Los Angeles herald. [volume] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1890-1893, 1890-10-01
THE NEW COURT HOUSE.
Resolutions Passed by the Supervisors
Regarding Certain Charges.

Times recently published an article,
charging the present board Of supervis-
ors with extravaganza in the matter OF
paying Curlett & Essen $40 per day as
supervising architects of the new county
court house, and also charging, on ru-
NOR, that this board is paying V. j.
Rowan $3.50 per day as map-maker and
in addition thereto $3.50 per month as
property clerk.
Now, therefore, in order to disabuse
the public mind of any false impression
created by said article, be it
Resolved, That we cause to be pub
lished in all the daily papers OF this city
the following statement OF the facts in
relation thereto:
First-At the commencement of the
building of the court house,
the board of supervisors ad-
vertised for plans and specifications for
the building, to be submitted by archi-
tects, for which the board would pay
81, 800 premium. Nineteen different
plans were submitted to the board, and
after examination those of Curlett &
Essen were selected.
Whereupon the board entered upon
contract with that firm to pay them as
supervising architects the sum of 500
per day while the building was under
construction the building was to have
been completed within thirty months ;
the contract price originally contracted
was $400, 900. The rates usually allowed
architects for supervising construction
was then and is now per cent. on the
cost of the building. At per cent. this
would have given the architect 500 900
at 500 per day for thirty months his
services would cost $15,600-and the
board made that agreement, thus saving
$4,000 in the matter.
The building as originally contracted
was three stories high and planned for
four court rooms only. Subsequently
two more courts were created for this
county and outside rooms would have to
be provided for them, if they could not
be accommodated in the new building:
accordingly the present board concluded
it would be to the interest of the county
to raise the building another story, be-
sides it was decided to raise the tower of
stone instead of brick, as originally de-
signed. These and some other minor
alterations, such as substituting stone for
wooden lintels, adding to the cost of the
structure about 100000, which neces-
sarily increased the time necessary for
its completion. 1t is claimed by the
Times that we, Republican board,
should have discharged the supervising
architect who drew the plans for the
building and who former Democratic
board had employed, or make him work
for smaller wages.
We deny that we have the power to do
80. When the board advertised for
plans and specifications the following
was part of published advertise
ment:
each drawing and the accompanying
memorandum to be distinguished by a
motto or cypher and no hand writing of
any sort upon either. Any attempt to
influence the supervisors in favor of a
competitor shall disqualify that COM
petitor.
"a sealed envelope bearing the same
cypher or motto and enclosing the name
OF the author, shall be sent with the
drawings, which will be opened before
making final choice of the most ap-
proved designs, in order that purely bus
mess considerations may be duly
weighed.
No drawings to be framed, glazed or
even mounted, and all to be on What
man paper and surmounted with sin
gle line for border, and sent free of
expense to the board of supervisors on
or before March 10th, 1887.
The board of supervisors will at once
forward them to their professional ad-
wiser, who will throw out rom:consider-
alton all drawings or sets of drawings
net made in conformity with these in
structions.
The remainder he will examine and
select those he finds to be the best
among them, at least three in number,
which he will return with his COM
ments and recommendations to this
board, who will at once award the pre-
miums, and all drawings will be re-
turned to the competitors as soon as the
award is made, and they will not be
shown to other competitors nor to the
public, without the written consent of
their several authors; nor shall any
thing shown or suggested by the unsuc-
cessful competitors, which is original as
to this competition, be adopted and
made use of in the building without the
consent of and proper remuneration be-
ing made to it's author.
The board will pay for accepted plans
the sum of $1,000. The supervising
architect shall receive the sum of not
less than 500 per day: which shall in
clude the preparation and elaboration of
all working drawing. The appointment
and discharging of the supervising arch
itect shall be at the discretion of the
board OF supervisors.
The board employed the firm who
drew the plans adopted as supervising
architect, and agreed to pay them 500
per day.
1t was an employment to supervise
the construction OF that building and so
long as those gentlemen perform the
duty faithfully we have no power to an
null the contract, certainly not, because,
perchance we could have some one else
to do it cheaper.
And again, suppose we could dis
charge the men who drew the plans and
had the building half completed, we
maintain that it would have been reck-
less act, and would only be excused by
unavoidable necessity, a thing which no
considerate man would do in his own
private affairs, were he having $780,
900 structure erected. This we assert
without fear of contradiction by any dis
passionate business man possessed OF
fair understanding.
1t will be remembered that the. build
ing of this court house was undertaken
in the boom, when the cost of all
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