CLIFTON COUNTY COUNCIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 December 1917, Page 3

CLIFTON COUNTY COUNCIL.

MONTHLY MEETING. The ordinary mooting of tlio Clifton County Council was held id. Waitara on Friday, when there were present: Messrs R. 11. l'igott. (chairman), S. ,1. Kennington. 11. Sander, C. Foreman, C. Musker, T. McKenziu, and F. C. Jones. engineer's report. The engineer (Mr. C. F. Wowsett) reported as follows: Waihi Riding.—Various sections of the main road have been scarified, remetallod and rolled, though the dry weather has not added to the improvement. The metalling on the Inland North road, held over from last year, has been completed. Levels have been taken and plans prepared for the Ohanga road metalling. I now desire the contractor to concentrate on the Turangi road boulder contract, to avoid trouble ahead next winter on the main road. Tikorangi Riding.—The foreman has been busy binding and preserving tyie metal recently put down, and will now proceed with the metalling at the cross roads, and thereafter to complete metalling Cunningham's hill. The large grader is available very shortly, when the Waihi and Otaraoa roads should receive attention. Ngatimaru Riding. —All bridges on the Autawa and Pita roads have been attended to, and are now in fair and reasonable order. The concrete culvert near Webb's is nearing completion, and minor repairs will be effected to the Purangi bridge; permanent repairs cannot be carried out until further timber is supplied and a good r.cal of difficulty is experienced in obtaining same, The work originally outlined on the Matau-Kiore road has been completed, and claims will duly be made. Further widening of points to the amount of the balance will be laid off later, as the foreman is now busy with other classes of work. A concrete pipe culvert will be inserted in place of the old wooden structure on the Pukeho road. Prospecting for suitable gravel for repairs will be carried out on section 8, block XVI, Waitara S.D., fronting the Junction road. The contract for burnt papa, called last year, on. the North Matau road, is still open for acceptance, and small sections of sanding can be carried out on the Junction road if labor is available. An item of importance is to decide as to what form re-bridging the creek on the South Matau r6ad will take. Urenui Riding.—The metalling contracts in this riding have been patchy, the output has been small, and the whole operations are lacking ginger. The Okoke position has been offered to the late foreman, and I understand he is re-start- ' •; on the 7th inst., when the roads in this locality should soon show improvement. A small balatv."; .in the -.'ppcr Piko road has, on my application, been granted for the removal of' ;lips, and will be applied to this purpose. All the pipes have also gone out for the Onaero road metalling contract. An eariy opportunity will be taken to re-nietai the lower portion of the ICaipikari hill. Mokau Riding.—Further metal has been quarried for the Uruti road contract, and supplies should now be adequate to complete the work. The boulder contract for the maintenance metal is proceeding satisfactorily, and should be completed by the time the crushing plant arrives at Uruti. Good work has been carried out on the unmetalled portion of the main road, and through car traffic has been resumed for some time. Drains will shortly be cut to allow the superfluous flood openings to be filled up. This is necessary, as the structures bridging the openings are much decayed. I understand a tender will be submitted for sanding portions of the Okau road not competed for last season. On the 23rd the crushing plant was transferred to the Pukearuhe road,'and the first depot cleaned up, and the plant pushed on to Wai-iti, where fair progress is being year has been received, and proposals made. Thirds schedules for the past half will be submitted for approval to the next sitting of the Land Board. The report was adopted. The engineer will meet C'r. Kennington on the site of the South Matau creek bridge. MANGAHIA ROAD. Mr. 11. G. Richardson, on behalf of the settlers of the Mangahia road, asked the council to entertain the idea of sending the grader to that district as early as possible. The engineer said there were many calls for the grader, but the difficulty was to find teams to work it. There might, of course, come a more urgent call from edsewhere. Mr. Musker did not think there could be a more urgent call. A cheese factory had been erected, and there would be milk instead of cream to cart, and the road was in a bad state. The chairman agreed that something required doing. Cr. Musker said the surfaceman could not get through all the work, and he enquired whether there yvas any authority for the settlers to assist. Councillors pointed out that settlers in the Tangitu and other districts had helped themselves by turning out. The engineer said that the trouble was to get the settlers to face the music. It was resolved to inform Mr. Richardson that the grader would be sent, providing teams could be arranged. The matter of obtaining teams was left in the hands of Cr. Musker and the engineer. A ROYALTY CLAIM. Ema Hipango and •Piki, through their solicitors (Marshall and Hutton, Wanganui) askod kv what authority the council entered on their land and removed 442 yards from their section at Waitara. Without prejudice, they offered to accept payment of royalty at Gd per yard, provided the council replace the fence. Failing acceptance, proceedings would be taken for trespass. The engineer stated that he had made out an account for royalty at 3d, but this had been refused, It only meant going through a few chains of the property to get stone from the river. Cr. Hicks had been given authority to enter the property by a Maori, who, it was thought, was the owner of the property. It was resolved to inform the solicitors to this effect, and to pay (id per yard royalty in settlement of the claim. A CLOSED ROAD. Mr. H. G. Hicks asked the council to take steps to have, three barb-wire fences removed from a by-road leading to sections S3, 54, block V, Waitara, which were part of his farm. In'the course of the discussion, it was stated that about 20 years ago, permission had been given to fence the road, which was a blind one. The road Mas being used by :l widow with a family of ten children to run a cow or two. Referring lo the engineer to report at next meeting. MANGAOPA ROAD LOAN. The State Advance Department notified that iu order to comply with the on*

