BOROUGH LOANS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXIII, Issue 16, 16 May 1912, Page 5

BOROUGH LOANS.

I NESTING DISCUSSION BY THE COUNCIL. A STEP FORWARD. pedal meeting or the Stratford jh Council was held last evening sider the Mayor’s loan propos[kere were present: 1 he Mayor f P. Kirkwood), Councillors I. n, R. McK. Morisons J. D. S. Ward, J. W. Boon, G. BangMcAllister*- nd T. L. Paget. Mayor, in formally moving his . details of which have already üblished, said that as the debate be lengthy, he would ask, the that Councillors would racmnvtters bv observing the rules ate, and not interject unnecesAny point raised by a speakei a Councillor wished to question irge upon should be noted, and rith when the Councillor spoke motion. He then went on to ith the various clauses or t.ie id scheme. As Mayor of Stratds first consideration was the of the inhabitants, as may be by a proper and systematic of drainage and water supply, gh Stratford was a very healthy y reason principally or its ele‘lloo feet above sea level, unlinage and water was extended jast the congested areas, the of the inhabitants could not be have had proper consideration, lount set aside for the wa er smen t scheme had lieen .insect k ,less upon the estimate sup-k-Mr. Climie’s report, but be ; possibly a further report be secured, dealing with the scheme, and with this ni ' oviding for contingencies, an ml sum had been added to mie’s estimate. Later, be pro- ) move a resolution, resting tinof the Council as to the ;y of a further report. Ihe £2OOO proposed to be bnrr>wed se connections, was estimated ide for connections tor IUU the repayment to be made jii mts, covering principal and mThis should insure house conj being made to the s-ewei id down. At tho present nine Iders did not connect with ’be as readily as might lie wisned, because of the cost —am .mpoi titer to small householders. In iter of the estimates supp md chedule, these should be taken iximately accurate, but in caiut the drainage extension it e necessary to have this moik out, as with the water scheme, competent engineer, t is men e to have the septic tank cen- [ and a line of main sewer takthe congested area, and when i established, connections could ? as necessary as from time to dr Sullivan, the Borough I ored assured him that from levels hat the north-western portion town could be drained into a nstructed on the' present site isca Road, and there was an ivo by taking the drainage to : Road. If the drainage was o the Swansea Road site, rur'angements would he necessary i the low lying part below the i Road; by utilising a site at c Road the scheme would be as far as the initia.l cost was sd, and would serve the whole town north of the bridge. Ho armed that the present, -septic mid not deal with many more ons, so that further provision V necessary. A few more conI say, south of the budge, > made at the present tank, uiing, Mr. Kirkwood said tlia < jpinion a loan was vital to d, so that they might keep in of progress. It remained tor ncil to deal with the loan projo that when they were placed he ratepayers, they would be ile. He hoped th-fe'y would deal b loan proposals With open md that they would not adopt oial'attitude, which would be •ely wrong attitude to adopt, ■gard to the extra rates, the iuld entail an additional taxamder Id unimproved value, but ild lie reduced by the amount the increased rents received from erves. They received from the reves formerly about £3(30, but this ul<J advance to about £SOO, when i reserves were all let. That ' v * lb say, that with £250 added the erest on the new loan would be met. ssibly, in some cases, ratepayers uld advance the fallacious argument it they would nob pay any additionrate for drainage, water and other provements, because they _ already cl these advantages, forgetting that nv ratepayers had for years paid ;es for privileges they themselves d not had. Councillor Paget seconded the morn. Ho said he was very greatly m cord with the proposal that a loan ould be raised for necessary work, it whether the details supplied were equate for the purposes of the loan not, he questioned. He would poim ,t that the proposal was to spend 5500 on drainage which would cover ly a small portion cf the town. He d not know what the present dramre scheme had cost— —— The Town Clerk £5600. Councilor Paget said he wished tr •efaco his remarks, which he knew ould be studiously misrepresented in irbain quarters, by saying tuat tin .rvices of a competent engineer lould be obtained. He did nob wise. > belittle Mr. Sullivan in any way as irenfan and overseer of tins Borough, ut lie wished to point out that when bey raised a loan before, they had an xceedingly competent engineer Mi. ijimie and even tlien it was thought ocessary to employ a consulting cnineer to check his work. It was now roposed to spend the very large sum f £15,000, £6500 of which was to bo I pent on the extension of Mr. Glume s rain age scheme, without any quale led engineer’s advice. With regain o the drainage, he was quite sure hat there were several alternative chemes that could’ he devised. Mr. Ilimie had mentioned the matter of lumping, but he knew nothing hi in sell m that matter. They would see that t was absolutely necessary, considerng that they were contemplating ipending such a large sum of money, that estimates should he submitted of the whole cost of the scheme, as far as drainage was concerned, to a competent engineer The sajac remarks also applied toffcater. With regard to the provision di r £2OOO for the installation of the drainage in houses, he Could only say that ho was entirely n accord with it. With regard to street improvements, he would point onttha' this Council twelve months ago spent a very long time in going through tin necessary work of street improvement,' antfi a large schedule of street improvements that it was felt were required to be done, either now or in the course of a few years, in this tow n, was drawn up. Now- the whole of this scheme which they recognised was far too extensive for wholesale adoption was submitted to the overseer for hi; estimates, and they had been waiting twelve months for those estimates to •®m» down. Personally, before deciding what details they should have

