Arizona republican., 1895-06-18
4 CITY GRADE. The Matter Again Comes Before the Council. An Almost Personal Dis
 CuSSiOn EnSueS.
Affairs Attending the Birth of
 Phoenix are Baked Up.
Nothing Results From the Meeting but a Determination to Con-
 sider the Subject Again.

The grading question in Phoenix has at last gotten to be one of seriousness. Twenty. ten or five years ago nobody cared about grades. The city was go nearly level with an almost imper- ceptible southern slope that it seemed to have natural and sufficient grade. Successive grades since then have ren- dered water uncertain and hesitating in it's movements. The grade, too, is to be considered in connection with per- manent building. When business structures were regarded as only tenn porary and there were no sidewalks at all an annual change of foot or so in the grade was not momentous. Now three or four inches at the base of 8 four story structure or permanent and expensive sidewalk is vexatious. Three or four inches isn't much, but that degree of extension on the end of one's nose would attract observation. This grading Question has been pre- cipitated by recommendation by City Engineer Hancock to raise the grade on east Washington street. The pro- posal encountered g storm ofindignation by property owners in the northeastern part of town. They said Washington street was already too h'gn. The mat ter was set for hearing at meeting of the council last Friday night but the engineer was out of town and 1t was laid over until last night.
 The meeting was a warm one and the trouble was pre- cipitated by the report of the engineer showing that the grade could be established (rot made) for something like $500.
 ]. c. DobMns, himself an engineer, wanted to know what assurance could be given of a fixed grade if every off, ciai engineer were permits ed to undo the work of his predecessor. Then he went to show that the proposal of City Engineer Hancock would convert the whole northeastern part of town into 8 beautiful lake. The city engineer be- gan delinealion oi a plan to prevent that part of the city from being sub. 1 merged.
 "How will yo, get the water out?" Asked Mr. Dobbins. Pump it out," suggested a young man in the rear of the room. Several persons joined the discussion which Messre Hancock ard Dobbins were rapidly making personal. The latter referred sarcasticaliy 10 the original plat of the city, made by MT. Hancock at 6 time when real estate was not so much of an object as 1t is now and when survey yors' instruments in Ar1zona were not always painfully and mathe- naticaliy correct. For which reason the original plat of Phoenix intended to be paralelogram became tra. peziun1. 2 !op sided figure end the town was built up lopsided upon it. This really had no'hiGg to do with the grade but it lent gaiety and animation to the discussion which finally resulted in nothing but will be renewed next Mon- day night.
 The committee appointed several weeks ago to assess the benefit of i'm. provements cn Center street had ex. pired by limitaton and another was ap. pointed consisting of City Assessor L. J. Wood and citizen mem bers, B. A. Fickas and F. NJ. Czarnowski. Mr. Wood asked the council to procure for him set of up to date abstracts in- cluiing the lately admitted additions.
 Dr. Lightburne was before the couR- cil suggesting the passage of an Of dinance defining uniform width of sidewalks.