The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-01-13


The city authorities are stin wrestling
with the street lighting problem. The
cause of the difficulty is the lack of
money If the love of money Is the
root of all evil. the lack OF it IS the
ffount Of much misery and the uc-
CASTOR of many expedients The street
lighting ordinance, passed over the
Mayors veto, is aal e1pedient.
At present 1t looks an inn5cerit sort
off Instrument It merely provides for
q lighting district and prescribes its
boundaries 1t does not say definitely
how the assessment shall he made to
furnish the funds that viii be requisite
to pay for the lighting. 1t was under
stood. however. that the majority of the
council favored the front foot method,
and that called forth the structures Of
The Herald and to a great degree the
veto of The Mayor.
We have no doubt that If it had not
been for the strained condition of The
|city's finances the lighting of the
streets would have gone on, being paid
for out OF the general funds of the city
las It has been from the beginning and
as is provided for in the charter. But
the exhaustion of those funds has oc-
cassoned resort to the present expedient
We appreciate the straits in which
the city is placed, but we do not think
they justify the front foot assessment
of which a number of the city coun-
|cilors still appear. TO approve. Coming
right down to the legality of the pro-
position. the charter Of 1865 is the only
direct authorization of the local assess
ment scheme for erecting street lamps
which points out the manner in which
the levy may be made
There is no front footage in that pro-
vision The assessment is 10 be made
ON real estate eor land claims and i'm
provements) according to the benefit
resulting thereto. 1t is to be made by
three commissioners appointed by the
city cou7cal, who would have to decide
how much each piece of property was
benefited by the street lighting and
list TT accordingly Against that there
would be no protest. except that the
taxpayers so assessed may appear be
Tore the city council. sitting as a board
Of equalization. and have alleged in
equa.ities considered.
If that is done. the whole city ought
TO be included in The district. because
all the people in the city derive some
benefit from the street lighting. Even
il the lamp ARE not yet extended to
the limits people come from them to
the central parts of town. ana every
body who does that enjoys some of the
benefits of the street lamps.
Indeed, street lighting, as we have
shown, heretofore. is much more of a
public than a private benefit. 1t is
unjust and inequitable to put the ex-
penss of maintaining it upon a por-
ton Of the taxpayers when, all OF them
are benefited. People who travel from
the outskirts OF the city to and from
the central panls of town at night, for
any purpose. receive greater general
benefits than anybody from the street
lighting.
Cannot something better be devised
by the solons of the city council than
their present plan? Is it possible thar
they would leave the city in total dark
ness at night. to force the taxpayers
into submission to the from. footage
inequfty? Is There no greater execu-
tive ability in that body than that?
Why not devise a scheme by which
the city can do its own lighting for THE
streets and public buildings? There is
ample water power in City Creek can
yon- Above the main tank there is a
twelve inch pipe for three miles. with
a fall of four hundred feet Put in the
right kind of motor just above ane
close TO that tank, so that the wate.
passing through and over the wheel
or wheels would fail into the tank, and
there is power enough to furnish all the
electric lights the city needs for public
purposes. With private lighting they
have nothing to do.
But that will cost money. Just 50.
And if The shutting down proposition
is feasible, delay it till the winter
months with the long nights ara over.
and the money saved by q brief gus-
would furnish enough 10
- Ne'SAASi tAAV pidlls 1uS pOl9S and
wires now in use would soon come TO
the city for song, and the municipality
would be independent on. the lighting
question.
If, in the pressure brought on by the
financial situation. d mistake has been
made on this puplic lighting PROPOSE
ton, it would show more wisdom. man.
illness and public spirit to recede and
do exact justice than TO persist and
bad feeling and litigation which
are certain to follow the front foot
and which will block the wa,.
for long time to the collection of funds
which appears to be the chief end in
view.
Gentlemen of the City Council in
al candor and with due respect, we ask
you not to rush ON to a decision, whi,b
you may greatly regret. Try and plan
out something which will cause the ex-
pense for a public benefit to come ont
OF the general public pocket!
WHO: NOT WHERE. THE QUESTION