he considered that they should have that estimate laid before them. With regard to street improvement, their overseer should he thoroughly conversant with the cost of material, and it might ho contended that it was not necessary to employ a qualified engineer. I’crsonally, he believed they would he saving money by getting expert advice. The Mayor had appealed to the Councillors to take a very altruistic view of the scheme. He

admired very greatly the Mayor’s faith in human nature, hut he did I not share it. hie considered that by not including all the ratepayers in the loan proposals, and, in part.cular, in not giving ratepayers in the outlying portions of the Borough, the access to their properties, that they des:redfche scheme would not he carried, as those who were not directly benefited would vote against it. He was qu.to against the large expenditure for kerbing and channelling. A gentlemen who had previously occupied a place at the Council table had said that kerhing and channelling was going to save the Borough hundreds of pounds, but that gentleman had nothing in support of that contention save his personal opinion. He himself considered that channelling was an absolute waste of money. No channelling should be done unless it was on roads metalled tiie full width. He noted that in other large towns kerhing was not carried out, and ho considered that they could not afford to do it in Stratford, where they had such an extensive borough. He would prefer that the sum proposed to lie spent on kerhing and channelling wore devoted to giving footpaths to those people who had not at present reasonable access to_ their homes. In conclusion, ho thought it would he dosirabio that the whole of the estimates called for twelve months ago should bo laid on the table, and that the Council should pick out from that what work was necessary, and provided that the Council were properly safeguarded in regard to the drainage and water, he would support the scheme as a whole.

Councillor Songster, in supporting the loan, remarked that Stratford should move ahead faster and not lag behind. He considered, however, that some better proposal could be put before the ratepayers than to take the drainage to the site of the present sept’c tank. This scheme he considered would not only he too costly, but would leave 150 acres of the Borough outside the drainage area. He impressed upon Councillors that when considering any scheme for town improvement they should remember that they were laying the foundations of a large town, and the scheme should therefore be a comprehensive one. He was in favour of something built on a solid foundation, and considered that they should work from the centre and make it solid as they went along. The Borough covered a large area, and they could not expect to do everything at once. As regards the water supply, personally, he did not know whether it would not perhaps he better to abandon the Patea and go to the Waiongongoro —(Hear, hear) —where they would obtain better water. Councillor Morison also favoured a loan. He considered the time had arrived when improvements should be effected, which it was impossible tc accomplish out of the rates. He was not preoared to vote for a definite sum —viu., £15,000, at this stage, because it might he found when more detail had been obtained, that a greater oi lesser amount was required. He also considered that it would he more satisfactory to themselves and more appreciated and approved by mo ratepayers, if they obtained <-n engnmer to report on the water and drainage schemes. It was also clue to them that the estimate of 'bo nc( a-wry works which the Council Ir.d many evenings in discussing some twelve months ago, sr.aakl be piac-rd before them before they built \v;rh t e present street proposals, and he suggested that the matter should be deferred until this was done. In connection with the drainage scheme, he thought they should provide for the uants of the people in the northern part of the Borough as well. With cwju d to the water supply, they Vn-uld aUo scr cusly consider the qua d- ,-i of canting the pipes up the Cavdili and Waingongoro Roads to the latriver, one of the purest and lc>t in the whole district. Though he did not profess to be a nexpert, he could see the advantages of kerhing and . ba-u-llii'g. One had only to wok at 'he enormous waste through stmm wilier n Reg.m Street. He consilmod they were spending enough in Fenton ,>ti “e: in cleaning the present wn'ertablos near the school to pay a loan for kerhing and channelling from Broadway to the end of the street. In conclusion, he doubted if the loan would bo large enough. Councillor Boon favoured the principle of the loan, but could not vote on the drainage scheme until he knew what a septic tank in the vicinity of Esk Road would cost. Draining to the old tank would leave a large area undrainecl. The flush tanks proposed to be used would he considered be unsatisfactory. As regarded the water filtration scheme, if this was to cost £2OOO, he thought the money would he better expended in laying mains a some of the more densely populated bye-streets, so as to afford the people there who paid for water some protection in case of fire, the present small pipes only being sufficient for domestic requirements. He approved of channelling and kerhing, which was not only an ultimate saving, hut also gave the town a clean and tidy appearance. He did not think that there

