NETHERTON ROADS LOAN

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVI, Issue 4878, 16 September 1925, Page 2

NETHERTON ROADS LOAN

SANCTION OF RATEPAYERS. AN OVERWHELMING MAJORITY. By 95 votes to 9 the ratepayers of Netherton, at apOll taken On Monday, exprssed in no uncertain manner their desire to have good roads. The poll was a record one, as it is estimated that of the people entitled tb vote and who were not away from the district on polling day only six did not vote. The poll was the best ever held in Netherton, and though it was generally expected that the result would be in favour of the Joan the announcement of the overwhelming majority came as a surprise to many. The question voted upon was whether the County Council was to be authorised to raise a loan up to £29,000 for the purpose of having the main road through the riding laid down as a bitumen-bound road up to the Main Highways Board’s standard and all the other roads improved and metalled. The proposal to give all parts of the district a road sufficient for requirements at a reasonable cost and without imposing any hardship on any section was a sound commonsense one, and the adoption of the scheme by all voters except possibly three or at the most nine shows that it was recognised as. a sound business proposition.

Netherton is to be congratulated on its decision. That district will benefit most by having good roads, but all parts of the country will benefit to a lesser extent. For this gain they are paying £B2OO for the main highway construction, and will continue for all time to pay at least one-third of the cost of the maintenance of this road, and possibly a greater share. ,In addition the general taxpayer is paying for the subsidies that will be granted by, the Public Works Department. Outside traffic would have used the roads in .any case, and the only way in which it could be made to pay is by the way provided. With the metalling of the Waitakaruru-Pokeno section of the main highway the amount of through traffic will increase by leaps and bounds, and time would undoubtedly have proved that the maintenance would have cost the ratepayers more for a bad road than the loan rate for a good road. Now that the poll has been carried, the next' steps are to count the votes and advertise the result, it is then fbr the-council to instruct its clerk to endeavour to raise such portion of the loan as may be thought will be required. This will probably take some months in view of the state of the money market. By the time the money is. in hand the engineer will be in a position to have the work commenced.