GUIDING LEVIN THROUGH ITS CRITICAL PERIOD

Chronicle (Levin), 23 October 1947, Page 4

GUIDING LEVIN THROUGH ITS CRITICAL PERIOD

Ir. H. B. Burdekin Sees Need' For Sound Policy Levin was at a critical period in its development and the present was not the time to change horses in mid-stream, said Mr, H, B. Burdekin, Mayor of Levin, when deiivering his first pre-election address in the Century Hall last night. He pledgeA himself to serve the borough with a sane, safe and progressive policy.' . To a large and representative gathering, Mi*. Burdekin outlined the work done during his term of office and future plans, which included a sewerage scheme for Levin, an adequate water supply for both domestic and fire fighting, the provision of adequate sports grounds and the equipment oi the borough with adequate machinery. One of his first concerns was to ensure the speedy erection of the maternity home and the completion of satisfactory negotiations in' regard to the proposeu sanatorium site in this district. l'utroducing the speaker, the chairman, Mu. N. M. Thomson, said chat Levin was exceedingly fortunate in having two well-known citizens offering. themselves for the position of Mayor. The office of Mayor was not entirely a pleasant jne, and it said a good deal for Mr. Burdekin when he oftered his serhces for another term. As he had said before, he hoped that this con,est would not develop into a drainage election. He expected to hear about other important matters affecting the borough. _ - Outlining Mr. Burdekin's career, Mr. Thomson said that although much of it was common knowledge, it was not generally known that iurine the years 1930 to 1931 he

had been appointed by the then Government as independent chairman on a most important body, the J Jnemployment Board. He had also been a J.P. for 30 years and a uni^ersity examiner for the Bachelor Df Commerce degree. A member of che R.S.A. executive since its incepion, and as a member of the Levin_ Rehabilitation Gommittee, he had olayed a large part in the successful r e - establishment of ex-service-men. Being a national figure, he was well known in influential circles and had made a practice of going straight to the heads of the /arious departments. 'It was essential that at the completion of a term of office, a Mayor should renaer an account of his stewardship and also that the electors should know what the affairs of the borough were so that they :ould adequately judg^ the policy put forward, not only by the Mayoral candidates, _ but by the various counciilors, said Mr. Burdekin, in his ope'ning remarks. In regard to policies it had to be remembered that a Mayor was only one of ten, and his vote was no more important 011 any issue than that of any of the nine counciilors. He could not ex'ercise more than one vote, but only give a lead. The first matter to engage his attention on coming to office two and a-half years ago had been the position at the abattoir, said Mr. Burdekin. All had not been well with the finances. The abattoir was the largest* in New Zealand outside the four main cities, and the borough had an amount- in the vicinity of £30,000 invested in it. Under the system employed the abattoir was not allowed'to make a profit. Any profits were divided oack among the users of the abattoir. It could, however, make a loss and had been doing so over a number of years, but this loss had to be borne by the owners of the

abattoir. It could not be passed on to the butchers by retrospective additions to killing fees for those periods. Seeing the situation, he had, with the aid of the couneil and a representative of the accounts department of the Department of Agriculture, made a thorough investigation which resulted in a satisfactory increase in the killing fees, and it was now 011 a better footing and had shown a profit last year of £437. In regard to the gasworks there was 110 doubt that Levin was well served, continued the speaker. Where other towns and cities were frequently rationed, that had 'never been necessary in Levin. Occasiogially there had been reductions 111 pressure, but that had heen due to ihe class of coal available. The Levin. Park Domain had received attention which had been denied it previously. Where once there was little else but weeds. there was now a good growth of grass and reasonable amenities. In past years little had been spent on the domain, but this year £585 had been expended. With the help of Levin Beautifying Society, of which the opposing candidate, Mr. Parton, was chairman, the couneil had brougRt into being another beauty spot in the form of -the triahgular section apposite the Public Gardens. Cambridge Park, which had heen fallow for years, was now in the process of conversion into a home for the Softball Association. House numbering was another beneficial facility, said the speaker, while his insistent personal approaches to the Director-General of the Post Office and the director's deputy had resulted in the instal1 ation of the new exdhange. He also referred to the re-establish-ment of the municipal band and the successful leasing of the Regent Theatre at a rental of £30 per week. When he had assumed office all •that was offered for renovations was £350, which would have gone nowhere. Now £1000 had been secured for this purpose and a

