DISTRICT CONTROL

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 719, 19 July 1929, Page 11

DISTRICT CONTROL

BOROUGH STATUS SOUGHT BY ONE TREE HILL ADVANTAGES OUTLINED A proposal to change the status of One Tree Hill from a road district to that of a borough has been investigated carefully by the One Tree Hill Road Board, which is now placing the scheme before ratepayers. “We have arrived at the conclusion that the time for such a change is now opportune,” the board states in a circular being distributed throughout the district. UNWIELDY POSITION In outlining the advantages of the proposed change, the board contends that the Municipal Corporations Act, under which boroughs work, is continually being revised and brought up to date to keep pace with modern developments, but this is not the case with the Road Boards Act, which was never intended for the administration of urban areas such as One Tree Hill, consequently special legislation has frequently to be sought to enable the board properly to carry out its functions and special legislation is always slow and sometimes difficult and costly to obtain. “A statement of the Government Statistician that the road board system of control has served its purpose is amply borne out by our experience in One Tree Hill,” it adds. The greatest possibilities in the change undoubtedly lie in the operations of the petrol tax, which provides that eight per cent, of the proceeds of the petrol tax shall be divided, on a population basis, between boroughs of 6,000 population and over. One Tree Hill has a population of 7,500, and as a borough would have received as its share of the petrol tax no less than £837 for the year ended March 31, 1929. INCREASED REVENUE "With the growth of population in the district and increased use of motor spirit generally, the revenue from this source will undoubtedly steadily increase. The board has repeatedly applied for a share in the petrol tax, but has definitely been refused, and must therefore change its status to secure its just proportion. In a road district, certain schools, other than public schools, are exempt from rates. In a borough, only four acres for each such school is exempt. Under this heading the funds of the district would benefit by £I3S annually. The waterworks of a borough situated outside its boundaries are exempt from rates, but a road district derives no such benefit. The rates on the Onehunga pumping station would be saved. Borough elections are held every two years, against annually in road districts, a saving here of about £75 each two years. IMMEDIATE GAIN The only set-off, financially, would be a reduction in the Government subsidy by £SO, but the net immediate annual gain would be £I,OOO, with a steadily increasing tendency. In addition to the administrative and financial advantages, the district would gain in status by becoming a borough. Mount Eden and Mount: Albert, which were formerly road districts, effected this change some years ago, and no ill-effects have been noticed. Before the desired change can be brought about, it is necessary for a petition to be signed by one-fifth of the ratepayers. A petition will shortly be circulated among ratepayers!.