New Plymouth Harbor Condemned.

Patea Mail, 13 August 1881, Page 3

New Plymouth Harbor Condemned.

RERURT Ob PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE. The report of the Committee on the New Plymouth Harbor Works was brought up on Tuesday evening in the House of Representatives, and read. It is a long and exhaustive report, extending over eleven pages. The report commences by describing the various steps which have been taken towards commencing the harbor works, the sever? 1 estimates that have been given as to its cost, and the different plans which have been under consideration f-om time to time. The report states :—“ The committee find that the loan of £200,000 realised, after the payment of the charges and commissions incidental to floating it, the net sum of £185,366 3s Id, for which the Board has to provide £14,000 annually by way of interest and sinking fund. That hitherto the Board has not exercised its rating powers, bnt has paid interest and sinking fund ont of the land revenue, having received from that source £42,388 up to the 15th July last, of which £5,000 was expended upon work before the loan was raised, and £25,000 is in the hands of the Sinking Fund Commissioners. In addition to the above the Board should receive, during the week, £26,000, as 25 per cent, of the amount to be received on account of laud already sold upon the deferred payment system. It is estimated by the Surveyor-General that the land available for disposal in the future will be as follows: 10,000 acres of open land at 50s, £25,000; 100,000 acres of bush at 40s, £200,000; the percentage of which payable to the Board would be £56,250; and this amount added to the £28,500 in the hands of the Sinking Fund Commissioners, and the £26,000 receivable as one-fourth of the amount due from deferred payment settlers, will give a total of £110,750, exclusive of whatever sum may be derived from the sale of the more rugged trust lands ns yet available. This amount will suffice to pay interest and sinking fund for a period of eight years, at the end of which time the Board must have recourse to their rating powers. The amount which they may levy upon the basis of the Property Assessment would amount to about £4,360, and admitting the correctness of the assumption that the amount of assessment would be doubled in eight years, when they will be compelled to impose this rate, the annual revenue from this source would be £8,720, and the annual sinking fund would be £20,000 plus interest, as against the loan of £200,000.” STOPPAGE OF WORKS. After analysing many financial considerations, the report concludes by making the following recommendations :—(1) That the cost of the work to a point marked on a plan, being the shortest section of the proposed breakwater which would be at all beneficial, is estimated by Sir John Goode to be £255,800; and the Jowest estimate, based upon the cost of similar works, would be £212,396. Therefore, as the total amount whicli the Board has available for the work dees not exceed £115,000, there will be a deficiency on this basis of £97,396, whilst on Sir J. Goode’s estimate the deficiency will be £150,000. (2) That as the fnnds at the disposal of tbe Board would only suffice to carry the work to a point which would secure a depth of eleven or twelve feet at spring tides, which would be of little use for landing or shipping goods except during fine weather, the extension would necessitate further borrowing being authorised by this House, and entail a still larger burden upon the owners of property within the rating distuct. (3) That the extension of the work to a further point marked on the plan would only render the harbour available for nse by vessels of the class 1 of the steamer Hawca. (4) That the evidence disproves the supposition that the proposed work would be of special value to the colony as a harbour of

refuge, and the work must therefore be regarded as one of local rather than colonial 'character. The Committee therefore consider the results from the proposed works would be altogether inadequate to the expenditure required, and as but a very limited sum, not exceeding £5,000, has been expended upon the breakwater apart from the plant, the Committee recommend the Legislature to at once take steps to stop the further progres of the works,' to take over the assets and liabilities, and, after providing for the latter, to devote the land fund to its ordinary purposes.