Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1885-05-27
OFFICIAL.
BOARD OF ALDERMEN.

At regular meeting of the Board of Alfler,n,,,
held May 26, 1885, there were present.
E. E. Downham, esq, President, and Mess
Moore, Herbert, Strauss. Marbury, smoo., All;
Reid.
The Finance Committee on the petition Of Es
Vaccari for abatement of taxes, reported in layo,
of receipting the tax bill of S2S1 40 upon tb
payment of $l75, if paid within thirty DAVIS
which was adopted.
Tho Committee on Claims made report, r.,
mending that the petition of W. Ii. Price tor nav
as driver of the steamer Hydrauion for the month
of November, 1884, be referred to the Comm.
ton Attorney as to whether the Fire Warden.
have the right to suspend drivers and il 50. VITA
out pay, which was adopted.
The following communication from the Ger.
poration Attorney was received and read .l
ALEXANDRIA, Va. May DIST -.
To the honorable Board Of aldermen CT ne ri,. .
Alexandria, Virginia:
Gentlemen In compliance with the lr.o,G.!.,.
of your honorable body rnterring t. u. ta.
petition of w. ID. Wood asking nr n,.
mission to build bay window to extcrr ar@,,.G
the building line" for my pinion as To the fDy.
of the City Council to grant such prvlrs"
have the honor 10 submit the following view.
LIST. 1t is well settled that streets liz Il riry ,f.
highways in the fullest sense Of that term; tt,.y
are not the property of the municipality nor ng
the people of the municipality, but OF tie puAl.r.
large, and as such are under the paramount COZ
troll OF the Legislature rs the Representative 81,
the public. The Legislature of the State mas
and generally does of right give the supclv!sIr,
and control of streets 10 the local authorities bat
the property in the streets is not III the uu,.i.-
paiGy, but in the public at large. Mumicip. cor
porations derive their authority over stree, h.,
they do all their other powers from the Ii ..>a-
ture by charter or statute
The fundamental idea Of street is no; ~
that it is public, but public for all purposes OF freq
and unobstructed passage, which is its chief srf
primary use, and municipal corporation sil.
ply holds its streets IN trust for the public il his.
no power to divest itself OF the control thereof h
permitting any encroachments whatever Thereof,
These principles being well established, il q.
plain that city has no power, III the ab,enrr %!
any special authority conferred by The lcgiyla
ture, to permit the streets to be occupied III auv
way that will interfere with the free and unoL.
structed use thereof.
am, therefore, of opinion that AZ neither by
it's charter nor BY statute is such power coticrr,!
| upon the City Council of Alexandria there il ,lr
authority for granting the permission asked ior
in this case.
ID If, however, the City Council should srant
the permission asked for by Mr.. Wood it viii ~,
| incur thereby any liability for damages, as the
exercise of such authority would be simply a..
ira rires" and could not bind the corporation, the
general principle of law being settled beyond
| controversy that the agents. Ulcers even The
| CITY Council Of q municipal corporation, emo,
bind the corporation by any contract which l.
| beyond the scope of its powers, entirely Tor
eign to the purposes of the corporation or whicn
mot being in terms authoriZed) is against public
policy.
pages 534. SAL, and Dillon on Municipal Corpora
tions, vol. 2, pages $50 and 67s.J