The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-13
TO BEGIN WORK AT ONCE.
THE CITY WILL PUSH THE WORK
OF PAVING RIGHT AHEAD.

The Ordinances Introduced I'm COun-
ell Wednesday Night in such shape
That They Can BE Adopted at
Once-Wiu Require n Million and n
Quarter OF Brick and Nearly TO-
600 Feet of Curbing-Other Street
Paving Also Under Consideration.
The announcement in yesterdays Morn
ing News Of the amount of paving In
prospect was a surprise to great many
people. who had no idea that the recon-
mendations contained in Mayor Myers
annual report and the general report to
the same effect by council would be put
into effect so soon, II at all The mayor
and council meant business, however.
The ordinances for the improvement OF
South Broad and portions Of Habersham
and Abercorn streets are in such shape
that they can be adopted at any called
meeting Of council without waiting for
the next regular meeting, and this may
possibly be done, il there is any special
reason for haste. The intention is 10
begin this work at once. just as soon as
the material can be placed on the ground.
The commissioner of public works and the
city engineer are already studying the
details of the work. and orders will be
placed in all probability just as soon as
the ordinances are adopted.
Several styles of vitrifed brick are UNI
der consideration. Nitrifed brick pave
ments have been laid in other cities az
from $3.50 to $l.75 a square yard, and the
cost of the work in Savannah will prob
ably be somewhere between these two fig
ures. Freight viii be a considerable item
on account of the distance of the brick
factories from Savannah. The work will
be done by the public works commissioner
and all of the money possible VIII be spent
The Yitrifed brick are made in larger
sizes than the ordinary brick, but II viii
take over 100000 TO pave South Broad
street, and 10000 more to pave Abercorn
and habersham streets In round fig
ures there are nearly 1900 square yards
of paving 10 be done on South Broad
street and the Vitrified brick run forty
to forty-three to the square yard. There
are about 500 square yards of roadway
70 be paved on Abercorn street and the
same on Habersham street.
Both roadways on South Broad street
VIII be curbed on each side, and this will
require about 1900 feet of granite curb
ing, Habersham and Abercorn streets
VIII require about 1850 feet of curbing
each. II is likely that the city will have
TO pay more than one-half the cost of this
Improvement. In the first place the city
pays one-third of the total cost. In the
next place the assessment against the
abutting streets and lanes is charged
against the city as the owner. The front
age Of the new Colonial park on South
Broad and Abercorn streets will be a con-
siderable item. Then there is the 'front.'
age OF pc police barracks property on
south Broad and Habersham streets and
the fire headquarters at South Broad and
Abercorn, the assessments against all Of
which will be betrayed by the city. The
chatham Academy fronts for a block
on South Broad street and the Savannah
Female Orphan Asylum has nearly a
block OF frontage on the western end OF
the street. 1t has not been customary to
REQUIRE schools and orphan asylums to
pay their share of such Improvements. The
Independent Presbyterian church also
fronts on South Broad street for block,
but under a late decision of the supreme
court, churches are not exempt from such
assessments for public improvements. If
the other institutions named, however, are
exempted, fully One-half of the $4,000 es-
umated as necessary to complete the work
will be paid by the city As the improve
ment Is for public rather than private
benefit, this is regarded only fair.
The city engineer has also, at the re-
quest of council prepared estimates of
the cost of paving the intersecting streets
between Whitaker and Drayton TO CASTOR
with shell, brick and asphalt. As the
council has not yet come to any decision
in the matter, the estimates Will not be
made public.
Mayor Myers said yesterday that IT is
very probable that these streets will be
paved, as after the improvements already
made are completed the cost of finishing
up the intersecting pieces of streets, still
unpaved, would be very small and it would
have much better effect to have this
entire section paved than 10 leave il
broken with unpaVed blocks at odd in
tervals. The intersections north of Lib
erty street to be paved east and west from
Bull to Drayton and Whitaker streets. are
State, President and York. Hull, McDon-
ough and Charlton streets would be paved
as far east as Abercorn. as we'll al west to
Whitaker. The streets south of Liberty
between Whitaker and Drayton NAV be
taken up and they may not Estimates
have also been prepared on other streets,
which shows that council is i'm a liberal
mood IS regards paving. Altogether prob
ably $4,000 will be expended for paving
this summer. This will give work to a
great many men now idle, which will
prove of direct benefit to the city.