BOROUGH ESTIMATES.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2064, 31 March 1909, Page 6

BOROUGH ESTIMATES.

|; Receipts and expenditure. ! The. financial year for the Borough + °-dav. and a comparaaCCOUlUß CluotM ive statement of the chief items of revenue for the years ending March 31st iSO9 and 1903 will be of interest. The accounts for the year justdosing, have not yet been fully cUtidcd in thtf 2?w-n Clerk's available are near, diough for all practical. purposed On' March 31st 1908. the Bofdugh overdraft and liabilities, not including loans?, Which are separate accounts and are provided for by spec-, ial rates, was £8434 and the overdraft and liabilities on March 31st 19GD are £9303. The general revenue from all sources for 1908 was £12,714 and for 1909 £13.750, or an increase of over £IOOO. The increase was chiefly obtained from higher valuations, for in 1908 the general rate was 2s, whilein 1909 it was Is lOd, but as against that apparent reduction it should be explained that in 1908 the water rate which is, in fact, a general rate being levied : on ,all property in the Borough, was only 6d, making a total of 2s 6d in the £ on the rental value of all property, while for the year closing March 1909 the waterworks rate was Is', making. with the general rate of Is lOd a rate, independent of special rates, a rate of 2s lOd all over the Borough. For the year ending 1908 the amount spent on streets,? roads, footpaths, including watering and ' lighting was £BO3I, and for the year just closing £7766, or about £3OO less. Yet while there is little difference in the expenditure under this heading between the. two years in 1908 an average of 40 men per day was employed in maintaining the streets, as against 15 men in 1909. ■ The quantity of metal and! shingle "put upon the roads for 1909 was. also much less than in 19Q8. Included in the amount of £SO3I for streets in 1908 was £BSO, the cost of the road roller, and in the £7766 for 1909 the; cost of the Straker waggon, £9OO, and the hoppers . for the Valuta hi quarry and the Kaiteratahi gravel pits.: The new crane has not yet been paid for, but the amount, has been included in the liabilities.. In 1908. £3ll was paid towards fire prevention in watchman’s wages and contribution to the 4 Fire Brigade. In 1909 the amount paid to the Fire Board was £122, and watchman’s wages £l3O, or a total of £252 a saving of about £6O. In addition to, which the Borough will receive: from, the Fire Board' about £7O as half the value of plant. The new Council offices on Reads Quay cost £2200, of which £750 was paid before March 31st 1908, and £1450 last year. In addition to that amount £298 will be shown in this year’s balance-sheet- as the cost of the office furniture. In the cost of the sanitary service was £1243 and for 1909 £1354, while the installation. of the sealed pan system will probablv bring the cost of the service for next year over £2OOO. The salary list of the Borough officers is on a liberal scale. The chief items being:—Town Clerk: £312, road overseer £230, Borough Inspector £IBO, Borough turncock £260, the driver of the Straker waggon £IBO, and of the steam roller £156. '■■■"*-

ESTIMATES FOR NEXT YEAR. In a draft of the estimates for the coming year, which will be submitted to the Council at its next meeting the general rate is increased to 2s and the waterworks rate reduced to in the £ on the- general rating, . The chief estimated items of revenuelAre :—General rates £9950 as 'against ' £8375 for 1909; licenses £1250, as against, £llOO for the year just closed; £1235 is,anticipated from rents for reserves' against £750 for 1909, and the revenue from the abattoirs at £IBOO, a similar amount to that estimated for 1909- The chief items of proposed expenditure for the year 1909-10 are:—Abattoirs £1650 this amount to include wages, inspection, repairs, and interest on the abattoir loan. For streets and roads £8920 is shown, but that amount includes proposed expenditure of £l2O for a' street sweeper and a trailer for the Straker waggon. Fire prevention is estimated to -cost £430, and sanitation £2275, but the cost of initiating the sealed pail system is included in this amount; and a portion of the estimate (£650) will not be reoccurrmg. The estimated cost of charitable aid is £SOO, similar to the amount set apart a year ago. These,estimates have not yet been adopted by the Council, but are merely in draft form. The various loans are separate accounts, and the revenue from the special rates levied to pay interest .and sinking fund is not used by the Council for general purposes. ; - ,