BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 17944, 1 May 1928, Page 12

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

I ) FORTNIGHTLY MEETING.

The fortnightly meeting of the Timaru Borough' Council'was held last ) night. Present—The Mayor (Mr G. ! J." Wallace), and Councillors T. W. j Satterthwaite, J. Hutchison, J. It. I Hart, H. A. Innes-Jones, M. Thomson, F. B. Hawkey, P. B. Foote, G. D. Virtue, A. Kennedy, A. L. Gee and P. C. Vinnell.

MAYOR’S STATEMENT. The Mayor said that for several years past lie had been asked to get the Council to authorise the running of buses on Anzac Day, to enable elderly, people to attend the Anzac Day service. He would like the Council to definitely decide whether the Muni-cipal-buses should be run on Anzac Day. So far as he was concerned personally, he would not he a party to causing any more work done on Anzac Day than could be avoided; and if the matter were left to him he would be willingto arrange for elderly people who desired to attend the Anzac Day service, to be conveyed in private cars, if they would send tlieir names to him or the R.S.A. »

With regard to Empire Shopping Week, a public meeting would be held in Timaru next Wednesday, when the principal speaker would be Mr ,F. Milner rector of Waitaki Boys’ High School. Dr Levinge, of Cliristchurcli, would also, address the meeting. Ibis movement yas not peculiar to New Zealand, but was an Empire movement. So far as New Zealand was concerned, the movement had arisen as tho result of a letter from Mrs L. M. 0. S. Amery, to the women of New Zealand. . Councillors would have noticed that the question of contributing towards the cost of the Pareora bridge had been advanced a stage, by a decision of the Supreme Court, ' but as the matter was sub judtee. he would say no more concerning it at that stage. With regard to the visits of. men on ■the warship, he understod that the picture theatre proprietors objected to admitting them to the picture shows free of charge. In this he thought ihey were right, ?,nd that if the Council wished to extend hospitality to the visitors, they could pay for them to go to the pictures. , Drafts of certain of the estimates had been circulated, and he hoped that the committees would meet as soon as possible and finalise them lib was decided to refer the matter ot running the Council’s buses on Anzac Day to the Work’s Committee. AVORKS COMMITTEE.

Street lighting.—A letter was received from the general manager sngamong other things that £2oU be placed on the estimates for the improvement of street lighting, and suggesting a night inspection or toie streets. ' , . . ~ ' Recommendation : That an inspection at nicht be approved, a date to suit the majority of the Works Committee to be arranged by the borough engineer and general manager or the Electrical Department, and that the payment of £250 by the Works Committee be questioned. ■ ' . , Regulations under the Health Act and Dangerous Goods Act Amendment. Recommendation r That the recommendations set out by the Town Clerk in his report be approved, and the whole matter incorporated - in the present amendment to the by-laws. Dressing shed, Ashbury Park.—Recommendation: That the plans; and specifications submitted bv the borough engineer be approved, and that tenders be called. Date of proposed special Works Committee to consider report of inspection tour, estimates, etc.—Recommendation : That a special meeting of the Works Committee be held on Saturday, sth May, 1928, at 7 p.m. Petrol tax.—Recommendation : That the consideration of the expenditure of the petrol tax moneys be referreu to the special meeting on May 5, and meantime the Public AVorks engineer be requested to state what he would approve of as the “continuation of the main highways” ill the Borough of Timaru, "so tliat the petrol tax moneys may be spent in accordance with the provisions of section 10 of The Motor Splits’ Taxation Act. , ■' Builders' deposits.—Letter from the South Canterbury Builders’ and Contractors’ Industrial Union of Eni- ; plovers. Recommendation : That the Council’s previous resolution on the matter remain unaltered.

Letter from the secretary, Tiniaru Baptist Church, re widening of H'lnt Street, and failing the Council being able to widen the street, suggesting that a footpath be formed, and that the, matter of the lighting of the street be also improved as far as possible.— To be considered when the estimates are under consideration. Lot-56, White and Evans Streets.— Recommendation: That the owner of Lot 56. be written to pointing out that the Council is of Opinion that in consideration of their having agreed to a 591-loot roadway instead' of a 66-foot, roadway (which the Council could have claimed), and thereby' foregoing a ■ difference in the area of * approximately 37.5 perches, the owners he requested to dedicate a small portion for the purpose of rounding the. corner at White and Evans-.--Streets, and that the a'ea of the.proposed Lot > be adjusted so as not to be less than 20 perches. • . 'J’he Mayor,' Councillors Kennedy and Virtue dissented-.

Rubbish removal.-—lt was resolved that the 'Town C'erk obtain, from ' the shopkeepers a reply to .his communication to them concerning rubbish removal. , '

FINANCE COMMITTEE.,, The following accounts were approved for payment:—District Fund £20,505 Is.-iqd. Omnibus Department ( ‘974 lls Id, Electric Power and Light Department £5274 16s 5tT. street formation loan No. 6 £1746 17s Id, electric power and light loan No. 4 C°o99 5s 3d.

