Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1898-06-23
WESTERN CITIES.


mont
Street and Sewer Director Simmons,
who, with Director Webster, Engineer
Hatton and Secretary Wiley, recently
made trip to Western cities to obtain
Information for thu department, wac
interviewed on Monday relative to whto
was learned. After explaining the
details connected with the trip, he
said:
Our prime object was to ascertain
whether the heating Of dwellings and
business houses could be satisfactorily
performed by a hot-wntor system by
which the water was heated by the
exhaust steam from the engines of an
electric generating plant, and forced
through iron pipes land in the streeta
into radiators placed in the hougea !;
you know that local concern had
Haked the bonrd's perm lesion for lay ing
such pipea and building such a system
in Wilmington, and it was our desire,
bofore granting such q privilege, to
ascertain whether such System had
boon suIfiolsntly popular where used to
warrnnt lite being introduced here.
Wo found such system in La Porte,
Ind, and Toledo, o., and incidentally
the object of our trip waa to gain all
the puints possible upon the methods
of doing work and granting franchises
in other cities on the line of our trip.
I'VE fret stoppsd at Zaussville, o.,
to inspect tho quality of the shale block
which We had contracted for, and to
see their manufacture. We found Zanes.
vile to be very pretty city Of $4,000
inhabitants. with wollpaved brick
Hireots, tina bricks all being manufac.
tured in tho town. GAINESVILLE ia very
well lighted by arc lights exclusively,
which cost $40 rar year ner light Of
!, 200 candle power; the assessed yalua
tion of the property lie S2i, 600, COO, and
the tax rate ia 81. %. based upon full
valuation; fuity-nine iiftieths of the
cost Of all street improvements is liene1
up against the abutting properties, and
10 years are allowed on whicn to pay oil
the lien; the totnl cost of nil sewers 10
also lienad against tho abutting prop.
erty, and altogether the property can
he lienad for public improvements up
10 20 per cent OF it's assessor value.
The ashes aud garbage are moved at
the expense Ut the private householders.
tho money collected by the tax levy
being exclusively USED FOR tho running
expenses of the city. and yet the in
habitants don't seem TO be poor. They
voted unanimously, some time ago, to
| give tile manufacturer, who nseied
to extend bis plant, eight aores of good
| ground, $50, QUO in cash and exemption
| from taxation.
| "Ciucinuati was our next stopping
place. This ia city of $50. 900 people,
governed by mayor aud several indie,
pendent commissions, not unlike Viii.
mington, the Board OF City Affairs
having charge Of the streets and sewera.
This hoard 10 composed of elk men and
is a bipartisan ona, two members OF
which are elected by the people every
year to serve three years. This system
is the result Of strong fight for new
charter In the State Legislature which
has just adjourned. Cincinnati 10 well
paved in the business section with
| granite blocks, asphalt and come fire.
bricks. Ninotysight per cent Of the
cost OF all this pavement is paid for by
the abutting property owner, who also
| phys for the entire coat of the sewers,
removes hia own ashes and garbage,
| sprinkles his own streets and still phys
| Tux rate OF 81. 81 on O saven- twelfths
valuation. The public debt ia $780,
GOO, 600, s26, 600, 600 of which was loaned
to Southern railway several years ago
as bonus for constructing it into the
city. The other 81. 000, 600 is all the
debt owed for public improvements
can and this be wondered at when we
consider that the whole cost of improve.
msnts ia paid for directly az liens upon
the properties benetitedY In addition
very handsome yearly income is de.
rived from the street oar frnnchises
| These companies must lay the full
grooved rail in all the streets; then
they must pay the city annually "a per
lineal foot for each car run and 5 per
cent OF thoir gross annual receipts. Ii
this was adopted in Wilmington We too
| might reduce our tax rate very ma
terially. One of the interesting points
observed in Cincinnati was the perfect
condition OF the surface of the paved
streets. No hills Or holes apparent
where the strosta bad been dug up for
tho purpose OF connecting with under
ground pines, and their Hystem OF pro-
venting this can we'll be adopted by us.
| The telephone and all electric wires,
except the trolly wires, are under
ground.
1.-The prettiest and best paved city
visitad was Indianapolis. 1t has q
population of 1876, 600. and an assessed
Nhluibipu VI CllOyUOUtUUU. In0 lax
rate il but GO cents per 500 upon 70
per cent valuation, but all tho money
so obtained is used for paying tho run
ming expenses OF the city, all public
improvements 10 streets and sewers
being liened against the properties
benefited not only for first cost, but
also for renewals. For instance, if
atrest ia paved this year and in three
or four years again needs paving, the
cost of both pavements is liened NJ.
There are no ashes to move, every ono
burning natural gas, aud the garbage
Ia taken care Of by special assessment.
Psrhhpe the prinuipal cause far the
low tax rate in INDIANAPOLIS, as COM
pared with neighboripg cities, is the
fact that NIL tho money derived from
the liquor license goes to the city treas.
ury. The city ia governed Ivy mayor
and several boarda appointed by him
for two years tor ms, aud as We saw it,
the city seems TO DO well governed.
The class Of pavement ia asphalt, fire
bricks and cedar blocks, the lntier
being in bad condition.
$50 far IA we were able to Judge
Chicago 10 the poorest governed, worst
regulated, dirtiest and worst paved city
we have ever sean. These udjeotiyes
sum up the result of q large city on
tirely governed by politics. The pri.
vate improvements far excel those OF
any other city visitsd, but sftvr day
AMI halfs examination OF tho streets
of Chicago We all oamo to the conclu-
sion .hat it would bD wiss for the city
of Wilmington to get up an excuralou
to Chicago, at it's own expense, and we
feel sure that tine comparison between