for the complete somersault might have been that the members’ stand was burnt down. Cr. De Costa: That is the whole crux of the matter. Cr. Smith said that the Turf Club before coming to the decision should have called the members together. The club had let down the councillors who had voted for the club being given permission to race on the Park. Cr. Maude said that there was a meeting of the club that afternoon, and no action was taken. Did that mean that the committee endorsed the action of the two representatives? Cr. De Costa: I do not know. “Unwarranted Interference” Cr. N. H. Bull said that it was plain that while the present Minister was in office the board could not look to a racing club as a tenant, and the board was faced with the upkeep of the buildings on the course. For the next 33 years the ratepayers would have to bear the interest on a £2500 loan. It was problematical whether the council would be able to let the domain to another tenant. He did not propose to criticise the action of the Minister, but it seemed futile to say “because in the past you did us a wrong, we will make the public of Gisborne pay for it.” It seemed unwarranted interference, and the board should not take the matter lying down. It would not matter if the Minister did take over the Domain. Cr. Maude said that unless the club supported the board, it was useless the board taking the matter further. The Mayor, after speaking on the phone to Mr. F. Tolerton, president of the Turf Club, said that Mr. Tolerton was in bed when the meeting was held but he understood that there was now a swing back in favour of Makaraka. Mr. Tolerton did not favour it altogether. The meeting that was held was not a properly constituted meeting Anlagonsing a Minister Cr J. H. Hall said that the council had set itself to antagonise the Minister. If the board had not tried to force the issue, he was sure that the board could have convinced Ministers who visited Gisborne that the board was in the right and that in the near future the board would have had the power to lease the domain to the club. Now by the board’s action in antagonising the Minister, it could not move for many years. Cr. DeCosta moved that the council resign as a domain board and ask the Minister to take over control of the domain with all liabilities Cr. Bush noil said lie was about to move a similar motion clifleicntly worded. , . Cr. Maude: Are we prepared to resign if the Minister refuses to take over the domain? ; On Cr. Maude’s suggestion, Cr. DeCosta agreed to eliminate reference to resignation. Cr. G. Bradley Smith seconded the motion, saying that it would be the best way out of the council’s liabilities. . . The motion to hand the domain over to the Minister was carried without dissent.