THE BOROUGH REVIEW.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 241, 11 April 1912, Page 6

THE BOROUGH REVIEW.

MAYOR'S ANNUAL STATEMENT. "FINANCES VERY SOUND." A't Tuesday's meeting of the Borough j Council the Mayor (Mr. G. W. Browne) ! submitted a statement reviewing the' operations of the council during the financial year ended March 31st. In his report Mr. Browne stated that on coming into office his first care was to look closely into the finances of the various departments. On receiving the first quarterly statement he found" that the street vote was nearly exhausted, £1025 I7s fid having been spent, and a liability of £4BB incurred, leaving only £>6B6 2s Od to carry on for the remaining nine months of the year. The expansion of receipts from various sources, and the saving effected in bank interest, had, however, enabled the council to overspend the street vote by £477 10s lOd. As a result, the streets were in fairly good order. Dealing with the general finances, the Mayor said that for the first time for the last few years the finances showed a credit of £39 3s 3d on. the year's working. Only in the case of three items had the revenue fallen short of the estimated amount. He referred to a deficiency of £4 under the heading of licenses, £35 Os 7d on account of the reimbursements on the waterworks, and £S7 Os Id in connection with the baths. Unfavorable weather had accounted for the last-mentioned deficiency.

Outlining the improv -nents which had been effected durin • the year, Mr. Browne said that the i :;inicipal buildings had been renovated; the balance of the swamp had been drained; and a large amount of furze had been grubbed. °

VARIOUS ACCOUNTS. Dealing with the various accounts, the Mayor said that the abattoirs report showed that the expenditure had exceeded the revenue "by" £l3O as 2d; the cemetery account just about held its own; the expenditure on the library had exceeded the receipts by £4O 17s 2d; in the contractors' deposit account there remained' a credit of £202 15s; in the revenue account the estimated revenue for the year had been £18,322, and the actual receipts £23,175 3s lOd. The increased receipts had principally come from electric light, Waiwakailio bridge, elections, rents and costs Avenue road, Fitzroy ward, streets and drainage. Looking into the estimated expenditure .for the last year he found that the following items had exceeded the allocated amounts:—Streets £477 10s lOd, fortge £3B 4s Bd, plant, material and repairs £O9 7s Id, water cart £2 12s 6d, reserves £lO3 10s Id, Hospital Board 7s 9d, Fire Board £l9 6s 9d, Band 'l3s 9d, sundries £lOl 2s lOd, inspector and office £l7 15s 6d, electoral rolls £46 9s, rtfUbish depot £29 2s 6d, drainage £6O Os 4d. dog collars £2 1,3s 2d. The following extraordinary payments not provided for in "the estimates had had to be paid:—'Waiwakailio bridge £SOB 17s, first payment Henui bridge, Junction road, £IOO, harbor elections £43 4s Id, preliminary expenses electric light loan £56 Is 7<i, Fitzroy, general expenses, £234 ilßs 'sd, Fitzroy, deed of adjustment, £7% las 9d; total, £1678 16s lOd. There were two items on the Fitzroy account, amounting to £3ll 5s lid, which were over and above the receipts.

The Mayor added tnat, on 'i"ie other hand, the following votes had been underspent, 'or savings effected:—Town clerk's department £sl Os «d, Gill street extension £lB 15s, horses £44 3s 4d, kerbing and channelling £66 12s lid, tarring £7 Os 6d, Devon road agreement £lO, lighting streets £5, engineer's department £IOB 6s 3d, Town Hall £l'3 8s 3d, Bank interest £1.67 7s «d, interest on loans 13s 6d, licensing Is 9d, elections and polls £3 lis 11<1, baths £ll 18s 6d, waterworks £4O 9s 9d, estimated reduction on overdraft £132; total, £685 9s 7d.

In summing up, Mr. Browne described the "borough finances as being in a very sound and satisfactory condition, and he thanked the town clerk (Mr. F. T. Bellringer) and the borough .engineer (Mr. Skitrop) for their efforts to effect economies in their respective departments.

WORKS CARRIED OUT.

"It may not," continued the Mayor, be deemed out of place if I refer to a few matters that' have been carried out during the past year. In streets, a mile and a-quarter have "been re-formed and re-metalled. In kerbing and channelling.. three-quarters of a mile has been carried out. In kerbing only a quarter of a mile has been done. Tarring and sanding has been extended 28 chains on new work. The Collett exchange, to give effect to tramway approach to Carrington road, has " been completed, and only awaits Parliamentary sanction. The portions dealt with by the Greater New Plymouth with one exception, have been successfully carried through. The portion of the Esplanade from Dawson street to j Weymouth street has been secured to the town. The thanks of the whole community are due to Messrs Newman and Eollo for their generous gift in this direction. The Land Board was approached regarding the Ivawaroa reserve and generously prepared a Bill to be placed before 'Parliament to give effect to the application. The bringing into use of the borough traction plant has effected a large saving in the haulage of metal to the roads. A mile and a-quarter of formation and metalling have been carried out in connection with the streets loan and completed well within the estimates. Tvventy-'six chains and a-quarter are now completed and ready to receive metal. Two miles and a-quarter of new sewers have been carried out; 63 connections have 'been made to the new sewers and 10 to 'the old sewers, a total of 70 for the year, assuring a revenue about equal to the interest on the expenditure." Councillors -heartily thanked the Mayor for the trouble he had gone to in preparing his statement.