CITY COUNCIL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 4795, 4 August 1876, Page 2

CITY COUNCIL.

Tha ordinary fortnightly meeting of the City Council was held yesterday afternoon. Present—Sis Worship the Mayor, and Councillors Mills, Pharazyn, George, Gillon, Cleland, Kainie, and Moss. CORRESPONDENCE. A letter was received. from the Education Board, asking that the Council should set aside certain reserves for educational purposes. Referred to Public Works Committee. IMPROVEMENTS. A petition from residents of Elizaheth-street was received, asking that the street might be formed under the superintendence of the Council’s Engineer, on condition of the residents paying the cost. A letter was received from the residents of Old Customhouse-street, asking that said street might be put in repair. The work was ordered to be’done at once., A letter received from Mr., Crawford and others was redd, asking that Farish-street should be repaired at once. The City Surveyor was given instruction to take the matter in hand. PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE.. The following report from the Public Works Committee was agreed to:— 1. On an application. from owners of property in Allan and Grafngor-streets for a road from tke tatter, to Clyde Quay, the matter has been duly considered, but tho committee, although recognising Its 1m-

portance, cannot recommend the Council to undertake such a work at this season of the year. • 5 2. The committee have instructed the City Surveyor to meet with the captain of the Wellington Fire Brigade, and ascertain what amount of space the brigade would require for the building which its members propose to erect; and having done so, to arrive at some mutual agreement which the Council can sanction, upon which an order might at once issue for the preparation of a lease. It was at theSsame time a special instruction to the Surveyor to see as, to the proper width of Manners-street, which at the point indicated hardly appears to be the full width. 3. The Council some time ago sanctioned a payment to Gr. Pudney, a Corporation carter,, for a horse lost by him through a fire in the Corporation yard. The dray and harness were rendered useless at the same time, but the former has been repaired at a cost of £l2, and the committee recommend that this sum might also be paid by the Council to Pndney. 4. The committee recommend that water be laid on to the gymnasium, for the use of the fire brigade there. 5. No attention having been paid to notice served upon the occupant of the shop in Willis-street which abuts upon the side-path, the Council are recommended to take such further steps as may be necessary to have the property put back to the proper distance. It occurs to the committee that proceedings under clause 281 of the Municipal Corporations Act. 1867, would best serve the purpose. 6. With a rapidly growing population, the want of urinals in the city has forced itself upon the notice of the committee, and they requested the Surveyor to report upon the subject. They annex copy of his report. The committee recommend the importation of two of the urinals referred to. Their cost will probably be about £75 each. 7. The committee recommend the erection of a gas lamp in Tory-street, near the entrance to Collegestreet. # 8. The discovery of stone on the Karon-road by D. Blackstone, a dray load of which was brought in to the order of the City Surveyor, landed the discoverer in considerable expense. He makes up a bill of £l2. With a view to encourage discovery of tills kind, the committee, without prejudice, would recommend the payment of £5 to Blackstone. 9. The settlers in Elizabeth-street (a private street) wish to have the street made. The season being unsuitable, it has been agreed that the request shall be brough forward again in spring. 10. A complaint of Nelson-street being seriously flooded during frhe late rains was referred to the Surveyor, who reports that the street is a private street, and that it is considerably below the level of the public street, so that it is impossible to prevent its being flooded, without altering the public water channel at very considerable expense. The mistake consists in laying off a private street at an improper level. 11. The committee recommend that leave be given to Mr. Wright to make the road to his property through the Town Belt, applied for by him. Such road to be laid off and executed to the approval of the City Surveyor. 12. Aclaim for repairing a piece of road through the Town Belt leading to Wadestown has been made by the Hutt Road Board. The committee are of opinion that as the right to make the road was originally granted as a favor to the country settlers, and as it is entirely for their benefit, the Road Board are the proper parties to continue to keep the said road, as they have always hitherto done. EXTRACT FROM CITY SURVEYOR'S REPORT. “ The question of urinals for this city has been referred to me, to report on regarding suitable sites and materials used in construction. The latter is the most easily answered, but the former is not so readily solved; but in the endeavor to do so I will point out to the committee urinals at present accessible to the public :--One at the Queen’s Warehouse, another at the Customhouse, and one again at the Railway Station. These, however, require supplementing by others, in addition to making the one by the Queen’s Bond more suitable for the purpose. I would therefore recommend that urinals be placed near the following places:—lst, Junction of Tinakori-road, Park and Molesworth streets ; 2nd. Junction of Thorndonquay, ■ Sydney and Mulgrave streets ; 3rd. Back of right-of-way between Mr, Joseph’s store and the new National Hotel; 4th. By the gridiron. Customhousequay; sth. End of right-of-way by Mr. Pearce’s or Artillery Shed ; Courtenay-place central at end of Taranaki-street. All the urinals to be constructed of cast iron, ornamented with enamelled troughs, and tiles for floors. Probably the setting up of these would accustom the public to a more extended use and in more exposed situations, I may further add that I learn the Public Hall Company are about to erect urinals in Jolmston-street by arrangement. These may possibly bo made public. The urinals would require well lighting, watering, and cleansing daily, also direction plates in certain situations. Accompanying this report is an illustrated catalogue of cast-iron urinals and troughs.” BUILDING REGULATIONS. The following report was read from the Colonial Architect; — Gentlemen, —I have the honor to submit the results of the conference of architects in the matter of building regulations