SEATOUN PARADE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2886, 26 September 1916, Page 3

SEATOUN PARADE

LOAN PROPOSAL SCHEME EXPLAINED TO RATEPAYERS. At a meeting held in the Miramar Borough Chambers last ovoning tho Seatoun > forcshoro loan proposal was explained to the ratepayers by tho Mayor of the borough (Mr. F. Townsond). Tho Borough Council has asked ratepayers to sanction . tho raising of £4500 to erect a wall and groynes to check the soa erosion at tho Seatoun Marino Parade. The gathering was. a largo ono, and a lively interest in the proposal was displayod. Addressing the mooting, Mr. Townsend said that ail knew tho. necossity of tho work being carried out, particularly thoso who lived at Seatoun; Tho council had had tho work in mind for somo timo, and of late the erosion had becomo so great that it was essential that tho work should be gone on with right away. Want of funds had' prevented it being gone on with sooner. Tho board, by the way, was never too flush of' funds. Tho prosont wall was built in 1910. That wall had not been continued the full longth necessary, but the present owner of ono of tho properties concerned had cleared tho way for further progress by offering tho council a strip of land. Another trouble had • been that the wall lad given way in Bov-cral places, fl'ho council recently had sought tho aid-of the Public Works Department, who had permitted Mr. Furkert, inspecting engineer, to report on tho mattor, and practically it was this- scheme which the council had adopted. The cost of the work, it was estimated, would be £3800, and adding certain costs; and allowing for contingencies, the council asked for £4500. It did not follow that tho whole of tho £4500 would be called up; it might not all be needed. 'Tho rate would need to bo l-6th of a penny in tho £, and less if all the money was not used. The question would be asked: Why do you want to rate the whole borougli for a Seatoun work? Tho answer was that it was a. work that would ho done for the good of tho whole borough; it would be done to improve Seatoun, as a seaside resort. Tho amount (£2BO per annum) was small, and, in any case, ho did not see why tho borougli should be divided for the purposes of various undertakings. That was had policy. Every part of the borough should assist every other part of the borough right through. There was only one alternative to the proposal—to do the. work piecemeal, which would be unsatisfactory. Another sido'.to the question was that the borough might find itself involved with property-owners. He did not say the property-owners would win their casos', hut the actions would cost the council a lot of money. The Mayor said that he would answer questions put by ratepayers. Among the questions wero: "How far along the. beach will the road he'taken?" The Mayor: To Monro Street. Is that to the end of the borough?. The Mayor: Not quite.) Well, then, will wo not have the same trouble along near the Defence property? •No. The,land there has beonbuilding. up for years. i What is the value of the land whers the erosion is taking- place ? I am not sure, but I should say £4 to £5 per foot. 'Is it correct that if this wall is not. made our sewers are in danger?, I believe that is so. , Mr. Rawson, who has known the , loach for many years, thought it would be bost to put down wood groynes first, and seoliow they served. Mr, A. Crawford said ho would vote for tho.scheme. " Tho work was necessary, and it Would he a narrow view , to say that Seatoun should pay for tho whole of a work which was to be of benefit to all the borough. The Mayor said tho groynes were the most essential thing, and they would be put down experimentally. Some one queried:. "At what rate do you expect to raise the money ?" The Mayor: We reckon on 5i per ceiff. at the most,, and probably 5 pel' ceir£. ''■ ( Mr. Fox, the borough engineer, said that if the work was not done the erosion would extend as far as Forrest Street, and also that tho sewers would be affected. It would be better to do the work by borough labour than by contract; The work could only be done at certain states of the tide, and the borough hands could be employed on road work, etc.', when unable to do anything at tho foreshore, but that would fje_ impossible with a contractor. In closing tho meeting tho Mayor appealed to tho ratepayers to carry the proposal.' The work.was urgent, andwas for the good of the. borough. That waterfront was ono of the borough's best assets.