BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Western Star, Issue 2219, 5 July 1898, Page 2

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Tho monthly meeting, held last evening, was attended by Crs McCarthy, Pankhurst, Petchell, Robinson, Simpson and Dui'bridge, the last-named, in the absence of the Mayor, who wrote apologising for his non attendance owing to sickness, being voted to the chair. The following applications were granted = Mrs J W Chapman, to erect allotment fence in the cemetery ; VV Saunders, to burn gorse on Pilot Reserve; and U Gray to take a load of gravel from the old pit. The Charitable Aid Board wrote forwarding an approximate statement showing outdoor and indoor recipients of charitable aid who were a charge on the borough funds, and the amounts paid to each for the year ended 31st March. Tho sums paid to each of six outdoor patients were as follow • £4 16s, £1 7s, £1 16s, £l3, £l4 Bs, £1 4s ; total, £42 lls. The cost of maintaining each of three persons in the Oi l Men’s Homo was respectively—£l7 lls, £l7 lls, £l7 lie, total £53 13. Grand total £95 4s. Cr Petchell moved that the return bo acknowledged but that the council repudiates all knowledge of the throe persona in the Homo. The motion was carried, several councillors remark, ing that the persons referred to had never resided in tho borough. Cr Duibridge said he had roughly cstima ted the coat of the proposed new draindown Palmerston street, a work which would have to be undertaken. To carry it to Lucknow street with 13-mcb pipes would cost £370, and be gave a detailed statement showing how he arrived at that sum. If 15-inch pipes were used it won’d cost £SOO, Allowing for contingencies in the former estimate, the approximate o. st per chain would be £B, which included cost of taking pipes from the junctions to the various sections. He pointed out that at Christchurch glazed pipes 9,12 and 15-inch were used for carrying the sewerage, and the engineer of the borough of Invercargill wrote, in reply to a communication, stating that they used glazed pipes there—Or Simpson said ho believed concrete would be cheaper than pipes. The cost be estimated at £5 a chain for 18-incb concrete pipes—that was without laying them. To construct the diaiu partly with concrete and partly with bricks would cost £2 10s extra a chain, to which would have to be added labor.—The Chairman said they would bavo to submit the proposal to the ratepayers, and to that end a plan would have te be prepared. He pointed out that the money for the work would have to be borrowed, but it won'd entail no additional burden on the ratepayers. They would have to convert their loans shortly, aud at ihe same time could borrow the further amount required. The whole of tbo money would be raised at a cheaper rate, and even with the additional £SOO their annual interest would bo £25 less than it was now. It was decided to employ a surveyor to take levels and prepare plans. The question of taking slops to acquire tne Kaik was brought forward by Cr Durbridge Ho had reason to believe if tho council were to move in the matter the government could bo induced to purchase the land from tho naiivos and vest it in the corporation, .which should have been done years ago, asi thei town had been seriously injured owing to the way t blocked settlement. The owners, be believed, favored the proposal. On the motion

of Cr Petchell it was decided to take immediate steps to prepare petitions io be forwarded to Parliament.

The matter of enlarging the culvert opposite Simpson’s, South Riverton, and raising footpath opposite G. E. Robertson’s residence, Bath Road, was referred to the Works Committee. A verbal request by a resident in the county for a borough road leading to his place to bo formed was declined, it being shown that it would ben- fit no one esc. Cr Simpson moved for a reiura showing the money spent in South Hive-ton. Tho following applications for corporation sections were granted:—R. Garvie, section 7, block 6, rent £2 12s per annum ; section 7, block 5, J. Wilkes, £1 per annum; section 17, block 6, J. Eveleigh, 10s per annum ; section 23, block 15, 2s per annum, F. Gray. Jas. Eveleigh, sexton, was granted permission to use a portion of the cemetery reserve for planting potatoes. The resolution regarding the general rate having been confirmed, the council adjourned.