CHARGES REFUTED.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20273, 6 April 1934, Page 10

CHARGES REFUTED.

City Engineering Staff’s Operations. AN INDEPENDENT REPORT. Following statements alleged to have been made by Mr G. T. Baker, an exmember of the Christchurch City Council, against the administration of the City of Christchurch, on April 10 of last year, and which were allegedly ventilated again at a recent meeting of the United Burgesses’ Association, an inquiry held by Mr R. A. Campbell, B.Sc., A.M.1.C.E., at the request of the council has been completed. Mr Campbell in his report states that all the charges brought against the City Engineer’s department have been investigated and with one exception he had found that the charges could not be substantiated. The possible exception was A. J. White’s drain, the position concerning ■which had been fully explained in the report. Evidently an error in judgment was made by the City Engineer s department in assuming that the grade between manholes would be uniform, but this assumption might be made by any engineer. In dealing with the allegation that no cement had been used in the laying of a permanent road in Colombo Street from Kincaid’s to the Bank of New Zealand, and another accusation that the portion was from the old A.l Hotel to Kincaid’s, Mr Campbell said that of' the two contradictory statements he had chosen the latter and had arranged with the City Engineer to have the bitumen carpet removed in four places to expose the concrete or shingle as the- case might be. A gad had been driven into the street foundation and in each case good hard concrete had been found. Continuing, Mr Campbell stated that in a day labour job there could be no motive for saving cement. Mr Campbell also exonerated the department on charges referring to works at North Avon Road, Cemetery Road and Aldwin’s Road.