CITY COUNCIL.

Evening Star, Issue 3961, 4 November 1875, Page 3

CITY COUNCIL.

A special meeting of the Council waß held at 3 p.m. to-day to consider a recommendation from the Finance Committee to raise a loan of LIOO,OOO. There were present the Mayor, Crs. Woodland, Mollison, Leary, Keeves, Campbell Chapman, Grant, Gibeon, Brown, Robert, and Isapes. The Finance Committee brought up the following report : Tour Committee has the honor to report havine Mceiyad from the General Government a eopy of the Dunedin Borrowing Powers Extension and Debentures Act, 1&75," a3 passed at the last session of The passing of this measure renders it necessary that the Council's resolution, as adopted on 3rd September last, to borrow a sum of money under the authority of the " Dunodin Borrowing Powers Extension Ordinance," should bo superseded by a fresh resolution to borrow under the authority of the first recited Act of last session. Tour committee therefore recommends that tho Council shall 'resolve to borrow a sum of lilOO.ooo on credit of the City rates authorised to be levied by the " Otago Municipal Corporations Ordinance, 1865," the money to be borrowed under the authority of the " Dunedin Corporation Borrowing Powers Extension and Debentures |Act, 1875," aud in order to secure the payment of the said sum of LIOO.OOO, together with interest at the rate of six per cent, per annum, that assignments of the rates be prepared and executed in sums of LIOO each, as provided for by section 99 of the " Otago Municipal Corporations Ordinance, 1865.' Jnd. That of the foregoing sum an amount of L 25.000 be devoted to tho purpose of purchasing or building a town hall. 3rd. That the Council shall open negotiations with a view to tho purchase of the Otago Unrrersity Building for Town Hall purposes. 4th. That the Finance Committee have power to give effect to the negotiation of tho LIOO.OOO loan, amd to arrange all details.

Cr. llehves, in moving the adoption of the report, said it was a disgrace that in a city of the importance of Dunediii, and with its resources, tin re wus not a hall possessing a decent public room that could be used as occasion required. That portion of the report referring to the purchase, of the University building demanded considerable reflection. The site of the University was as good for a Town Hall as could be possibly found; but the building itself would cost so much to make it suitable for City purposes that it would, he afraid, bo a most, expensive way of accomplishing the object they" had in view. To convert the largo hall of the University into a, room suitable for public purposes would, according to the Engineer's repo:t, cost 1-5,000 or L 6.000, and then it would only hold 1,200 people, while in JiL-t opinion a town hall should b* capable of .seating l.fiOOor 2,000 people. Besides, the University Council aaked L25,0000r 1,30,000 for the building. !f they were to build a hall, they would, when it was competed, have the satisfaction of having a building in every way suitable. If the hall were erected in the Octagon theie could be there provided accommodation tor a Fire Brigade engina station, and he believed there could bo erected a tower which would give a3 good anoutlook over the City ns from the present tower. He should, if necessary, support the spending of L 30.000, and did not consider that aa extravagant price t<> jay for a building of the kind he had described. Cr. Isaac was opposed to the purchase of the University Bite buildlrg. If the Council decided to erect a hall on ground of their own he should oppose more than L 15.000 or L 17.000 being expanded,

Cr. Glßsoff said the ostensible purpose for which the money was to be borrowed was for sanitary improvements and dainage. He would most determinedly oppose such an expenditure when the money was urgently required for useful purposes. In answer to questions, '1 he Mayor said LIOO.OOO must be devoted to drainage ; the other L 200.000 the Council was authorised to borrow was to be devoted to the improvement of the City generally, Cr. Grant supported the resolution on the understanding that it was only to the committee to see if the University buildings could be purchased at a reasonable figure, Cr Chapman supported the resolution, but with the reservation that i« the purehase of the University building was recommended ho should oppose it, because he it_ unsuitable. He suggested that the Council, if it determined to build a hall in the Octagon, might take into consideration the desirability of allowing one tower or facade to answer for both the Town Hall and for the Law Courts the General Government proposed to build. Cr. Leary moved that clauses 2 and 3 of the report should be struck out. Ten years hence, out of the good things to be provided by the Abolition Bill, it would be timo enough to go into this expenditure ; but at the present time, when there was to much absolutely required for necessary works, and with the Princes street widening expenditure in prospective, the Council was not justified in incurring this proposed expenditure. The Council would only get 1,95 per LIOO, which meant a yearly loss for interest and sinking fund of LBO. Therefore, with that loss, and the interest and sinking fund on the raised portion there would be an annual charge for rterest and sinking fund of LI, 800 or LI ,900, as against which there might be a probable yearly revenue from the hall of LBOO. But his strong objection was if L 25.000 or L 30.000 was expended on a Town Hall, and T. 25,000 on Princes street widening, there would only be left L 140.000 for all necessary works in the City. , Or Reeves showed that, from the leasing of the (present Corporation offices site and the probable income from the proposed Hall, the charge against the City funds for such a building would only be L 450 annually, Cr. Campbell spoke .strongly in support of purchasing the University building, saying that the site alone was well worth the price asked. The amendment was negatived, only Cra. Reeves and Gibson voting for • i.