Mar. 8.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 635

6. If at any meeting the Chairman is not present at the time appointed for holding the same, the members present shall choose one of their number to be chairman of such meeting.

7. If by resignation, death, incapacity, or otherwise the seat of any member shall be or become vacant, or if any member absents himself, without reasonable cause, from three consecutive meetings of the Board, the Governor-General shall have power to appoint any other person to be a member of the Board in his stead.

8. The Board shall prepare and submit at an annual meeting to be held in the month of April in each year a report of the proceedings of the Board for the previous year ending on the thirty-first day of March, together with a statement of the receipts and expenditure of the Board for such year. A copy of every such report and statement, certified by the Chairman to be correct, shall be sent to the Minister charged with the administration of the said Act as soon as possible after each annual meeting.

9. The Board shall control the said reserves in accordance with the provisions of the said Act and of the regulations made thereunder.

SCHEDULE.

Reserve No. 3818: Area, 2 acres 2 roods 35 perches. Block II, Survey District of Sumner.

Reserve No. 3817: Area, 13 acres 2 roods 8 perches. Block XVI, Survey District of Christchurch; Block I, Survey District of Pigeon Bay; and Block II, Survey District of Sumner.

Reserve No. 3816: Area, 18 acres 2 roods 5 perches. Block, XVI, Survey District of Christchurch; and Block IV, Survey District of Halswell.

Reserve No. 3815: Area, 13 acres 0 roods 37 perches. Block IV, Survey District of Halswell.

Reserve No. 3814: Area, 13 acres 1 rood 9 perches. Block IV, Survey District of Halswell.

Reserve No. 4149: Area, 4 acres 0 roods 16·9 perches. Block III, Survey District of Halswell.

Reserve No. 3064: Area, 595 acres. Block VIII, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3002: Area, 57 acres 2 roods. Blocks VIII and XII, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3736: Area, 109 acres. Block IX, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3737: Area, 15 acres 0 roods 20 perches. Block IX, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3234: Area, 5 acres. Block X, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3106: Area, 17 acres. Block IX and X, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 3235: Area, 75 acres 3 roods. Block X and XIV, Survey District of Pigeon Bay.

Reserve No. 4170: Area, 272 acres 1 rood. Block III, Survey District of Halswell.

As witness the hand of His Excellency the Governor-General, this 2nd day of March, 1928.

A. D. McLEOD,
Minister in Charge of Scenery Preservation.

Appointing a Commission to inquire into and report on certain Matters affecting the Borough of Otaki and Lands adjacent thereto.

[l.s.] CHARLES FERGUSSON, Governor-General.

To all to whom these presents shall come, and to ROBERT MACKENZIE WATSON, Esquire, of Feilding, Stipendiary Magistrate, WILLIAM THOMAS STRAND, Esquire, of Lower Hutt, Farmer, and WALTER NASH, Esquire, of Wellington, Secretary: Greeting.

WHEREAS representations have been made to the Government that certain lands presently included in the Borough of Otaki ought to be excluded therefrom, and also that certain lands adjoining the said borough (including lands formerly part of the said borough) ought to be included in the said borough, and also that the area comprised in the said borough is as a whole not suitable for municipal control:

And whereas complaints have been made to the Government as to the amount of rates levied by the Council of the said borough on the lands within the said borough, and as to the amount of special rates levied by the said Council on lands which, after becoming liable for such special rates, have subsequently been excluded from the said borough:

And whereas representations have been made that the amount of rates levied by the said Council on such lands within the borough as are used solely for farming purposes is excessive, having regard to the benefits received or likely to be received by those lands from the works carried out or proposed to be carried out by the Council of the said borough:

And whereas it is expedient that inquiry should be made into the working of the existing laws relating to the severance and addition of areas of land from and to boroughs, and relating to the continuing liability for special rates of lands severed from boroughs, and the levying of special rates on lands so severed from and added to boroughs and relating to the incidence of rates on lands in boroughs, having regard to the purposes for which such lands are used and occupied and to the purposes for which such lands are applied so far as the said existing laws affect the Borough of Otaki, and into the working of the existing laws relating to municipal control as applied to the local conditions of the area now comprised in the Borough of Otaki:

And whereas a requisition under section twenty-two of the Health Act, 1920, was issued by the Board of Health on the fifteenth day of June, one thousand nine hundred and twenty-six, requiring the Otaki Borough Council to provide within its district certain sanitary works therein particularized, and the terms of the said requisition have not yet been complied with, and it has been represented to the Government that compliance with the said requisition would produce hardship, and it is expedient that inquiry should be made into the working of the existing laws relating to such requisitions so far as they affect the Borough of Otaki:

And whereas legislation has been proposed to make special provision in respect of the several foregoing matters for the Borough of Otaki:

Now, therefore, I, General Sir Charles Fergusson, Baronet, Governor-General of the Dominion of New Zealand, in pursuance and exercise of the powers and authorities vested in me by the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1908, and of all other powers and authorities enabling me in this behalf, and acting by and with the advice and consent of the Executive Council of the said Dominion, and for the purposes herein set forth, do hereby appoint you, the said

Robert Mackenzie Watson,
William Thomas Strand, and
Walter Nash,

to be a Commission to inquire into and report upon the following matters:—

(1) Whether the area now comprising the Borough of Otaki is suitable for municipal control, or whether it is desirable that the borough be abolished.

(2) If it is desirable that the Borough be abolished, what provision should be made for the future control of the area now comprising the borough.

(3) If it is not desirable that the borough be abolished, whether any alteration of boundaries thereof ought to be made either by the exclusion of lands from, or the inclusion of lands in, the borough.

(4) Whether either in respect of any alteration of the boundaries of the said borough heretofore made or in respect of any steps recommended by the Commission under the foregoing paragraphs hereof it is desirable that the financial adjustments provided for by section 145 of the Municipal Corporations Act, 1920, should be made, or whether in view thereof it is desirable that other adjustments of a special nature should by reason of the circumstances of the case be made, and, if so, what adjustments should be made.

(5) Whether it is desirable that the borough be divided into wards.

(6) Whether the aforesaid requisition of the Board of Health should be given effect to, and, if so, what steps should be taken in order that such requisition may be given effect to.

(7) Whether, and to what extent, having regard to the purpose or purposes for which any lands in the borough are used, it is desirable that for the purpose of the levying of rates by the Borough Council, either for its own purposes or as a contributory local authority under any Act, such lands be valued on a special basis other than the basis of valuation thereof under the Valuation of Land Act, 1925.

(8) If it is considered advisable that any lands in the borough be valued for rating purposes on a special basis as aforesaid, then to what extent, if any, it is desirable that such lands be excluded from the rating area in respect of any future loans secured by a special rate over rateable property within the borough.

(9) To what extent, if any, it is desirable that lands that will not, or are not likely to, receive any benefit from the expenditure of loan-moneys, should be excluded from the rating area in respect of any future loans secured by a special rate over rateable property within the borough.