CLIFTON COUNTY COUNCIL

Taranaki Daily News, 7 June 1930, Page 14

CLIFTON COUNTY COUNCIL

WORK OF YEAR REVIEWED MR. FOREMAN AGAIN CHAIRMAN, THE GENERAL RATE ANNOUNCED. The Clifton County Council held its annual meeting yesterday. Mr. H. A. Foreman was re-elected chairman. A report reviewed the work done in the county during the year, and the engineer submitted a review of the month’s work.. The council gave notice of intention to levy its general rates for the year as follow: Mokau 2d.,'Uruti 2d., Urenui 2Jd, Tikorangi 1 5-Bd., Waihi 1 5-Bd. The annual report stated that as in the past year there had been a considerable, amount of work on the main highways under the council’s control, both construction and maintenance. The most important of these works were the bituminous penetration of the AucklandWellington highway and the construction of the Urenui River bridge in reinforced concrete. The continuation of the bituminous paving of the main road should be expedited by the council and every endeavour should be made by the council to impress on the Highways Board the necessity of providing its share of the cost each year in order that the work should not be delayed for oven one season. The completion of the work would be a great saving in maintenance to. the council, especially as the council was financing its share of the cost out of general revenue. It should also bo borne in mind that other highways would eventually require surface sealing in order to provide surfaces of a more permanent nature than had been the case in the past. The main highway works had been: — Auckland-Wellington, via Taranaki highway: Reconstruction and bituminous penetration three miles 11 chains, construction of a reinforced concrete bridge over Urenui River (in hand), 140 ft.

Pukearuhe highway: Reformation and metalling, 1 mile 65J chains. The Auck-land-Wellington, Pukearuhe, Inland North and Ngatimaru highways had all received usual maintenance, which included patching, grading, gravelling, scrub-cutting and building shoulders. One mile of the Auckland-Wellington highway was remetalled on the Waitoitoi section, and corners had been cut back on. the Waitoitoi and Onairo Hills. Several bad corners and narrow places had been widened on the Pukearuhe Road. l' ROAD AND BRIDGE WORK. The roads and bridges ‘in the' county continued to show improvement, and with the addition of the new plant' it had been possible this year to extend the. operations to back-block roads, which had hitherto received scant attention. Several roads had had the metal extended", and several new bridges had been put in hand. The works carried out had been: Mangatana Stream bridge, Piko Road, Mangawhero Stream bridge, Piko Road, and Boar Creek bridge, Okau. Road, under construction; formation and‘’metalling, Mataro Road, 1 mile 25 chains, Moki Road 25| chains, Faull Road 36J chains, Epiha Road 64 chains, Otaraoa Road 15 chains; formation, Kaka Road, 4Q chains. Engineering surveys had been completed for the folio wing works: Mangatana Stream bridge site, Mangawhero Stream bridge site, Boar Creek bridge site, Hogan Creek bridge site and deviation. Kaka Road 40 chains, Okau Road 2 miles 12 chains, ( Kaipikari Road, in hand. .'

A new power grader and scarifier had been added to the council’s plant during the year, and the whole of the. plant had been. in constant operation during the year. All plant had been carefully maintained and was in excellent order and condition. The purchase of a new portable crusher and screen was the next item of plant which must .be considered and inquiries were being made with this object in view.

The chairman stressed that the future policy of the council should be to urge that the Main North Road to Pukearuhe should be completed as soon as possible. The change from the horse graders to machines had been a move in the right direction. He was certain the roads in the county were now in a better state than they had been for many years. The collection of rates had been remarkable. Considering that the rates amounted to £ll,OOO, tho £l5O 19s. 2d. outstanding was very satisfactory. Mt. Foreman mentioned the / good work done in the interests of the bounty by the works committee, which had numerous extra meetings. The work of the staff was also greatly appreciated. TRIBUTES TO CHAIRMAN. In- nominating Mr. Foreman for reelection as chairman of the council, Mr. Barnitt considered it was a credit to the ratepayers to have a man who so closely watched their interests.' . His remarks were endorsed by Mr. Bower, who . pointed out the good work done for the back country settlers by Mr. Foreman.

The council tendered its congratulations to Mr. S. G. Smith, M.P., on his appointment to the Ministry. A conference of delegates of the New Zealand Counties’ Association is to be held in Wellington on July 2. Mr. Foreman was deputed to attend the conference, and Messrs. Phillips, N. C. Fookes and any councillor able to attend will accompany the chairman to wait on the Main Highways Board. The inspector reported that during the month he had collected fees for drivers’ licenses £lOO, petrol tax £22 10s., poundage £l, total £123 10s. Wandering stock during the month had been less than in the corresponding months of other years. In expressing appreciation of the work done during the summer, the Pukearuhe settlers requested the council to fence the Waikaramarama hill. The council proposed to attend to the matter as soon as possible, and to use pig-netting for the work. The Urenui branch of the Farmers’ Union advised that a representative gathering of residents of the district had expressed its appreciation of the excellent manner in which the council had financed the bituminous surfacing of its main highway, and hoped the council would be able to continue the- good work in the near future. The chairman remarked that it was gratify?!!" to receive such letters, which showed that the ratepayers appreciated the work, done#by the council. The White Cliffs Dairy Company was granted permission to run a pipe lino

