The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-10-01
MAroR Talks ABoUr STREETS.


His Views Concerning Assessmepts-Some
Old Statistics
Many owners of property along those
streets which are named in the order
Tor street hardening which was present
ed at the last meeting of the common
council, and the passage of which will
be recommended by the committee on
streets in it's report, are wondering if
they will be obliged to pay assessment
on two-thirds of the cost of hardening
in front of their property. This is a
question on which no one seems to be
settled at present.
One thing is certain, however, and
that is that Mayor Fansworth will
make an effort to prevent the passage
of the order for hardening unless it is
provided that assessments shall be
made. He contends that as the ordi-
nances require two thirds of the cost
of paving to be assessed on owners of
property benefited thereby, the laying
of hardening without so assessing
would be illegal.
The mayor has had the city engineer
prepare list of the streets which have
been hardened since 1874, the depth of
the hardening in each case; also
whether or not property owners were
assessed is noted.
The list shows that between 1874 and
1887, forty-eight streets or portions of
streets were hardened with crushed
crushed stone, for which assessments
We're laid on property owners, the as
sessments ranging from 81 to $2.70 per
front foot. In speaking of the matter
yesterday Mayor Farnsworth said Il
claim that the people living on those
streets who have paid their assessments
for this crushed stone pavement laid
several years ago have good reason to
kick when streets adjoining the ones
on which they live are paved without
any assessment being laid
Several years ago Wooster street
was paved between East and Wallace
streets with crushed stone. This por
tion of the street is narrow and the
assessment on property owners was
$2.67 per front foot. Between Olive and
Union streets, where Wooster street is
wider, the assessment was $2.U per
front foot. That pavement is now all
worn out and this seems to me to prove
that it don't pay to pave traffic streets
with crushed stone.
when State street was paved with
crushed stone the assessments were
$2.70 per front foot, between Elm street
and the railroad bridge; between Trum-
bull and Humphrey streets, it was 81
per front foot, and between Humphrey
street and Mill River it was 5000 per
front foot.
Now l am in favor of having some
system about our paving, of some one
who has an interest in the welfare of
the city laying out plan and then
let the city stick to it. I think it a
poor plan to put crushed stone on a
street like State street where there are
two railroad tracks and all other traf-
fic is crowded to either side and to put
a permanent pavement on Orange
street where these conditions do not
exist.
''In 1877 fifteen inches of crushed
stone We're placed on Orange street.
The assessment on owners of abutting
property was $1.7O between Bradley and
Elm, and $19S between Elm and Crown
streets, the last named portion of
Orange street being little wider than
stone had been allowed to remain there
it would have been more satisfactory.
If the money that was used for the as
phalting of Orange street had been ex-
pended in putting down brick pave
ment on State street,I think it would
have been much better.
Il find that from 1874 to 1886 very
few jobs of street hardening were done
without assessments being laid, but
since 1886 seventy-one jobs have been
done for which no assessments have
been laid.
I'm 1883 State street was paved from
Mill River to Warren Place and no as
sessment was laid This is about the
only instance of this up to 1885, when
State street was paved from Warren
Place to the city line without assess
ments.
'It was in this year that street har-
dening without assessments was begun
and it has continued since, although
the ordinance is still in effect. Before
1886, the depth of the hardening was
usually from 13 to 10 inches, but since
that year the depth has been from
seven to eight inches. In 1883, however
Howard avenue was hardened to the
depth Of seven inches and the assess
ment was laid at the rate of from sew
enty cents to s1.34 per front foot ac-
cording to the width of the street at
different points"