Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1892-03-10
MERIDEN ROAD OFFER ACCEPTED.

After q Long Discussion the Road Boar d
Votes in Favor of Trap Rock, Ouarried
Under City Supervision.
Mayor Webster called the adjourned
meeting of the road board to order last
evening with Commissioners Byron,
Coughlan and Kelley present. Four
bids to furnish material for macadam-
izing purposes were opened and read.
Plymouth Granite company to furnish
trap rock, crushed to a maximum size
of 81 inches f. o. b. for $1.20, the city
to furnish the plant and granite
chips not less than 500 tons on
board the cars at Waterbury at 81 per
ton. Charles w. Blakeslee & Sons of
New Haven offered to furnish trap rock
required size f. o. b. for 70 cents per
ton, freight charges added, which
would make the price $1.22 per ton.
j. S. Lane 6 Son of Meriden would
furnish trap rock on cars at Water
bury for 80 per ton and James Sutton
offered to do the same for $1.25. After
the several bids had been read the
board seemed to have no inclination to
act upon any of them.
Commissioner Coughlan opened the
tracing the cfty's work at any price.
Contracts" he said, "were foolish,
They afford no satisfaction, and the
experience which have had is that it
is next to impossible to make con-
tractors keep to their agreement. The
city can do the work as cheap" He
then made a motion that the city adopt
trap rock for macadamizing the streets
of Waterbury and it was seconded by
Commissioner Byron.
After considerable debate on the
motion in which it was shown that
there was no liberty to use cheaper
material for foundation, and that
the cheaper granite for the first two
inches would be just as good, it was
changed SO as to read that trap rock be
used for the surface hardening in the
matchmaking of the streets of Water
buIy and so passed.
Commissioner Coughlan again moved
that the city set W its crusher at the
Cheshire notch, SO called, on the line of
the Meriden railroad and do its own
work and the motion was seconded by
Commissioner Byron, who thought that
this could be easily done and just as
cheap as any contractor could do it, pro-
vided a competent man were put in
charge of the quarrying.
The motion was opposed by Commits
sioner Kelley, who argued that the work
could be done for much less, if the city
would agree to contract for it and in his
judgment the taxpayers would be better
satisfied. The motion was not carried,
as Mayor Webster voted with Commits
sioner Kelley against it.
Superintendent Crawford said that he
thought the Meriden road would with
draw it's offer to haul stone to Water
bury from Cheshire at so tents per ton
and Col Doherty withdrew the offer of
the Plymouth Granite company, with
the permission of the board. A further
postponement of the matter seemed
about to take place, but the mayor
stated that two and one-half months
seemed long enough to be considering
the matter and he wanted some con-
clusion arrived at and if a motion to re-
consider were made he would not
oppose the original motion. This was
done by Commissioner Coughlan and
the original motion was passed, Cough
Ian and Byron for it and Kelley against
it.
The old committee will complete the
contract with the Meriden railroad
which finally concluded to freight
1000 tons at so cents per ton.
Street Inspector Wright and City En-
gineer Cairns were appointed a COM
mittee to report on how the stone
crusher should be put up.
The layout and grade of Mill street
from Pond to Liberty street, was then
recommended, and the board ad-
iOurned,