NORTHLAND AND KARORI.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 413, 23 January 1909, Page 13

NORTHLAND AND KARORI.

ON THE EVE OF WAR. "A QUESTION OF FINANCE. A special meeting of the NoVthland Electors' Association was held last evening in :tho State Schoolroom to consider the matter of paying the special rates demanded by Kar,ori Borpugli Council.. Mr Fiiilay M'Leod, president';of tho ; association, was in tho ohair.'.vr y.J. - : , The chairman-said that at the last monthly meeting of. the-association a committee had been set up to'"consider,,the demand made by the Karori, Borough Council., for, special rates,'to. take',.such stop's as were thought necessary, and:*to. obtain legal advice. Tht' special ;meoiing,had;beeu called to hear tho ' legal opinion. ""There was no intention on the .part of the: association to evade their loau obligations. ' ;Thero were five special loans for which the; district ■ had been pledged, and now they were being called upon by tho • Karori Borough Council to pay their. portion of tho special rates to' meet; the.-in'-', terest and sinking fund connected, with the special loans!;. A- doubt had been expressed as to whctlior the Karori Borough Councjl were .the proper; body to collect the special rates, and,'they. had. had various opinions as to .that. It :was, however, considered, wise to tako some steps towards finality, and to get the opinion'of a solicitor;; .Consequently the committee' set up had consulted' J\lr. Martin, formerly-city ,solicitor, and the association now'Vhad;. his opinion, -lhere was one important '■'.'feature -, connected with .the tram loan of ;£37,000-y£31,060 for the tram, and £6000 .-for'-' recreation', ground; It ■ was rather peculiar';.that- the Karori" Borough Council hadnot pledged«tho tram revenue to meet the interest or sinking fund connected with the loan. ;-Tliey simply pledged a: siiifl-'. cient rate, for,-'-the-,-;whole, property ■ ihy the Karori borough. (The legal position was that the Karori', Bprough:.Council:,could continue to;lo'vy a/'sufneient'rato'to meet Mie interest and'■";-' the '..'sinking -fund ,on the 'train -loans, vFor. them 1 , to,-'do .that,.continued the chairman,, would be entirely contrary: to their'idea of gobd-faith.-,•'■' Haying separated .from Karori, it.'was r well for them to get down to the proper : legal;position:iniregard.to this : moneyv The"association was advised that:the! Karori Borough:Council:was not the proper body: .to. make',,these collections, that could not .recover, them, and that, before any' of. the special' rates; wcto paid as demanded by-theKaforisßorough Council, tho association: should first have, an adjustment of accounts. -If they continued; paying the Karori Borough' Council the; rate's, the council might place; the, net .Revenue of; the trams into the .general account;', contrary to the ; spirit' of .the' proposal made>at'-,the time it'was submitted to tho; electors."of,''Karori, 'when' Northland formed a* part'of that borough. 'This'was one of the,strongest reasons why they should press'forvah adjustment of accounts. '•.'.There' ,was' a .provision"'in. the: Act that the, two bodies .'could: arrange to.havp an .adjustment df.jaccounts, and, failing; : : that,_>ither.. i bqdy could call;upon, the,Governor-in-Counoil: to set' up-a commission, to have this adjustment made. Neither: the Wellington'- City. Council nor the Karori:Borough Council 'had taken any,■; steps in; the.matter,.'and now' the Karori Borough'"'.Council "was' issuing: demands and. ■threatening' to sue the. ratepayers, of : North-; land : 'f6r^;t^e , r ohairmahi appeared-to :be : an'opportune time for: them ytd ..intimate politely to .the Karori Borough. Council''that' they 'ha'd: k taken legal' advice, informing'■'.them- of the;"naturo of'the„ opinion, ,and that they'were'anxious to' have ■the adjustment, inado before any of the special rates. were''paid.'-': They • were 'anxious .to", pro-, tcct 'their 'interest*and'-their'properties, for ; this was' a serious matter' for property-holders of that' part.'-of: Wellington -City:which had been formerly part of the Karorißotough, inasmuch as these special; rates would continue for a! a ji§rii>fl i&^■'a^6'u,t;^tw t ehty-fiv6-' years.' .it was'necessary, tovh'av.e a.fair' not' advocate-the-evading'of-.any"'just'claim, for; they,; were.;'awa^ beeri''pledgea! r ui:;c6iui.ectioh;'with : uye'.special. 'loans : :,while;.'they' were ..conncctedy with': the; borough;of ; Karori,'and.they.'were prepared to take their : share "of',the .burden.' i,/.;Stillj ,they: were! not" going \ t to submit; to" ithe':;unreasonable attitiide' which the Karori Borough Council was: inclined,", to^take. up: in. irating.: thbm ,- while',' at'; the I same time,, the net: revenue of :the;trams,went;-jinto';the"igeneral.account., ,The,:votingypager,,which- was',, submitted:: to. ratepayers 1906,vset'-forth that, the prDpose'd'.' security,,'ior. _ the; special, loan was,'avspecial,rate.to. be'.levied upon, all rateable pfpperty'.bn.:the basis of; the 'unimproved value.: of,'ah amount- sufficient if or- the payment of-. t tKe: iiiterest on.-the loan,; and t'o^' prpvidefor repayment in twenty-five : years by; ; the creation'bfya'slnldng fund not.less than ,£r'per,''cent.i,per:'annum; upon .the amount of. the loan. ? -;.Had'theyi)ledged the revenue of the', tram ~in ;,additiott.;"to: the, special ■ rate',. Northland'ratepayers mightnotbe so anxious ;to:.have;,the.''ad]ustmeht made. If.that' were "s6,\tand'theitrams .showed, a: not profit of, say, .£2ooi thiSiTvoiild gbin reductidn-.of .'the; Interest, fund, arid.! would' mean that'jthe ;'rafes.' would be ..reduced by\ that'anipuht.: .But;they; had only pledged the property by:.a/special rate to meet the interest and"' sinking .'.•fuh;d,:'- and' consequently the' Northland ..ratepayers, .were, actually^:forced' into;the position"' that : they'were now adoptr 'tog- --'•■ : '..:'' ; :"-:. : y-;'-.:'::v. ; : ■:■-:' ;• ■'■'-■■' "

