TOWN CLERK’S ANNUAL REPORT.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 2722, 17 April 1924, Page 4

TOWN CLERK’S ANNUAL REPORT.

REVIEW OF PAST YEAR’S WORK. - The following is a report of the year’s work submitted by the Town Clerk (Mr Win. Trueman) to Monday night’s annual meeting of the Borough Council. — Another financial year has come to an end, and I just set down briefly hereunder a few notes for your information concerning the transactions of the Council durifig'the year just ended. Taking the accounts seriatim as they appear in the balance-sheet:

General Account. —The amount spent on maintenance of roads, streets, and drains is £1268 2/11, an increase of £79 13/3, over the amount spent last year and £6B 2/11, more than was provided in the estimates. This year the sum of £llsO has been provided in the estimates for this work, and the simple reason it has been slightly reduced is because when all the other items of expenditure on general account are provided for there is an increase in the general rate this year of 7/32d, so you will readily see that any further allotment for read maintenance will mean a still further increase in the general rate as all the other items have been kept down to the barest minimum. Another small item this year will be about £lO for water for the various horse troughs around the town. In the past this has cost little, but the town water has to be paid for. Several items appearing in the balance-sheet in this account are non-recurring, as for instance the drainage connection to the pound cottage £53 14/0, fire plug indicators £22 17/3, bank charges and interest, £165 4/6; the greater portion by far of this has been paid out as interest on the £5.000 temporary deposits- tor 1922/23, and also for £450 1923/24, rest room furnishings etc. £32 18/4, drainage connection new offices £l9 18/9, and a transfer to council chambers account of £24 9/4, a total of £319 2/2. From the standpoint of a net revenue and expenditure "account the receipts for the year amounted to £2,998 11s fid, and the expenditure £2,975 14s 3d. a surplus of £2 17/3, that is, of course, disregarding the so-cal-led non-recurring expenditure.

Another item which deserves mention i*s court fines for breaches of by-laws. Last year these totalled £2l 1/0, this year they reach the sum Of £7B 7/0. Owing to Mr. McKnight’s hours at the gasworks being reduced from 25 to 17 hours per week, the charges for inspection, etc. are heavier, namely, £lO9 19/7, this year against £6B 5/2, an increase of £4l _l4/5, which can’be set off against the increase in the revenue from lines £57 6/0, a net increase of £ls 11/7. The balance of general account at the 31st March 1924 is £1134 6/4, and the water and drainage loan account has to repay the account £I,OOO and the house drainage account £250. a total refund of £1250. which would leave the account in credit £lls 13/8. Library Account. This little account is healthy, the credit bal anee being £94 19/3, against last year £96 17/5. This means briefly that the expenditure and income are about balanced. Subscriptions have increased by £6 10/0. The purchase of new books took £4l 13/0, against las! year £l3 1/10.

Reserves Account. —This account lias at last weathered the storm and for the first time since 191.9/20 has a small credit balance of £l3. Expenditure on Easton Park during the past year totalled £42. Cemetery Account. — This account as usual is in credit. £BO 7/7. The balance has fallen by about £7, but this has been taken up in wages for clearing weeds etc.

Sanitation Account. —The credit balance in this account lias fallen from £45, to £l3. but the granting to Mr. Parker for horse feed allowance of 15/- per week has absorbed £ls of it and foes amounting ta about £9 are outstanding, an end as per your instruction, on the 31st March last.

Hie fact of the gas sold during the Gasworks Account. —Owing to The horse feed allowance came to month of March, having to lie reckoned in the trading year it is not yet possible to prepare a trading ac. for auditing. The credit cash balance has risen from £ll 0/2 l<> £331 3/0, and this is in itself an indication of the result ot the years working. Receipts from the sale of gas amount to £2BOO 8/10. against last year £2OBO 18/7. a decrease of £O3. The special rata was reduced last year from Id to a Id, and this year I propose to still further reduce it again by a small fraction, from Id to gd. This will bring in about £154. 1 do not think it wise to reduce it more than this as we probably will have to face the commencement of the electric power completition and like all novelties this will get a good run for a start.

