COUNTY LOAN EXPLAINED.

Putaruru Press, Volume II, Issue 47, 11 September 1924, Page 2

COUNTY LOAN EXPLAINED.

SUM OF £201,000 PROPOSED. The Putaruru Meeting. A Small Attendance. Adjournment to September 20. Ihe Putaruru meeting of ratepayers to hear the proposals for the County Main Roads Loan of £201,000 explained was held in the Putaruru Town Hall on Thursday evening - . In all, there was an attendance of 13 persons, including the council’s representatives, namely, Cr. J. W. Anderson (county chairman), Cr. E. J. Darby (Putaruru riding member), Mr. M. E. Fitzgerald (county engineer), and Mr. H. Lewis (county clerk).

COUNTY CHAIRMAN’S VIEWS. Mr. F. C. Barnett was elected chairman of the meeting, and called on Cr. Anderson to explain the object for which the meeting had been convened. Cr. Anderson stated that the ultimate object of the meeting was better roads. These had been required for some years, but the inauguration of the Highways Board had brought the matter to a head. Some 100 miles of roads through the Matamata county had been declared main highways, towards the permanent building of which the Highways Board would subsidise the county’s expenditure. Such a subsidy was expected to be £1 for £1 on most lengths, but greater on portions declared Government roads; in fact, on the latter the Highways Board would probably provide all the money required. To get these subsidies it was necessary to raise the county’s share for the highways, involving a loan over the whole county. But in order to give each riding a fair deal it was resolved to include further roads, which together with the highways were declared county main roads. These all became a charge on the county as a whole—not on the individual ridings. The proposed loan was for building these roads by metalling and also bitumensurfacing as far as possible. EXTRA COST ONLY ABOUT Id IN the £. In addition to the £201,000, of course, there would be the Highways subsidy, making a greatly augmented spending power. The total cost to the ratepayers, he thought—and the engineer thought, too—would probably be not more than id in the £ over the present costs, and he thought all would agree that good metal and bitumen roads were worth more than id over the cost of mud roads. The proposals put the Matamata county -well to the fore towards getting the highways money. Some of the ratepayers seemed to think that the scheme •would cost an additional lid in the £ over the present rates, but that was absolutely wrong. A glance at the map (as exhibited at the meeting) would show that the roads which at present absorbed most of the ordinary rates would come under the loan, so the ordinary rates could be considerably reduced. He emphasised that he thought the loan would in reality cost only about id in the £, and he considered it well worth it for the ratepayers of the county. FOR ROADS AND BRIDGES. In explaining the plan exhibited to show the various roads coming under the loan and the widths, 10ft, 12ft and 15ft, to which respective portions were to be metalled, with bitumen surfacing also as far as possible, the engineer, Mr. M. E. Fitzgerald, said that the loan provided also for the replacement or strengthening of the bridges concerned, the purchase of plant for the works, and the absorbing of previous loan expenditure on the county main roads, amounting to £41,000.

THE BRIDGES. In regard to the bridges, all those in the county over 20ft span were a charge on the county as a whole—not on the individual ridings. There were few, however, over 20ft except on the county main roads. Many of the bridges were now old and were not designed to carry modern traffic. PURCHASE OF PLANT.

As to the purchase of plant the question arose as to why the work could not be let by contract to contractors who had the necessary plant, thus saving the council from buying it. The reply to this that in any case the council had to pay the contractors for using their own plants, and if authority was included in the loan for the council to buy its own plant they couldi be independent of the contractors if they formed a “ ring.” PREVIOUS LOANS. In the absorption of the £41,000 of previous loans a question of law arose. This money had been borrowed at 4i per cent interest, and the law quite admitted the principle of a later lean absorbing such previous loans, but to do so at present it seemed necessary to actually raise another £41,000 to pay off the previous loans.

This £41,000 would now cost 511 per cent interest, so the council was asking for legislative authority to raise another £41,000 to pay off the previous loans, and for the transfer of such amounts to the comprehensive loan at the original rate of interest, 4i per cent.

