TAIERI DRAINAGE BOARD.

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 11 August 1909, Page 33

TAIERI DRAINAGE BOARD.

The ordinary meeting of the Taieri (Drainage Board, held on the 9th at Mosgiel, was attended by Messrs D. T. Shand (in the chair), Gibson, Kempshell, Snow, Maeandrew, Callander, Findlay, and Wilmoi. APPOINTMENT OF A CHAIRMAN Mt Callandax moved, and Mr Gibson ■seconded — "That Mr Wilmot ha appointed the permanent chairman of the board." Mr "Wilmot sa-id he could not see his way clear to taking the chairmanship. After diecussion, Mr Maeandrew moved that the apjpointment of the office of chairman should •be left over till the nest meeting of the boa-rd. - Thie motion was carried, and Mr Shand, who had been previously filling the position of acting chairman, then took the chair for the meeting. It was later resolved that the additional member to the Finance Committee should stand over till the appointment of the chalr•man was made. COBHESPONDENCE. The Valuation Department intimated that the board's offices had been valued on the district roll at £820.— Received. Alexander Thomson requested the board, under date Bth July, to repair the bridge across "A " drain, leading to his stable. — Mr Strang, the acting engineer, was appointed to attend to the work. A letter was received from the Olerk of the Taieri County Council disclaiming any •responsibility, and refusing to bear half the cost of repairing the box outlet for *'.A " drain at Henley bridge. — Received. Thomas Bryant wrote asking the board to put a new bridge over "B" drain. — Declined. John Hod-dinott wrote in reference to the bridge over " B " drain passing his place at Henley, aeking that repairs should be effected; otherwise he would be obliged to put in pipes and fill it in. He said that the road had been open for 22 years, and was a public road, but the County Council said it did not belong to it. — TE& Chairman said it could not be a public road without being a county road. — Mr Maeandrew Baid it had probably been formed and never taken over as a public road. He eaid they had the ruling of the solicitor that they were not liable to bridge the road. Ho moved that such a reply should be 6ent, and the attention of Mr Hoddinott drawn to the fact that he roust not put in pipes or do anything to obstruct the run of the water. — Resolved aecordinelv. W. Kain wrote with reference to the Berwick pumping station, saying it had been out of work for a few days. He also asked that repairs should be effected •to the boxes and damns at Bull Creek. — It was resolved that the matter ba left in the hands of the engineer to report; in the meantime a drain should be c-reeted in front of the boxes and coal supplied. R. J. Spaa-ks, Maungatua, asked the Iboard to have the oreek mnninig down from Maungatua through h : s property cleaned out. — Work to be attended to. engineer's report. The Acting Engineer (Mr Strang) reported that a number of -works authorised «t last meeting had been duly carried out, and that the following worlc6 were being attended to: — The cleaning out of tho drain along the Henley-Berwick road ; the■rough cleaning of the drain known as Wylie's Creek; and the drain on Mr Patrick's property. The cleaning out of the creek near Mr John Millar'6 house will be gone on with shortly. East Taieri : The company's drain had recently been cleaned out, and men were now working on the outlet from Gladfield road to the Owhiro. About 50 chains of Mill Creek had been cleaned, but increased water had stopped the work. Work was being done on Charters's drain, and the old Silverstream channel would be started this week. In regard to the drain running through Mr Hewitt's property, which was one of the drains the board decided should be cleaned out, Mr Hewitt objected to the cleaning 'being done. He said the drain was of no use to him, as in heavy rain the water from above flooded his land. In rpgaid to the bridge erected at Mr Patrick's place, Mr Patrick Tefused to erect the fences which had been agreed he 6hould erect. He held he had made the arrangement with the board's engineer that the fencing material should be supplied by the board. With regard to the application by the Hon. Geo. M'Lean that a box should be •put on the end of his drain at Lake Ascog, and that labour 6hould be supplied, and a new bridge be put over the *'55" drain into his property, this was really a joint application from four pereons. If the box was put in, the flow of water from the lake to the pump could be regulated, and so prevent fioodjng of Mr M 'Lean's ground-'. There was a bi - idge there at present which ,-was in need of repair. To mako v rig-ht a new bridge should be erected. Messrs Ros s end Lyall w:6hed the drain running to their pump cleaned out.— ln reference to Mr Hewitt's objection to the board cleaning out Ford's drain it was decided that the board should give the neoe-.-sary notice *hat it intended to take the drain over. In regard to Mr Patrick's bridge, Mr Gibson moved, and it was carried — "That Mr Patrick be written to saying that unkss ihe erected the fence in accordance with their agreement the board would remove the biidje." On the motion of Mr Gib6011, the Hon. G. M'Lean "s requests for labour for pumping and the erection of the foridge were declined. It was decided that Messrs Ross and Lyall's drain should be cleaned out subject to the conditions governing the cleaning of other private drains. GENERAL. Mr Snow aeked jf a m&p of the district and a map for each subdivision could be prepared showing the drains and the works jpropceed to be carried out — The actingengineer was instructed to attend to the matter. — Mr Snow 6aid he would inquire to a map said to be in existence in <Jutram. Accounts- amounting to £395 le 4d wore passed for payment from the general aecQunt and £344 2s Id from the loan account. THE SILVEESTEEAM CHANNEL. A. Douglas wrote on July 19 objecting ♦o the small channel being cut from the Gladfield-Otvhiro road unless " the channel %>e cut to a, proper outlet and kept in good order co that the water will not be carried there to spread over my land "—lt" — It was re ported that Mr Douglas had bocn advised that it was proposed to conr^ct tho c>.t with either the old bed of the Silverstieam or the straight cut, and a further letter, dated July 30, was recehed fiom Mr Douglas, intimating that he had 110 objec-

1 tion to the channel so long as it was carried I paot his property. * TENDERS. A number of tenders were received for . the cleaning out of the Silvexstream I channel, but all were declined as the prices were considered too high. — Mr Gibson moved that fre«h tenders S3 called for, to b-^ returnable in a fortnight's time.— Mr Maeandrew ssconded the motion. — Mr Findlay moved that nothing be done in ths meantime in faoe of the report of the Government experts. — Mr Sjiow seconded the amendiraen't, which was lost, the motion being carried. — It was decided that the same committee should receive the tenders.