PUBLIC OPINION.

Patea Mail, 26 May 1882, Page 3

PUBLIC OPINION.

Contributions, Letters, Inquiries and Answers thereto, are invited on Farming, Commerce, Politics, and matters of interest to the Patea district. Names of writers need not be Printed. THE BOROUGH LOAN. The proposal to borrow £SOOO having to be considered on Saturday evening, it necessitates ratepayers making the most of the short time to elapse before the meeting in carefully considering the project. I suppose very few are now unfavorable to borrowing, but on the scheme for expenditure opinions differ. The Council itself has not given an opinion it was hardly reasonable to expect at the last meeting, seeing that the engineer’s report and appropriations were entirely strange to many of them until that evening. I arn surprised, however, that a special meeting has not since been called to discuss the question before putting it publicly before the ratepayers. Councillors being in the best position to know the most urgent requirements, and the financial position of the Borough, should, I think, have offered their views to outsiders as a guide to them when called upon to vote at a public meeting. Isay

this with the idea that it appears useless that the Borough should be at the expense of taking a poll if, at a fairly representative meeting, the proposal is rejected. On the merits of the expenditure v scheme let the ratepayers answer for themselves the following questions : As to street improvements.—Granted, as most people will, that Bedford-street is and should be considered the main approach to the town, and that it should be widened, is it necessary that an expense in round numbers of two thousand pounds should bo incurred, in altering levels to such an extent as proposed, taking into consideration also that the expense will stop at nothing like that sum ? Is it a necessary work to make a road to the Heads, to cost, I believe, at least five hundred pounds, useless beyond, say the cricket ground ? Are there not other parts of the Borough that require early improvement, and In places where the town is much more thickly populated ? Drainages.—The sum appropriated appears a reasonable one, and I think the Engineer may be taken as the best authority on this question as to the mode of carrying out the, work. 1 Water Supply.—Opinions cannot well differ. that a want exists for a reliable source of supply in case of fire. Wells and tanks‘may be considered able to provide sufficient for household requirements for some time longer, but, if the loan is to -be raised, would it not be judicious to set aside a sum for making a temporary provision for storage of rain water in cement tanks, which seems feasible and likely to serve the best interest of the ratepayers? As to a permanent source of supply, if that proposed by the Engineer can be secured now at the sm’all sum on the estimate it will probably not increase much in value during the next few years, when the whole scheme might be carried out at a time when the borough would, it is to be hoped, be better able to bear the burthen of a special rate for a special loan for that purpose. Taking the expenditure as a whole is it likely to be reproductive ? As it now stands it will probably entail an annual appropriation of three hundred and fifty pounds to pay interest alone. The : available balance of this, year’s ordinary revenue is already voted out in small sums for street improvements, therefore it is a matter of doubt how the Council can pay the first year’s interest on loan except out of the loan itself, which may be legal but contrary to the terms contained in the announcement of the proposal to borrow, which provides for spending the whole loan on works. As an alternative to raising a loan, assuming that some works are urgently necessary which cannot be carried out from ordinary revenue, could not the Council make arrangements with a bank for a sufficient overdraft (possibly on more favorable terms than for a loan) to carry on for two or three years when, if a loan should be then agreed to, it might be competent to appropriate part of such loan to pay off the bank and to carry on further works of improvement ? By that time the number of ratepayers would be increased, and provision could be better made to pay interest on a larger sum. Ratepayers probably do not want other streets than those included in the scheme to starve for the next few years owing to nearly all available, revenue being pledged as security for loan and; in respect to sinking fund no provision has been made. Trusting that all ratepayers will attend the meeting arid give their views on the question of borrowing and expenditure, I am, &c., Ratepayer.