INGLEWOOD COUNTY

Taranaki Daily News, 6 April 1932, Page 2

INGLEWOOD COUNTY

WORK ON ROADS AND BRIDGES KEQI. JBEMENTS OF RATEPAYERS. MONTHLY MEETING O’E COUNCIL. The monthly meeting of the Inglewood County Council was held yesterday, when there were present: Crs. A. Corkill (chairman), R. Stuart. J. Stachurski, W. N. Willans, J. N. Grieve, D. A. Brown, H. R. Jones and A. E. Cowley. The engineer (Mr. S. C. Judd) reported that in the north riding an old timber culvert on the Lincoln Road was replaced with 18-inch pipes. The Kaimata north and Bristol Roads had been graded. The formation and metalling of the Bedford Road from Surrey to Egmont Road was finished on March 31. The work was done economically and expeditiously. The steam roller and the pup roller were employed for a good part of the month on this road. Crossings were constructed to link the Durham and the Egmont Roads with the Bedford. The traffic using the Norfolk-Sur-rey portion fo the Bedford Road found the weak spots in the bridge opposite Mr. Dombroski’s property, making it necessary to redeck and overhaul the structure. Improvements were effected at the Durham Road factory, the road being scarified, strengthened with new metal where necessary and proper drainage put in. The Bedford, Upland, Dudley West and Windsor Roads had been graded, the Surrey Road rolled and blended and the Durham Road graded and surfaced with metal chips for three-quarters of a mile. Turning places had been constructed on the Kaipi Road. In the south riding the Durham, Suffolk and Norfolk Roads had been graded, the Ngaro Road had been, blinded, the Tariki Road had. been blinded and fern cut back. On the Kupara and Makara Roads fern and scrub had been cut back. Drains had been cleaned on the Johns Road, whilst the Ratapiko Road had been blended and willows had been trimmed back at the lake. Approaches to a bridge on the Tariki Road had been lifted, and water-tables had been cleared and patching carried out on the Motukawa Road.

In the east riding the Toro Road had been surfaced with gravel and the drains cleaned. Culverts and water-tables had been cleaned on the Ngatoto and Pukemahoe Roads, and the Otaraoa Road had been blinded.

The Dudley Road had been graded. The-Mountain Road was widened from the Durham Road corner to the brow of the first hill by banking the bitumen with metal from the quarry. The white painting of concrete bridges was continued and bridge approaches were lifted. The bitumen was banked with metal from the Inglewood borough boundary to Mr. Sutton’s entrance. On Junction Road west bridge approaches were lifted and the bitumen patched. A deep road culvert drain was piped and filled in opposite Mr. Lile’s property. On Junction Road east slips on the Tarata Zig-zag were attended to, the narrowed portions being widened and adjacent corners cut back to provide the necessary filling material, and metalled. This has improved the road by eliminating several dangerous spots. One more slip remained, but this was in the process of being filled. At Bathurst’s Flat the edges of the bitumen were built up to prevent it from breaking away, and to widen the road. The material was obtained by cutting back Deane’s corner, which was subsequently metalled. The Mangaone Stream bridge was re-decked and tarred, and the handrail painted white. The bridge at Bathurst’s Flat was also painted. The surface metalling from Oapui Road to Purangi was completed on March 11, 2019 cubic yard's being spread in surfacing the road and widening corners that had been cut back by the power grader.

