LEVELS BOAD BOARD.

Timaru Herald, Volume LII, Issue 5164, 10 June 1891, Page 3

LEVELS BOAD BOARD.

; - _^_ 3 Tha monthly mooting of tho Levels Boad t Board was held yesterday. Present : Messrs Orbell (chairman), Moo, Balfour, and a Bristol. fc Tho Mnokenzie County Council wrote 1 advising that ropairo to the boundary road, Cave to Pavoora, had beon dono by them at a 1 coat of £i& 163, and asking for a chocjun for i half that utnoant. — The amount wan thought large for ropairi), and the overseer wos int structed to go and boo what had been done , before payment is mado. 1 Tho Garaldine County Council forwarded • copy of a resolution received from tho Hobg pital and Churitablo Aid Board, that all cono tributions not promptly paid would be suod ,1 fo* I.—Members1 .— Members agreed to pass tho cheque for payment that day. o Sovoral lotfors wore road respecting old ox- •• cliAngo of road arrangements, b Tho Eailvfsjr Dopattmon 11 notified their

willingneas to fence iv tho road giving accei to E.S. 13626, Soadown. They would hui it dona. Mr E. Acton wroto complaining of th gravel pit the board had rocently opened o a Boction m the Point township, which woul not only bo a groat disfigurement and an ie jury to adjacent sections, but, ultimately, pit of stagnant water, and a depftt for ol kinds of refuse. — The chairman and Mr Me ovid Mr Acton hod also spoken to them abou it. They did not agreo with him that th pit would bo injurious or particularly un sightly : end as for stagnant water tho over seer sla '<"i the natural wuter level there wo 14ft beW the surface. — It waß agreod tha tho pit could not be given up, it had onl' juet boen purchased j but that to obviati complaints of disfigurement some treosehouh bo planted m the corners and along the sides Mr W. L. Mitchell, manager of Boekwood wroto complaining of the state of a piece o road between Baincliff and the Opihi.— Koad not m tho Levels district. Mr D, Heffeman wroto asking pormissioi to turn water from a race into the ditel opposite his house, aa before. — Refused as the congregation of stock about tin waterholo is a nuisance on tha road. Mr H. Durnnd offered £10 for the boaid'i road engine aud fittings. — Accepted. The Adair School Committee asked for re pairs and improvements to two footbridgei used by school children. — To bo attendee toThe secretary to tho South Canterbury Saleyards Company asked for a contributior to coßt of renewing culvert at entrance tc aaleyirda,— Cost of pipes to bo paid ai usual. Thirty-two residents of Otipua ward peti tioned for the acquisition of the necessary hnd and the formation of a road to connect Lowor Otipua road with Mount Horrible road —Mr Bristol explained the position of tha desired road-lino aud the advantftgo such a road would be, eispooially for stock-driving. About six acrea of laud would havo to be purchased from him, aud he would be prepared to deal liberally with the board. —Mr Mcc opposed the proposal on tho ground that the board could not afford to buy and fence land ; if tbi9 was done the Otipua ward roads would have to suffer. It was decided to hold over the petition, to see how the funds stand when the winter is past. Mr Humphreys waited on tho board to press for the repair and shingling of tho road to the llilford crossing, which hud had nothing dove to it since it was formed ten years ago. The board at last meeting held over some tenders for work on another road on Soadown, to enable the overseer to report whether Mr Humpbroys' road needed attention most. Mr Annand's report was to the effect that the road already tendered for should be first done as it was clayey and dries slowly, while Mr Humphreys' road being sandy dries quickly. Mr Humphreys pressed hard for something to be done to his road, and as to tho soil said his road being loamy became impassable with a very little rain. A long discuision took place, Mr Humphreys urging his. claim, and tnemberß pointing to the slate of the finances, already £471 overdrawn, and their desire to keep out of debt. The applicant threatened to attend every board day until his request was granted. Mr Humphreys having retired, Mr Mcc proposed that tenders be called for the work asked for, although there were many other roads m the diatrict quite as bad or worse. Mr Bristol would follow tho overseer's report, and do the worst road — Mr Balfour's application — first. It was agreed to oall for tenders for next meeting. Tho Overaeor reported as follows : — ' " Contracts. — All contracts are now finished except that, for metalling the far end of Otipua road, * which may be completed m fourteen days from date. " Worka etc. attended to. — Reforming cuttings and steop places on Summorleas and reserve roada ; raising, metalling, and putting m culvert at approach to Upper Paraoru bridge ; repairing ford etc. Brigga' Gully ; repairing Levels valley and lowor Waahdyke roads, and repairing Point- Washdyka road with shingle etc. " Works etc , applied for : —Cliffs road, there are several steep pinches over gulließ complained of that require regrading, also some reforming cost say £ . Milford road. Thn total length to be metalled to connect with river ford id 131 chains, inclusive of aome reforming cost say £ -. — . (Cost of royalty on 600 yards of sbinglo not included m the ttbov.-.) Bogardiug the relative claims of urgency between the Seadown beach road and the Milford road, five settlers have to cart over the former and three over <he latter, exclusive of tho traffic over the ford, which must of necessity be confined to light vehicles and horsemen,' as the ford is deep and dangerous, and that whereas the soil of the Seadown beach road is of a clayey nature and requires a long time to dry, that of tho Milford road is of a sandy loam and is dry sooner. " Bridgea. — To render the three wooden bridges on Main South Boad safe for traction nngines orossing, new abutmonts formed of Bin x Bin timber would require to be fixed under each, which with sundry repairs to wing and handrails would cost £— . Toremovo these and build culverts m stone, with a 30ft roadway, uniform with one over little Pighunting Creek, would cost & — each, or £— for the three." It was ordered on the report that Cliff's road be attended to; tenders be called for Humphreys' road j strengthening the south road bridges to stand over till n«xfc summer. On the motion of Mr Mcc it was agreed to call for tenders for further shingling on D. Blue's road. A formal resolution was carried to strike a rate of Jd m Ihe £ for tho year ending 31st March next, payable m one sum on Ist September next. This rate is to cover tho Harbour Board's levy. In a discussion on the collection of rates it was pointed out that there was no regular means of obtaining information of transfers of proporty, and hence of liability to pay rates. The clerk, Mr Grainger, Baid bo hud to " dig it out " ao well as he could. Tho rate roll would never be m a satisfactory state until it win made a legal requirement that all transfers of land should be reported to tho rate collecting local bodies. They were auppoeed to got a oorreot listflverythreo years from tho Property Tax rolls ; but it was the merest supposition. The overseer reported what had beon done, and what not done, m compliance with his instructions to soe certain cases of gorse cloaring attended to, and ho was instructed to proceed at onco to have tho gorse olearcd on the road round the Glengummel plantation, as the owner bad paid no attention to tho ticeTendora were recoivod for Contract No 65, Seadown Beach Eoad — Waterhoueo and Hughes, £60 10a (accepted) : J. Poarson, £64 143 6d. For Contract No 66, spalls f»r Wai-iti Boad— 9. Sibloy, £48 15s (informal), J. Pearson, £sl 5s (accepted). For Contract No 67, epalle for Main North Bond, J. Pearson, £87 10s, Kirby, £90 12s 6d (tenders too high, both declined). Accounts were paaßod as follows—Ordinary, £289 18s 9d j Harbour Board ratee collooted, £25 0s 3d ( CWitablo Aid Board's levy, £262 1b 3d ; total ,£527 0a Bd.