The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-04-27

osition to supply Jersey City with q sup
ply Of water by gravity into, the high ser
vice reservoirs at a head OF 40 II. above
The bids thus asked from these six
concerns or four days notice must pc for
a minimum daily supply OF 10000, 600 gal
Quits, the city to have all the additional
water in the watershed. In leu OF al
water rates or rents the city will pay .
per cent. interest on the agreed price
Of the, works for twenty-five years, with
the option OF buyqing the works at the
end Of five years after completion, paying
bonds, or partly cash and partly bonds.
The city will exercise it's right OF em.n-
ent domain for the contractor. The stand
of March %, 1895, is to govern here. In
regard to storage, this significant para
graph is inserted in the call:
supply. at SO. 900, 900 gallons per. day,
must be provided within the state OF New
Jersey. In case any propositions are sud-
mitted taking water from RockaWay
at least ten, deys' supply at the rate OF
10000, 900 gallons per day. must pc pro,
addition to reservoirs north and inde-
pendent of river and the Morris Canal.
AS an alternative in the matter of cost,
the contractor may name n pra $, l6 nd aa
a price for construction. He may then
choose between having the city cond.cmA
s seH a ppiSate T,ghtf If q he ehoias to enf have n The
city condemn, then the price Of conaenl.
nation shall be added to his bid for con.
structlon, and the total shall "a be the cost s..
which 1t shall pay for the works.
This new scheme shuts out the syndl-
cate from renewing It's old OFFER TO pump
from the Passaic and compels the other
bidder, under the last call, the Jersey
City Water Co.. to modify its plans, and
construct a reservoir on the Rockaway
Tipar instead nf dr9 wing from al that
Shut ous from bidding on the lower
Passatc. and forced TO make g high e 9l 9,
that it may and the Morris Canal,
the syndicate is now in a position where
1t lihI ma wa pc ex fpa tnak 10 op dr sxc ey Of
any low bid from the Rockaway,.
In view of the many complications IN
the situation It would not De surprising aSangg
on the part of the Jersey city antnoTlties
before many days, which would throw
I TIE award Of ia a e cont Wate ln1 Boa sns w nfna5
soon comes into power.
If the contract goes to outside interests,
the great city water 4, supply sy = nau WI
contract, and out of the whole metropo-
Titan area which it once proposed to
supply 1t will be purveyor Of water only
to this one city and a few minor muni-
cipalities.
The city has taken a step in the right
direction in giving bidders an oppor-
proposals for construction and for land
and water rights, the city to do the con-
demning, but the contractor to assume
the cost above a certain point. But no
contractor ought to be asked to assume
such risks, if the city desires the best
results at the least price. Moreover, II
and. water rights privately. instead Of
having the city condemn, or, in other
words, includes in his bid a sufficient
sum to satisfy he claims, speculative or
watershed, instead OF allowing the city
to have these valued by process of law.
If the contract for construction was en-
tirely separate from the rest of the
scheme, a score or more of wealthy and
responsible contractors would be eager
to bid for the work. If the city kept its
right of condemnation entirely in its own
hands it would seem to be greatly to its
Jersey City's vile water supply has
been a by-werd throughput the country
for years. 1t has tried the same old
plan for. getnig a new one long. enough
and could well afford to experiment a
little with methods which are but comon
practice in other cities.