PUKEKURA PARK BOARD

Taranaki Daily News, 9 November 1932, Page 9

PUKEKURA PARK BOARD

FINANCIAL POSITION REVIEWED. PAYMENT FROM SPORTSGROUND. The monthly meeting of the Pukekura Park Board was held lost night. Present: Messrs. F. Amoore (chairman), F. Parker, W. Short, R. C. Hughes, V. C. Davies and P. E.' Stainton (honorary secretary). Reporting on the financial position of the board, a sub-committee comprising Messrs. Amoore, C. E. Bellringer and Stainton concluded that the expenditure for the year ended March 31, 1933, would be £6119 K» and the receipts £607, leaving a debit balance of £l2 10s. This was arrived! at by . estimating wages, insurance and sundries at £5BO, plus an outstanding account £39 10s. On the receipts side the following estimated amounts had been added to a credit balance of £145 as at October 3'l, 1932: Subsidy due to March. 31, 1933, £212; receipts fernery, £1215; receipts boats, £2O; rent of kiosk, £4O; sportsground and other rents, £6s'. The committee pointed out that it would take careful handling to balance accounts at the end of the financial year. The estimated revenue from the fernery and boats was probably on thq conservative , side, but the committee had deemed it advisable to err on the side of caution in this respect as it was impossible to what the travel-; ling public would be during the "summer owing to the present outlook. As an amount of £75 had been received, this year as donations it would be evident that expenses would have to be very carefully watched next year as receipts from donations were an unknown quantity. The superintendent (Mr. T. Horton)! said the fernery had been fairly well patronised during the winter, the takings being only £lO below those for the corresponding period last year. Mr. Stainton said it seemed that the board would about balance its finances at the end of .the financial year.

The New Plymouth Sportsground Committee submitted a statement showing that the income for the year* just ended was down by £ll3 19s lOd compared with last year. In view of this it was apparent the committee} could not continue to pay the board £l6O a year for wages for the. sportsground. After careful consideration it had been decided to ask the board to accept £l2O for the twelve months ended on November 1.

The proposal was agreed to. i The Salvation Army was granted the use of the park and the boats for a concert on the lake on the evening of November 13, the charge for the boats being £l. Permission was given to take a collection. The superintendent reported that in addition to routine work a boundary fence had been erected between the park and Mr. Simons’ pro-; perty and a hedge had been planted; Mr. Simons had found all the material and the park staff had done the work. Forty king ferns had been planted in the gully at the back of the sports-: ground. The drain in this gully had been trimmed and of weeds and rubbish. On the brow of the hill above the rhododendrons and azaleas, 100 totaras, 86 coprosma and 15 assorted native trees had been planted.

An immense accumulation of debris in the creek near Mr. G. M. S'pence’s property had been removed and thebanks trimmed and cleared. Pungas had been used to face the banks on both sides of the implement shed. Gorse, fennel and other noxious weeds, and rough fern growth, on the bank at the end of the Fillis Street gully had been grubbed and cleared preparatory to tree-planting. Seasonal work had been done on the sportsground, such as the preparation of the cricket pitches, top-dressing, seed-sowing, weed-killing, etc. Grass was now being cut on the terraces, to which weed-killer was being applied.

Lafge quantities of silt had accumulated at the dam near the Brooklands Road. This was removed periodically for filling in paths and A southerly gale had broken a big old rewa rewa in the native bush.

The board passed votes of thanks to the following for donations: Mr. Zumbach (dahlias and other plants) and Mr. and Mrs. ,L. Little (a sack of pollard for the ducks).

The question of repairing the bridge near the kiosk was left in the hands of the chairman and Mr. Short, with power to act.