BOROUGH WORKS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LX, Issue 143762, 10 April 1912, Page 2

BOROUGH WORKS.

THE MAYOR’S REVIEW. At the monthly meeting of the Borough Council on Tuesday night the Mayor (Mr. G. W. Browne; presented a review of the finances of tho borough for tho past year. He stated that on coming into oil ice his first care was to look closely into the finances of tho various departments. Ho found, on receiving tho first quarterly statement, the street vote was nearly exhausted, £1026 17s 6d having been spent and a liability' of £4BB incurred, leaving only £686 2s 3d to carry on lor the remaining nine months of the year, equal to a monthly expenditure of only £76 4s BJd for repairs of streets, watering, and scavenging. The actual cost from December 1 to March 31, including Fitzroy, worked out at £129 5s lOsd per month. The expansion of receipts from various sources and savings cfiec.ted in bank interest enabled us to overspend the street vote by £477 10s lOd, the result being that the streets were in fair order. For tho last few days the council had been in possession of a statement of the year’s finances. For the first time lor the last few years the finances on the year’s working showed a credit balance of £39 3s 3d. If they added to this the preliminaryyy cost of raising tho £12,000 electric light loan, amounting to £56 Is 7d, the credit balance would bo increased to £95 4s lOd. Only on three items had the estimated returns fallen short, namely, under licenses £4, reimbursements water £35 Os 7d, baths £37 Os Id. The unfavourable weather experienced during tho bathing season accounted for the falling-off in the latter item. Tho expansion of receipts occurred under tho following heads;—Borough by-laws £34 11s, rents £23, rent and costs of Avenue Road leases £llO, reimbursements, streets, £293 13s lOd, drainage fees and extensions £214 8s 4d, drainage agreements £27 16s Bd, Harbour Board elections £43 4s Id, Waiwakaiho Bridge £SOO, Hogs £l7, rent Town Hall £8 ss, sundries £lO5 16s 9d, special rate £l4 3s lid, water rate £77 3s 4d, extra water supplies £319 17s 6d, 10 per cent, penalty on rates £2 12s 2d, general rate £S Bs, Fitzroy general rat© £4 0s 6d, Fitzroy under deed of adjustment £655 7s 3d. In the separate accounts tho abbatoir account showed an 'expenditure of £139 5s 2d over receipts. The cemetery account about held its own, tho expenditure only exceeding tho receipts by £2 Is. The expenditure in the library account had exceeded the receipts by £4O 17s 2d, which .matter had been brought under the notice of tho committee. In tho contractors’ deposits accounts there remained a credit of £202 Iss. The estimated revenue for the year was £18,322, the actual receipts being £23,175 3s lOd. Looking into the estimated expenditure for tho year, they would find that the following items had exceeded the allocated amounts, streets £477 10s lOd, forage £3B 4s 6d, plant, material and, e-r ■pairs £99 7s Id, water cart £2 12s 6d, reserves £lO3 10s Id, Hospital Boards ,7s 9d, Fire Board £l9 6s 9d, band 13s 9(1, sundries £l6l 2s lOd, inspector and office £l7 15s 6d, electoral rolls £46 9s Od, rubbish -depot £29 2s 6d, drainage £6O 0s 4d, dog collars £2 X3s 2d. The following extraordinary payments not provided for in the estimates had been paid out: Waiwakaiho Bridge £SOB 17s, first payment Henui Bridge, Junction Road, £100; harbour elections £43 4s Id, preliminary expenses electric light loan £56 Is 7d, general expenses merging of Fitzroy £234 18s sd, deed of adjustment £735 15s 9d—£1678 16s lOd. The two items on the Fitzroy account exceeded the receipts by £3ll 5s lid. On the other ■ hand tho following votes had been underspent 'or savings effected: Town clerk’s department £sl 0s 6d, Gill Street extension £lB 15s, horses £44 3s 4d, kerb and channelling £66. 12a lid, tarring £7 0s 6d, Devon Road agreement £10; lighting streets £5, engineer’s department £IOB 6s 3d. Town Hall £l3 8s 3d, hank interest £167 7s 6d, interest on loans 13s 6d, licensing Is 9d, elections and tolls £8 11s lid,' baths £ll 18s sd, waterworks £4O 9s 9d, estimated reduction on overdraft £l32—total £685 9s 7d. Summing up the position, they found that the borough finances were in a verv sound and satisfactory position. He took the opportunity to heartily thank the council for their able assistance in keeping the . expenditure within the hounds of their resources. He had also to thank the town clerk and engineer for their endeavours to effect economies in their respective departments. It might not be deemed out of place if ho referred briefly to a few matters that had been carried out during tho past year. So far as streets were concerned U miles had been reformed and rometallcd. Three-quarters of a mile of kerbing and channelling had been carried out. One-quarter of a mile of kerbing only had been constructed. Twenty-eight chains of now tarring and sanding had been done. The Collett exchange to give effect to the tramway approach to Carrington Road had been completed and only awaited Parliamentary sanction. The proposals for the Greater New Plymouth scheme had all been successfully carried through with one exception. The portion of tho esplanade from Dawson Street to Weymouth Street had been secured to the town. The thanks of tho whole community were due to Messrs. Newman and Hollo for their generous gift in this direction. The Land Board had been approached with regard lo tho Kawaroa reserve and had prepared a Bill to be placed before Parliament to give effect to the application. Tho bringing into use of the borough traction plant had effected large savings in tho haulage of metal. In connection with the streets loan account 11 miles of formation and metalling had been carried out and completed well within the estimates, twenty-six chainsw of formation was now completed and ready to receive metal. Two and a quarter miles of new sewers had been carried out. Sixtythree connections had been made to new sewers, and sixteen to the old'-sewers, a total of 79 for the year, assuring a revenue about equal to interest on expenditure. He referred to the pleasant relations that had existed between the council and himself. To the town clerk and officers of the various departments he was deeply indebted for their willingness at all times to supply him with information that had enabled him to keep in touch with the workings of the borough. Entering upon the work of the present year, the council would he called upon to seriously consider tho initiation of tramways, the abolition of the ward system, the revision and making of by-laws to fit the new conditions, the extension of water and light supplies, the raising of leans to carryy out those works, the numbering of the town, providing of sanitary public conveniences, and possibly new municipal buildings, the present structure being inadequate to meet the demands for public purposes.