The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-01-09

VI - nina iftelAt Is lOItSIl1GOWSQ. ~
The success of awarding the street
cleaning contract by districts is still IN
doubt. The Boards considers tina more
money must be allowed IN the future to
give the public satisfaction.
The Board flaps its wings over the
abolition of Mill Creek. the construction
of the new Montgomery street bridge,
the proximate construction of thu new
La.dlaw avenue steps, the award of a
contract for the placing Of street signs
on corners, and the enforcement of the
law recurring property owners to keep
the Sidewalks in repair.
Next comes the matter of street light
ing. and with this the report deals as fol-
lows
several contracts for street lighting,
which have been awarded during a pre-
vlous regime, and which had been made
Illegal. This finding permitted us to have
prepared specifications covering every
k Eiras practical form Of lighting the
that a form was drawn into COM
petition against the others. The first
f fSsrn " was ! , fairiy satisfactory, in that
stances, prices appreciably lower than
present rates. Whether the ultimate re-
suit will be to induce permanent com
must determine.
The streets are now lighted by 1897 gas
lights: When the new system becomes
effective there will be on the basis of our
recent award $50 gas lamps, 1000 oil
lamps and 700 electric arc lights.
We trust that the new order of things
will result in a more satisfactory service
than we have ever experienced. Such a
labor that was given. and the thought
and care that was exercised in an effort
to improve the present system.
More than o%ne-third of the report is
given up to the water plant. A large part
of this becomes a back number today, if
all goes well. The public have little in
terest in the multiplicity of details which
show that the pumping plants are in first
rate order. The remarks concerning the
Belleville reservoir are of Interest,"
The banks of the receiving reservoir
were, early in the spring. pointed up and
been placed at the discharge mains into
the reservoir, at a point about eight feet
a fdS'ss the he water water, t tive steel perforatefd "a
flow before finally d~ischarging into the
reservoir. These tahles-the invention of
the the Chairman j air OF this Gommitteeneach
streams, three-eighth of an inch in size,
to come into contact with the air and
sunlight before being distributed. The
~ -
poses is at once made apparent. The
tables have also performed an additional
they serve to catch a great number of
small fish which would otherwise circu-
late through the distributing pipes with
the result of clogging them and providing
contamination.
On the finances of the Water Depart
ment, the report has this to say
1t is a pleasure to report that water
N,% a-1 I CO.. rIr - - mr.
now l~iquidated more promptly than in
years previous, while outstanding arrears
have been somewhat, decreased. The
has not been abused, as in the great ma
jority of instances where extensions were
granted to parties in arrears, payment
has been promptly made at the expiration
of such extension.
Many improvements have been made at
the Pipe Yard, the report says. Cement
pipe, which used to be extensively laid
Throughout the city, is now being taken
out and iron pipe substituted. There were
laid altogether O.2O4 lineal feet of pipe,
ranging from 4 to 20 inch diameter, against
Il, 407 feet in 1894, and 6,525 in 1898. The
Board set 247 hydrants, $50 gates. % pat
ent gates, 207 frames and covers, 15S gate
boxes, 127 branches and used 327 sleeves.
SO patent sleeves, Sc plugs. 81 caps. L0 u
inch bends. and ST u inch bends.
Here is an interesting point
Considerable difficulty has been expert
enced in the past by our Inability to To-
cate with e~xactness the various hydrants
and gates heretofore laid throughout the
the memory of individuals. When it be-
came apparent that no data existed, we
Immediately instituted the preparation of
a map to show with eXactnesS each ny
drant and gate, all sewer and pipe con-
nections. as well as the location of all
R eions. 'aia This M'i Map % is or now ABOUT t" eom aIistai
and with it the city will have. for the
first time in its history, a. reliable and
self-explainable data of these various
matters.
Next is noted the progress in the erec-
ton of School No. 9 at Brunswick and
Mercer streets, and an explanation is CIV
en- Of the failure to build a new No. 8
Truck House in Hudson City. The re-
building of the Public Dock. as it is i'm
properly called, at Morris street, is also
spoken of. Comment is also made on
the absence of all codifcation of street
ordinances. Something is to be done
about this, but just what is not made
very clear.
Under the head of Local Altrurias." the
1t is a source of infinite satisfaction to
" W1ldlE OG IOpGl NlCl l4lGh
sporadic cases of that form of public spir-
it which aims as much for the betterment
of the city as for personal gain.
Notable instances in the past year are
the opening up and improving by private
enterprise 81 a considerable territory in
the Greenville section on the north side
Of Ocean avenue. It is the intention Of
the founder CMr. d. w. Oliver) to open all
the streets through the tract controlled
by him and to sewer and pave them at
his own expense. The erection of de-
tached private dwellings will be then
commenced. and it is expected that the OPP
%portllnity thus offered for residence in a
community-entrance to which will be re-
stricted-in the heart of a city, while yet
to a sufficiently large number of desirable
people to make the venture successful.
Considerable capital has been already in
vested and not a little work accomplished.
The opening of Clifford place. in the Bergen
section, and the erection thereon of
first-class private dwellings cannot but be as
beneficial to this locality as to the direct
ply in that portion Of the Lafayette sec
ton where has been erected what the
owner chooses to term Breadalbane Ter
race.
We desire to publicly record our interest
in ventures of this description and Will,
ment them whenever possible.
Then comes the great subject of all,
the new water supply. What the
Board has to say about this, given in
full, is as follows:-
In the foregoing epitome of the work
of the year. we have thu far refrained
from a reference to the question of new
water supply. That our action in maxi
ing an award of contract has been