The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-06-20
PAVED STREETS AND PROGRESS.
A Sure Way OF Testing the Material Develop
ment OF an American City.

mont OF an American City.
There is no surer way Of determining the
growth Of an American municipality In respect
of material development than by comparing the
relation which its paved streets bear to its un.
paved. Tho civil engineer is an important
functionary In the foundation of municipal
corporations In the United States, and espe-
cially in such OF them as are in the region west
of the Alleghanies. But street pavements are
expensive. and IL is not until a city Is opulcnt
enough to enjoy tho luxury Of q big municipal
debt and a large credit that the question of
modern and improved payments secures ade-
quate attention.
In Boston. for instance, one of the old cities.
there are 3l2 miles OF paved and 40 miles Of
unpaved streets. In Baltimore there are 3o6
miles Of paved and only ~ miles OF unpaved
streets. In Philadelphia there are 942 miles of
paved. and 433 miles OF unpaved streets. But
in the newer cities OF the country this condition
Is reversed, and Chicago, which has 1000
miles of paved, has 1900 miles Of unuaved
streets. In st. Louis the number of miles of
paved streets is $40 and of unpavcd 500. In
Omaha there are 81 miles Of paved streets and
450 miles OF unpaved. In Minneapolis, a city
which is growing rapidly In population. there
are SO miles of paved and 500 miles OF unpaved
streets. In Brooklyn there are 515 miles OF
pa'Ca uAu w. liC u uhphNC Gu slTeetS, Inc
pavement OF Brooklyn streets. which is now a
subject OF local grievance and complaint, shows
a certain backwardness, which 1t is expected
the Greater New York project will do away
with by making available the municipal credit
necessary for the issuance OF bonds for new
avement At the present time more than 26O
miles OF Brooklyn streets-moro than one-half
of tho whole length Of paved streets-have the
primitive unsatisfactory and unpopular cobble-
stones. There are ITO miles OF streets paved
with granite. 90 miles; especially In the neighbor-
hood Of tho parks and %parkways, macadanlized;
al miles paved with Belgium blocks, 40 miles
with asphalt, and l mile with a still more
primitive method, practically unknown 10 New
YORK, though quite familiar In Philadelphia
brick enc 4 meeting. WAS held in the
annexed district OF Brooklyn last week for the
purpose OF egitating the question OF the i'm.
provement OF the pavementso oil that city. hut in
this respect, as In some others, Brooklyn, for
obvious reasons, is much behind New York.
In TINS city there are no streets paved with
brick, and there Is less than one-quarter of a
mile OF cobblcslone pavement In all. This is to
ward. There Is n small section of tOwn-a
portion OF one s~treet-paved with wood, but
wooden pdvements have long ago been voted u
failure in practical. operation in New York.
The city has 1875 miles of granite, li2 miles OF
michdamized roads and streets. "a miles OF
asphalt. and 30 miles of Belgium pavement.
The city OF Philadelphia, much larger trrritori.
ally than New y rk, has 1871 miles of BELGIUM
block pavement. l72 OF asphalt. 1862 macAdam,
10 OF %vetritei brick, J. of granolithic, 3 of Stag.
and nearly 200 or cobblGstOne. The growth OF
an American city is shown clearly by the mum.
and IL 10 believed by Public Works officials that
after Jan. |, 1893, there will be a visible i'm.
provement in all the pavements of the city out.
side OF its present boundaries.