COUNTY COUNCIL.

Gisborne Times, Volume VI, Issue 241, 19 October 1901, Page 3

COUNTY COUNCIL.

Thk monthly meeting of the Cook County Council was held yesterday, when thcfollowing members were present : Messrs J. Macfariane (Chairman), King, Tomble•sou and Mossman. coKimsro ‘ ,::xce. Mr T. E. Fraser, lv wa, wrote with reference to the stat ct road leading from Mr Mclldowie tc • place. The cost of the work required t. Mbe about LG or L 7. On the motion oi in" Chairman it was decided that the amount no granted. Permission- was granted to Messrs Oxenham and Somervell to take twentyfive loads of stone from the Patutahi quarry for lime burning. The Agricultural Department forwarded approved forms of licenses under the Slaughter and Inspection Act for several applicants in the district.

AMALGAMATION* PIIOI’OSALS. Mr C. A. DeLautour forwarded a legal opinion on the proposed amalgamation of part of Kaiti and Wiiataupoko with the Borougli of Gisborne. Mr DeLautour stated that the County Council could object to the proposal if expedient. It would be a reasonable ground for objection that a riding—a substantial part of which was proposed to be included in the Boroughhad received more than was due in past years out of the annual expenditure of the C ounty, and that such excess expenditure had not been made good by deductions from annual allocations of balances of County income, and in fact could not so have been made good, as there were no balances to allocate. Mr DeLautour said he wa~ informed that the excess of expenditure upon the main road in the Whataupoko riding had exceeded the income derived from that riding by A’2UOO, and that the portion of such main road included in the part oi the riding proposed to be severed was about one-third of the whole. It would appear to follow that if no other considerations were taken into account that the amount the County would be entitled to ask to have refunded or secured would be ,£666 Ids 4d. As the Council’s consent was asked beforehand to the proposal, there was no reason why that sum should not be named as the measure of claim to be made hereafter

The Audit Department’s refusal to re

cognise the separate accounts kept by the Council as between the ridings could not allect the question. If amalgamation took place, the Council, unless protected upon the consequent adjustment of the finances of the local bodies affected, would be deprived of the opportunity to redress the inequality which had now arisen, un-

less it placed the whole debit against the balance of the Whataupoko riding left in the County. In other words, the ratepayers amalgamating would escape liability for £666 Ids -Id. He was of opinion that the Council could (1) after the proposal was gazetted, aud within one month, object upon the short ground that there had been an excess of expenditure over receipts from income in the Whataupoko riding, and that this excess

could onl y be recouped by deductions from allocations in future years, and so long as the riding remained as a whole in the County ; (2) if the objection failed and amalgamation took place, claim as one of the local authorities affected (section 83, Municipal Corporations Act, 1900), £666 Ids id or security for sum sum ; (3) if the claim was refused by the other local authorities in treaty, then refuse to agree in the prescribed time and manner (section 18d), leaving the Governor, after enquiry, in due course to make an equitable adjustment between the County, the Borough, and the riding, as to the part severing and tho part continuing. The Chairman said that, they would have to come to some arrangements with the Road Boards as to the amount the Council was entitled to.

Cr King thought the Council could not do anything at present. When the time

arrived the difficulty could be got over by arbitration.

Cr Mossman was of a like opinion. The Chairman said the Road Boards wanted to know tho amount of their liability and this could be supplied to them. Cr Tombleson said the Council had to consider what they were going to lose. The properties close to town were of considerable value and carried a fair amount of rates. Cr King said that the Council were losing all the most valuable properties in the road districts. The Chairman said that matter cut both ways, and there was the heavy cost of tho maintenance of the roads to consider.

Cr Tombleson thought the question to keep in mind was what part of the valuation the Council were going to lose by the severance of the portions of the District mentioned. The Chairman said that it could be stated that the overdraft for the riding was £2003, and the Council would effect a third of that.

Cr King said that it was a most difficult thing to adjust. The Chairman did not think there was much in the fact of the Council losing part of the ratable area. It was one of

the most expensive localities to maintain. Cr King thought the Council gained very little from the riding. The Chairman suggested that the Council should write to the amalgamation Committee and inform them that the Council’s claim was £660 odd.

After further discussion the Chairman’s

suggestion was adopted,