AROUND THE TOWN

Chronicle (Levin), 13 May 1949, Page 2

AROUND THE TOWN

y Borough Council Meets The extremely cold night experienced throughout the district .on Wednesday did not ehill the ardour . of memhers of the Otaki Borough Council, when at the monthly meeting matters of -interest to ratepayers were 'deliberated until 11.40 p.m. The Mayor, Mr. C. -p. Atmore, presided over Crs. K. S. Ames, N. 'D. Andedson, E. J. Cook, H. W. Hakaraia, G. McKinley and J. L. Retter. Also the clerk (Mr. Alex. Wilson) Theatre Fire Escapes. ■ The secretary of the Otaki Fire Board forwarded a copy of a resolution passed at the recent meeting of the board, expressing the opinion that the upstairs exits at the Civic Theatre were dangerous and asking that some action be taken to imDrove them.

Cr. Cook stated that the board members, after full consideration, suggested that the desired improvehient.would be eifected if the present exit door was enlarged to twice its size. A second suggestion was that the wooden staircase be removed and wider concrete steps be erectcd A rul'ing was to be sought from the engineer controlling fire escapes, reported the town clerk," arid a.visit was expected from the engineer within a few days. Highway Reconstruction. The Mayor, Mr. Atmore, expressed the view that8now that another financial year had heen entered, the delayed reconstruction of the main highway should be undertaken. ,He moved that the Minister of Works be written to, urging that a vote be authorised and that the matter be treated as urgent. It was explained that footpath improvement at Oaki Railway, and also a pedestrian ■ crossing, were matters relevant to the highway reconstruction that had to be further delayed as a result. The pedestrian crossing to be placed at the State School gates will he eompleted shortly. It was reported that the road would soon he in suitable shane.

To-wn Planning. Town planning for Otaki was probably advanced a step further when correspoh'denGe from the Town Planning Board and the Ministry of Works dealing with this matter were considered. Advices were that qualifled officers can be made available to assist in the preparation of borough town planning schemes, out that at present the staffs were fully engaged and no further commitments could be made. The council agreed that preliminary ideas should he tabled, and Wednesday of next week was set aside for a special meeting of the local town planning committee. Water Main Sought An , application, signed by 14 property owners, for a four-inch water main to be installed along Te Manuao Road, through t>be new route to Rahui Road, was considered by the pouncil. This request is to he placed before the councii's water engineer for a report. Mesdames A. Inge and A. H. Freeman and Messrs E. Haywood, A. F. Lawrie, H. T. and L. J. Mould, G. Chitti'ek, F. Monk, C. Kemp, R. Whetren, E. Cobb, M. Southcombe, W. K. Cook and A. D. T. Webster were the applicants.

Building Site Shortage. The present shortage of building sites was exemplifled when an application seeking permission to extend a building situate at the back of his shop in Main Street was made by Mr. S. R. Martin. A plan and specifications were enclosed, and the applicant advised that he had heen "unable to buy either a section or a house." Mr. Martin is to be advised that his application cannot be grant'ed, as the site is in the brick area; also, that the frontage offends the by-laws. Councillors expressed the hope that the difficulties met by the applicant in his search for a section would soon he overcome, and agreed that if an opportunity arose in this direction they would assist him. Works Committee Report. The works committee submitted the following recommendations : — "That all rubbish removals be eharged at the rate of 26s per annum; that two new conveniences be installed at the Civic Theatre to replace the existing ones, which are deemed to be unsatisfactory; that half the cost of the work to he done in Rangiuru Road be borne by the council, and that the Horowhenua County Council undertake • this work; and that the trafflc inspector be asked to advise whether a bowser station is allocated to remain open for the supply of emergency petrol at weekends." The recommendations were adopted and, following a repqrt, the counqil agreed to request the trafflc inspector to arrange that this matter be put on a proper basis. Councillors favoured large notices being erected to show which statioh was open for the sale of emergency petrol. Layout Of Memorial Grounds. Messrs A. W. Buxton and J. G. MacKenzie had heen invited by the sub-eommittee appointed to prepare a tentative plan showing the preliminary layout of the War Memorial ground. They waited on the council and their submissions were freely discussed and some

changes suggested. A further sketch plan will now he drawn up and submitted. The Mayor thanked them for their interest and co-operation. General Matters. Crs. Anderson, Cook and McKinley were authorised to appiy for and organise the annual picture benefit allotted to the council in terms of the theatre lease. Messrs Creswell and Constable, Mill Road, applied to the council for permission to erect an additionai petrol pump. As the suggested site is in an altered position to that of the firm's other pumps, the works committee was asked to inspect and report. The Inspector of Explosives wrote to the council advising that Mr. L. G. MacDonald, Otaki Railway, had been granted permission to remove 'his petrol pump to a site outside his premises. An application for a passenger-service-motor omnibus driver's iicence from Mr. H. D. Stowers was granted. The foreman's report .advised that 1800 gallons of texemul had been sprayed on parts of Paremata, Kirk and Rangatira Streets ana Riverbank Road, while 900 gallons of No. 1 tar had been applied to

Matene and part of Hadfteid Streets. The footpath at Raukawa and the strip in front of the fire station had been tar sealed, while the footpath and the bus parking area at the main gates of the school had received similar treatment. Fire plugs throughout the borough had been cleaned. The report was received. ' The Raukawa Ladies' Hockey Club applied for the usey of the hockey field at the domain for the season,' while the Horowhenua Hockey Association asked for the control of the hockey playing area from April 30 to September 30. Both applications were granted. Otaki has been promised several more State houses other than those at present being erected. The question of the sites for the remainder was discussed and it was agreed that the. Housing Division be asked if it had sufficient land. Councillors signified their willingness to help to make further sites available if a negative answer should he received. Following discussion it was agreed that the State Advances Corporation be advised that the council is prepared to help in setting up a local committee to assist in the letting of State houses. Some interesting comments were made before the matter was finalised. "Not on your life," was "the-.rejoin-der of one who was asked if he would act on the committee if it was set up. "It might be a sticky job; better leave it to an independent source," said another. A third stated that "we ■ should look afer the position of the people in our borough." The accounts of the borough were presented by the town clerk, who reported that the generally satisfactory state of affairs continued. j The estimates for the year wero touched on, and it was considered that these would be held up uritil the new valuation for the borough was issued. In this respect it was decided that a letter be forwarded to the Valuer-General, asking if he would indicate when the release of °the valuations could b.e expected, and asking that if possible it be expedited.