NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 11 March 1919, Page 8

NEW PLYMOUTH BOROUGH COUNCIL.

MEETING OF WORKS COMMITTEE.; The Works Committee of the New Plymouth Borough Council met last night. The Mayor (Mr. C. H. Burgess) presided, and there were also present: Crs. J. W. Havden, W. F. Short, E. Griffiths, E. .T. De'are, G. W. Browne, W. A. Collis, and J. Clarke. Estimates for the coming year were considered in committee. On the suggestion of several ratepayers in the vicinity the name Waimea Street was given to the hitherto unnamed road leading from the left of the Tukapa Road down to the Waimea stream, near Mrs/'Goodacre's property. The road forms the terminus of the third section on the Westown bus route.

Permission was granted the Chautauqua guarantors to have the tent for the meetings erected on the vacant section opposite the railway station, and it was decided to remit the customary license fee, in view of the educational character of the meetings. A report was made by the engineer on his investigation at Devonport, Auckland, in connection with the disposal of refuse by means ,of a destructor. He recommended the council to defer doing anything in the matter until further particulars regarding the machinery were obtained.

The engineer, in a report on the matter of patching roads, as suggested by Cr. Collis, stated that the question was not a new one. He had it under consideration in November last, when he proposed putting on a gang of four men for the work, but at the time, and for many weeks after, the weather was against tarring work being carried out. Labor was also particularly scarce at the time. By Christmas tar-sealing was put in hand, and that took a staff of from 20 to 23 men, and in order to save the coming winter's wear on a,bout 5 miles of roadway, all the available labor was put on to that work. Regarding Currie Street, it was worn out two years ago, and about 15 months ago a coat of tar and sand was given to the surface. No amount of such surfacing would overcome the original fault of sweeping tar and sand on top of dirt or moisture. He advised takiug all possible wear out of' the road, and then relaying it properly. The street carried sufficient traffic to warrant a wearing carpet coat being laid. With the amount of tarring now in hand the makeshift plant was taxed beyond its capacity. This was not to be wondered at when it was considered that twelve months ago the capacity was about 200 gallons per day, and now it was 1200 gallons. To cope with any further work will necessitate more men and haulage and other plant. To put extra asphalting in hand also means putting in an adequate plant, which may become .idle for part of the year. One bugbear in the case is the wet weather. In such case patching work would have to be available for some twenty men, iind this work can be carried out in the entmnn>equally as well'as breaking up a. .sang into small units and doing ?t in the summer. With the long length of tar roads it will be""'necessary in future to have a repair gang, and sufficient plant will be asked for to keep them going. <?:

The secretary of the Taranaki Hydroelectric League (Mr. P. Skoglund) wrote in reference to the prospective visit to Taranaki. towards the end ot the present month, of the Minister of Public Works and the Minister of Railways, stating that it had been urged by a meeting of representatives from local bodies in the Stratford district that the occasion should be made the opportunity for a large and influential deputation to wait upon the Ministers to urge upon them the necessity of proceeding with the Stratford—Okahukura railway, and the hydro-electric scheme.—Consideration was held over till next meeting. The Pahnerston North llnrough Council wrote asking for support to a resolution suggesting that the .Minister of | Agriculture should increase the compensation paid for condemned animals from the present 2d per lb to 50 per cent, of the value, as an inducement to butchers t> have all pigs passing through their band* slaughtered at the abattoirs.—Deferred till next meeting. The Devonport Borough Council asked support to a resolution strongly urging Upon the Government the advisability of Repatriating as soon as possible, all alien 'prisoners of war, military and civilian, iat present interned in the Dominion.— The engineer reported" that he was preparing estimates for work' which had been applied for by ratepayers as follows: Dorset Road (formation roads and paths), Saekville Street, (road and jpaths), Govett Avenue (surfacing and repairs), Frankley Road (water mains), Avenue Road (firo plugs; extending |paths and gravelling). Victoria Street [West (path and road repairs), George jStroet (formation, gravelling and paths) iFillis Street-West (formation). Besides Ithese he had in preparation a report re ithe laying of larger water mains on the |Dartmoor estate.