visions of the Local Bodies' Loans Act, 1013, it. would be necessary to extend the Mangaopa special rating area, so as to include that portion of the proposed work, outside the present boundaries. The chairman considered (hat' this was only a quibble, as loans had been granted previously in similar cases. The loan had been raised by consent of (he ratepayers, who were agreeable for the work to go beyond the rating area. It was pointed out that if the whole work was included in the rating area, it meant that one settler would have several additional sections included, and would lie paying, the bulk of the rate, which the other settlers did not desire. The chairman remarked that the Department would keep them dilly-dallying throughout the summer, until nothing could be done. The clerk was instructed to write to the settlers and Explain the position regarding the loan. TENDERS. Tenders were accepted as follows: Supply of 100 yards crushed bouldef stone on Tikorangi road, ,T. Foreman (10s cy per yard); metalling 420 yards Ohanga road, C. Marsh (7s per yard). The latter was accepted subject to there being no interruption in present contracts. GENERAL. • Mr. H. IT. Sharp, resident engineer, notified that he had been instructed to offer the council for expenditure the following sums, provided that plans and specifications are submitted for approval before work is commenced: Pukearuhe (£ for £), £300; Uruti (£ for £), £7OO. The Receiver of Land Revenue notified that the sum of £5 13s 3d hypothecated thirds in Upper Waitara, had been placed to the council's credit.

The Public WofK* Department forwarded cheque for £52, on account of widening Piko road. Mr. Newton King invited members of the council to visit Eltham early next week to inspect a demonstration of the o-ton White automatic-dump truck recently purchased for the Eltham County Council. The invitation was accepted, and several members of the council will make the trip. The chairman and Cr. C. Musker were authorised to sign the memorial re-devia-tion of Mimi-Mokau road. The chairman explained that in places in the Mimi Valley the Public Works' Department had deviated the road slightly through native land from the surveyed road. The Public Works Department forwarded authority for £3OO, on account of the £7OO ( £ for £) subsidy for metalling at Pukearuhe. Messrs Sladden and Palmer forwarded plans, etc., of proposed deviation of the Wilson road, which was necessary. to avoid Mr. Greenwood's homestead. They asked that the council forward the plans on to the chief surveyor. ' It was resolved to. approve the plans, and the chairman was authorised to affix the seal of the council thereto. Mr. Musker suggested that it might assist tendering if the council were to have the metal in the pit stripped. The engineer stated that this would be worth considering if there was a large quant'tv to get out. ■ The chairman was authorised to sign and seal consent to deviation of Clifton street, Pukearuhe. Accounts amounting to £S9."> Cs 7d were passed for payment.