Town Hall Account. —-This account 'has a small credit balance of £8 2/6. You will notice tbe picture screen, piano ami engine repairs have all been shown as paid. There is a contra item on the receipts side of £l2O from the loan account to pay for part of the drainage, which cost £l6O 16/1. The picture enterprise itself has been dealt.with separately in your confidential statement but tbe cash balance in the picture account is £35!) 6/10, which discloses a fairly satisfactory year’s working. Water and Drainage Loan account. —I have already made appli-

cation to the S.A.S. lor the £5,000 for this coming year, as I require £I,OOO of it to repay to general account and also £560 of it for interest, so that will absorb lhe greater part of the two debentures I have asked for, during the present month.

Drainage Connection Loan Account. —At the end <>f March £.1,000 of this loan had been raised and since the end of the year I have received another £2OO. There is another £I3OO to raise yet, of which I need £2OO urgently to pay for works authorised. Our commitments at the end of March were £413, of which I had £95 in the bank and the promise of £2OO which came in on the Ist April. At present, therefore, I have to refuse any further loans pending receipt of funds. There are about 18 or 19 more places to connect as far as I can gather at the time of writing. This leads me to the next account which I will take out of its turn.

House Drainage Account. —T have furnished you separately with a net revenue account of this undertaking which discloses a clear net profit of £3l 9/9. This in itself should he a sufficient guarantee to the citizens that this work is being done nearly at what it. costs. At the present time, however, there is- very little work in hand and to be done and within a week or two it will be access arv to consider what shall be done in tjie matter. Interest Accounts. —These do not call for specal comment, sufficient rate only being levied each year to cover the annual payments. T( is of interest to note that the interest bill annnallv amounts to £3182 17/3, of which about £3OO is for sinking fund, and twice this amount for principal repayments to the S.A.S. The public debt totals £51.472 8/4. and this will lie increased by £5.000 when the balance of the water and drainage loan comes in, and bv £1,300 when the house drainage loan is all raised. Tf the swimming bath loan is carried this will probably mean another £I,OOO.

Waterworks Account. —-During (lie year 6,238,000 gallons of water has been pumped to the tower, but, of course, this year the quantity will be much greater than this as more users are connected. The receipts and expenditure accounts shows a debit balance of £134 19s lOd but this is more than compensated for by the material, etc., in stock. The revenue from the sale of water by'way of rates is £442 6/0, hut as much of this was for non-consumers, this sum will be increased during the coming year. As this account is new in the books it is impossible to go very far into the matter.

Generally. —All four accounts at the bank were in credit at the 3lsf March, 1924, District Knud £25 17s sd, Cemetery £BO 7/7. Water and Drainage Loan £3B 8 -1. Drainage Construction Loan £94 15/8. but there were unpreseuled cheques atrainst the District Fund account of £1.273 1.4/11, which sum is a little more than sufficient to cover the advances made from this latter account of £I.OOO to Water and Drainage Loan and £250 to House Drainage account. Another matter not very pleasant is the large sum of rates outstanding, namely £153 6s lid. This sum is owing by only, 14 ratepayers, of which one half have paid up since the end of the year. Xo doubt the cost of connecting premises to the sewerage system has proved a heavy burden on main, ratepayers, and it is mainly to Ibis that 1 attribute the large amount outstanding, although with another increase in rates to face this year, and possibly another one next year as the Water and Drainage Loan is spent, rnanv ratepayers will undoubtedly find it difficult to meet their obligations in this respect within the year for which the rates are levied. You will have before you by now the estimates for the ensuing year in which it will be seen that the total rate required will be 10-jd in the £ on the unimproved value, wafer supply rates being in addition. There is no doubt that this burden of- rates will fall heavily on the owners of purely rural land on the outskirts of the residential area, and I would ask that yon seriously consider the matter of having a revaluation of the borough made in order that the basis of payment for advantages received might be established on a more equitable basis. Mr Trueman was thanked for his comprehensive report and complimentary references were made to his sterling qualities as town clerk.