MATAMATA COUNTY COUNCIL

Putaruru Press, Volume XVI, Issue 957, 20 November 1941, Page 4

MATAMATA COUNTY COUNCIL

MONTHLY MEETING Little business was discussed at , the monthly meeting of the Matamata County Council held last week, the whole meeting being completed prior to lunch- Those present were: | Crs- E. D. White (chairman), J. E. Duxfield, G. C- Dunham, J. Bruce, T. Corry, P. Dee, C. H- La Trobe, J. Pohlen, J- W, Trims, G. H- Verity and A. Wallace. Permission was granted the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company to erect ten additional Public Works Department cottages at Waharoa for the use of the factory staff. A letter was sent recently to the Minister of Transport protesting against any increase in heavy traffic fees, and in reply the Minister said that no increase would be made without consulting the county. Tirau Township Embankment A request was received from Mr. F. Rose asking the county to keep in order the shrubs and grass on the bank at the entrance to TirauIt was decided to obtain labour to do this and to ask Mr. Rose to continue to supervise the work. Pedestrian Crossing at Tirau The engineer .reported that he had written to the Automobile Association re a pedestrian crossing at the corner of the Tirau-Okoroire Road. In reply it was recommended that no steps be taken until new regulations, in course of preparation,, dealing with .special crossings for schools, are gazetted- The matter was left over. Financial payments for the month amounted to £9142 8s 7d. Traffic Inspector’s Report In his report the traffic inspector, Mr. E. W. Jordan, said that during the month the usual patrol of roads had been made and no breaches had been reported. Dog Registration Mr. Jordan also stated that he had interviewed several Maoris re dog registration and in several cases .this had been done. Back History of Matamata County The engineer was asked how the book entitled “Back History of the Matamata County” was progressing, and in reply ihe said the hardest parts had been completed, and he hoped to be able to present a report shortly. Engineer’s Report The engineer, Mr. M. E. Fitzgerald, presented his report,, as follows: Materials used during last month included 396 cubic yards of metal and 495 of gravel on Hinuera Valley towards Matamata in preparation for sealing; 63 of -metal on Peria Road reconstruction; 30 of metal on Whitehall main road; 60 of gravel on Maungatautari main road; 15 of metal on Matamata-Waharoa; 54 of metal on Waotu main road; 78 of metal and 39 of sand on MatamataHinuera; 14. of metal on Totman; 12 of metal on Buckland; 69 of metal on Scherer; three of metal on Morgan; 72 of sand on Till; 31 of sand on Tui; 12 of metal on Banks; 119 of metal on Te Poi-Okoroire; 141 of metal on Raparapa; six of gravel on Tirau streets, 12 of gravel on Overdale; 93 of gravel on Back Lichfield; six of rock on Old Taupo; 12 of rock on Scrivener; 36 of metal and 36 of sand on Taotaoroa; 198 jof metal on Te Miro; six of metal |on Hickey; and 24 of gravel on Luck at Last; a total of 2557 cubic yards- ( Third-class roads graded included: Maisey, Mangawhero North, Till, Tui, Okauia Pah, Okauia South, j Banks, Old Te Aroha, Te Poi-Oko-I xoire, Livingstone, McNab, Moore, Rangitanuku, Raparapa, Kakahu, Pakaraka, Waimakariri, Leslie, Hari ris, Waiomo, Harwood, Hetheringj ton, Wehster, Taumangi, Overdale, Hildreth, Shine, Pearson, Petersen, ! Arapuni, Old Te Awamutu, Duke- ; son, Back Lichfield, Baldwin, L;ch- . field, Scherer, Matai, Duncan, Puketutu, Matheson, Parapara, Tirau streets, Paparamu, Murphy, Crawford and Orepunga. 1 Exceptionally heavy rain during the month caused a number of slips in most parts of the county. t Further progress has been made with Peria Road. We are now nearly past the difficult stage where earthwork for realignments causes inconvenience to the public. All deviations can be used during dry weather and it will not be long before sufficient metal has been laid to render them useable at all times. I Tenders for the season’s sealing works were received on October 28, and that of Messrs. Grinter Bros, was accepted.

The contractors have commenced delivery of materials for the final seal coat on part of Mowbray Road. There has been a maiked increase in the use of sledges on public roads. In some cases the vehicle comes on .to the pavement for a short distance in order to turn at a cream stand and in others it travels further. Apart from damage to hard surfaces and water-tables there is a possibility of serious disturbances of the stones imbedded in modem bituminous surfaces. It is recommended that strong measures be taken to stop this illegal practice. Some years ago Mr. K. S- Cox agreed to erect a bridge to give access to part of his land from Te Rere Road. The work was recently put in hand and is now nearly completed. The bridge will become Yr*’ county property upon completion. The erection of county houses at Tirau is now progiessing well. Foundations for both houses are completed and framework timber for both has been prepared. The frame of the house at the rear of the council chambers has been erectedCr. Dee asked the engineer if Kerr’s Road could be patched up as '4Ytheie was a great deal of traffic on it. He stated that the settlers on the road had offered to fill up the holes if the gravel was supplied by the county. The engineer was also infoimed of several places where drains and ~ roads were in bad order, and stated that he would investigate and fix them up.