HOROWHENUA COUNTY COUNCIL.

Otaki Mail, 2 June 1922, Page 4

HOROWHENUA COUNTY COUNCIL.

' RIDING ACCOUNTS. \ j Tokomarti. —This riding began the year with a credit balance of £llßa I and winds tip with a debit balance of | £<i72. It will be remembered that ow- | ing to the operation of the Finance 1 Act the riding debit balances will be 1 extinguished, being a portion to the antecedent liability of the Council which will be paid oil by raising a loan. The ridings will thus start off the new year with.a clean sheet, buna riding will, however, have to bear its proportionate share ot the interest and sinking fund in the loan raised to pay off the antecedent liability. In the Tokoinaru riding the actual expeaditure for the year was £2.>2,>, against £31170 estimated. In the earlier months _ of the year the roller and plant were j in the riding' and the cost involved was | £179, Grants were made to the Make-, rua Drainage Board and the Shannon j cemetery totalling £75, and the sum ot j i £7B was paid to the Muuawutu County j Council, chiefly for road nmiuteimnce t I and due under an award. Public pounds j. absorbed £2ii and the bu-Junuo of the j. money was spent on the roads. | Wirokiuo. —It was anticipated that < there would bo a debit balance in this 1 riding Of nearly £BOOO. This has been | I more than realised, for the riding’s doI bit balance at the end of the year i> j £5397. The riding is, however, entiI tied to refunds of money spent in anI ticipation of loans of over £6OO. Ihe ! gross expenditure for the year (includ- ' fug this £600) came to £8720, as against _ £7172, estimated. The roller and plant working account comes to £7b>. Ihe chief part of the year was spent in tin id tiding, £1499 was spent in wages, whilst metalling and team work accounted for £l7O, Bridge and othei timber cost £323, ironwork £SO and pipes £124. Parts of the main road in thj.s riding are very costly to maintain, •and a big portion of the rates are ab sorbed in the upkeep thereof from vear to year, and even then the roads receive none too much attention. In j j this riding, the smallest of the four j which make op this County, the year , commenced with a debit balance of £l2l. at the close of the year it has 1 I,ecu increased to £365. The expendi- . ' ture amounted to £909, which with the j | exception of some £SO was all spent on J 7 | road work. It was anticipated last j year that a larger sum would have been spent, the actual outlay being £974 less than the estimates. Doubtless I,ridge work anticipated was not carried out. tv | ije Horo. —Te Iloro riding had a ere--1 Uit balance of £IS2 at the beginning of ! , flic vear and winds up with a debit bal- ! i * .... 1 4 . . I

ance of £690. The expenditure total led £1729 as against £2400 estimated. 1 As in Otaki, so in this riding, certnii works contemplated have not yet been , carried out. Wages amounted to £992 I as against £9OO on the estimates. Team work £591. Halt County boundary ' roads £3O and Ngtiawa road £tn. are some of the chief items of the year’s expenditure. Horowhenua Water-Races. J During the year the work of improve-1 s meets to the main race Ileal' the intake J I have been commenced and the devin- , I tion has been put through -Mr Caske’s j S property. A survey is being made <0 j § the ground taken. The Government J I Departments have promised £2OO to- j I wards tins work and a loan is being .* raised for £SOO. At the close of thee year the Wirokiuo riding had advanced j ; in anticipation of loan the sum of £-U-j. \ 'l regret to report that regarding the* maintenance of the races the proceeds j * of the rate have not met the expendi-' I j ture. £409 was spent but the rates eol j ’ leeted amounted to only £33". There are some £4O arrears of rates outstandj ing. which when collected will help He | wards a reduction of the debit balance | on the water race maintenance account ] now standing at £223. I Hautere Races. |

The amount of rates collected'for tlie i year was £34. A surn of £4O lias been | transferred to the To Horo riding ati count being a refund for work done in j the races. The credit balance of last I year, viz., £43 is thus reduced to £O- - Waikawa Water-Race. The headworks improvement undertaking has been put in hand during the year for which a loan of £4OO is to 1"' raised. From Maitakau settlers' vuluutarv contributions for water-iace maintenance to the extent of £l3. haw been reeeived to the end of the year. Loans. The only loan raised was that for Lindsay Koad metalling, the amount i being £OOO. The total credit balances ! of loan monies in the Bank at March 31 last was £1703. Conclusion. From the figures placed before the Council it seems impossible to avoid a high general rate, unless it is possible to cut down the public works ovpendii ture. The hospital rate cannot ire altered, and it is doubtful whethoruny . better terms can be-made with regard to the antecedent liability. A high £ general rate would not be so serious, < were it not tor the fact that very many of our ratepayers have showers of spe- j cial lates upon their properties. k Main Roads Problem. { The greni problem is ot course thej main roads, and it is dinieult to arrive, at which cou*e to follow. There i-> j one rhiug. however, which is pnrenr to | all, and that is the fact that although j we spend large sums on these roads; i from vear to year tito results are by no means satisfactory. The methods which prevailed in the past pnd answered the requirements then demanded, do. . not seem to meet modern modes of transport, and newer and better ways | must be found for dealing with the situation. For raising loans for road, ’ construction, unfortunately, interest isj ! high, and a further drawback to inline- l diate action is the uncertainty which.

surround the attitude of the Government with regard to main - ratals- It may be interesting to the Council to know wlnit.is thy-contribution per mile which t he' County by'way of subsidy on rates, 'faking"the payment for (he -•’.•ear under review the following approximate ligiires show the position: Tukonmru Hiding—Alain Rond 12 miles —.Subsidy £59 per mile. •Wirokiuo Riding—Main Road 24 miles—Subsidy £39 per mile. Otaki Riding—Main Road 7 miles —Subsidy £7O per mile. Te Horo Hiding—-Main Road 9 miles —Subsidy £4B per mile. Office Work. •• JI is not possible to drive the work of the office when rates are difficult to collect. Arrears •of rates largely in- ■ crease the work of the staff, and the j cost of audit. Ln a year wherein there is depression and the times arc hard a • measure of difficulty in dealing with j office routine and work must be expect--1 ed. With the new valuation of the • County and the adjustment of the US [ active special rate? the work for the j coming year will be greater than is usually the case. By mutual . arrangement, clerical work is being done for the prerc-s by iho office staff, for the Horowhenua Electric Power Board, and it is hoped that this arrangement wilt prove satisfactory to all concerned.”