FOXTON HARBOUR BOARD.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2412, 1 April 1922, Page 2

FOXTON HARBOUR BOARD.

A meeting fbt the-boxlon llarhoui Board was lee Id in Palmerston North on Thursday afternoon, Mr J. Link-. later presiding. There were also presenit iVlessrs J. A, N ash, iM.P., W. E, Fiarber, T. J. Clapham, J. Chrycftall, W. Bock, and J. W. Rimmer. The chairman stated that the dredging work carried out had been very satisfactory, and about 20 chains had been done recently. All the bad points above the jetty, with the exception of one, had been attended to, but the rough weather iemtedjo retard the progress of the work. mentioned that a sum of £750 had been received from •ho Marine Department, and that a further sum was expected. The treasurer’s statement showed' a credit of £1,440 11s sd, and £440 at fixed deposit, the latter being amount received for portion of Round Bush.

Accounts amounting to £362 7s 2d were passed for payment. CORRESPONDENCE. From Mr Ed. Newman. M.P., stating that £SOO was on the .supplementary estimates for the Manawntn River improvement scheme; also notifying the Board was now empowered to grant a further 14 years at expiry of present and fill tire leases on such terms and conditions as the Board may determine.

From the General Manager of the New Zealand Railways in reply to the Board’s communication regarding the charges levied on goods at the Foxton wharf, informing the Board that the charge of Is 2d per ton was for services rendered to the Board at the wharf, and had no connection with the placing of cargo in the goods-shed. The charges as now jnposed were strictly in accordance with the Department’s intention when the arrangement was entered into with the Board. —Received. GENERAL. It was agreed to write toMhe Government asking it what action it was taking in regard to the fencing of the Round Bush property.

The action of the Chairman in having the"Foxton wharf insured against lire was confirmed. A lengthy discussion aneut wharf leases was held in committee. It was eventually decided to hold matters over in this connection until the next meeting of the Board. The matter of setting up by-laws for the port of Foxton was left in the hands of Mr Boek. It was agreed that instead of the Board paying the sum of £l2 10s to the Foxton Borough Council as interest on the Beach Road loan, in future if would pay only half this v amount to the Borough Council, and f the other half to the Mannwatu County Council.It was resolved to apply by tender for the lease of Beach sections. Messrs Levin and Co. wrote, asking if a right of renewal at expiration of present lease could be secured. —It was decided to deal fully with this at next meeting. Re the clause in the Act cancelling the right of cart access at expiry of present lease, it was decided to use every effort to get this'cancelled. The matter of adjustment of rent for area taken off Round Bush lease was left to Mr Bock, with power to net. The matter of wharf charges is to be referred to Mr Newman, and if necessary, lie- should consult the Minister. REPORTS RECEIVED.

The following reports were received and adopted:— From Mr Jickell, re soundings taken on the 15th instant at Rush Point. These will be published, together with the Board's dredg.emaster’s soundings at Duncan’s Bend, in next- issue.

From the Pilot, as at 28th February: That the channel still keeps good, and straight out. The least V water at hight-water neap tides was ’ • Sft. 6in, with strong easterly wind and tides poor. The river is good, except at Fisherman’s Flat, where soundings on same tides as above gave 6ft. sin.

The Engineer’s report on the work of the month was read. .The Engineer tendered his resignation as from 25tli April. It was decided to accept this as from the 30th, and the matier of future work left to the Dredge Committee. REPORT OF SUB-COMMITTEE.

The following report, from the Sub-Committee was adopted:— Messrs Linklater, Barber and Bock met at Palmerstcin N. on March 24th to discuss various positions.

Re Dredging.—Boisterous weathcr and other conditions have prevented dredging operations for abouf three weeks. The dredge was moored i<> Rush Flat on the 3rd, and was put in position nearly opposite the .jelly, and-will work as soon as the weather will allow. Mr -Jickell’s report at fa died hereto' 'gives the soundings taken by him, and the Pilot has been asked to continue these foii a distance further down the river. The cost, of dredging is aliopt £l3O per month. If Mr Jickell’s suggestion re moorings are carried out they will cost about £2OO. Tt is suggested by us that;dredging he continued as rapidly as possible when weather will permit., t . Even to working ten or more hours per day until ordered otherwise, and if possible to put out one or lengths ol pipe to gel* the spoil as far away from ..the dredge as can be. Finances were discussed, and although ii fair credit is now shown, the revenue from shipping is very low. £6OO of " the present credit must be ear-marked for interest Payable in June, arid as dredge work can only be done out of revenue it is obvious every care must be taken in regard to expenditure.

The question oncost to consignees of 5s 3d per ton at Foxton for wharfage and handhVg by the Railways was discussed. Chat of this amount the Board receives*,, say Is 2d for general goods.- It is fr-oped better arrangements; might possibly be made, but the Railways say the present' is the correct charge. It' is suggested' the making of by-laws bo proceeded with as early as possible, and‘that thVpoxton Committee, with tli'e^Chairman, deal with the matter and report to the Board. In conclusion, we wish to express the opin-. ion that the dredge is doing remarkably good work. The awkwytrd sand bank near Fraser’s Boa/tshed . has disappeared, and a gbodr'clmnnel is the result. This plafeti for years was always a Lower down, where the "dredge- ’ifaS J just moved frbnj^—ft-Ttept h of water has been •'-gained for many chains ranging from ten'to : fifteen feet, and it is fully anticipated equal l’esults will be obtained in the present position. SHIPPING TO THE PORT.

The ever-recurring question of shipping through the port of Foxton was referred to by Mr J. Chrystall. He stated that there had been a lot of talk about the matter, and the Board had spent a considerable sum in clearing the channel, and putting it in order, but as yet the amount of shipping done through the r>ort had not shown any improvement. Mr <T. A. Nash said that he and the chairman (Mr J. Linklater) would shortly be in Wellington on business, and he suggested that they be authorised to see Mr MeVilly .(the General Manager for Railways) with reference to shipping coal through the port. This suggestion was agreed to. One member asked whether there was any possibility of inducing the Palmerston North Borough Council to bring its coal requirements'through the port of Foxton. Mr Chrystall: They would do well to do so.. In one shipment alone, of about 180 tons of coal, the Foxton borough saved £6O. Other members agreed that Pal--mevston North would also benefit. Mr Bock referred to cost of coal to the Kairanga Dairy Coy., as reported by the Chairman, and suggested Palmerston Borough Council and other local bodies should be asked to consider the matter of cheaper transit through Foxton port. Palmerston alone would probably be twenty' or more times greater than Foxton, and on the saving shown by Mr Chrystall, should be mo,re than worth consideration.

Eventually it was resolved to forward a letter to the Palmerston N. Borough Council, asking it to endeavour to co-operate with other bodies and'bring shipments of coal through the Foxton port. The meeting then terminated.