TARANAKI COUNTY

Taranaki Daily News, 5 December 1922, Page 2

TARANAKI COUNTY

MEETING OF THE COUNCIL. PAST MONTH'S WORK. The monthly meeting of the Taranaki County Council was held at New Plymouth yesterday. Present: Crs. J. S. Connett (chainman), A. Morton, S. Vickers, O. Penwarden, J. S. Wooldridge and J. Andrews. The overseer (Mr. Geo. Meredith) reported on the work during November as follows: — Plant and General.—During the month the crusher and trucks have been engaged 6 days at the Mongorei depot, crushing 604 cubic yards of metal, delivered as follows: Junction Road recoating 376 yards, dumped on Junction Road 20 yards, on Devon Road 12 yards, on Hill and Albert Roads 68 yards, at crusher site 100 yards, Mangorei Road 12 yards, C. Weston 12 yards and G. Mace 4 yards. The crusher was then shifted to Stone}' River depot, and has worked 3*4 days crushing 316 yards, delivered as follows: Kathihi Road recoating 218 yards, Lower Pitone Road 64 yards, loan work, a continuation of the present metal towards the beach, distance 4 chains, dumped Hampton Road 12 yards, Lower Puniho Boad 20 yards. Mr. Ashley 2 yards. There was also 16 yards of metal carted from the Tiunaru Hill to the Lower Timaru Road for repairs. Metal carted from raiway pit 140 yards dumped on the Mountain, Te Arei, Richmond, Manutahi, Waitara, Devon and Kelly roads for repairs. Mclal chips from Messrs. Kyngdon and Co. 80 yards, 16 yards tipped at the tar depot for asphalt, 4 yards main road Oakura and 60 yards on the Devon Road, which is being used to repair the edges of the asphalt and also repair a portion of the Mangoraka flat. Shingle carted during the month, from Waiwakaiho dump 232 yards to Devon Road, from bin at Fltzroy 32 yards tn Devon Road and 4 yards to pipe depot. From Hill's dump Kaihlhi Road 60 yards to the in a in road between Leith Road and Puniho. Firewood: Carted 5% cord from Hurford Road to tar plant on Devon Road. Total metal and shingle carted during the month, i4R4 yards. Teams: Foreman Jury has been engaged hauling 600 yards of boulders at Stonev River depot. 88 yards of shingle from Waiwakaiho dump to bin at Fitzroy, and 96 yards of shingle from Kaihihi beach dump to the dump at the end of the metal on the Kaihihi Road. The large roller has been engaged on the Junction Rond, rolling in the new metal, scarifying and rolling on the main road and Koru ‘ Road in Foreman Walsh’s length, and is at present working on the Kaihihi and Hampton Roads in the Okato Riding The small roller has been working in the Waitara riding in connection with the asphalt work, and has also been used for scarifying and rolling portions of the Devon Road ready for asphalt. Mangorei Riding.—The foreman in this riding has been engaged in blinding, patching and general repair work. Foreman Dryden was engaged early in the month with the metalling on the Junction Road. This work Is now completed, with the exception of the two pieces of new work, which has yet to he rolled. The small roller will be taken out immediately to carry out this work, and will also be used while in that locality to scarify the metal on that portion of the Junction Road at the top of the Mangorei Hill, where it is proposed to straighten and also raise the Alling. This work will be. put in hand this week The total metal crushed during the time the crusher was at the Mangorei depot was 2630 yards. i The county teams hauled 1218 yards of the I boulders, Mr. Southcombe 1260 yards, and Mr. Mager 152 yards. I Waitara Riding—The foremen in this riding ’ have been engaged patching and blinding ! metal on the Mountain, Kelly. Richmond, Te xrei, Egrnont, Henwoed and Waitara Roads

and with general miscellaneous repairs. Foreman Mallon has been engaged repairing th a asphalt on the Devon Road. Asphalt Work.—A start was made on No* vember 24 to put the first coat on the Devon Road between the Mangoraka bridge and the Bell Block Hall. Mr. A. Hill has made a start with the metalling on the Te Arei Road.

