HARBOUR IMPROVEMENTS.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCVIII, 27 April 1925, Page 6

HARBOUR IMPROVEMENTS.

DISCUSSED BY HARBOUR BOARD. FURTHER ADVICE TO BE SOUGHT. At their meeting on Friday last the Timaru Harbour Board further discussed. the projected harbour improvement scheme. ■Mr Cyrus Williams, engineer to the Lyttelton Harbour Board, wrote, in reply to a letter sent, that the members of the Commission which recently sat in Timaru would bo willing to act as if the Commission had been revived, and to give the Board tho advice which they would have given previously, had it been in accordance with their order of reference. Their terms would be tho same as before, except that Mr. Gillies, who was no longer in the Publio Service, would be required to be paid on the same basis as Mr Vickerman.

The chairman (Mr W. Hayinan), said that, as instructed at last meeting, ho had gone to Christchurch, and had consulted Mr Cyrus Williams in regard to harbour improvements, at Timaru. Mr AVilliams said that Mr Vickerman, Mr Gillies, and ho would be willing to give' the Board the scheme that had been at the back of their minds when they §at in Timaru a few months ago.. At the same'time, he said that they would not require to call much, if any, fresh evidence, and their .visit to Timaru should not extend oyer more, than two or threo days. .■ Mr AVilliams seemed to be of the opinion' that' the range wps the difficulty which had to be overcome. He (the chairman) .had told hini that the range was hot the difficulty, but the shoaling, and Air. Williams had gone into figures to prove to him that it would puke fifty years for the shoaling to reach half way out to tho entrance. Under these circumstances he did not think that they would get much assistance from Mr. Williams, so far as -the. shoalingwas concerned, but he thought that qs Mr AVilliams and the other two .members of the Commission , said’ that they had a scheme in their minds the Board would do well to get it. Mr AVilliams had told him that if it was- deeper; water that tho Board wanted the Com-, mission would have sanctioned a scheme to secure that, but Mr Williams seethed to think th,at it was the scend which was giving the trouble. ■■ Mr ...Turnbull: “It is not .the scend, but the sand.’l The chairman: “That is what I told him.”-

Mr H. B. S. Johnstone asked what the position would be, if, .they did .get the Commission to report in a private capacity. Would the Board still have to get a scheme sanctioned by a Royal Commission? ?

The chairman replied in. the affirmative'.

Air D . C. Turnbull said he thought it would bo best to get some outside engineer, or engineers,- to : vgive them a report. j . Mr F.,R. Flatman said he did not see the use of engaging Mr AVilliams if- his- idea was that it was- not ...the silting .up, the scend which .was-giving, the trouble. \

Several ; members " expressed tlje opinion ’that Mr AVilliams, as engineer to the'Lyttelton Harbour ' Board, was. biassed,; and that his report would, he of no value to the Board. i

■ Mr A. R. Guild said that apparently -it would not bo worth while to get the members of the .Conxttiision to ; report again. Mr T. 8,,„Ga I 'rmk.;said i%:sQ»lduqnly-., •be -'-throwing- away •-nJ6ney- , “tb'. ,: get ifiW same engineers to report again. The chairman said - that there was apparently an idea in, the public’ inifid that the three engineers referred .to;had a scheme in the back of their minds, and that the Board should obtain it; i Mr Turnbull said-that Air. AVilliajnsls report stood self-condemned .when.-,lie-said that he did not know that it. was' silting up, which was giving tho trouble, kat Timaru. Mr Williams should npt: have been appointed a member .of the. Commission in the first instance,. AVliy, had the ~New Plymouth Harbour Board:, been given permission to carry ..out.' a 'much ,more expensive improvement,, soheme, costing £600,0000, while Timaru was refused permission to carry. ; out its scheme jat ai Post of. £250,000. He would be in favour of asking the' engineers to the-’ New Plymouth hfid' : Auckland Harbour Boards, respectively,' :.to come to Timaru and report. Mr Campbell proposed, {mid the chairman seconded, “that the members of the Commission be ask'ed to give the Board tho scheme which they have, in mind.’l , : ,, , r _ ' The motion was lost, and Mr E. R. Isaac thereupon suggested that they get further advice by engaging, the engineer to the New Plymouth Harbour Board to consult' with the . Boaid’s en flr Flatman said that ho would he' in New Plymouth shortly. and’...heagreed to a request that he should see the Harbour Board’s engineer there to ascertain whether he would be willing to report on the Timaru Harbour improvement scheme ; and, if bo, whjat his terms would be.