MATAMATA COUNTY.

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17977, 24 March 1930, Page 3

MATAMATA COUNTY.

MEETING OF COUNCIL. IMPORTANT BUSINESS. CLASSIFICATION OP ROADSThe\ monthly meeting of the MataIhata County Council was' held at Tirau on Friday. Present: Crs Anderson (chairman), Bruce, Wilson, Cox, Allen, Dee, Moir, Nickle and Morris, Messrs Fitzgerald (engineer), and Barton (clerk), were also in attendance. The Minister of Transport, in reply to a communication from the Council, wrote that it did not agree that the high speeds of motor traffic . on the Mamaku Bush Road was detrimental to the surface thereof. Concerning the authority for (he passing of a by-law the council was referred to Section 25 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1924, and also Regulations 15 and 1(3 of the -Motor Vehicle Regulations, 1928. 'Referring to the first part of the letter, Cr. Anderson stated that he had been to Wellington and brought the matter up. lie inferred from what Mr Judd, of the Highways' Board, had said that the original classification would be reverted to at Easter time. The secretary of the Auckland Automobile Association, replying to a letter in regard to raising the classification of the Mamaku Bush Road, informed the council that at a meeting of his association Air M. 11. Wynyard had staled that the undertaking was that the higher classification only applied to the summer months. A letter was also received from the secretary of the Tirau branch of the Farmers’ Union endorsing the council's opinion on the matter and stating that a strong protest was being forwarded to the Minister of Transport against the re classification. Heavy Traffic Licenses Allocation. The Town Clerk, Hamilton Borough Council, wrote to enquire whether the local bodies in No. 3 Heavy Traffic District were prepared to accept the Magistrate’s order allocating the fees received ’for the period from March 31, 1929, to May 31, 1930, as the basis of apportionment from the 12 months ending May 31, 1931. The council decided to accept the allocation. Roadline, Puketukj 1 B Block. The Surveyor-General notified the council of the intention, unless good cause is shown to the .contrary, of proclaiming as a public road, the roadline in Puketuki I B, Block 1, described on the plan and schedule attached, and. that any objections the council may make must be forwarded within one month from date.—The clerk was instructed to. inform the Surveyor-General that the council had no objections to make. Right to Quarry, Messrs Lennard and Lennard, Auckland, applied on behalf of Air Guillard, for the right to quarry stone on Section 30, Block XV, Patetere, North Survey District. The engineer stated that the council would be faced with a liability of £SOOO in shouldering the bitumen on the road between the quarry and Putaruru. The Works’ Committee recommended that a draft agreement be prepared for submission to next meeting and that application be made for authority to sell stone from the road. —This was agreed to. Seven ratepayers on Bushland Road, •Ilinuera, drew attention to the desirability of opening up a new quarry on Air Barrett's property. It was pointed out that a culvert would be necessary, and if the necessary pipes were supplied they would be prepared to build the culverts and open up the quarry free of cost. —The matter was left in the hands of the riding member and engineer. • Town Planning. Arising out of a discussion on a ■communication in regard to a conference of local body representatives to be held later to consider the operations of the proposed towo planning, the chairman said it was previously thought the Act would operate in ( 1930, but it was not likely to come i into force before 1932. The county j would be rated to l-50d in the £ for i expenses of drawing up plans, etc. j Cr Anderson said it had been suggested that the Dominion was to be I divided into 31 districts and it * was i probable that Afatamata County would j be included in a district stretching } from Mercer to Taumarunui. The ■scheme was desirable. If Tirau had . come under such a scheme the busi- i ness places would have been down | on the flat and the residential pro- j perties on the hill, instead of the op- j posite. Mr D. Lundon, 'solicitor, Cambridge, j drew attention to a considerable area ; of land adjoining Air W. J. Rose’s pro- . perty at Karapiro, which was infested j with ragwort. The latter presumed j that the area was vested in the council ' and considered it should be cleared by j them. —Air Lundon to be advised that the council accepted no liability. Air Rose is to be given the opportunity of enclosing the land. The secretary of the Alalamata Chamber of Commerce wrote appealing to the council for financial assistance towards iho compilation of a booklet advertising the capabilities and potentialities of the district and its adaptability for closer settlement. 'Councillors were of opinion that their money was required for roads and bridges and no action was taken. County Grouping for Traffic Inspection The Waikato County Council forwarded proposals for county grouping of traffic inspection and requested an early reply as the majority of local authorities were anxious to have matters in running order by April I. ’ The Finance Committee recommended that the council agree to the scheme, though the wages proposed for the additional inspector were not considered adequate. The engineer’s report was adopted'. Referring to part of the engineer’s report Cr. Bruce thought the county : was getting into a serious position as regards the maintenance of the high- 1 ways. The ordinary taxpayer was carrying a heavy burden and if an extra benzine tax was necessary it should be imposed. A point had been reached when the Alain Highway subsidies should be increased. Cr Allen endorsed the opinions expressed by the first speaker. A question before farmers was the derating of agricultural and pastoral lands. Cr Anderson thought it was quite a good idea to forward a remit to the annual conference. Cr. Alorris believed the man on the back-blocks road was being unduly handicapped and if the rates were raised he would feel it badly. The clerk was instructed to write to the Minister for Internal Affairs objecting to the proposal to make the Tapui Block a game preserve.