St. Paul daily globe., 1895-12-24


line lighting for the coming year. The
contract price per lamp is largely in
excess of the current price.
Bids for lighting must be materially
influenced by existing provisions of
the city charter.
Section 64, pages 70-n, Municipal Code
1898, has been construed by the district
ring obligations extending beyond the
calendar year. Likely this ruling
should be deemed a settled construc-
tion of the law. This section, taken in
connection with the provisions Of sec
tions 168, pages 151-l52, same code,
which authorizes the board of public
works twice In each year to extin-
practically limits the perior for which
contracts for definite numbers of
lights can now be made to six months
only. Under such conditions the best
rates for lights could not reasonably
be hoped for Should the practice of
obtaining street lighting by contract
be continued, the engagement of the
city to take and pay for at least a
minimum number of lights, for a pc
riod of years, must be made possible,
to secure low prices, or even any sub
stantial competition whatever.
AS the charter now reads, 1T Is doubt
full whether the council could make a
IL
condition to take from the contractor
his plant In event Of failure to renew
the contract for the succeeding year.
Your committee has not gone far
into the details of the absolute
cost of lighting by the differ
ent systems; nor into the
question how much an adequate light
ing plant could be built and operated for
by the city itself. The committee thinks
that, as general proposition, 1t is un-
wise and expensive for a municipal
body, with frequently changing official
control,to engagein the business of man.
ufacturing anything purchasable from
private parties upon a competitive ba-
sis. With the suggested changes: in
the city charter, the committee feels
certain that our public lighting can be
purchased in that way. Should expert
ment demonstrate the contrary, resort
to the other mode will remain possible.
A sufficient lighting plant would, how
ever, cost a large sum of money, and
require a considerable increase in the
city debt. For some years at least this
should be done, if possible, without too
much sacrifice in other directions.
Your committee is satisfied that a
sufficient length of streets can be we'll
lighted where need be, and adequately
lighted everywhere, at cost not eX-
ceeding S100,GG0 per year, for the next
few years, at least.
Necessity for keeping every light
along the whole length of Illuminated
streets burning from dusk to dawn
is not quite apparent.
A schedule by which large part OF
the lights in resident and SUBURBAN
districts should be put out at midnight
would do no harm and save expense.
RECOMMENDATIONS.
1. The period of rapid construction
is over Our population must much
more than double before our present
graded streets, sewers and sidewalks
shall need considerable extension. The
outlay in the near future of any con-
siderable sums for public work would
merely mean the practical waste of so
much more capital: This is not ex,
taxpayers. ..
The public works department, as it
now is, was organized in and for the
supposed wants of a period in which
public work was pushed rapidly ana ana
may have been well fitted for the times
which brought it forth. On that point
your committee is not required to have
any opinion.
The contract work of the department
for the past two years has been l1m-
tied almost wholly to relaying of street
pavements and street sidewalks with
better materials, and street sprinkllng.
These are mere routine matters, set
tied by practice and experience upon a
few simple and uniform lines. Even
the work of paving will substantially
close with the coming year, to remain
closed until largely Increased popula-
ton and business shall demand add1-
tions to our paved streets. For the
first five years after 1896 we may, rea-
Sonably expect contract work to be
substantially limited to street sprlnk-
ling, repairing and cleaning, and the
relaying of Worn-out wooden SldeWalkss
with stone and brick Most of this lat
ter work, which should keep pace with
the decay of the wooden walks, will be
done by the property owners, VINO
stand the whole expense.
The department should be reorgan-
lied to fit the case as it exists.
The proper and economical supervls-
ion of the public work no 5suo longer gg,,1e,: de-
of highly-skilled and consequently
high-priced men.
a few honest and diligent men. Of
average attainments, will suffice. That
class is plentiful in st. Paul, as else-
where.
The policy Of placing the cost OF
public improvements upon property
specially benefited, likely to remain a
permanent feature of our municipal |
system, will always make convement
to Justly distribute the burden.
But for the necessity, under any
conditions of things likely to continue,
of making special assessments, 1t
would be hard to find any present need
of retaining a board of public works at
all. All questions now entrusted to
the board, save that of distributing as
sessments, and Judging of the necessity
for street lights, are practically de-
cided by the city engineer. Your COM
mittee's examinati ton of this depart
ment clearly developed that fact.
Should the board cease to exist, the
engineers bureau would remain. That
and a. joint committee of the council
would be perfectly competent to de-
eide every point which the board OF
public works is now required to in
vestigate A joint council committee
on public works, with the aid of COM
petent clerk, could easily do all the
work now done by the board, save the
making of assessments. These latter
might be provided for, as in Minneap-
oils, by special assessment commits
sioners, appointed by the courts. The
committee, therefore, recommends
that either the board of public works
be abolished, and it's duties, other than
making assessments, be transferred to
a joint committee of the common coun-
ell, to be assisted by a competen clerk,
at a reasonable salary; or, that the
members Of the board be reduced to
three, with an annual salary of $100
per year each, with the addition of So
per day for the time necessarily and
reasonably occupied in making special
assessments; the entire compensation
not to exceed $500 per year each.
The retention of the board under
these modified conditions might be
wise. The plan of entrusting the man
agement of important departments, to
public-spirited citizens, willing to
serve for a small salary, has usually
worked we'll in st. Paul. The water
department, fire departments, charf-
ties and corrections and park board
have been administered in this way,
with results in the main cammendable.
All administrative boards Of the city
should, and doubtless will, secure the
cheerful service of citizens having SO
much at stake in the welfare of the
city, as to be willing to give it the
benefit of their skill and intelligence,
without regard to the salary attached
to the place. It cannot be doubted
that the board Of public works, if re-
tained, will form no exception to the