A CASE OF HARDSHIP. Mr. S. Longstaff, King Road, waited on the council and asked that a track be formed to give him access to his section with a dray. Though he had been paying rates for a considerable number of years he still had to pack his goods, which he considered a hardship. The chairman agreed that Mr. Longstaff deserved consideration as the property, which had previously been held by his father, had been paying rates for over forty years. The council had recognised its claims and had prepared plans and specifications with the idea of having the work done by relief labour, but the Bedford Road had absorbed all the men. Now that road was completed it was probable that men would be available. It was impossible for the council to do anything with rate money. The engineer stated that plans had been prepared for a deviation which would necessitate securing land. If the settlers were able to assist with a contribution towards the expenses it would greatly facilitate matters. It was resolved .that the engineer take steps to have the land for the deviation legalised. The district engineer (Mr. P. Keller) notified that the Public Works Department was holding over the issuing of the monetary authority for the construction of the Mangaone Stream bridge until the amount available for reading purposes during 1932-33 was known. The matter would be considered in next year’s estimates. If the erection of the bridge was to be deferred, Cr. Jones said, temporary repairs must be effected to the old structure. It was in a serious state and farmers desirous of carting manure were not able to do so.

The engineer considered the council should stress on the department the necessity for reinstating the grant. The bridge required renewing and it Was uneconomic to spend money on repairs. Cr. Cowley considered the council should urge on the Minister the claims of that bridge as well as the Purangi bridge, and the King and Upland Roads metalling. It was decided that if necessary the chairman and engineer visit Wellington. SETTLERS’ REQUESTS. Mr. H. M. Besley wrote confirming an offer of £l5 towards the erection of a new bridge over the Mako Stream at Ratapiko. Mr. J. Forbes had offered to contribute £lO also. The offers were subject to the council subsidising the amount £4 for £1 by a Government grant. They were also subject to his offer of £1 for the old bridge being accepted. Mr. C. E. Frederickson, Bristol Road, wrote asking the council to lower a culvert under the road to enable him to drain a swamp near his house. —Left in the hands of the engineer. Mr. C. W. Raynor, secretary of the Lincoln school committee, applied to have the playground levelled and a few trees taken out under the No. 5 unemployment scheme.—Referred to the orga niser. Mr. T. Potion. JEverett Road, asked

to be allowed to open a metal pit on the Everett Road ou payment of 6d a yard royalty for metal removed. —Granted subject to the usual conditions. The district engineer notified the reinstatement of the free grant of £l3O for the Hoe Hoe Culvert and of the £6B 4s 9d grant on a £2 for £1 subsidy basis for the Bedford-Upland Road. Notification was also received of the payment into the council’s account of £GS 4s 9d for the Bedford-Upland Road and £122 14s Sd for the Hoe Hoe Stream culvert.

The Public Works, Department notified payment to the council’s account of £2157 10s 4d, on account of work done-—Junction Road, Waiwakaiho River, Kaimata £440 16s 2d, Kaimata-Purangi £577 8s 9d, Mountain Road £lll9 16s 7d and Egmont Road £l9 8s lOd. The department gave approval of the expenditure of £250 on a £3 for £1 basis for maintenance work on Mountain Road. The Local Government Loans Board forwarded sanction to the proposal to raise a loan of £250 for the Wortley Road metalling of 82 chains. The term was fixed at 20 years, interest at 5 per cent, and sinking fund 3 per cent. There was also a proviso- that the Government subsidy must first be obtainable.

The Treasury notified payment to the council’s account of £225 13s 4d, the balance of subsidy, £999 13s 4d, on rates for the year 1930-31, and £747 subsidy on rates for 1931-32. The 1930-31 subsidy was allocated to ridings as follows: North £212 14s Id, South £323 8s lid, East £9l 14s, West £371 J6s 4(1. THE KA-IPI ROAD. Mr. J. S. Connett, chairman of the Taranaki County Council, notified that he had agreed to authorise the expenditure of an amount not exceeding £25 for metalling with river gravel the worst portions of the Kaipi Road. He appreciated the offer of the council to carry out the work. This was a case in which a settler residing in the

Taranaki County used the Inglewood County road as access. The engineer stated that with Mn. Connett lie had inspected the road and the work would be commenced next week. Mr. C. D. Chant notified that the settlers had guaranteed to find £lB towaids the cost of forming the 19 chains of Roddy Road as a connecting link between York and Clark Road. It was resolved that the grading or the Makara Road be done according to the engineer’s plans as far as the money would go in conjunction with the free, labour offered by the settlers.