The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-12-01

CITIZENS PROTEST.
Hoboken Avenue Sewer Re-
msnstTance Before the
Street and Water
Board.
ARGUMENTS OF PROPERTY OWNERS
Commissioners Say They Will Meet
the Citizens and Inspect the
Proposed Improvement.
ARGUMENTS OF PROPERTY OWNERS

In response to an advertisement for bids
for the construction of a sewer in Hobo
ken avenue, to drain the Hill by connect
ing with Thirteenth street sewer below
the viaduct, eight contractors submitted
estimates to the Street ard Water Com !
m~issioners at their meeting yesterday af-
ternoon. They were:-P. H. Flaherty, Ir.,
& Co., Clark & Co., Phillip Tumulty,
John Hopkins, P. T. Plunkett, NJ. R. Van
Keuren, Sheridan, Shay Co. and Edward
OsNein.
Andrew ]. Corcoran, as chairman of a
committee of indignant property owners
from north of the Erie Railroad tracks.
OBJ iced to the opening of the bids on the
81 I'D that the proposed construction of
Hsw sewer with the one in Thirteenth
y was impracticable, and if carried
aAwould result in much damage to
proaerty in the street.
The objection was noted, and the bids
opened. Edward O'Neilrs bid was the
lowest one of the lot. With Mr.. Corcoran
were Captain John F. Kelly, ~ex-Judge
Kenny, NJ. T. Connolly, Charles Hill. Pat
rick Byrnes, Patrick Kenny, John Nc
Auliffe and a half dozen other gentlemen
all interested in the new sewer which is
to drain into the Thirteenth street sewer.
The privilege of the floor having been
extended to MIR. Corcoran he said
I'VE are here to carry out Instructions
given us by the property owners north
of the Erie Railroad tracks at a mass
messing held last Friday night in St.
Llcy's Hall. I can assure you that it
was the desire of every one present at
that meeting that we shall present a
ZXl2GTG1S nTAfGGr rn60E IN thu nor pnfin1
Of the Hoboksn avenue sewer with the one
IN thirteenth street. We have engaged
no legal talent to present our case TO
you We corae here as citizens and tax
payers TO demand only justice. We have
elected you our representatives and We
consequently look to you for the relief
we row deem necessary to preserve what
little we possess. We are not here in a
spirit of yinolctiveness asking for any
thing, nor do we desire to dictate. We
simply want justice, and feel that we
Will get 1t inasmuch as you are elected
, 10 represent the whole city and not any
particular section of it to the disadvan-
proposed connection of sewers because it
Is uneailed for, inpracticable and unjusti-
W have the evidence in our possession
10 prove what We assert. Sometime ago
the Hudson City Improvement Association
asked US II We had any objections to a
sewer IN Hoboken avenue being connected
with the Thirteenth street sewer. Not
wishing to stand in the path of any pub
&c improvement Mr.. John Casey, I be-
iieve' sad the people up our way would
dfot OBJECT When we said we had no
objections Thirteenth street was not
Dullt up, but now it is, and we find that
the increased work On the sewer has rem
oered 1T useless ito us. inasmuchN as our
cellars are flooded even now by backed
up sewage ana surface water. Such IS the
CONDITION of affairs today, that if any
more sewage is dumped into the Thir-
teenth street sewer our cellars will be
hooded continually, and tenants driven
OUT ana our property rendered valueless.
show you tina the sewer is not
capable of cafryinsg off any more sewage
1nanL1ws into it now, I will give you
some OF the measurements l took last
At $50 o'clock s sssgrda Is a mos goinen w one;
gne tide was coming In, there was IA
lncnes of water in the sewer at Jersey
avenue; at 1890 o'clock there was Is
inches; 1870 O'clock. % inches; 1913 O'Clock.
SJnches, and at 100 O'clock, 36 inches.
NOW what must certainly happen If
TOUR times as much sewage is emptied in
- mat sewer as there is at present? If
me sewer was a good one, and it is not,
the force and pressure created by the
sewage from the HILL would burst that
sewer, Some time asgo when men were
repalrlng the sewer, they told me they
dla not dare walk ON top of it for fear
IN wpalG cave IN with them: The sewer
IN 1oboke1 avenue, which is to connect
with the Thirteenth street sewer. would
give a fai Of 50 feet to the Hill sewage,
ana as a mechanic I want to state that
the pressure, which would be about tWen-
ty-nVe pounds to the square inch. would
purst the sewer, burst all carthen pipe
ccnnections with it slnd probably many
OF the steel pipe ones, and back sewage
ana disease breeding gases into every
mouse along the street. Those houses are
Ienanted by from thirty to forty people
ana would be criminal to endanger their
lives by compelling them to breathe sew
erbaga gas DAY and night We nave two
schooihouseS in the n~eighborhood, and the
chohlng up of the Thirteenth street sew
sI would certainly ~endanger the lives of
I'll these pupils in those schools. Why,
many owners Of prop erty at this time
nave bulit eesspools to receive the refuse
81 their houses at times when the sewer
IS fun of water and unable to carry It
off until the tide goes d own. we ask for
mercy and believe we deserve it. The
connection of this new sewer in Hoboken
property, and knowing this we feel that
you VIII hesitate in permitting such a
connection being made
NJ Il. Connolly and John McAuliffe
spoke in a similar strain.
SaptaIn Kelly said the neighborilood
erected by the proposed connection is
ford to stop work to attend pubiie met
lngs- she said they realized their homes
were and depended upon the
committee, Of which he was a member,
to protect them. He insisted that the
dumping into the Thirteenth street sewer
% ane mn sewage will wreck the sewer.
cause 1t TO overflow, drive tenants out of
houses and cause all kinds of hardship.
commissioner Kaiser assured the CONT
r,se ~ lne BOARD mad no GeSlre to
rum lne property OF n man, and hay-
ing had the circumstances exrlained he
expressed the belief that the Board would
take some action which will probably
lead to the Hoboken avenue sewer be-
ing connected with the branch Of the
Eayine Road sewer, which runs to the
river through Nineteenth street.
Cheers greeted the remarks of the Com
missioner.
Engineer Ruggles explained to the
Board that the Thirteenth street sewer
was planned in 1872 to carry off all the
Hill sewage, in addition to that down
town. He also said that the sewer in
Eighth street, which is smaller than the
more sewage than it is proposed to turn
into Thirteenth street. The Chief declar-
the additional pressure caused by the