NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 4 December 1917, Page 5

NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL.

LAST NIGHT'S MEETING. A meeting of the New Plymouth Borough Council was held last night. His Worship the Mayor (Mr. C. H. Burgess) presided, and there were also present: Crs. J. Clarke, J. W. Hayden, F. J. Hill, W. F. Short, K. Griffiths, W. A. Collis, R. J. Deare, G. W. Browne.' CORRESPONDENCE. Lander and Bennett applied for permission to re-erect a portion of the timber from a house which had been erected in Cavrington street for about 3 years. Particulars were supplied as to the use to which the timber was to be put. The engineer Recommended that the application be granted.—The recommendation of the engineer was approved, and the application granted. D. Penwarden applied for a water service to section 28, at the corner of Wakefield Avenue and Kitchener street, and also for a crossing from the road to the section facing Kitchener street. The engineer submitted a report on the building proposed to be erected on the section, and an estimate of the cost of the water service applied for; also an alternative estimate of the cost of the crossing in concrete, tarred macadam or metal. —The engineer was authorised to have the works applied for carried out. The secretary of the Taranaki Education Board applied for the water to bo laid on to the Westown Hall, for the benefit of the children.

A petition from a number of residents of Omata road was presented, asking for the borough water service to be extended along that road from its junction with Eliot road, a distance of about 7 chains. T. P. Hughson wrote stating that some time ago notice had been received re water being laid on to a cottage at Eliot road, also to a cottage at Omata road. Up to the present the water had not been laid on to the Omata road cottage, and the writer asked when the work would be done.

The engineer reported that there was no water main along Omata road. In view of the large number of residents who would be benefited by a main along that road as far as the council's present stock of 4-inch piping would permit (5 chains), then a 2-inch main as far as Westown Hall.

Cr. Short Baid the matter was very* urgent. The children required drinking water, and he thought something should be done immediately. He moved that the work, according to the engineer's report, be carried out at the earliest possible convenience. The motion was seconded by Cr. Clarke and carried. Eleven residents of Darnell street, Fitzroy, wrote drawing the attention of the council to the state of the footpath in that street, which was said to be unsafe at night time. Petitioners asked that repairs bo effected as spsedily as possible. ' ■• The engineer reported that tlu; path hud apparently been laid' out Oft wide, and was not, in spite of the cueoavhment of fences and the wearing away of the outer edge, really dangerous to pedThe matter was refeired to the streets sub-committee, with power to act. The borough inspector wrote uurging that as the holidays were approaching, attention should be drawn to the state of the Huatoki stream below Devon street. The inspector pointed out that it would not take a man long to remove the tins and rubbish, which from the bridge gave an impression that unsanitary conditions might very easily arise.— The engineer stated that he had given instructions for the stream to be cleared before Christmas. The borough inspector further pointed

rubbish receptacles along thertws.il attention to the question He h»J . ported to the IncHon Se'&S because a comprehensive scheme wouM ' include a greafer expendita™.TS ' eSa^'^Vh 0 / °" th 6 «W"*J-S thaiit t T he en l mew Pointed out ' that it was acknowledged that while tar concrete or wood-bloclced and as»£ orly laid, lessened the cost of mainten. ance, added to the cos TsS Sf T se i, d/oPPings, on macadam whP». t g * rOl ed and rammed doWby wheel traffic, but on the better and ' ; smoother surfaces they were oTlygroK > down, a „d becamemore difficult % «. : , The f gihMr fltflted that he intended to submit a report on the whole EZ 3 ♦'J Wet m V&* »t the nS? meeting of the council. He agreed with he sanitary inspector, and said he would :i have the streets cleaned as well a. poss- • Mr«\°n er \° a,leviate th * » u **«'- ' Mrs. E. Douglas, convener of the ladies' rest room committee, wrote stating that after conferring with the committeTof * the council, the Women's Christian Tern- ' perance Union had resolved to give up the care of the ladies' rest room. Cr. Collis said the ladies were grieved at being turned out of the room without any previous notice. He thought if they had been allowed to have the room up. stairs they would have been prepared to reconsider the control. - ,

Cr. Hayden said something would have to be done, and he was afraid the council would have to face the expense of a caretaker. The room wa«, no doubt, ft great convenience to women, especially to those coming into town with little children.

Cr.Collis further pointed put that the real trouble waß that the use of the room upstairs caused an annoyance to people using the room below. It was resolved to refer the matter to the Library Committee. Wm. Allen applied for leave to frect a temporary fence across an imaged street off Smith street, Vogoltown, between his and Mr. Moore's property. The back portion of the roadway proposed to be fenced was infested with gorse, and if the permission sought was given, the writer would use the section for staging purposes, and grub the gorse to keep the* growth checked. • .■ v ■

The engineer recommended that, subject to the consent of Mr. Moore, who had a side entrance on the road, permission should be granted, the applicant t> keep down all noxious weeds. ' ' \

It was decided that the application be granted, subject to the consent of Owners of adjoining property. G. Mclsaae, on behalf of the residents,, of Vcale'a estate, wrote, drawing the at- '' tention of the council to the fact that the residents were living in a very dry area. They were without water, and asked that the council should at least fill up their tanks for them. The engineer reported that there was no main in the vicinity. In similar cases the borough had carted water and filled tanks at a cost to residents of 2s Bd, per 1000 gallons on the fiat areas, and from 3s to 4s 6d on the hill properties. It was moved by Cr. Clarke, and seconded by Cr. Browne, that water be supplied according to the terms suggested, by the engineer. The matter was left in the hands of the engineer to be at- > tended to. '

The borough engineer reported that as it had been suggested by drovers and others to have a stock track opened between Carrington road and Liardet street he proposed to form and give a light coat of gaol gravel to a track approximately 26 feet wide, which would be upon a higher level than the pathway, and fenced both Bides. It would encroach upon the path at Carrington road, and another outlet would be made by turning the path northward. The report set out the estimated cost of carrying out the work.

It was resolved, on the motion of Cr. Griffiths, that the work be carried out. A request from a resident of Balance street for the repair of that street, or the formation of a. cycle track, was referred to the streets sub-committee. EXPENDITURE AT FITZROY. The Mayor said that, in view of some criticism that had been levelled at the council regarding its treatment of Fiferoy, he had ascertained that the amount that had been spent on maintenance in that locality from the £42,000 loan was £5515, and there was yet to be spent £4OB. He thought that the suggestion that had been made that Fitzroy Was being neglected was not warranted, Cr, Griffiths said that the trouble Was that one of the last works done by the Fiteroy Town Board was to have the footpath on the south >side of Devon street put in proper order, and that one of the first thingH the Borough Council had done was to alter the level of the footpath, and it had' never been properly re-made.'

The Mayor pointed out that what had been done to the footpath had been necessary in connection with the tramway system, by which Fitzroy residents greatly benefited.

Cr. Griffithß further suggested thai; if Fitzroy had not come into the borough, there would, in all probability, have been no Greater New Plymouth, and no train - way Byßtera. He considered the district had suffered through joining the borough, because the compact entered into at The time of the union had not been fully carried out. Ho considered the council and the borough were greatly indebted to Fitzroy residents. The Mayor considered that, what Cr. Griffiths had said was not altogether fair. He added that bad footpaths ware not peculiar to Fitzroy. The borough was only just beginning to get good roads.