ALFREDTON-PONGAROA ROAD.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10561, 17 February 1912, Page 5

ALFREDTON-PONGAROA ROAD.

A LOAN SUCCESTEO. - The following bommunication from Mr Alex. Murray, representative,, of the Alfredton Riding on the Masterton County Council, was read at a meeting ;of the ■ Eketahuna Chamber of .Commerce: —"There still remains about 5J ..miles'of unmetalled road in. . the r Alfredton Riding of '-he Master-* 'ton County. At a. meeting-' held at Waterfalls, the settlers interested decided to raise the'sum of: £23oo.under the following provisions: That a loan of £2200 be raised, £ll6O to be spent to cover the Government grant of a like amount, and that the remainder be held over for an additional Government grant to cover it; that the following ratepayers who are in tha Akitio County should be included in the rating area, viz.— Messrs Liverton, Robbie Bros.. Higginson and Peagram. These ratepayers are de r sirous of leaving the Akitio County and joining the Alfredton Riding o.t the Master,ton County, and should a transfer be agreed to by the former body, they would unanimously support tlie loan. A.s the Akitio County Council, however, has on two occasions rejected their petitions, those settlers absolutely refuse to be included in. a proposed rating area, and as the loan proposals have to be taken separately in both Counties, it is hopeless "to think of . carrying . the loan. I might state that .the settlers mentioned, have an area of some. 8000 acres, with a capital Waluo of between £40,000 and £50,000. They are all situate on the.Waihoki Valley, and all their traffic goes to _ Eketalitma. In the case of one, his rates amount to some £IBO per annum, and he has not an inch of road over which he travels in his own county, as his road gate opens on to the road in the Masterton County. At the present time the Masterton County has an agreement to receive portion of the rates collected by Akitio from these settlers, for the upkeep of the Wailioki and Alfredton-Weber roads, but at the last meeting of that body _ it was decided to give noticeto terminate the agreement-. Such is the position at the present time. I may state tliat up to the present the settlers mentioned have not been included in any loan by their County.