Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-02-14
SEWER ASSESSMENTS.
Mayor and Aldermen Hear Plain
Words on Certain PecuIiarities.


line mayOt ana aioeIWeu ueo Tue pTlvl-
Iege, Tuesday afternoon, Of listening to
plain words on the matter OF sewer assess
mems.
Evidently somebody bad made botch,
or wore, Of the matter, ard AUDITORS were
not 10th to speak Of it.
H. X. Chcate slowed wherein he thought
they had assessed him too much on va
cant lot. He alec thought there had been
an injury done him by the street commits
sioner in digging up culvert that he had
laid at An expense of $26.
Mr.. Charles E. Town had some very per-
tinent remarks to make concerning the
Chapel street tewer. He wanted an ad-
justment of rates or an explanation. He
could not understand why one person
should be assessed 500 and another SIS on
property just ~ valuable.
Alderman Lo,ejoy said that the assess
ments were intended to be made according
to the value of the property.
Mr.. Town thought this had not been done
and cited examples. His statements were
not disproven.
Fred A. Furbush from Cushnoc Heights
said that he saw on looking over the plan
that some of the lots had not been put down
and were not assessed at all. He didn't see
shy equality whatever in the apportionment
Property more valuable than his and lying
- 40 IS koI han
more. He then went on to specify some OF
the lots omitted entirely from the assess-
ment.
Alderman Martin remarked that it was
undoubtedly true that some of the lots had
been skipped by the surveyor.
This embarrassing condition Of sffisirs
was not relieved any when E. W. White
house, E.q., stated his complaints. He
said the question was q serious one. He
contended that If the city went along a linz
of sewer and assessed number one, skipped
number two and assessed numbers three
and four disproportionately,i it v as serious
question whether the ,ity couli make any
of the abuttors pay their assessmen ts. He
found on looking over the plan that they
had David Walton on the south side of
school street. "Now Davil Walton doesn't
live," &C ntinued Mr.. Whitehouse, ION the
south side of School street and doesn't own
foot of land there" There had been an
other mistake in the bounds of Mr.. McFar-
lanes lot. They had set down house to him
which he didn't own. Mr.. Whitehouse then
pointed out the inequality of several Of
these assessments as compared with those
of their neighbours, Alderman Wight's for
instance, whose property is of considerable
more value. Mr.. McFarlane, with house
worth $1,000, had been assessed the same
as Everett Shaw with place worth $500.
Mr.. Wbitehouse specified several instances
on Middle street and other parts of the city
where the assessments were di.proportion-
ate, and some had been assessed the same
as neighbors whose places were not worth
30 much by $1,000. He gave the city gov
eminent to understand that he thought such
assessments illegal and could not be col
lected if the AUDITORS should carry the mat
ter to court.
1t vas noticeable to those present that
several of those whose property, Mr.. White
house showed, had been favored in the
assessment, are prominent Democrats.
Mrs. Furbush here spoke up and said she
could not see why they wanted her to come
before them in relation to entering the
sewer past her house, corner Of Washington
and jefferson streets. She did not propose
to pay for entering a sewer that was frozen
up and had burst This is one of the new
sewers, and she said that it froze
up in the fall and she notified the
mayor. II had frozen again, however, and
had burst and smelle worse than 1t did in
that vicinity when the sewerage ran on top
of the ground. She knew of no reason
Why they should tax her for entering . sewer
when the sewerage ran out on her ground.
She wants to know why one of her neigh
bors had not been compelled to enter the
sewer.
Mr.. Tabor said they told him that the
mans cellar was too low.
She didn't think so. One witness sup
ported her in this belief.
Comment was made concerning John
Grady's house.
Frank Gaslin said that he had been as
sessed for entering the School street sewer
when he had previously paid an assessment
for entering the Bangor street sewer from
the same house.
The mayor and aldermen kept reminding
the compliments that this was just what the
hearing was for, to fnd out what difficult
ties there might be.
1t was plain, however, that the amount and
kind Of the difficulties were q little greater
than they had expected.
Those mentioned above were not the
only complainant. but the errors in rela-
ton to their assessments were the most
glazing.