TOWN BOARD

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 466, 26 April 1890, Page 2

TOWN BOARD

EXTRAORDINARY PROCEEDINGS. Thk ordinary, monthly meeting of the Te Aroha Town Board (adjourned from April 12th to 16th, and from tlienco to 23rd), was held in the Palace Hotel on last Wednesday evening. Present : Mesars JE<l w. Gallagher ( chairman), G. Lipaey, R. Harris, and J. Mills. The Clerk, Mr C. Ahier, was also present. Minutes of the monthly meeting held on March Bth, were read and confirmed. Ponndkeeper’s Report : The usual statement from .Mr J. W. R. Ouilding, poundkeeper, at Te Aroha, together ; with 15s 9d, amount of commission, shown to be duo to. the Board, were received. Notice of Motion : Mr Mitts moved, : in accordance with notice given by him at the preceding monthly meeting, the following resolution: That the latter portion of- the resolution passed on December Bth,. 1888, as follows :; “ and that the office of the Town Board be removed to the residence of Mr Ahier,” be rescinded ; and that the oflfioe of the Board in future be at Mr E. Gallagher’s office, Whitaker-street. The resolution was seconded by the Chairman. Mr. Harris* mo.ved the following amendment : That the Board provide arid maintain a public office, in accordance with the provisions of the Town Districts Act, 2883.—Seconded by Mr Lipsey.—ln moving the amendment Mr; Harris quoted Section 12 of the Towni Districts Act, 1883, which says : “ The Board shall provide and maintain a pnblio office within the district., andshall, publicly notify the situation of such office, and the hours during which it shall be open for public business.” Mr Harris : I think nothing can be clearer than that, and we as a Board should abide by the Act. I therefore' consider we should rent an office. Such as would meet our requirements could be .obtained for a very small sum weekly, and certainly Mr Gallagher’s office is no more a public office than Mr Aider’s house. .... , j . Mr Lipsey : I would like to see the Board with a proper office, one they could call their own. I cannot at all see why we should change from Mr Ahier's house to Mr Gallagher’s. There is no wisdom in so doing, .because we still shall be in much the same position as at present—>• without a public office. Chairman : You could hold the meetings of the Board in my office whioh you,' could not do ia Mr Aider’s house. Clerk (Innocently 1 j : Its that office, you don’t use, isn’t it Mr Chairman ? Chairman : Yes. . r . .. Mr Lipsey : I fail to see why we are not to have an office we can call our own. Chairman :All those in favour of the proposition hold up their right .hands. Clerk : You should put the amendment first Mr Chairman. Chairman : No the proposition. Clerk : No, sir, the amendment first alvjays’, : , f Chairman : No, the proposition first. All those. in favour of the proposition signify the same by holding up their right hand/ For the proposition, the Chairman and Mr Mills, against, Messrs Lipsey and Harris. " " ' , Chairraap : I declare the resolution carried by my casting vote. ■ ■ *"’ ’ Mr Harris : I wish Mr Chairman you would see for yourself what the section I have r;ead states with respect to this matter, '' t , ~ * . . t ;' Chairman : I have read the Act and do not s€«i that it bears oh the matter, at all (!) * -A . - . - . j . Mr Lipsey: If we cannot have an office of our own as the'Act requires, we have ao business to be a Town Board at all. There are plenty of people in : the 'township who wish to see a public office maintained) where the ratepayers oould feel free to' go and get information when

they want it, and they would roth'r subscribe Is each if necessary to pay for the rent, of it, titan be without it. Mr Lipsey to Clerk : You cannot go and sit down in "Mr Gallagher’s office two days a week for nothing.

Clerk : I only, seen one or two ratepayers come to the office during the. past fifteen months.

Notice of Motion : Mr Harris at the preceding monthly meeting gave notice that at this meeting he would move’:

That the resolution, passed by the Board on September 29th, 1888, on the motion of Mr Mills, seconded by Mr Ebert, as Follows “ That the ordinary meetings of this Board he held on the second Saturday of each month at 7 p.m.”— be rescinded. ‘

•’Mr Harris Before I move this resolution Mr Chairman I wish to know what really are the days and hours the present Board has fixed for the Town Board offibe to be open to the public, r: Chairman to Clerk : Tell Mr Harris Mr Ahier. Clerk to Mr Harris : I am not as fluent of speech as you are, but if you commence ‘ jabbing ’ at mi I’ll not speak at all. I’m not going to be ‘ bounced/ The Board’s office is open from 10 ft.in. to 12 noon on Tuesdays and Fridays. Mr Harris : When were these days and hours,appointed, and when publicly notified, as required by the Act.. .. I have carefully searched the Minute Book 'Had can find no record of any such alteration being authorised, Mr Harris : If you will look at page 51 of the Minute Book, you will there see that the days and. hours the Board’s office was to be open to the.public, were fixed by resolutions passed by. ..the late Board on. December. 31st, 1887. as follows: (1) That the Board’s office shall be open-to the public; pn each Monday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.ria., and on eaoh Thursday from 10 a.m. ? to 12 noon.” (2) “ That the regular monthly meetings of the Board , be held on the secmuL Thursday of each month, cora.mencing at 7. p.m.” : When were these resolutions rescinded -and by whose authority.

Clerk : I don’t know. Mr Harris'then asked to see the Notice of Motion Book, which on being handed to him, he exclaimed, with respect to certain notice of motion appearing therein but written several pages ahead in’ the book from the other notices of motion. Whgn. were these entries written in ?—I carefully "(looked throagh this Notice of Motion book on 11th March Inst, and nt that time [ saw no such entries os those now there, written several pages away from the other entries of notices of motion.

