EGMONT COUNTY.

Taranaki Daily News, 14 September 1921, Page 8

EGMONT COUNTY.

MEETING OF THE COUNCIL.

PAST MONTH'S WORK.

The Egmont County Council met at Opunake yesterday. Present: Crs. S. Campbell (chairman), C. A. Trotter, R. Ferguson, A. F. Chapman, W. C. Green, J. ,S. Tosland, R. C. Watson, P. Brophy, and M. O’Brien. The engineer (Mr. Pease), reported:—

Oeo Riding (Northern).—The scouring at the piers to the bridge near the A-uroa Road has been attended to, and the piers secured with a concrete apron and two boulder stone protection walls. A line of seven 12-inch pipes was put in on the Oeo Road to replace a collapsed wooden culvert. The Kiri Road has had a fair amount of attention, having been, patched with pit metal. Patiki Road has been patched. Oeo Riding (Southern) .—The Main South Road has been patched from the racecourse entrance south-eastwards to the boundary The Patiki Road has been patched from enu to end. Patching has been done to the Skeet Road.

Opua Riding (Southern).—A fair amount of time was spent on the work of opening up the approaches to, and the filling in of s the diverted portion of the road at the new bridge over the Waiteika, on the Eltham Road. Water tabling has been done on the Main South and Eltham Roads, and slight repairs to the Mangahume bridge, whilst a length of blinding was done on the Eltham Road. Some patching has been done to the Lower Waiteika Road, and a culvert fenced off. Opua Riding (Northern).—The continuous patching on the Upper Arawhata Road was completed, and it is about ready for patching again. Two or three days’ patching has been done oii the Namu Road. A line of 2-feet diaimeter concrete pipes has been put across the Main South Road, south of the Opua Road, to replace an old wooden culvert which had collapsed.

Rahotu Riding (Southern).—A fair amount of work has been done on the Main South Road. The ty-sejding to the footpath at the Rahotu Hotel has been completed. The Tipoka, Opourapa, and Upper Kabul roads have been patched. Eight 3-feet diameter pipes have been sent up to the end of the Parihaka Road, at the top of Hie Upper Kabul Road. An additional eight 3-feet diameter pipes will be sent up as soon as new timbers are delivered here to repair the Waitaha bridge, on the same road. The owners of property most affected have promised to sledge all these materials.

Rahotu Riding (Northern). —Patching has been done to the Main South Road from boundary to boundary. The Lower Parihaka, Newall and Carrington roads have been patched for their full length, whilst patching has been done on the Stent, Pungarehu, Cape, Bayiy, and Warea roads, and the Warea Road bridge has been repaired. Bridges.—The work in connection with the Waiteika bridge, on the Eltham Road, has been completed, including all the necessary cutting and filling for the deviation. Boulder stone is on the job to metal over the new bridge and its approaches, which work can be started almost at any time. Permission was obtained from the land owner to deviate tlie Waiteika stream on the upstream side, the new course keeping the water from# encroaching on to the main road, in addition to washing away the new embankment to the road. Work on the Taungatara bridge, on the Eltham Road, has been commenced. The proposed bridge over the mill stream, on the Oeo Road, north of the Stratford Road, will need to be a fiat slab skew bridge. I only propose to build this with a clearance of 15 feet instead of 18, as adopted on the main road, unless the council prefer it otherwise. The estimated cost is £378. The’ bridge on the Kirf Road, near the site of the old sawmill, is getting into a dangerous condition. It has been repaired endless times, but wants renewing at an early date, in reinforced concrete. THE CONTRACT SYSTEM. The works and finance committee reported that a meeting, at which the whole of the council was present, with the exception of Cr. Trotter, had been held. The chairman stated that the meeting had been called to discuss a better system of management, and. to (endeavor to obtain economy of road maintenance and administration, in accordance with a resolution passed at the August meeting. During the discussion all councillors agreed that the contract system be abolished.

The finance committee was requfested to prepare a scheme of finance for the next monthly meeting. The county engineer was instructed to supply an estimate of the cost of tar-sealing those portions of i the main roads suitable for tar-sealing.

Cr. Green said that he did not intend to agi’ee to the abolition of contracts, as they were not in a position to do so at present. The chairman said that his idea, was not to abolish contracts altogether, hut to get a plant of their oWn, as was the case with neighbouring counties. It was not intended to abolish contracts at

Cr. Tosland said that, he had suggested that they should ask Cr. McPhillips, chairman of the Waimate County, for an explanation of the system they adopted, hut the chairman considered that it would be derogatory to call in an outsider. However, he considered they should get all the information possible, and intended to move that the council set up a eommitI tee to visit neighbouring counties and I inspect their systems. If the council I were not prepared to go as a committee, or to place him on it, he would go as an individual, Cr. Ferguson agreed to a certain extent. With 47 years’ experience as a contractor, he was of opinion that they must abolish the system of petty con- [ tracts. He was assured other councils would not revert to this. Egmont County had plenty of materk' n hand, and this was costing about .Cl Is per yard to put on the roads, whereas with their own plant the engineer had stated that he could do it for a third of the 'cost. The report was adopted subject to the 'deletion of the clause re abolition ot contracts. ROAD WORKS. The finance committee, chairman, Crs. M. O'Brien, J. S. Tosland, and W. C. Green, reported that at a meeting the previous day, it was resolved to recommend the council to raise a special loan of £BO,OOO for the purpose of widening, metalling, and tar-sealing roads in the county, and that a committee be set up to determine- the roads to bo first dealt with; fftso recommending the council to curtail all ordinary expenditure as much as possible, so that tar-sealing can bo proceeded with on any suitable portions of main roads. It was also proposed that a committee consisting of members from each riding and the county engineer should decide as to the .expenditure required.

Before supporting the proposal, Cr. Ferguson asked for an assurance that the loan was not for main roads only. He certainly favored main roads being done first, provided provision was also made for by-roads to he done later.—The assurance was given.

(T. Tosland said that most of the roads now contained from 5 to 7 inches of metal, and only required scarifying and strengthening to bo made iqtp good roads. He advocated sending a eomzuit-

tee to visit neighbouring local bodies ,so as to obtain practical information on ‘the subject. Tn moving later that a committee be I set up, Cr. Tosland referred to the unIrest that was existent in the Rahotu 'Northern and Oeo ridings, and which would also probably be apparent in the Opua * and Rahotu Southern ridings were they alongside progressive counties instead of alongside other ridings of tlie county. Ratepayers did not mind paying a high rate providing they got value for it in the shape of good roads. They had now decided to adopt a .policy of tar-seal-ing as they went, and therefore must ascertain the best methods adopted by neighbouring counties, which had proved progressive. Unless something were done they would have the county broken up, and this would be very regrettable. Cr. Trotter seconded the resolution. I The chairman stated that they had visited other counties previously, and had been shown everything, but had been given no information. Finally it was resolved that a committee consisting of the chairman, Crs. Chapman. Brophy and ToslancJ and the engineer he. set up to make a report. PAYMENT OF SOLDIERS’ RATES. A circular letter was received from the Eketahuna County Council drawing attention to the fact that it is practically impossible to collect rates from assisted soldier settlors should they not wish to pay, and asking the council’s assistance in having the matter put on a satisfactory basis -from a county point of view, at the coming session of .Parliament. Members considered that