ALL BUILDING IN COUNTY NOW IN COUNCIL CONTROL

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 13, Issue 56, 23 February 1949, Page 5

ALL BUILDING IN COUNTY NOW IN COUNCIL CONTROL

j t Inspector’s Power P To Be Extended ! All buildings to be erected in | the Whakatane County, includ--1 ing those to be constructed in | the townships and those on any | section of less than two acres i with drainage systems attach- ! ed, are to come under the coni' trol of the county building ini' spector, it was decided at a spe- | cial general meeting of the i County Council yesterday. This is the affect of a scheme which is now being carried out in 2tfew Zealand to place the control ■of building construction under the jurisdiction of local bodies. Before being adopted, these new building requirements came before the council as motions and were not favourably received by all councillors. While there was general agreement that dwellings should be fully inspected and the materials and ■drainage kept to a certain standard, “there was some dissension as to whether sheds and farm buildings should be the concern of the county inspector. Bight Step “Personally, I think it is a step in the right direction,” said the chairman, Mr J> L. Burnett. “We should have some control of the buildings erected in the county.” . That some watch should be kept on farm buildings was urged by Cr B. C. Leslie. “Some of the farm buildings that are erected in the county would collapse at the first strong wind and the material be lost,” he declared. Agreeing that a watch should be kept on some farm buildings, Cr C. Sutler thought it would refer chiefly to dwellings. “The main' thing is that it will give us some control over buildings in the county. Many that are being erected at present are a disgrace,” Cr Butler added. Begistration Fee Cr W. Hunter asked the price of registration. Were all buildings to be charged the same? It was explained that the registration fee would be charged on a sliding scale, in proportion to the ■total cost of the proposed structure. After further discussion the two were passed and are to be confirmed at, next month’s meeting of the council.