Clerk ; I cannot help yonr not having seen them. Mr Harris : .As I find Mr Chairman that the resolutions Axing the days the Board’s office shall be open to the public and for. holding the regular inertings of the Boarfl. have' never been rescinded ; l decline to move the resolution ; with reference thereto, respecting which I gave notice at lait meeting,, as there, is no occasion to do so ; as it is' quite evident: the day of meeting has never yet Wen lawfolly.changed from the second! Thursday in each month. Mr Mills: We passed a ; resolution altering the day, and that’s on the Minutes 1« it rot Mr Chairman; Chaiiman: Yes. Mr Mills : There is a resolution recorded in.the Minutes (page 81), passed on the 29th September, 1338, moved by myself, rescinding the resolution you refer to, and appointing the second Saturday in each iponth as the day of meeting.

I Mr Harris : Yes, that appears on the ; Minutes I know, but as no notice of motion was ever given, as required by tho Act, with respect to rescinding the resolution, the alteration wasnot legal. Mr Mills : Oh well, its legal enough for m anyhow. , Mr Mills i When will the next monthly meeting be Mr Chairman, Chairman ; On the second Saturday in the month.

Mr Mills That’s all right. Nuisance Inspector and Dog Registrar : A letter was read from John Dare, tendering his resignation, of the above offices.

Resolved that tfip resignation be acr cepted. , Applicant for the Billet : J. W. R. Guilding, wrote applying for the billet rendered vacant through the resignation of John Dare.

• Mr Harris : The truth is not always agreeable, but there could be no doubt the Board had not done in the pAst, and were not now doing their duty with respect to putting a stop to existing nuisances. If they did not intend to p.ut a stop to these nuisances, it would be advisable for the Central , Board M Health to take the matter out of the Board’s hands altogether, and instruct the police to have the nuisances discontinued, provisions for so doing was made in The Public Health Act, 1876, Section 72. Something ought to be done in the interests of the place to put a stop to what was so much complained of.. * *

MrMills moved that the Clerk post up notices about the town inviting 1 tenders for the position of Inspector of Nuisances and Dog Tax Colleator; seconded by Mr Lipsey .

Mr Harris moved as an amendment that a salary be first fixed, say L2l year, and that tenders be then invited from those willing to fill the united offices of Clerk* Pog Registrar, and Inspector of Nuisances. * There .no- seconder to Mr Harris?' tjrocnd merit it. lapsed, and Mr iiills motion was declared carried. j •'Finances: The Clerk reported the

credit balance of the Board at the Bank N.Z., as Lll 9s 7«l, Tlie Minute Book ; A Complaint; Mr Harris, handing the open Minn'e Rook..to the Chairman, said: He wished to draw «■ fruition to the way some of tlie entries in the Minute Book were made, as showing what value could be placed on the M iriutes. On page 119 the following entry appeared amongst the Minutes signed ty the Chairman, with respect to what took place at the meeting of tlie- Board held ou February Bth, when the nuisance question whs being discussed $ “ Com. Mills moved that the meeting resolve itself into Com-, inittee, seconded by Com Gallagher, The mo'ion was declared lost; Coma Heathcote, Harris,, and Lipsey, for; and Corns Mills! and Gallagher against.” - Now they all knew .very well that just the reverse was what -took place, Messrs Mills and the Chairman voting in favourof going in to. Committee over the nuisance business, and Messrs Harris,. Lipsey, and Heathcote, against. In any case, how could a motion be recorded ir* the Minutes as lost, when it was also, recorded that three voted for it, and only two against ! . Clerk : Its a m°re clerical error Mr Chairman. Its evident to me in filling in the names I have substituted the names in the wrong place. You remern-. bey Mr Chairman, Mr Hariis insistedon having the names recorded with res-. pect to the voting.

Mr Harris: I was writing out an amendment at the time the entry wa* made, and therefore did not observe how i.t was dorie till snbseqently.

.' The Clerk: here said ho considered it. cowardly of.Mr Harris to draw attention to.the way the Minutes were kept in thepublic manner he had done. If he had drawn his attention to the matter privately he could 'Understand it. Clerk : Shall I alter the entry in the Minutes Mr Chairman (?!)

Mr Harris : Hiving drawn attention to the matter Mr. Chairman I certainly object, to any alteration being now made in the Minutes, seeing they were confirmed and signed by you at last monthly meet-

Accounts : Threatening to Sue The Board : The following accounts were dealt with': F. O’Toole, £1 12s, for 4 d 055, dog collars—Passed for payment.

’Clerk : There i« an account here from the Waikato News, No, I mean from the Te Aroha and Waiorongoniai 7'imes, for advertising notice of valuation, 19s 6 and appointment of Dog Registrar, 5-< 9d. Total Ll 5s 3d. A memo, accompanying the account, to the effect that if the money was not paid at once a summons would he .issued for the amount, was also read by the. Clerk.

As Mr Lipsey stated h* had. recently received n demand with respect to theWaikato News office accounts from quite,-a diffcient : party—it was decided, in order that the light party yet themoney; to 1< t it be sued for and then pay the amount into Com b.

M.aunvr'of Letting Works r-Mr Harris-, said tenders ha;d recently been invited, opened and accepted, by the Chairman nndJM.r Lipeey for gravelling the footpaths. -He had no complaint to mstkewith respect to the price at which thework had been let, or the manner in which ihe contractor had done the work, but. ho certainly thought the Board as a. whole should be informed and consulted before harp! with respect to the proposed: carrying out of works such as that re-, ferred to.

Mr Lipsey : The Chairman and myself are the Works Committee, and therefore, are the whole Board in a case like that. Mr Harris : Well I think the other members ought to know when it is proposed to invite tenders for special works. This was all the business.