SHANNON BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Shannon News, 4 November 1927, Page 3

SHANNON BOROUGH COUNCIL.

fortnightly meeting.

' The usual fortnightly meeting of the Borough Council was held in the Council Chambers on Tuesday evening. Present: The Mayor (Mr E. Butt) and Crs. W. H. Gunning, R. Downes, Jas. ■ Currajn, senr., Jas Curran, .inn., T. ' C. Thwaites, Jas. Richardson. RANGER’S REPORT.

The ranger (J. Swindlehurst) stated that he had nothing to report for the past fortnight, as he had been * posed and was unable to go ou„. - ROADMAN’S REPORT. The roadman (E. Haley) reported on the month’s 'work as follows:—Have " carted 209 yards of metal to vhe dump and on to Stafford and Stout Streets. Plimmer Terrace and the Cemetery road. The widening of Stout Street has been completed and metalled up to Mr King’s property; the ploughing ha* been broken up and is ready for sowing with grass.. A start has been made witn the metalling of the new kerbing in Plimmer Terrace; about 25 or 30 yams more metal is. required to finish this work. About H chains of pipes have ' been put in drain opposite firebqll. The grass has been removed off footpath m Stout Street and .that portion between the Albion Hotel and the Bank of New Zealand. Have inspected the pipe bno and galleries and scoured the wjater mains. The rubbish has been collected and carted to the dump.—Received. ROADMAN’S COTTAGE. CJr: Thwaites reported that the Building Committee had met to consider ways and means of raising the necessary 'finance, viz., £l6O, to make additions and , repairs to the roadman’s’cottage. He * mentioned that the matter had been , before tlie Council at its last meeting ' and had been referred back to the Committee to bring down a report. As a result of the meeting the Committee recommended that as thele is roughly £2OO in credit to the .Workers’ Dwelling loan and that there is every possibility of getting possession of the use of this moneys the Council should confer with the Minister of Finance and Aud-itor-General ‘as to whether the request can be granted. Whether :t was good policy to Spend this , amount on the present building or make a less ambitious scheme to fill the bill, w,ere questions for the Council to discuss and come to a conclusion upon. Cr. Gunning said that Or. Thwaites had mentioned whether it was advisable to spend money on the preserit building. He rather doubted if it'was a good policy spending money on improvements to an'old building, which had a very limited life. Looking at it •from the point of view of a private individual he did, not think any member of the Council would spend £2OO on a building m such a. condition. To recoup themselves they would need to get about £2O a year increase on the present . rental;. * If necessary, he would sooner see a new house built, ar.d the Council should. go into this question. He did not think the recommendation to make the additions and repairs t.< the present building a good spec, from the ratepayers’point of view. Cr.' Curran, jun., said he did not think they could let the house in it? present condition. He would be in favour of a new house if .they could get This he thought would be far better.

Cr. Downes said they had got an ex- *’ pert opinion that for the 3um of £l6'( . • they would get a good job and that the hov.se was worth spending this amoum on. It meant that the Council had either got to spend money bn the building or scrap it and erect a new house. The Town Clerk stated that Mr J. Linklater, M.P., had advised him that it was not possible to get provision made for the use of the money in a

Washing-Up Bill, but that it was pos- * sible that a conference with the Minister of Finance and the Auditor-Genera 1 might result in the use of the money

beng granted. « In reply to a question Cr. Thwaites said the proposals did hot take into consideration the raising of the building. There were too many houses built too low to the ground in Shannon and he had noticed during the recent epidemic of sore throats that. a. vast number of the cases could be traced to buildings low built. Personally he would hesitate over spending £2OO on the building. The Council was handling ratepayers’ money and thqy must spend it judiciously. - v The Mayor said he felt, that it would be best to build a new house. - Cr. Downes said he was still of opinion that they should go on with the repairs and Additions to the house. He moved ,that the repairs and 'additions be carried out, at a cost not to exceed £2OO.

Cr. Curran, jun., said the present site was a convenient one both for the foreman and the ratepayers. Cr. Richardson asked if the foreman was prepared to pay an increase in It's rent if the improvements are carried , out, which drew from Cr. Downes the remark “That the question of rent should not enter into the matter, as ti behoved the Council to hud a decent house for its employee at a reasonable rental.” If the repairs are carried out lie believed the foreman was prepared ' to pay a reasonable increase in the * - On Cr. Curran, jun., seconding Cr. Downes* motion, it was put to the meeting and carried. The Town Clerk ..was appointed to go to Wellington to confer with the Minister of Finance and tiie AuditorGeneral with a view to getting permission to U3e the £2OO now 'lying' to the credit of, the Workers’ Dwelling loan to carry out the work. A RESOLUTION. Cr. Downes moved that the Council write to the Minister of Finance and Mr. J. Linklater, M.P., protesting against the altering or amending of the Arbitration Act. He stated that the workers and employers all over the . Dominion were /protesting and he would like to see a .protest from the Council. Cr. J. Curran, jun., seconded the motion which was carried.