The New York herald., 1874-08-24


Edward p. Barker, the De putty Commissioner, the
annexed statement was OIL *a1ned concerning this
department.
Department. Of r u5blfc Works.
sTRIEr PAW nENTS.
wsrk " In progress on nateen contracts for
paving, covering In the ae gregate about seven
miles Of streets. The most Important or these
are First avenue, from 81 xty-hrss to Ninety
yecond street, Broadway, IT ON Thirty'sccond to
Fitty-ntnth street, and Worth street. from Broad
Way to Chatham square, vii the intersecting
Asreets one block on each 81 &c OF worth street.
since Comptroller tresn has stisned himself that
the contract for paving Broadw av north OF Thirty.
SECOND street s legal and be Is aging the install.
msnts on the same. the contra, = OF. MI Everard
II pushinR the WORK with great )r, ana this main
artery Of the city will soon pres VI 1t broad and
smooth roadway to the Central Par + OF much better
quality Of pavement than any OF u 10 existing ap-
proSches to the PARK. The almost IN surmountable
legal daculties In the way Of pavtpR Worth street
lnd the several streets inten secting the
Five Points have at last been overcome,
and before the close Of the season the
appearance OF this quarter will be grea ty changed
for tho better by the new pavement, and will be
made available for business purposea The pro-
vision OF the charter which prohibits ii repavng
of any street, except petition Of "a majority OF
property owners. prevents the impEo venent OF
some important commercial thorough ares now
paved with cobble stone which 1t is INN ossble to
keep IN good condition. The city wouldl 'e greatly
benefited, both tn regard to its commcrs e and Its
sanitary condition II these cobble p vements
could be replaced py trap or granite bio OK pave
ment. The Belgian, trap and granite osoe X pave
ments are found to be the cheapest best q nd most
durable and easiest to repair. Every ay and
SEASON ADDS to the proof OF the worthless sness Of
the wooden ami tine old concrete or poultle pave
ments- Commissioner Van Mort finds 1t utterly
impossible with the appropriation at his COZ nmand
70 keep them In tolerabie condition, ~ I'd the
pnIy hope and consolation Is that on hss1 ,an Of
repairing them with stone block they WI grad
ually disappear from our streets.
ON REGULATING AND GRADING STREETS
there thrtyfour contracts in progress cover
Ing ahsut fourteen miles. With few ,xcep-
tions these works are all IN the district be tween
Fitty.ninth and 125th streets, the principe ones
being the grading OF Eighth avenue, from Fifty
uinsh to 122d street, nearly cOmpeted; Ninth
avenue from Eighty-sixth IL 11Otn street; I enth
Madison avenue, from Eighty-siXth to nk ety.
nintA street, and from lo5th 10 12otn street.
sEwBRS AND DRAINS.
The department. is now constructing somer cry
large outlet sewers; one III Manhattan stn er,
acres OF the slopes on each side OF Manhas an
Valleys one in lloth street, from Eighth avenue TO
River, s and r ssysnss;a ever 4. s95ss end E,ssns I ! +
Large areas OF low land have lately been dralns
BY the laying OF drain pipes, and this method q
is being more extensively applied from year h
year and is in great favor with property owners
cupatiou which would otherwise be uptsnantablsl
and worthless: the swamps re between Ninety:
second and 106th streets and Third avenue ana
Hariem River are being rapidly filled UP anta
drained.
On the 9Th Inst. Commissioner Van Mort awarded
eleven sewer contracts, SIX regulating ana grading
contracts, and transmitted them to the Finance /
Department for approval OF the sureties These
being executed. and work upon them viii begin at
once.
The work on this proposed east side drive is be-
ting vigorously prosecuted. On avenue A, from
Structure Of = Tsiford Macadam pavement @ p IS IN
progress. and from Seventy-ninth to Elghty-sixtn
second Second street. IRE osswsen avenue ana FIRST ave-
nue., there are heavy rock excavations to lie made,
laid. The whole Street rom Central Park to ave,
nue A, Will be macadamlzed this season. Ninety
ad fee 81 s rUm Tf & 20 oen
from Madison TO Eighth avenue, Is completed, and
progress between EN- Ninth & and Tenth avenues
mperstructure is being laid on this street between
hrd and seventh +, avenues on lietn street The
4 to Lexington avenue, but 81, cannot
a ourth avenue Improvement Is completed.
ne entire length OF the Eastern Boulevard Is
,out ten miles. When completed 1t will give to
Il e east side The attractions ana advantages
h therto exclusively enjoyed by the people on the
v est side, and Will greatly relieve the mOnotony
, 81 that section and attract better class OF the
M pulation than would otherwise settle there.
All the works on street improvements above
~ umerated VIII be paid by assessment upon prop
, sn ty benefited, and no part OF 1t Will become
cn lrge upon the city except where the city Is the
~ ner OF the adjoining property.
CAREFUL SUPERVISION OF WORK IN PROGRESS
{ ,0nmlsstoner Van Mort has lately issued the fol.
! oN Ing order to heads OF bureaus having charge
{ distreet improvements
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS.
CoxxIssIoksn's 0rrIcE, Roox 10 CITY BALL,
r msasD GIBss ESQ.,, superintendent Street Improve
prssass q ysssaas ssssss%ens Tor ne ysIisu;
to my former m as instruSom, to you in
cS se paid ior By assessments resaiaina,
gr ling, paving, sewering and otherwise improving
:: required give their Sma,vass
'rs;s extent Ss sss
YOU any on
attempt t. At ,b sighting the work o VII Sr
mn = isssy sSspsnd nc sSrSsySf sSs ,sssec,Ss
no M,s VIII such work be allowed to be resumed with
's, order not
thai amy yiosuon Of 7 win 1s followed by summary
of tn .order. GEORGE NJ. VAN MORT,
Commissioner Department of Public Works.
CRoToN WATER SERVICE.
Tn, : substitution OF iron pipes In place OF the
maso q ry aqueduct on Tenth avenue from Ninety
Becoi TO Il3tu street is nearly completed. Moth
ing n nains TO be done but the building OF gate
house 1t each end, which the granite is being
deiY r ed and the setting OF the gates. Commis-
sionel van Mort expects that the water can be let
INTO pipes before the approach OF cold weather,
" hen IL le dsfnantll or the old auueducJ will be
comm 81 iced, and the ground occupied oy It, COM
prism Z over one hundred valuable bullding lots
Will bt sold for the benefit OF Chc sinking iund.
The )rty-eight-Inch man on Tenth avenue has
beenb ~ ought down to Forty.secOnd street and ia