HAURAKI PLAINS COUNTY

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 5131, 27 May 1927, Page 3

HAURAKI PLAINS COUNTY

k CHAIRMAN RE-ELECTED.

* r "‘ review of activities,

Cr. E. L. Walton was unanimously re-elected chairman of the Hauraki Plains County Council at the statutory meeting o>f the council on Wednesday the following being present: Crs. C. W. Harris, J. C. Miller, C. W. Parfitt, H. H. Hicks, J. A. Reid, A. S. Fisher, and Messrs’ E. A. Mahoney (clerk) and F. Basham (engineer).

In accordance with the provisions .of the Counties Act the clerk took the chair and called for nominations for the chairmanship for the ensuing year. Cr. J. C. Miller nominated Cr. Walton,t find Cr. J. A. Reid seconded. There being no further nominations Cr. Walton was declared elected. On taking the chair Cr. Walton thanked the councillors for their renewed expression of confidence, and then proceeded to review the. work of the council during the past year as follows :— “I think you will all agree that it has been pre-eminently a year of progress and results, so far as public works in the county are concerned. After determining its policy the council commenced to give immediate effect to it. One of the first thing* done was the improvement of oui main roads. About 15 miles of these were resurfaced with red metal and brought up to the standard required by the Main Highways Board. In addition, patching, grading, and maintenance generally were carried out. In all, over £ll,OOO was spent in the ridings on reinstating, repairing, and maintaining the roads. This expenditure was more than double that in any previous year, while the general rate was only slightly raised in some ridings and not at all in others. The improvements of further lengths of main traffic routes in .the county is being continued this autunjh. “As you know, the council laid it down as one of the features of its policy that the maintenance of the roads already metalled should be a first charge on the general rate. The benefits of this decision are now apparent in the surfaces of our metalled roads, and are recognised and favourably commented upon bj r persons travelling through the county, anid a continuance of this feature is fully justified. “Of the loan works, the major effort has been the construction of roads in the Netherton riding, where, during the past summer and autumn, over nine miles of macadam road surfaced with red metal have been laid at a cost of approximately £23,000, which sum includes interest and sinking fund for the first yeqf and the cost of raising the loan. Of this sum nearly £lO,OOO represents subsidy (received and to be received) from the Government. In th’: Turua riding the bituminising of the Turua-Netherton road has been completed, and the county now possesses, including that in the- Turua town district, about 12 miles of bitumen road. “In the Kerepeehi riding authority was given by the ratepayers to raise a loan for completing the metalling of Pekapeka Road and for metalling the Wairau and Kaikahu roads, and I hope to see these works completed this next season. In this riding also the Pekapeka water supply loan of £2OOO was raised and the pipes laid and put into use last February. “Loans have been raised and houses built for. the county engineer and the overseer-inspector. “Contracts for £34,000 have been let in connection with the Hauraki Plains West water supply scheme. The work is in progress, and the water will be available for the next milking season in the- Pipiroa and Ngatea ridings. “In the Waitakaruru riding the metalling of the main highway from Haley’s corner to the county boundary, a distance of about three miles, has been completed by the Highways Board acting in conjunction wtih the council at a cost to the ratepayers in the riding of £5OO- The metalling of miles on the Waitakaruru Canal road, in the Waitakaruru riding, has also been completed by the Lands Department on behalf of th© council at 'a cost tp the'ratepayers of £llOO. “Another important matter dealt with during our year of office has been the subject of ferries. A shifting of the centre of population made an alteration necessary. The Pipiroa ferry was opened in June last, and has been running satisfactorily ever since. The expenditure has been very heavy, and while the maintenance charges (some of which might more properly have been classified as capital expenditure) to March 31 last exceeded the revenuex.yet the latter, is increasing considerably and the former is decreasing. When the council ca.me into office the Netherton ferry was closed owing to the state of the punt. Thei Wharepoa was running. After a conference with the Thames County Council it was decided to close the Wharepoa ferry andtransfer, the punt and gear to Netlierton. This was done on the night of June 13, and the service across the river maintained any interruption to traffic. Negotiations with the Thames and Ohinemuri county councils were carried on until March, 1927. when this council purchased the share of the Thames County Council in the Wharepoa ferry plant. Th© house at Whiireppa is at present being shifted to the Netherton ferry, which is now the sole property of this council. The material result is that whereas there were two ferries, each running at a loss, now ther is each running at a loss, now there is one ferry which is self-supporting, and the service across the river is being efficiently maintained. “Last July it was decided to work the Hikutaia quarry on wages for !l period of six months, so as to secure reliable data as to operating costs. This was done, and some 6000 yards of metal obtained before the quarry was closed in March last.” The review was approved by the council. COMMITTEES. The annual metting concluded with the reappointment of the Work?, Finance, and Waterworks committees.