HAURAKI PLAINS COUNTY

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4962, 14 April 1926, Page 3

HAURAKI PLAINS COUNTY

MONTHLY COUNCIL MEETING. ' . ROUTINE BUSINESS. The Hauraki Plains County Council met at Ngatea yesterday, Cr. J. C. • Miller presiding over the following: Crs. C. W. Harris, W. G. Hayward, W. Madgwick, C. Parfitt, J. H. Nicholson, T. McLoughlin, J. F. Mayn, and H. J. Hare.' The engineer. (Mr F. Basham), and' the clerk (Mr E. A. Mahoney) were present. ' - FINANCE COMMITTEE. The following recommendations, of the finance committee wetre adopted: “That the engineer be instructed to go into the' question of charges for machinery hire and report to the council. “That the antecedent liability rate’ be embodied in the, general., rate and ■the liability extinguished from the -general account. ■ “Tha.t the £53 15s 2d balance in the Waitakaruru roads loan account be expended on. the back Miranda Road ■at the discretion’of the engineer. “That accounts, totalling £11,500odd'be passed for payment.” . t ■ APPOINTMENT OF'FOREMAN. • Thirty-eight applications were received for the position'of foreman of Works ajid inspectob of by-laws. Men ■from *a,ll parts, of the. Dominion, applied. The number had" been reduced by the .'engineer" to twelve, and on these being considered, it was decided that Mr R. H- Cameron, the council's present foreman at Turua, be ap-pointed’for-twelve months. Crs. Miller, ■' Madgwick,. Parffitt, Hare,, and Hayward voted for the appointment, while Crs. Mayn, McLoughlin, Harris, and Nicholson favoured appointing.another applicant.

• Mr Camerbn was also reappointed .inspector of vehicles under the Act. . .TURUA STREETS LOAN.

• The Turua Town Board, through.its; clerk (Mr J. Green), asked the council to provide £250, understood, to be available for the, purpose,, to supple-, nient the balance of Iban money for the completion of work on Raratuna, Street, Awa Street,, and Oparia Road, which the N.Z.. Roads- Co; had offered to do for £l3OO. ;.If £25.0 was provid-ed-by the council, in accordan-e with • its powers, £l3lO 15s 4 d would.be at the disposal of the board to pay the contactors. ■-• ;i-: .

In reply to Or. Mayn the. clerk explained that a special rate had been levied for the first year, though provision- ha.dibeen made in the loan for, this. ■lt was proposed to use 'a.small proportion of the rate to enable the work'to be: completed, y The request:-was granted. ORCHARD EAST ROAD. j TJie chairman of the No. 2 District Council, Main ‘Highways Board,-advis-ed that the council’s inquiry, as to whether a/subsidy would),be. obtained on the Orchard East. section of the "Pokeno-Waihi highway- if jt was made. of concrete-.. - 9rt wide . with metal ■shoulders had been submitted to the Highways Board; which had advised that this' would-not meet- with sympathetic consideration, as .top-dress-ing' jvith shingle or jasper /from, the -Hauraki' Gulf.- was ( favoured; ~

■ KEREPEEHI-WHAREPOA ROAD. /Cr, Madgwidk. - said th'a,t until an. assurance had been received that-the ■subsidy would be received it.was of no use commencing the bottom course of. metal oai the Kerepeehi-Wharepoa • road. The matter should be brought to a head .as soon as- possible.’ -To .comply with Public Works ■specifica>tibns the - other, roads hndv received more money than was estimated, thus there was not, sufficient, to .complete tills road. . • , The-matter was left to ,the .chairman and :Cr. 'Madgwick for action. ; NGATAIPUA ROAD. " In reply-'to Cr. Madgwick the - engineer said- that -there would- be? pro/ visition in the Ngata’pua Road loan for the blinding of the portion in the Turua riding. , 7 . ; . . DRAIN UNDER’ ROAD. . ' ■ The Hora.hia Drainage/BonrjLwroite., for permission to construct a concrete> culvert- across the Kerepeehi-Kjpua-rahi road in line with the boundary; between Messrs Loach's and. Mr Duff’s. —Granted. . ■ • . RURAL COUNTIES’ ASSOCIATION. The-Rural Counties’ Association forwarded 14 remits to be. considered at a- conference: at Hamilton on April 1'5., ■ Cr..- Madgwick and .the clerk - were deputed the council’s representatives. MOTOR LICENSE FEES. . The Hamilton Borough Council.-askr ed for representation a,t a conference of authorities controlling* roads, in the No. 3 heavy traffic district to disbuss allocation of license at . Hamilton on April, 20. ; Cr. Madgwick and the clerk.-were deputed to attend. " Amongst, other matters, the association requested co-operation with the North Island Motor Union in securing legislation making it an offence "-for motorists to leave empty benzine tins on the roa,ds. The Department .of. .Justice., had*, recently brought' to the notice of the union a case of a native child losing its life through an explosion caused by the fire under a partly emptied tin. The matter ,was referred to the inspector for action, and it was also decided, .to advertise, in- the local papers asking motorists to refrajn. KERBSIDE RUMPS. The Department of Internal Affairs -forwarded details regarding the proper method of installing underground petrol tanks ; with kerbside pumps attached. It was considered that underground storage was the'safest possible method,, and the council was, asked to favourably- consider applications for kerbside pumps at suitable points near the edge of the road formation.

A'n from the Crown Solicitor (enclosed) concluded wi,th the 'following paragraps : “I think from this it may be concluded that such local authority may give permission for the erection of petrol pumps, provided that such erections do not impede traffic or interfere with the genera,! use of the road. I think, however, that any permission given would be a local license revocable at the will of the local authority. The local authority could not give 'any tenure.”