The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-02-04
|7AE MAYORS WILL meet
A Convention Of City Executives
Called 10 Discuss Municipal
Legislation.
Changes in the Existing Laws
Which Are Considered Very
Necessary.
Organization VIII he ARRANGED at the
Hotel Helena ON Wednesday Might
of Next Week..

Inc following lotSor, SEM by mayor LEO
Mantle. of Bate. has been received BY
Mayor Curtin, Of Helena. and the mayors
of all the other cities Of the state: "That
the general municipal act Of the laws OF
Montana may be amended and revised TO
suit. 10 near 40 can b, all sections OF the
state, you. your city attorney and other
officers are invited to attend . convention
to DO held At Helena for the purpose OF
framing q bill for passage by the legislature.
A meeting for Organization will be held al
the hotel Helena at eight O'Clock Wednes-
day. Feb. 8. The favor Of acknowledgment
IL requested" Mayor Mantle has been un-
der the impression for tome time that both
ths existing municipal laws and those pro-
vidsd for in the new code need revision and
amendment, and a correspondence with
mayors of other cities throughout the state
convinced him that he was not alone in this
belief. The other mayors generally favored
convention, with the view OF securing
more favorable legislation, and asked Mayor
Mantle to call one. Thu new codes, pre-
bared in accordance with a law passed by
he last territorial Legislature, have been
Completed and printed. and referred to the
AA~rssent legislature. Nothing 10 likely to be
4one with the codes at this session. II 10
SSfincipally to revise the municipal code
Nat the meeting Of mayors is called.
n ''Fsom an examination Of the municipal
Nv provided for in The new oods," says
Hayor Mantle, II am inclined TO believe
that IL 10 qnite an improvement on our
present municipal incorporation act, but a.
The same time . good many mayors and
pity attorneys have expressed dissatisfac-
lion with II. or course different CITIES re-
quire different laws. and she easiest and
most satisfactory way to get q law for the
Rlike, is to get together and discuss the
fituation and then frame a bill and have IL
introduced and use ~ combined influence
o have ii passed. In my opinion the mon
Who have the enforcement of the NUM-
eipal avs in their hands are better fitted
2 propose q satisfactory measure than the
kvet age legislator. The present municipal
aw 10 very ambiguous and unsatisfactory.
The street grading law, for instance a. il
btands now, ia bound to work an
Injustice to some one, and its faulty
construction has been particularly NO.
Eiceable. Ths law state. that at least
30 per cent of the cost of any street i'm
provement must be assessed on the abut-
ing property. and the whole amount may
70 so assessed if the city sees tit. This is
nanifestly unfair, but thole Is no way out
IF it. The right way would be to distribute
he cost of improvements among the peo-
pie benefited. In my opinion the law
ought to be no amended that the council
can create street grading, paving and
e%prinkling districts, so that people residing
u q certain district will be compelled to
pay their share of an improvement which
benefits them, whether it is in front of their
doc 9 or two or three blocks away. Street
eprinkling. for instance, is absolutely a
public work and should be done BY the city.
some parts of the city need more sprinClinR
than others. and to provide for this the
city should be divided mp into districts, so
hat there would be q just distribution Of
he expense.
"lh be law ought also to be amended 80 as
provide for the pavement Of a street on a
petition from the owners of abuttinR prop
hrty, or for the pavement OF all the streets
n a district to be paid for by bonds and a
AK levied on tho property benefited. The
payment could be divided over q number Of
years, so that il would not be materially
felt. ! he simple fact of the matter 10 that
he municipal law needs to be rearranged
and got together 80 that it will be intel
lgible. AS it is. it is i'm erfect and unjust;
while it gives nearly all Of the power neces-
Bary, it does not give it in the right way"