seven-year lease wiiich 'would, he considered, caxry the couneil- over a probable difficult period. Referrin'g to the borough debt, Mr. Burdekin said that when he tooks office on March 31, 1945, the total was £93,473. Minus a s'mking - fund of £6494, this left a net debt of £86,979. On March 3, 1947, the total debt owing was £90,168 less sinking fund of £7,342, leaving a net . baiance owing of £82,826. Balances of special funds as at' October 21, .t1947 were: Fire Insurance Fund £2416 11s lOd, Accident Insurance Fund £589 16s lld, Abattoir Depreciation Fund £498 17s 3d, Gasworks Depreciation Fund .£403 19s, Machinery Replacement Fund £241 3s 4d, Queen Carnival Fund £646 ls 7d, Renewal Fund Waterworks £1886 12s lld. There was not nearly enough in the renewal funds, eontixiued the speaker. Machinery wore out and should be replaced without additional strain on the rates. His policy, was to put a little aside each year against such a contingency. Commenting on the rejectect loan proposals, Mr. Burdekin said he regretted the non-acceptance of the water loan, as an adequate water supply was essential to a good sewerage system. The domestic water pipes servicing many areas were inadequate. As soon as a better water pressure was installed-, the fire insurance rates in certain areas would decrease. Turning down the water loan was, he averred, the biggest mistake the ratepayers had made. It would have cost them only 4s 2d 'per annum on a £150 section. He trusted that if it was ever re-submitted it would not be turned down again. The borough's machinery was also inadequate, and as way of illustration he mentioned that a gang mower owned by the couneil was pulled around the domain by one of the couneil trucks. "I must ■ confess we beat the pistol in pur-

chasing that mower. It was bought in anticipation of the machinery loan going through, but already it has nearly paid for itself." He added, however, that a tractor could be better employed on the job, thus releasing the truck and lessening the expense. The couneil had to buy on the open market, and that was primarily why the rates had gone up, continued the speaker. It was faced with the same rises in costs as businessmen and house wives. Discussing sewerage, Mr. Burdekin said that the matter had never been lost sight of, and the couneil had been fully awake to the urgent necessity of an adequate sewerage .system. One thing that would be done would be the appointment of a consulting engineer. The scheme would require the best engineering brains in the country. The borough could not afford to experiment. Other schemes i'11 the Narth Island had failed, and it would be absolute folly to spend such a large sum and then find- that it was a failure. Quoting Messrs. Vickerman and Lancaster's scheme of 1944, Mr. Burdekin said it had provided for 710 acres of the more closely settled areas, the original estimate being £74,000. Assuming that £90,000 could be taken as a fair estimate of present day costs, the rate increase would be 3£-d in the £, which on a £150 section would total 44s per annum. It was interesting to note, he added, that the cost of the sanitary collection on the same basis was 45s per annum. These costs, however, would not necessarily include storm water drainage, as the firm had not been requested to report on this. The opposing candidate had been reported as saying that a large part of the borough was under

water for six months of the year. This, he considered, to be "gross exagger ation." Though there was a certain amount of surface trouble in the northern part of the borough it was not as serious as had been represented. There was also the problem of subterranean water, and there was a possibility that this might affect the scheme. This, however, would be included in the eventual report of the engineer. The couneil was interested in Dannfivirke's composting system, and it was thought that part of an 1 area of approximately 29 acres near the abattoirs could b'e used for this purpose. Commenting on Mr. Parton's suggestion of an insurance scheme, he said he considered it could not possibly work in the borough. The suggestion that everyone subscribe to a couneil scheme was just ridiculous. There were many factors to prevent it becoming universal, besides which the whole 'basis of insurance was to spread the risk over a very wide field.- He also did not agree that a sewerage loar ' should be spread over three years. Summing up, Mr. Burdekin said that from a health point of view alone a sewerage scheme was an urgent necessity, and its development should take place before further borough growth. Concluding, he said that his interest also lay 'with'the servicemen, who, as one of their number he understood and they understood him. Difficult times might eventuate when they would require sincere and sympathetic help. He knew he could give them that help. Never would there be a greater need in possible difficult days ahead for a man with sound financial knowledge, and a sane, progressive policy. Foilowing Mr. Burdekin's address a vote of thanks was accorded him on the motion of Mr. V. E. Hudson. Mr. Burdekin indicated that he would hold his final meeting in the Century Hall on November 12, when, in addition to himself, counciilors wouM be invited to address the audience. /