.: -A motion.:',was;- : ; carried': •. approving, of. the action ; bfv-the.c'ommittee"in.obtaining legal advice.;- : v'.y}::-',,'"■'..;■;;.". ';''':/''-/,;■: /,// ■■■'.■ ::.;■■ The.: comiriu'riicatibh ; from the: solicitor was; read, .in.., which'.:the opinion was expressed•' that/the' claims for: rates could he ..defended, on .the./grourid/.that the. Karori -Borough Council: was ; the /wrong' body to collect, and that-thore were..certamj informalities:/. ;/ The'ohairirian'-pointed,out that,' if -they ie-: blined; to ; pay -,'the. rates, the Karori : Borough. Council wouldibe-forced; to take, steps in (he r .way of summoning one or more of tho North- 1 land? ratepayers,/and it was the intention of the:associatibii.tbdefend a. test case! . If ihe: judgment was.in.their favour, as Mr., Martin was satisfied it,' would be,' it" would be neces- • sary!for the. Karori Borough: /to the .Gbverrior-in-CqUncil to. have a'-coui-riiissiori.;'set/up. ./.The', association had anti-. eipated',. this position 'of. .affairs iivo months ago,-when thesecretarywroto.to the Minister br.-.lnternal.iArfairs, tha'.Hon. Dr. Findlay, asking that _ they -should, be. represented on' v anyVcommissibri:which might-he setup.. The bpinion,'of:;thp ■selicitbr had not come-as a surpriser;:- '■''.'''.■'■:■.■'.'■/'■."■'';'.'■■.■■ Mi'.'- L'aw-;said that; he understood all the ratepayers of) the borough had been served with a second'-notice: that the rates .must'to paid L within fourteen :days, .arid:'he/hoped that none of .them:'.would/-respond.-: in' the moantiine.. Ratepayers, could, rest /'/assured that ■ the- association would stand by .'those, who were selected for the. test case, and see that' they, stood.no personal loss.: '.. Ho, understood -that soveral ratepayers had; ; already paid, and for this ho was sbrry (i for ho'held that tho cuuricil: had no legal right to x take mbn'ey~frorn the/Northland ratepayers./ Mr., Law contended .that, the ratepayers should not be filched-.Of rates to the extent of £700 or £800-in connection with tho buses. The "chairman '.quoted the Act to show that they.could not succeed/with any objection -to the running of: buses; but he urged that apropor adjustment should,be brought about •without delay:, and he had no : doubt that. the adjustment would lead to the city -.teking'-jover tho; tram up to the comotery gate.'- ■/■;■'.:;; ' "'. ,■.'''," •' ' Mr. Law: Wo have no representation, and T maintain;.wo havo no. right, to he rated. , ' , Tho chairman.:" That is tho legal opinion. Continuing, the chairman suggested that the proper course to take was for tho secretary to communicate with tho clerk of the Karon Borough Council, pointing out franidy thnt the ratepayers had adviro and had been advised not to pay the special rates until an adjustment had been made bctwoen'/Hio Karon Borough Council and the .Wellington City, Council. It should te pointed: out that if tho Karori Council was riot -prepared ;to have an" adjustment madb, 'the'NoTthland ratepayers would,faoilitate the ~ testing of tho matter before the Court. That would be the/simplest and nicest' way of transacting .the business. . This would bo a fair intimation that tlws ratepayers were determined riot to pay the council these special rates.. If .the Karori Borough applied to tho Govornor-in-Gouneil, thqre would bo no'test 'case at a11.;,1f it so .happened: thnt a test ;.case' would bo brought on, Northland residents would facilitate it as much-as' possiblo • and endeavour to havo it heard with as little

expense as possible. A "number of the. ratepayers of Northland were under the impression that tho fact of their joining the city had increased their rates thiß year, and Mr. M'Lood wishod to point out that their having left Karori had not altered tho amount of tho rates at all. If they were in Karori now, the rates would be precisely tho same as were being charged under tno present conditions. .■■'.' .In reply to a question, the chairman montioned_ that in the last balance-sheet of Karori, a net revenue of £69. from tho trams had been placed in tho general account. Mr. J. Donaldson moved that.a communication bo sent to tho Karori Borough Council as suggested by tho chairman; Mr. G.: Burney- seconded, and the motion was- carried unanimously.