In all a rate of l\d was to be pledged as security for the £201,000 loan. It was not expected, however, that a rate of this amount would be required. For one thing, if the power was given to absorb the £41,000 at 4J per cent interest, an amount of l-32nd of a penny on this account alone would come off the lid again, the lid was really sufficient for a loan of a quarter of a million pounds and would cover the ten per cent addition on the £201,000 loan if such extra money were ever required. The lid was absolutely the outside figure and he considered the cost of the loan would not exceed lid in the £, assuming, of course, that the money could be obtained at the interest specified, namely, 5” per cent, which was considered a sound figure. ACTUAL COST. However, the loan should mean substantial reductions in the present rates and the actual cost should therefore be about id in the £. For instance, in the northern part of the county special metalling loan rates already amounted to about Id, but these would be ■wiped out by the inclusion of those previous loans in the comprehensive loan. And even as these special metalling loans had been necessary in the north, they were becoming necessary in the other parts of the county, and the comprehensive loan was really anticipating them, but in such a way as to take full advantage of highways subsidy money. The county main roads coming under the comprehensive proposals represented a fair allocation to each riding. COUNCILLORS’ SUPPORT. Cr. Darby said there were some 21 miles of road in the Putaruru riding included under the loan, namely, the Tirau - Putaruru road, the PutaruruArapuni road, the Waotu road and the Arapuni-Horahora road. With Mr. Fitzgerald as engineer, the proposals put the Matamata county among the first two or three local bodies for getting highways subsidy. The loan proposals had his (Cr. Darby’s) hearty support. The engineer intimated that in the Tokoroa riding, the Putaruru-Toko-roa-Atiamuri road was included under the- proposals. The portion towards Atiamuri, together with the Mamaku Bush and Kaimai roads, was being declared a Government road. SHORT NOTICE—SMALL MEETING. This concluded the addresses by the council’s representatives, and the chairman, Mr. Barnett, said that although there were probably about 100 ratepayers within easy distance of the hall, only a few were present, but he thought that was not altogether their fault. Many, like himself, had probably not heard about the meeting until late that evening. It was for the councillors present to take into consideration whether they would accept the present meeting as a public meeting of the ratepayers, cr whether they would call a further meeting.

ANOTHER MEETING -ON SEPTEMBER 20. Mr. J. C. Tomalin agreed that a further meeting was absolutely necessary. From talk he had heard, it appeared certain that the proposals would be defeated as far as this end of the county was concerned, u.nless they were explained to as many of the ratepayers as possible in the they had been explained that evening. Mr. N. H. Ashford asked could the councillors come to Putaruru again in a week’s time? Cr. Darby: I am quite willing. Cr. Anderson f There is no need to come in a week’s time, as the poll on the loan does not take place till October 1; but I certainly think the matter very important and that we should come again before then. Personally, I consider the loan scheme absolutely sound for the ratepayers of this county, and the indications are that our example will be followed by other Waikato counties, as their representatives are beginning to realise that this is the only way of obtaining the Highways Board assistance for building permanent roads. After discussion as to the best time for holding a further meeting, Messrs. J. R. O. Lochhead and A. T. Morris moved that it be held on Saturday afternoon, September 20, at 1.30 o’clock, in. the Putaruru Town Hall. The motion was carried unanimously, and it was agreed on the suggestion of Mr- Ashford that notice of the meeting be widely advertised beforehand. One or two questions on the loan proposals were then asked and answered. Mr. Ashford: The county chairman says we are going to get long lengths of bitumen roads for an extra Id in

the £, but the pertinent question arises what then have we been getting for the other Id or more we have been paying? Cr. Anderson: You always lose money by putting it in the mud! Mr. Ashford: We lose it by paying it to Matamata. That is the point! Votes of thanks to the county representatives for their attendance and addresses and to Mr. Barnett as chairman concluded the meeting.