BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1469, 19 April 1873, Page 2

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

At a meeting of the Borough Council, last evening, the Mayor and Messrs M'Gregor, Coates, Moore, Keid, and Kerr were present. Among the correspondence read there were a number of telegrams which had passed between the Town Clerk and the County Secretary relative to the gazetting of a notice of the Council's intention to raise a loan for public works. A special telegram from the Mayor to the County Chairman was also read, and the Mayor remarked to the Council upon the inconvenience of the delay which had been permitted to occur. — A letter from Mr Batkin, the Under-Secretary, was read, stating, in connection with the projection works, that the law required a first payment of L 750 to be made on May Ist, and that the interest due on May ls^ supposing no further advances were made botween then and that ! date, was LllO 2i 10d.— An application was made by Mr George Martin for 30f

of wharf frontage, next to Mr Lloyd's, to bo decked iv a similar manner, and the application was granted. — Mr Lloyd wrote stating that he had expended LlO 10s in keeping up the wharf from underneath, and asking to be allowed to take out the ainouut in rent. The application was refused. — An application from Mr Richard Collins, for protection for punting and ferrying, was received and ordered to lie on the table for a week. (Mr Collins referred to the diminution of traffic on the river since the ; opening of the Westland road, and appliedto punt and ferry, guaranteeing night and day attendance, and a reduced scale of charges). — Mr Betts wrote offering to supply stone-kerbing, and the letter was ; referred to the Works Committee ; the Mayor remarking that, if stone-kerbing could be procured, it might be policy to use it. — Mr Guinness applied for a reduction of assessment on his property in Johnston street, but it was not entertained, on the ground that the matter was now closed, and that another application had on similar grounds been refused. — Inspector Hickson drew attention to some supposed error in the gazetting of bye-law 4, and the letter was received ; the Mayor explaining that there seemed to be a misapprehension on the part of the Inspector, through a difference in the reading of the terms used as to parts of the bye-law. A memorial, signed by 24 ratepayers, and asking for the construction of Alexander street south to the Town Belt, parallel to Tainui. street, was presented by Mr Kerr. The memorial re- : f erred-, to the inconvenience experienced in connection with carriage from the brick-making yards and to other reasons which existed for the formation of the street. It was explained by the Mayor that the work could not be incladed in the schedule for works, provided for in the loan, and, after a motion by Mr Kerr that the memorial be then considered, Mr Moore further explained that there were not, as. suggested by the mover, any other funds available. It was suggested by the Mayor that some arrangement with the inhabitants might be possible, and it was finally agreed that the matter snould stand over for a week, instructions being meantime given to the Surveyor to estimate the cost of the work. The Finance Committee reported as follows, their report being adopted : — "Ist. That Mr G. King, Manager of the Bank of New South Wales, will allow the Council to increase its overdraft to the sum of LIOOO, upon the following conditions : — That the Council, on behalf of the Mayor, Councillors, and Burgesses of the Borough of Greymouth do pledge that the account of the Council of the Borough shall not be removed to any other Bank from the Bank of New South Wales until all liabilities which may be owing to the Bank of New South Wales shall have been paid. 2. That the amount due to the General Government, as per c Greymouth Harbor Works Advance Validation Act, 1872,' be paid on the Ist day of May, 1873. 3. Your Committee have to report that the financial position of the Council will not admit of the amount due to Messrs Dykes and Perkins being paid, and that arrangements must be made id least for three and six months for the payment of their accounts. 4. And recommend that the Council do give the pledge required by the manager of the Bank of New South Wales to obtain the overdraft of L 1000." On the motion of Mr Reid, standing orders were suspended, and it was made an instruction to the Works Committee to investigate as to the immediate providing of a public pound. Mr Kerr's name was added to the Committee. ' The luspector of Nuisances reported that the town was "generally clean, and free from nuisances of any kind." The Council adjourned.