Letting of Caroline Bay Hall, and Mr Hooper’s application to rent Hall on show nights for the next five years. Councillor Hawkey was in attendance. —lt was resolved that the matter bo referred to The chairman of the Finance Committee and the Town Cleric to report upon the following lines:— First applicant to get Hall: no booking more than one year ahead; on booking, deposit of £1 Is per night to he. deposited. Mr Hooper’a application to rent, the Hall on show nights for tlio next five years was declined. From the Tiniaru Firo Board re ■mount of levy on Tiniaru Borough r Vi”iieil for the year ending March 31, 1929, amounting to £1450. From the South Canterbury Hospital Board re amount of levy on Tiniaru Borough Covum! for the’ year ending ’'"i-oh 31, 1929, amounting to £4409 10s 9d.

Recommendation: That the Council ’■ iews with alarm the continuous in-'-en.se of levies by tbe Fire Board and Hospital Board. From St. John Ambulance Associat’on. asking for the customary rej":'B=i°ii of rates on the Ambulance Hall.—Recommendation : That the request be granted. From the Main Highways Board re •retrol tax, stating: “In accordance with the provisions of The Motor 'nirits Taxation Act, 1927. the Minister of Public Works lias approved d-o payment of £255 to your Council. ITe pavnient covers the petrol tav collected- to March 31. 1925. It is n-oposed to make these payments ounrferly in the future. and your borough can expect payments irnmedi- j

ately following the monthß ■ ending June, September, December, and March. In accordance with _ Section 10 of The Motor Spirits Taxation Act, the representative of the .Main Highways Board in each district has been requested to periodically satisfy fc'mself that.the amounts paid are .oxpendcd in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 of ' The Motor' Spirits Taxation Apt.” . , Recommendation : That '•cJ.OOO be placed on the, estimated receipts, and that the matter be referred to the Works Committee to determine tl.e allocation of .the amount Electrical engineers’ conference :iu Wellington,—Recommendation : That Mr Hollands be instructed to a.ttcnd the. conference. Tenders for the supply of petrol were received from Messrs A. S. Paterson and Co.. The Vacuum 1 Oil Co., The British Imporial Oil Co.—Referred to next meeting of the Cominittie. ELECTRICITY. DEPARTMENT. The general manager of this Department (Mr E. F. Hollands) reported:— The supply from Grant’s Hill substation has not been so reliable for tho t period under review, six failures occurring during the past fortnight. Fortunately none' of the failures were of long duration. No cause for the failures could be ’obtained from the Public Works Department. All plant and equipment is in first class condition.

5 Grasmere Slreet sub-station,—Work 11 in connection with the new sub-station 0 is proceeding satisfactorily. Part of •' the 11,000 volt switchgear has arrived. 11 and the work of erection will be pro- > ceeded with almost immediately. We s have received adviee from the supr Pliers of the new bank of transformers - for this sub-station fiat they have left s England, and will arrive in New Zeai Mnd about the middle of*June. Charts • f v i e , been Prepared giviiig. particulars f ot the maximum demand fluctuations during the past two years and the increased total connected load during the 3 same period. A further .phase is bein<>' 1 streefV 1 !^ 6 Streefc «' and the i , &tloot lights, placed at. the proper heights.- Several under-verandah fer-' r J ices have been, installed, and an alteiation made in the community light l f^der ? north end. Steady pro 1 voft S I) S C bei cf mainta,ned with voit jj.o. change-over. Several „„„ siimers have already changed over and The, report was adopted. •On reply to Councillor Vinnell the! Mayor said that the Prime had given'a deputation froS the Sdn? cipal Association to understand Municipalities need expect no S ssistance from the Government than they received last winter. Trajftarsrta-sr % I™" 8 ■“«»»<! -t th; CounciHor Satterthwait’e said that ore important than stripipng at the .quarry was stripping 011 thestreets-he refered to the need for cleaning the stieets of grass and weeds. b tW U +i Clllo l Sattor thwaite contended that the street lighting in Timaru could be greatly improved by the installation of more powerful lights. At the present time' 60 candle-power lights were used to light some streets and these cost _;3 2s 6d per year each to maintain. When for the additional'ex-penditure-of-2s 6d per year, the lights could be increased to 100 candle-power he thouglit that they should be so increased. It would be money we 1 1 spent. Evans Street, he said, was - among tho badly lighted streets, and although the same position did not apply to the whole of the • Borough, there was no doubt that there was room for improvement. - - ■ , Councillor Virtue said that, ' as a motorist, he could endorse the remarks of Councillor Satterthwaite: There was no - doubt that the lighting in some parts of the Borough was m need of i improvement. It was just as bad for < the pedestrian. Sometimes one cou'd i not tell whether one was walking on 1 the road or the footpath. (Laughter). ; Councillor .Foote said the lighting i could be improved, but there were ; more.useful ways in'which their money i could be expended at the present time. /I The report was adopted.' IN ,COMMITTEE. The Council went into committee at 9.10' p.m., and rose at a quarter to twelve. . , . ...

Seen' after the meeting the Mayor said that the matter under discussion concerned borough works, but np decision had been reached, and the meeting had been adjourned without coming out.of committee.