HOROWHENUA COUNTY COUNCIL.

Shannon News, 19 June 1925, Page 3

HOROWHENUA COUNTY COUNCIL.

MONTHLY MEETING. The monthly meeting of the Horowhenua County Council was held on Saturday, the chairman (Cr. G. A. Monk) presiding. Also present Crs. .Tensen, Catley, Broadbelt, Harkness, Bryant, Ryder, Whyte and Barber. Accounts for Payment. Accounts totalling £433 13s 7d were passed for payment. Correspondence, A letter of acknowledgment of the Council’s message of condolence was received from Mrs. Massey.—Received. The Massey Memorial. A letter was received from the late Acting-Prime Minister (the Hon. Sir Francis Bell) . asking th'e co-operation of the County in the erection of a monument to the late Prime Minister.

' The chairman moved that the request be acceded to, and that notices be inserted in the local papers inviting subscriptions.—Carried. Fixing Survey Pegs.

The N.Z. Institute of Surveyors drew attention to the damage likely to be done to permanently surfaced roads if surveyors had to break through the surface in order to find old survey pegs. They suggested that before permanent work is done, a complete survey should be made to locate such pegs and fix them as permanent marks.

A further letter was received from the Alain Highways Board asking that the County take steps to insure the accessibility of survey pegs, wh'erc such would be met in the course of w-ork, and that in the case of sprvey standard plans of location of ‘same should be forwarded to the Board’s office.

The engineer stated that what the Engineers’ Institute asked was that all private survey marks should be located and marked. This would cost hundreds of pounds. . The matter was referred to the engineer for his consideration. Ohau Water-Races. Air. A. M. MeLeavcy (Ohau) drew attention to a lagoon formed on his property by the water-races, and asked that the Council take steps to have the nuisance removed. Cr. Harknoss bore out the statements made in the letter and stated that Mr. AlcLcavey had been very long-suffer-ing in this matter. He moved that it be attended to.

In movin'g that the letter be received the chairman said that at last meeting of the Palmerston North Hospital Board it was decided to increase the number of beds at the Otaki hospital from two to four. It was not as much

Cr. Catley said he wondered that Air. AlcLeavby had put up with the trouble as long as he had, and he seconded the motion that the water-race be so altered as to avoid the depression where the water had accumulated. — Agreed to. Otaki Hospital. The Aledical Inspector of Health acknowledged receipt of a resolutidn from the Council protesting against the closing of the Otaki Hospital, and stated that he was forwarding same to the of Health for , his consideration.

The chairman asked if it would suit the Te Horo people if the Council subsidised them if they erected a light on the front of the building. A street light was really not necessary. The matter was left to Cr. Jensen to confer with the Hall Committee, it being also decided to affect improvements to the road in front of the hall. Mr. H. Waldo Stevens wrote in connection with the Waihoanga bridge pointing out the great inconvenience the loss of this bridge was to the settlers in the vicinity, and asking that the bridge be re-erected as soon as possible.

The chairman read a copy of a letter from the District Engineer, to the Public Works Department, embodying a report on this bridge, stating that until plans and survey for a new bridge of a shorter span on another site were prepared by the Council, nothing definite could be done. Cr. Bryant asked how much shorter the bridge would be on the suggested new site.

The engineer said that he did not think it would be much shorter,, and that the approaches thereto would be ‘very costly as they would be through solid roek. Referred to the engineer to prepare surveys and plans. Taungata Bridge. The District Engineer (Mr. J. Hannah) wrote pointing out that every precaution should be taken to safeguard the Taungata bridge which there was every likelihood of giving way as had the Waihoanga bridge. He recommended that new anchorages should be made, and connection made with the new anchorages and existing wire cables. The chairman said that this was a very serious matter, and they would have to call on the engineer to bring forward a scheme to re-condition the bridge. It was a matter of deciding if it were possible to put down n'ew cables and anchorages, or whether the bridge would have to be dismantled. If it were dismantled he was afraid it would never be rebuilt.

The Engineer stated that he had inspected the bridge in company with the Public Works officers, who regarded four new anchors to be put in. The towers also were not safe and might require replacement. The engineer was instructed to prepare plans and estimates for submission to next meeting.

Crs. Travelling Expenses. In dealing with the question of the I 1923-24 balance-sheet which was re- ! eeived back from the auditor the , chairman explained that the Audit Department had tagged the item of the expenses of Councillors. There were soni'e queer interpretations of the law as regards allowances. For instance where there was a train, Crs. were compelled to use it, or else if they used a car, they could only claim the amount of the train fare. In his own instance, to reach the meeting in time he would have had to leave home at 6.30 to catch a train at 7 a.m., whilst by leaving home by car an hour later he could pass the train at Levin. The troublo was that when the Act was framed, the means of

travelling were so different that no allowance had been made, for travel under modern conditions. If Councillors could not get reasonable expenses, it would mean that - only the wealthy would be able to serve on a Council. This matter had been taken up by the County Councils throughout the country, all of whom were affected, and he was not without hope that the Department would be prevailed on to make an alteration in the law as at present existing. If this were done he did not doubt that it would be retrospective. Cr. Harkness supported the chairman's statement saying that as a small farmer he certainly could not afford to serve on the Council if reasonable travelling expenses were not allowed, a« well as a sufficient recompense for time lost.

Or. Ryder also spoke on the same lines, it being decided that a remit protesting against the Government’s action in this matter be drawn up for submission to the next County Councils Association 's' conference.

as was desired by the southern end, but it was something. Crs. Broadbclt and Harkness congratulated the representatives of the southern end of the hospital district on their success in this direction.

Or. Ryder said that he had been asked by the people of Otaki to convey their thanks to the local representatives for the manner in which they had carried out the protest against the closing of the hospital. lie had the greatest pleasure in adding his personal congratulations to these. The chairman said that the Palmerston North hospital was very much overcrowded. It was his opinion that wirh the development of tire district that the Palmerston North Hospital Board, which was throwing away an hospital of 20 beds, on a valuable freehold property, would be forced to go back io Otaki and re-purchase land for another hospital. He intended to keep this matter in hand, and move that the Otaki hospital be taken from the con irol of the Wellington Hospital Board, and vested in the Palmerston North Board. Te Horo Drain. Mr. Fielding (Te Horo) d rew atten tion to the unsatisfactory condition o Cameron’s drain which he stated was completely blocked. ' Cr. Jensen said that he had been along the drain and did not think that, it had been cleaned for the past foin years. He suggested that the propertyowners bordering the drain be served with notice to clean the drain.--Agreed to. Electric Ught Wanted. The secretary of the Te Horo Hall Committee wrote asking if the Council could see its way clear to erect an electric light on the pole opposite the Te Horo Public Hall. The chairman said that persona!!;: lie thought that this request might be acceded to. Cr. Jensen supported this, pointing out that the road in this locality was very narrow and bad, also some very nasty holes in it.