Omata Riding.—The foremen have been engaged patching, blinding, cleaning out water tables and with general repair work. Foreman Seamark has completed the regrading of the Hill and Weston Road. Okato Riding.—General maintenance work has been carried out. Foreman Walsh has been engaged scarifying and rolling portions of the main road between the Plymouth Road and the Tapuae Hill, and a portion of the Koru Road. He has also ploughed and formed a portion of the Lower Plymouth Road qpposite Mr. Pentelow’a property. Foreman Hayes has been engaged patcjilng the Hampton, Kaihihi, Perth, Dover, Pltone, and main roads and is at present engaged with the metalling and recoating portions of the Kaihihi and Hampton Roads. Foreman Sefton has foamed up the hill near the beach on the Weld Road, Mr. Thomas doing the neces* sary ploughing. He has also been engaged patching and blinding the roads in his length. —Tt was decided to send a letter of thanks to Mr. Thomas for the work done by him. BRIDGE CARPENTER’S REPORT. The bridge carpenter (Mr. V. W. Ordern) reported:— Korito Bridge.—This has had two new stringers put in 14 by 8 hardwood. The under strutting is bad on this bridge, and the caps on the concrete will require replacing shortly. I should like to see three more hardwood stringers and caps put in when the time comes that the three remaining rimu stringers require to be taken out. METALLING UPPER CARRINGTON ROAD. A request that the metalling of the Upper Carrington Road, on the recently-formed porition extending from the end of the present metal in front of Mr. Card’s property to the Momona stream, be proceeded with at any early date was made by the hon. secretary of the Upper Carrington Road Ratepayers’ Association. The chairman said the money was still available. U was resolved to reply that the contractor will start work on the road as soon as possible. ADJUSTMENT OF ACCOUNTS. Referring to adjustment of accounts, the clerk of the Inglewood County Council notified that that Council was raising a special Ic.an to pay the amount, and it was hoped to receive the money early in January. The special order and rate raising the loan had been passed. The clerk, in reply to a question, said the Inglewood County owed the Taranaki County £3341 8s Id and the Taranaki County owed the Inglewood County £l2Ol Is Bd. WAITARA RIDING ROADS. The state of the Pennington Boad was the cause of a complaint made by Mr. P. J. Petersen, who said the road was at times impassable. At the suggestion of the chairman, Mr. Petersen said he would endeavor to see if other ratepayers on the road were agreeable to raising a loan for metalling parts of the

Complaint as to the state of the Mamaku Road. Waitara, was made by A. W. Petersen in a letter in which he stated thta he had another capsize recently and lost about half his cream. It was absolutely- impossible to go in after (lark. The opinion was expressed that the rates were out of all reason as compared with the state of the road. Referred to the chairman. IS IT CROWN LAND?

With reference to a demand note for special rates on two sections of the Huatoki Settlement the Commissioner of Crown Lands (Mr. H. J. Lowe) stated that the sections had reverted by surrender to the Crown and he had been advised by his head office that such lands were not now subject to Srctkn 112 of the Local Bodies’ Loans Act, it having been ruled that, upon the land becoming unoccupied and subsequently falling back on the hands of the Department, it became ordinary Crown lands within the meaning of the Rating Act and therefore not liable for special rates.

The legal opinion of the county solicitor (Messrs. Govett, Qullllam and Hutchen) 01 the matter was to th? effect that the Crowi was liable In this particular ease.

The inspector (Mr. H. Y. McGahey) reported: "During the month I have visited the different ridings, and find that there is very little to be found re straying cattle. That something should be done to improve the access to Constance Street, Glenavon, where he had subdivided and was about to offer or sale twelve allotments, formed the subject of a request by Mr. R. C. Hughes. He asked that a pathway be formed on both sides. Referred to the chairman.

Reporting on an application for a telephone office at Koru the deputy district telegraph engineer, Wanganui, wrote: "I have to Inform you that conditionally cn your guaranteeing the actual deficiency on working, estimated at £l6 per annum, authority will be given for the establishment of the telephone office." The settlers interested expressed their willingness to undertake to guarantee to the council any sum that was necessary for installing the telephone, the guarantee of the settlers being approximately £l6 per annum less revenue for five years.

The tender of £1 17s 6d, made by Mr. Strawbridge, for the painting of the Okato pound board, was accepted. A debit note for £29 12s 2d, for the hire of a. concrete mixer and for the sale of 1153 cement bags for a coffer dam in connection with repairs necessitated by the wash away at the Waiwakiho in 1917, was forwarded by the Taranaki Farmers’ Meat Co., Ltd., who, in outlining the facts, stated that the account had previously been debited to Mr. R. L. Parkin, who, however, repudiated liability.—The clialrman said tills was a council liability and would have to be'paid. On the motion of Cr. Morton the chairman was deputed to make inquiries to see that the account was in order.

The help, of the county council in forming a road into the property occupied by him at Hulrangi was solicited by W. Frank, who said his only access at present was through another man’s property. —Left to the chairman. The county council’s annual grant towards the New Plymouth Technical College was applied for by the secretary of the Taranaki Education Board. —Passed for payment. Replying to an inquiry the city engineer, Melbourne, regretted that he had no knowledge of a horse shoe so made as to prevent horses slipping on steeply-graded bitumen roads. Notifications of a grant of £lOO for the purpose of completing the forming and metalling cf Ahu Ahu Road and a grant cf £4OO for*" similar work on the Tate Road was made by the State Advances Office. A request that the necessary steps should he taken to raise a special loan of £250 for forming and metalling the Uppar Hurford Road was made by 22 settlers on that road. —Application for a £ for £ grant will be made.

Seven ratepayers on the Corbett Road stressed the need for commencing the work on that road and asked that tht work should be completed before next winter.—The chairrar said that, providing the ratepayers ’ ing to guarantee the cost of the eai the work should be proceeded with. The dog tax was fixed at 2s 6d for L . a|f | (i clogs and 10s for all others. The matter of arranging for Christmas pay for the men was left in the chairman’s hands. It was resolved tn prepare plans and speci flcations for the erection in concrete of the Walongona bridge, Manutahi Road, in order to enable a loan proposal to be submitted. Similar action was decided upon In the case of the Mangaoraka bridges on the Te Arei and Corbett Roads, and the Manganai bridge on the Richmond Road. The next meeting was fixed for January 8.