SPORTS GROUND RATES

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1835, 22 August 1913, Page 9

SPORTS GROUND RATES

RELIEF SOUGHT.

DEPUTATION TO CITY COUNCIL,

A largo deputation'from city sports bodies asked the City Council last night to remit the; general rates on sports grounds. Mr. C. P. Skerrett, tho chief spokesman, said that the deputation I'epresented clubs who owned grounds which were not run for profit or rain. If the problem was not settled that night it would be recurrent, liepresented there were ten bowling ciubs two-tennis olubs. am} the Wellington Rugby Union. The rates (affected last year totalled cC4C-l 16s. Id. It was clear that tho .limit of tho income, with which the council vraw dealing, was about JSOO—nothing more. The clubs were all "within tho Act," aill their revenun going towards the games. Tho Rugby Union certainly changed for admission to its games, but no part of their" property could bo distributed amongst its members. None of these clubs were flourishing; if they were, they could not self-respeotingly ask for this remission. Tho fact was 'thev weTe living from hand to month. The council had (fhe jurisdiction to remit the rates, and the question was whether they ought to do so.

The .Mayor: Have we the right regarding Athletic Park?

Mr. Skerrett: I think you havo. Mr. Skerrett, continuing, submitted that tho council ought to remit tho Tates. It was impossible for the counoil to -supply adequate sports grounds, except outside tho bounds of the city, and the sports bodies were helpmates of tho counail inasmuch as they provided grounds which relieved the public . gTouinds of undue strain.. If a time arrived when these clubs could not maintain their hold on the' grounds, they would insistently demand from. th« council a sho.ro of the corporation reserves. There was a real danger of these clubs being unable to "hold their grounds. It was idle to say that these irtare private olubs; private clubs were the machinery by which the public got their sport. "Wore they not public clubs in tho sense that any decent person could gain entry to them? Owing to the configuration of the city, ground was of- a relatively groat value. These air-spaces wore of incalculable worth. Tho deputation askikl the council to say that the clubs were of public utility and convenience. The Borough of Invercargill had remitted rates in similar instances.

Mr. J. J. Roberts spoke in behalf of the bawling clubs. Ho said that tho lanrc sunn of money spent on the greens had been saved to the city corporation—by the enterprise of private people. Tho Wellington Rugby Union's case was put by Mr. W. Perry. Fourteen or fifteen hundred players, he said, played Rugby every Saturday, and the only rev-enue-producing ground was Athletic Park, out of tho takings at which the pounds for practically tho whole of tho hundreds of players in tho city were provided. If t'lie nark was lost there would be one thousand players sitting on the council doorstep every meeting night clamouring for grounds.

In reply to Councillor. Frost, Mr. Skerratt said that it was a remission of tho general, not the aoi'vicei rates which was Requested.

The matter was referred to tho Finance Committee.