for drainage from the factory to Mr, Holdiner’s gate, a distance of .30 chains, along the side of the road. Mr. F. G. Healey was granted a lease of the section in Urenui set aside as a pound reserve. OPAKU RESERVE FUNDS, The Stratford Borough Council was supported in its request to the Government for an assurance that it would oppose any movement of the Victoria College or the New Zealand University Senate to deprive the people of Taranaki of the sole benefits arising from the Opaku reserves. Mr. W. J. Polson, M.P., wrote agreeing with the council’s view that roading should be financed from petrol taxation. The Taranaki Automobile Association forwarded a request of the North Taranaki Dairy Company for the erection of a danger sign on each side of the company’s factory at Onaero and requested the council to'give the matter its favourable consideration.

The county inspector was deputed to complete arrangements for the signs to be erected.

The council decided it could not accede to the request from Mr. E. G. Bleakley to grant permission for 40 tons of manure to be carted to his farm. Other farmers had to take manure in during the summer and the council would have to abide by its resolutions. The Elthain County Council advised that it considered the system of distribution of heavy traffic fees should be reviewed. The chairman reported he had attended a meeting of the Local Bodies’ Association. It was resolved to oppose the suggestion to alter the allocation. WORK IN THE RIDINGS. The engineer (Mr. N. C. Fookes) reported on the past month’s operations: — In the Tikorangi riding the metalling of the Epiha Road from Purdie’s to the Main Road had been completed. Gravel blinding had been done on the Tikorangi, Ngatimaru and Bertrand Roads, and this work was showing excellent results. The crushing plant had been set up at Knuckey’s pit, and a-start was being made this month with the re-condition-ing of the Inland North Road and the supply of maintenance metal at various places in the riding. Patching and watertabling had been attended to on the Nikorima, Inland North and Ngatimaru Roads. Grading up gravel and blinding had been done on the Ngatimaru and Inland North, and the balance of the new grav.el laid would be graded .up this month.

In the Waihi riding the formation and metalling of 1 mile 25 chains "of the Mataro Road had been satisfactorily completed. Nine chains of the Turangi Road (north) had been metalled as instructed. Patching, blinding and water-tabling had been attended to on the Turangi, Inland North, Ohanga, Mataro and Waiau Roads. -The grader had been run over the Ohanga, Inland North and Mataro Roads to rake in gravel and blinding. The top end of the Mataro Road, on the unmetalled portion, had been trimmed up and water-tabled for. approximately two miles, and the balance would be attended to as soon as possible.

Grading, patching, water-tabling and scrub-cutting had been attended to in the Urenui riding on the Pukearuhe, Okoke, Piko, Kaka and Kaipikari Roads during the month. The Kohangampa Stream bridge on the Okoke Road had been redecked and painted. The erection of the new bridge over the Mangatana Stream on the Piko Road had been completed and the contractors had made a start on the Mangawhero Stream bridge on the same road. On. this bridge they had completed the pile-driving and abutments. Two miles of engineering survey had been completed on the Kaipikari Road for the proposed metalling next season.

General maintenance work had been, t. .tended to in the Uruti riding on the May, Moki, Ngatoto, Puke and Mangahia Roads during the month. Six 2ft. diameter pipes and seven 9in. diameter pipes had been sent up the Mangahia Road for culvert repairs, and nine 9in. diameter pipes to the Uruti Road to replace old wooden culverts. Metal patching and water-tabling would be attended to on the lower end of the Uruti Road this .month. • BRIDGE REPAIRS. In the Mokau riding general maintenance work had been attendd to on‘the Mohakatino, Okau, Mangatoro, Kiwi and Mangaroa Roads. Bridge repairs had been attended to on the Mangaonga and Okau Road. The new bridge and deviation. over the Boar Creek on the Okau Road had been completed and an excellent job had been made by- the contractor. The plans for the first mile of the Okau Road had been completed and forwarded to the Public Works Department, who expected to be able to undertake the reformation and widening work by relief works. The balance of the plans and surveys would be completed as soon as possible, in order to expedite the work.

On the Auckland-Wellington highway the contractors on the bitumen contract had completed all the banking, and had been put on maintenance from May 26. The whole of the decking on the Urenui River bridge had been completed, and a start had been made on the wheelguards, posts and hand rails; A start had been made with the formation on the eastern end of the bridge. Grading, scrub-cut-ting, water-tabling and repairing road fences had been attended to on this road between Onaero and Pukearuhe Road junction. Two miles 30 chains of engineering survey from the end of the present bitumen to Urenui was in hand, and 0113 mile from Pukearuhe Road junction back towards Urenui would, be put in hand this month for next season’s bitumen work.

Thr Public Works system of 8 J-hour days was adopted to allow the surfacemen a half-day on Saturday. The engineer reported that the Mimi bridge needed redecking this year. The bridge was 150 feet long, and the cost would be about £2OO. The engineer was granted permission to undertake the work on the bridge at a favourable opportunity. Those present at the meeting were Messrs. Foreman, F. Sarten, C. H. Barnitt, J. F. Phillips, W. H. Watson, G. W. Rogers and H. A. Bower.