POWER BOARD.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18404, 10 June 1925, Page 3

POWER BOARD.

. ♦— T— "' SPRINfiS-ELLESMERE.

The monthly meeting of .theSprings-Elles-mero ...Electric Power Board , was held at Leeston> on . Monday. Present: L Messrs J. Cunningham (chairman), J. .W.\Kime, J. S. Simpson, E. H. tf Rowell, G ! . Maginness, A. E. Langdale-Hunt, J. A. Henley'. H. Jtfeave, B. T. McMillan.and J. O. Free.. The engineer reported that in the Ellcsmero area. ;the line to servo Messrs Inwood jmd others had been completed' and put into tfperation, and sundry alterations to Post and Telegraph' wires attended to. In theraparua area there was great inconvenience, ii getting messages through from consumjors to''the BoardjS; headquarters:; A way. dut would boStoV/have a. telephone installed in. the store 'and appoint a man to attend to emergency jobs. The foreman gave particulars of lines • erected and other progress made' at Prebbleton. Temporary transformers had been erected, and the current bad been switched on on June Ist, 55 consumers" being connected up. Mr Maginness reported on behalf of a • committee i that had inspected a property at Templetoir; under offer to the Board at a, cost of : £IOOO. ' It comprised nearly throe-, quartern-acre of land, Wo cottages, and a shed, and adjoined another section recently acquired, by the Board. . On thecommittee>'a recommendation, the Board decided to purchase the property. Authority was given : the engineer to •arrango for. ,a .. better telephone connexion between Templeton and -the Board's headquarters at Leeston, eo that urgent business could be attended to more promptly than at present, and also to have a telephone installed at the residence of the Board's Springston officer. After reviewing the estimatea for the current year, it was decided to adopt a recommendation of the., j Finance Committee that-a-rate should not be struck this year to meet, the difference between the revenue and expenditure, but. that. permifl6ion x shonld be„obtamed s to carry on; by - means of an overdraft, v!' ,'.'■•- . It. was estimated that the v expenditure would run iriso! £11,944, made, up as follows: Cost of current: Springs-Eilesmere £1517, cost of current 'Paparua £I6OO, salaries £IOOO, wages £Boo;'■'interest and sinking fund £5250, balance in. sundry other expenses. It was estimated that the revenue would fall £744 short of the estimated expenditure, the principal litem on the revenue side being £11,000.-for sale.of current. The chairman remarked that the revenue was increasing and that the time would come when it would be more than sufficient to meet the expenditure,-and they would be able to carry on without an overdraft. It was decided to make formal application to the Minister for •permission to raise up to £3OOO by way of overdraft. Replying, to Mr Maginness,'. the engineer said that tho transformers for certain Paparua lines had reached Lytteltbnon June 3rd, and were being dried out. The carting of poles for the Shand'e track line would be commenced shortly. • •-■ Mr F. G-. Drury thanked the Board for its assurance that current would be available for the Kakaia Huts in the near future. Mr J. P. McEvedy had in hand the work of interviewing farmers in that vicinity, and he -understood that there would be no difficulty about easements for. the lines icossing private properties. The Ken. Sir- Heaton Rhodes, who was interviewed Tjy & 'deputation from the Board somo time,ago in reference to the arbitrary menner in which the Posb- and Telegraph Department's' regulations regarding protection of lines at crossings were ; being enforced, forwarded a reply received frcm the Minister to the effect that the regulations were to bo revised. It was decided to thank Sir Hnaton for his assistance. _ At tihe annual meeting, the chairman reviewed.the year's work, and recalled that tho minds of members had been mostly occupied with :new work and the raising of the loan'for Paparua reticulation. The loan ■proposals were carried, and arrangements were made to obtain the money from the Government Insurance Department in instalments ' spreading over 15 months. Alreadv - £20,000 had been received and approximately £l3.°°° h ?d be ? n ?* id <*£• Su P" ulv had first been given in the Paparua »,'•«• on Jan Ist. The loan now authorised over the whole power district totalled £93,000. a steady growth in revenue had taken place. Tl,o current had first been turned on at I eeston onV April Bth,- 1922. Sales of curvent for "the period ending March 31st, 1923, totalled £2638; for the ('year ending March ;, j igoj -JS2SO; and for the year ending March 31st, 1925, £6200. The latter figures included £425 collected in the Paiparua area. There were 900 consumers in the SpringsFUesmere" area, including 37 beyond Dunsandel The -Board was serving 437 consumers in the Paparua. area. Mr G. Maginness nominated Mr Cunningham as'chairman for the coming year. Mr A W Kime seconded the motion, which was carried, there being no other nomination. Mr Cunningham has been chairman of the Board since it was first formed. . Mr Cunningham thanked members for their. renewed confidence and for their appreciative references to his -work. Mr J.. W. Kime was. re-elected deputychairman and '.be old Finance and Works Committees • were re-elected.