TARANAKI COUNTY COUNCIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 August 1920, Page 2

TARANAKI COUNTY COUNCIL.

MONTHLY MEETING. | The monthly meeting of the Taranaki Coun-1 ty Council-was held yesterday. Present: CrS. J. S. Connett (chairman), .T. Andrews, J, Wooldridge, A, Morton, S. Victors. Cr. C.' Andrews was unavoidably Absent. i ENGINEER'S REPORT. | the engineer (Mr. R. D CUmio) presented! the following report on the month's working: The work of improving 'filHiii; «n Mangorel Road Is now practically completed. Mr. John Hale has given permission to Temove and straighten the fence 'at the bad corner at the south end of the work, and this is the only work now to do. Mr. Southcombe Is now carting shingle for tar work from the Waiwakalho at Mangorei, and expects to be able to get at least two hundred yards without much trouble The roads in this riding are in a very fair condition, but maintenance metal supplies are now very short. The whole of the foreman's time has oeen occupied cleaning water tables and patching. ' Waltara Riding: During the present dry spell good progress has been made with the work of remetalltng the Mountain Road. A total of 782 cubic yards has been spread during the month. Of this 324 cubic yards were used to re-metal the swamp portion, a distance of 16.5 chains. This piece of road quite bare of metal, and the amount of metal used per chain, 20 cubic yards, was little enough to make a good Job. The flat from Sampson's store to Lepperton Junction (32 chains) used a total of 528 cubic yards, thus taking 16 5 yards per chain. The lorries also were used to cart out 17 cubic yards each to Devon and Te Aral roads, and 8 cubic yards to Waitara Road for maintenance. Work at the Waiwakalho weir has gone on steadily, and results show that a fairly satisfactory job can be made for the available money. It will be necessary for Council to erect a groyne just below the Tannery Co.'s boundary. My estimate of cost for this work is £4l 12s 6d. This allows for a groyne of ample weight, using 80 cubic yards of boulders. Beyond above works nothing exoeptlng ordinary maintenance and repair work has \>een done in this riding.

O/nata Riding: Foreman Seamark has been occupied hand-breaking maintenance stone for Hurford Road and with general maintenance work. I understand that Ave settlers on the Veale Road have agreed to make a cash payment of £!> each to get a small portion of their road metalled, and I suggest that this work be done from the Frankley Road pit when the crusher goes there. Qkato Riding: A start has been made to repair bridges on Saunders Road, and thiß work will be completed this week. An endeavour was made to lift, the sunken pier, but this idea had to be abandoned, as cracks developed in the structure when It started to lift, and it was thought safer to under-pin this pier in its present position. It was also found necessary to attend to the top bridge. The piers of this have been protected, and made safe with concrete work, and further ' dnnger from scour prevented. It is my intention to start work on the Oakura bridge as soon as these two are completed. Complaint was made regarding two culverts on the Punlho road, and this matter is receiving attention The small roller has been able to make more satisfactory progress on the South Road during the fine weather, but the meagre supplies of motal and a shortage of labor are keeping the work back. Foreman Jury is still hauling shingle and stone nl the Knlhlhi He lias now screened about 300 cubic yards of shingle and hauled 1300 cubic yards of stone. The •average cost has heen approximately 3s (id and 4s 6d per cubic yard respectively. i

General: All plant and horses are In good working order. During the month n supply of benzine came to hand. This will parry us well through the summer season. Supplies of eon! have been very short. However, a truck was allotted us last week Horse faed lias come to hand from the South hlaml, end about six tons of chaff was purchased locally durini; the month. A second-hand elevoto'r suitable for the small crfisher was offered to me by Mr Androws, of Okato, and I suggest that tlili be purchased. at, the price nuoted, '•iz., £3O. The work on this small crusher is still hung up awaiting the arrival of a new crank shaft, which is on a boat somewhere between here and Dunedin. RATEPAYERS' WANTS. The application of a ratepayer on the Croydon Road for lease of about 40 chains of the road aV"i rental of 15s per annum, was Rccepted <{n condition that applicant clears that portion of the road of noxtous weeds The Upper Carrlngton Road Ratepayers' Association brought before the Council the necessity' of metalling and forming the Upper Carrington Road from near the Klri stream to the end of the county boundary beyond the Momona stream, and further asked the Council to endeavour to procure a grant from the Government to enable the work to be put In hand at once.—The chairman said that an application had already been made to the Government for a loan to carry out this work. The ratepayers on the Cross Road desired the Council to take steps to raise a loan to metal the Kelly and Te Arei Roads, and to send the engineer to report and give estimates of the coat of .the wrok.—The matter was left in the hands of tht engineer to report. GENERAL.

The New Plymouth Borough Council wrote stating that the account for work on the Avenue Road will be paid, but the Borough Council strongly objects to new work being undertaken on boundary roads without its consent being first obtaimft Mr. A. L. Moore, Director of the New Plymouth Technical College, wrote asking' for more generous support to be given to the coil lege, in keeping with the properlty and lraportany of the County.—lt was resolved that the contribution could not be raised, but that the £2O per annum be paid as usual. The tender of the Vacutim Oil Company for supply of 94 tons of bitumen was accepted. I