FOXTON HARBOUR BOARD.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2391, 11 February 1922, Page 2

FOXTON HARBOUR BOARD.

ANNUAL MEETING. The statutory annual meeting ofjjL : the Foxton Harbour Board was heldat Palmerston N. on Thursday afternoon. Present: Messrs J. Linklater (chairman), W. Bock, J. Chrystall, T. J. Clapham, W. E. Barber* and J. W. Rimmer. An apology for absence was received from Mr E. R. B. Holben.

TREASURER’S REPORT. The Treasurer reported that the receipts since last meeting were as follows: — Pilotage £26 4s, river lighting £8 15s, wharfage inwards (£l6B 11s 7d less railway charges £B7 19s 9d) £BO 11s 10d-, wharfage outwards £2B 9s 7d, ships dues £4 16s 10d, rents £212 7s 2d, road contributions £3O, sale of tank £3, sale of flax £lB 4s, a total of £412 8s sd. The expenditure during the same period was £941 16s Bd. The amount to the Board’s credit at the Bank of New Zealand was £1,518 13s sd.

CHAIRMAN’S REPORT. The Chairman’s annual report, as - follows, was read and adopted:— / “I have pleasure in being able to / report the credit to general account * now stands at £1,518 13s sd. There V* is still £5,000 of the original loan available for works for which the loan was raised, but for no other purpose. During the year the three years Government grant for river improvements, totalling £750, and £BO from the Foxton Borough Council towards the purchase of the Round Bush, has been received, and these items help to make up the credit balance shown. The Round Bush question, i.e.. that portion, 474 acres, taken for scenic purposes, is practically settled, the Government agreeing to fence the portion ahd pay to the Board £440. It is still hoped a grant will be made this session towards further river improvements, The interest and sinking fund for the year, amounting to £537 13s 9d, has been paid out of ordinary revenue, as hitherto. The wharfages, in and out, and ships dues totalling £295 Is 2d net, are very disappointing. Last year they gave £856 14s lOd, and the year before that over £I,OOO. It is iioped the district will make a great effort to remedy this by way of increased traffic through the port. This appears the only remedy, and I sincerely hope the Board will be able to report this at next annual meeting. The rents, £547 13s 7d, show an increase of £B2 13s lOd on last year, and I think will steadily improve. But something else must increase (shipping, for in-'* stance) to meet interest on loan, dredging, and working expenses. Since the dredge has been working down the river, good work has undoubtedly been done, and as will be shown by the dredge engineer’s report. I visited the work quite recent.lv, and am more than pleased with it, and satisfied the dredge is doing excellent work. The cost of dredging, including trial runs and adjusting machinery, has been £905 5s 4d, including salary, wages, coal, etc. The pilot’s monthly . reports give an average of about lift 9in. to 12 feet on the bar at spring tides,, and say 7ft. 9in. to 8 ft. at neaps. Easterly winds, at times, affect the tides, and cause delay. Generally the river is good, excepting now at Rush Flat, the next place the dredge will be working. A deputation recently waited upon the Minister for Marine, with a view of the.Harbout Board being given authority to assist in chartering vessels. The Minister was sympathetic, and would endeavour to get the Act amended in that direction, but feared it would be too late for this session. An amendment to the Foxton Harbour Act, drafted by the Board’s solicitor, and approved by the Minister for Marine. to enable the Board to extend - r ' the term of leases a further ten years, was to be included in the ‘Washing Up Bill,’ and is expected to be passed. I thank members of the Board and the officials for the assistance and support given me during the past. year, and express the hope that during the current year the one great step forward, viz., greater traffic to the port, will be an accomplished fact, and that a company will be formed to give regular trading and certain delivery to enable the_Board in its efforts to make the port what it should be. To enable it to employ 7 its own staff to handle goods, both of which I am quite satisfied would be in the interests of the whole district from Levin to Feilding, and the adjacent towns.” •

DREDGE ENGINEER’S REPORT. £ The dredge engineer reported that the dredge was doing good work. He had been working without a pipe line for some time, and found that the sand is carried away without depositing in the river; by doing this he could also get in longer dredging hours, and load the machine up to a greater capacity, thus getting ever the ground in quicker time. When dredging at the present point is completed, it was intended to shift the dredge to Fishermen’s Point, which is the worst spot in the river at present.—lt was decided to have the dredge shifted to Fishermen’s Point next week. PILOT’S REPORT. The pilot reported that good water had been experienced on the bar throughout the month. The least water at high water spring tides was lift. 9in., and at high water neap tides 9ft. 7in. The channel continues to keep straight out. The least water now in the river is at Fishermen’s Flat, high dewater neap tides 7ft. 9in. The channel along the jetty is gradually getting deeper, and is washing in to

the flagstaff; if it continues to wash away, I will have to shift the flagstaff further back.” GENERAL.

It was decided to ask the Government to have the Round Bush fenced as soon as possible. Mr Bock gave notice of motion to discontinue the annual grant of £l2 10s to the Foxton Borough Council towards the Beach Road interest account. Mr Bock pointed out that when this grant was first made in 1910 the road conti’ibutions from tenants only amounted to £35, whereas at the present time they were double that amount, and therefore there was no further necessity for the grant, which could better be used by the Board in other directions.

Mr Bock mentioned that the Foxton Chamber of Commerce was arranging a conference with members of the Palmerston Chamber, to which Board members were to be invited, to discuss the best means to increase' the traffic to the port. Something would have to be done to get more shipping, and efforts in this direction should receive the hearty support of the whole district.