for the city of Wellington. Together with the City Surveyor and myself, the following gentlemen attended each meeting of the conference Messrs. Toxward, Tringham, and Turnbull. Copies of building regulations in force at Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin wore sent for, received, and considered. It has been decided to recommend for the consideration of the Council, that for the purposes of building regulations the city be divided into five districts, each district, outer or fifth excepted, having its special regulations. No. 1 District, it is proposed, shall include, irrespective of other parts of the city, all the present reclaimed lands, lands in process of reclamation, and the Te Aro proposed reclamation, together with all properties fronting streets abutting on the aforesaid reclamations. It shall also include all properties within 150 links from the street frontages of the following thoroughfares :—Thorndon-quay, from the junction with Syd-ney-street, going south along Lainbton-quay and Willis-street, to its junction with Boulcott-street; thence east along Manners-street to its junction with Taranaki-street, and include all that portion of the city tinted pink on the annexed map signed by me. After careful consideration, it has been agreed to recommend to the Council that all buildings hereafter to be erected within the boundaries of district No.' 1 shall be constructed of brick, stone, concrete, or incombustible materials, so far as regards all external walls, and that the roofs of such buildings be covered with sla£e, iron, or other incombustible materials. No. 2 District, it is proposed, shall include all properties fronting Charlotte-street to a depth of 150 links, not included in District No. 1, also to a like depth all properties fronting Molesworth-street to a point 150 links (right and left) beyond the north side of Hawkestone-street, in Thorndon Ward; also to the depth aforementioned along the line of the following streets, and including all properties so closed by such boundaries and No. 1 District:—Willis-street, from District No. 1, going south to 150 links beyond its junction with Ingestre-street, going east along Ingestrestrcet and Yivian-street to a point 150 links beyond Tory-street, going north along Tory-street and east along Courtenay-place, closing with No. 1 District on the properties fronting Courtenay-place on the north side. It has not been deemed desirable to lay off a No. 2 District In Lambton Ward. District No. 2 is colored blue on the plan of the city hereunto annexed and signed by me. It has been agreed to recommend to the Council that all buildings hereafter to be erected within No. 2 District, as above defined, shall be wholly covered with iron, slate, or other approved incombustible materials, street fronts alone excepted, and shall have party walls of suitable thicknesses constructed of brick, stone, concrete, or incombustible materials, carried not less than 30in. above the roof, measured at right angles with the pitch of the roof. No. 3 District, it is proposed, shall include all lauds not hereinbefore mentioned within the Lambton and Thorndon Wards, and so much of the Te Aro Ward, north and west of a boundary line, commencing at a point in Abel-Smith-street, by the Gaol Reserve; along such street to John-street; thence through Johnstreet to Wordsworth-street; from thence going east to Nairn-street, through such street to Webb-strcet; thence going east through "NVebb-street, Buckle-street, and north side of Sussex-squaro to Kent-terrace; and from thence going north along Kent-terrace to District No. 1. District No. 3 is colored yellow on the plan of the city hereunto annexed and signed by me. It has been agreed to recommend to the Council, that all buildings hereinafter erected within the boundaries of No. 3 District, raised within 30iu. from the boundary lino of the adjoining property, shall be covered externally with iron, or approved incombustible materials, street frontage alone excepted. No. 4 District, it is proposed, shall include all lands not hereinbefore mentioned within the Te Aro Ward, north of a lino drawn through the southern boundaries of town acres Nos. 743, 731, and 717, Mount Cook Reserve and Hankey-street; thence along the south-west and west boundaries of town acres Nos. 55, 54, 53, 62, 51, 50, and 49; thence through the southern boundaries of town acres Nos. 43, 41, 30, and 37; thence along the eastern boundaries of* town acres Nos. 27, 28, 80, 32, 34, and 36; thence along the southern boundaries of acres Nos. 36 and 35 to Native Section No. 15. District No. 4 is tinted brown on the plan of the City of Wellington hereunto annexed and signed by me. It has been agreed to recommend to the Council that all buildings hereafter erected within District No. 4 shall in all cases have roofs covered with iron, slates, or approved incombustible materials. No. 5 District, it is proprosed, shall include all lands not hereinbefore mentioned, and shown uncolored on the plan of the city hereunto annexed. It has been deemed inadvisable to place any restrictions relative to building within District No. 5. The further recommendationsaro that shingled roofs at present existing be replaced with iron, slates, or incombustible materials within the following periods:— No. 1 District, within 2 years; No. 2 District, within 4 years; No. S District, within 6 years; No. 4 District, within 8 years; that the Metropolitan Building Act (Great Britlan) be used as the basis for framing the regulations; and that provision be made for extending the area of the several districts as may be deemed fit, finally abolishing the outer one, and also Districts Nos. 4,3, and, as may in rotation be considered expedient. PARLIAMENT ARY BILLS. The Mayor stated, with reference to Bills promoted by the Council, that he had inserted in the Consolidated Loans Act the sums set apart for waterworks and drainage respectively — suras accruing from the balance over the j amount necessary for the consolidation of the Council's loans. The other little Bill had got beyond him, and he could hardly recognise it as it came from the Government printer. Unless they could get something more to the purpose, there was no use troubling any further about it. He had proposed several amendments to meet Mr. Pearce's views, but they had failed to do so. Councillor Mills understood that Mr. Bunny was to be asked to take charge of the Bill. The proposed Bill would just leave them where they were. Councillor George thought that the matter should be explained to Mr. Pearce. Atter some further conversation, the matter was left in the hands of the Mayor.