KIWITEA COUNTY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 300, 18 December 1937, Page 7

KIWITEA COUNTY

MONTHLY MEETING OF COUNCIL. (From Our Own Correspondent). KIMBOLTON, Dec. 16. The monthly meeting of the Kiwitea County Council was held at Kimbolton yesterday, the chairman, Mr. L. T. McLean, being in the chair. There were also present: Crs. F. E. Tappin, W. Beard, J. H. Williamson, W. Hair, D. T. Couper, W. P. Shaw, and J. A. T. Brown. In referring to the coming Christmas holidays, the county clerk, Mr. W. L. Hesseltine, drew the council’s attention to the fact that the council’s staff would have to be paid for Christmas Day and Boxing Day, despite the fact that the holidays did not fall within the statutory working week. This was an anomaly which could not be escaped and the men would have to be paid. After discussing the matter, the council agreed that nothing could be done, as the award definitely provided that the men would have to be paid for these days. Cr. W. G. Clapham brought up a matter of particular interest to local bodies with regard to the restrictions placed on carrying contractors living otuside the Kiwitea County who were debarred under their licences from tendering for contracts in the county. The position was that their licences provided for operation within a defined area and as far as the council was concerned it was experienced difficulty in obtaining a satisfactory number of tenders for the contracts for metal carrying. The situation amounted to an elimination of fair competition and obliged the council to confine its carrying to a few local carriers. Cr. Clapham mentioned that he had interviewed a Palmerston North contractor, who mentioned that he was desirous of tendering for metal contracts in the county, but his application for a licence had been objected tu bj a county contractor. The council agreed that a difficulty had been created, but it could not do anything in the matter. Mr. R. G. Roberts was granted a lea?c of a section next to the Kim- ! bolt on Hall at an annual rental of . 10s. The tender of Messrs. Earthmovers, : Ltd., was accepted for imomovements > on the Mangawharariki Road (No. 52 Awal.uri-Mangaweka main highway). T) e tender was for £2649 17s and is ■ sublet to the approval of the Main ’ Highways Board. 1 r j he matter of the appointment of ■ an assistant to succeed Miss Calder ! was left in the hands of the chairman ’ and county clerk. It was agreed to close the county ’ offices for the Christmas vacation ; from December 23 to January 11, in- > elusive. Correspondence. I From the Public Works Department, advising payment of the follow|ing subsidies:—(a) Reconstruction and

sealing No. 52 main mighway, Chel-tenham-Kiwitea, £579 3s 9d; (b) Kiwi-tea-Kimbolton, £9OB 5s sd; (c) maintenance main highways, £494 9s 2d.— Received. From the district engineer, Public Works Department, approving the acceptance of Messrs. Lord and Maegard’s tender of £2BB 5s for the work of constructing a culvert at Ireland’s, on the No. 52 Awahuri-Mangaweka main highway.—Received. From the district engineer, Public ; Works Department, with reference to the maintenance of main highways during the Christmas and New Year period.—Referred to the county overseer. From the chief electrical engineer, Public Works Department, advising that the Hon. Minister of Public Works is anxious to have a detailed survey made of the whole position relating to electric supply service in rural areas, and requesting to be supplied with certain details of townships and settlements in the county not yet reticulated —Information to be supplied. From the secretary, New Zealand Standard Institute, with reference to the standardisation of local body bylaws. —Received. From the Under-Secretary, Department of Internal Affairs, advising that all contributions to the Far East Relief Fund by local authorities and public bodies generally will be validated during the current session of Parliament. Also from the national secretary of the relief fund, with reference to the same thing.—Received. From the Inspector of Health, Palmerston North, forwarding a report on the sanitary conditions of the 1 county for the quarter ended September 30, 1937. Two cases of infectious disease. From Mr. A. Smith, requesting permission to re-erect the boundary fence of his property nearer to the formation fronting Terrace Road, Kimbolton. —Granted. J From Miss M. S. Calder, tendering i her resignation as assistant clerk.— ' • Accepted with regret. Bank Balances ■ '■ The treasurer, Mr. W. L. Hesseltine, reported that the position of the Kiwitea County Count’s bank ac- - counts is as follows: County fund account, dr. £l2lß 18s sd; employees ac- ’ commodation account, cr. £376 15b sd; • Kimbolton ceretery account, cr. £ll = 17s lOd; land fund account, No. 2 cr. i £163 2s 6d; Rangiwahia cemetery account, cr. £3 5s 6d; Waituna cemetery ■ account, cr. £7 12s Id. ■ | Overseer’s Report I I I The county overseer, Mr. F. H. r I Eggers submitted the following reII port: — . | No. 52 Main Highway—The section lof the No. 52 main highway from ' Kimbolton to Mangaweka has been • dressed by the grader and is in good order. Other maintenance work has been carried out by the roadmen. ' No. 53 Main Highway. —The section 1 of the No. 53 main highway has been

kept in good order by the grader. Minor maintenance work has been attended to by the roadmen. No. 377 Main Highway.—The whole section of the No. 377 main highway in the county has been kept in a satisfactory condition by the power grader and the roadmen have attended to the necessary maintenance work. No. 553 Main Highway.—The section of the No. 553 main highway has received frequent attention from the grader plant and is in a reasonably good condition. Roads other than main highways. —Several side roads have been trimmed and improved by the grader plant and metal carting has been carried out by the contractors on side roads in the Cheltenham riding. The contractor has delivered 267 J cubic yards of metal on the clay section of Kawa Road in the Hautapu riding. The county truck delivered over 300 cubic yards of maintenance metal oil the Waipura and Sandon block roa.ds. All the narrow bends on the Manganuia East Road have been widened and generally improved. The ruts on the Waipura clay section have been filled in and watertables cleaned out. Other maintenance work has received attention throughout the county.