was any danger of scour even where the road was not metalled right up to the channel, provided ordinary watchfulness was used, and the ground was not too soft. He, too, considered they should have an estimate laid on the table of the work they had spent so much time in getting ready. Councillor Healy considered the loan a reasonable one, but thought that both the water and drainage schemes should he submitted to an engineer, and they would thus get the best results at the cheapest cost. The same with the water. If extension to the Waiongongoro would provide purer water and save the cost of an elaborate filtration scheme. Ho also considered that the ratepayer in the back streets with no access should be considered. Councillor Ward supported the loan, though bo considered the amount should be left out at the present stage. The water scheme was to his idea the most important, and lie did not think it went far enough. They should make prov siou to take land under the Public Works Act, not only for filters, but right through to Page Street, Oft wide, for in years to come the mains would need replacing by larger ones, and the cost of re-entry would lie very great. He also favoured the employment of an engineer on the water and drainage scheme. He also pointed out that no provision was made tor opening up various streets, such as Ariel Street, Juliet Street South, Orlando Street South, and Portbi Street South, which it was patent should be made. He believed in kerhing and channeling, but did not think the present scheme went far enough, in Fact, lie pointed out that no provision was made for kerhing Juliet Street, a most important one. He thought it would, after fonsider.-mr r-fi estimates, be found

necessary to increase the amount. Hi

I wanted a comprehensive scheme, j Councillor McAllister was also I favour of a loan, but was disappoin od at the amount set down,for ue'

work, practically only £l5O. H thought it a pity that the wate scheme could not he removed from th list and he gone on with at once, a Lhe Council was unanimous regard! n, its necessity. Whether they went t the Waiongongoro or anywhere else filters would he necessary, as the wat or always carried foreign matter whicl while not injurious to health was cer tain lx not pleasant. He also thongs the proposal to borrow £2OOO to lent to ratepayers for the purpose of con neeting their houses with the sewei would not he sufficient, as many o those not connected now with the pro

sent system would probably, and rightly so, avail themselves of the opportunity. They should adopt a scheme which provided for a complete drainage system, not necessarily to borrow the money all at once, hut so I as to render it unnecessary to ap- ■ preach the ratepayers again as each successive loan was harder to, carry than the previous one. If the loan as proposed now was carried those people not provided for would not get drainage for many years to come. Councillor Lawson did not consider that £15,000 would he sufficient. Streets on the outskirts were totally omitted, and unless provision was made for them the loan had a poor hope of going through. Councillor Paget moved as an amendment that the word “about” Inin.sorted before £15,000, in the sec end line of the motion, and that the following words he added to the original motion: “And that with a view of forwarding the placing of a loan before the ratepayers (1) the Council go into committee and appoint an engineer to advise re drainage, (2) that’ the engineer’s report and information acquired re high pressure filters he laid before the Council, (3) that in connection with street improvement, the schedule of street improvements already drawn up be considered, and estimates on the most necessary work he immediately prepared by the overseer.”

The Mayor, in reply, said he had no objection to tire amendment, which would advance the proposal. All the Councillors were of tiie opinion that a loan was necessary, and most of them thought even a larger loan was required. As far as lie' could see it would take a loan of £40,000 to do all the necessary work. He had brought the scheme forward in this modified form, because he did not think a very largo loan would meet with the approval of the ratepayers. He had been very particular that only necessary work should he brought forward, and in this had given the foreman a free hand ae regards localities. He considered that the whole proposal should be carefully considered. Councillor Paget was rather pessimistic about the people carrying the loan, but lit believed that the people had such sol id faith in the town that they would look at the matter in a broad .light. He had not forgotten the out-back streets, but his idea was that if the loan proposals were carried out it would lie possible to do this work out of revenue. Ho thought it was advisable- to get the feeling of the Council on the loan before getting an engineer’s report, which he agreed was necessary.

After some discussion the following motion was carried: “That the Stratford Borough Council take the preliminary and necessary steps to raise .

loan for the following works Drainage, water extension improve meats, house connections to sewer, and street improvements, and that, with the view of forwarding the placing of a loan before the ratepayers (1) that the Council go into committee am] appoint an engineer to advise redrainage, (2) that the engineer’s report and information acquired re high pressure filters he laid before the Council, (3) that in connection with street improvements the schedule of sheet improvements already drawn up he re-considered, and estimates on the most necessary work he immediately prepared by the overseer.”

The Council then went into committee re the appointment of a consulting engineer, and on resuming it was resolved to adjourn further consideration until the necessary data was available.