The herald., 1898-01-21
Conduits and Paving


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The welfare Of the city OF Los Angeies
depends in large measure on the condition
of its streets. The city streets have tor
long time been subject to constant injury
through being repeatedly dug up ana I'M
perfectly repaired by the various corpora
tions- using them. Our streets nave peen
graded and paved at large expense oy ."e
property owners. No sooner mas u s,ree'
been paved than one after anotner y, .hose
using the street or newly priviNsuu ,, ~ ana Nd
so cut the pavement. dig up the Stree. any
replace the pavement on poorly tampee
foundation. and, as a general ruie' WIN
a payement inferior in quality TO wnat mas
been removed. For instance. the innumer-
able cuts on the great thorougniare'
Spring street have had the asphel..
placed, with only three or four excep'ions'
absolutely without the concrete pase
Sides this the character of the asphait IL.
seIf hos varied. The result is series OF
sinks and breaks, and in few years .he
whole work must be renewed on account
of bad condition. .,.ro
Some seventeen years ago. ana pelore
there was a paved street IN the ei'y, "a
proposition was submitted 10 tne ci.S oi
GERS to pave no street until AFTER the coh-
struction of q conduit under srouHo iai sc
enough to contain all the pipes "rress ,rs. III,
to be run in or on such street. win ~
nroposal there was an informal agreement
from several of the interests anecteo'
promising to pay for the use or such con,
duit an annual rental that would nave phiu
she interest and "a sinking fund on the
cost of a sewer planned and construeeea
as conduit. Had this been done no paNeu
street would ever have had to De Gu. or
dug I'D and spoiled. The corporations
wonld also have saved large sum OF
money in paving for such sewer. Even
with the gross and criminal negligence
that so often has been shown by corpora
tions in their street work, they sun hilo
such work very inconvenient ana very ca
pensiye At this time number OF corPor
ations are being properly forced 10 als-
incumber our thoroughfares py piaeiie
their wires underground. The time' theh'
is. ripe and propitious to renew the scneme
for a general conduit for all corporations
or Individuals using the streets below the
surface. The line originally proposed
seems to be the most reasonable anu piac
ticable' one. That is that the corporations
should be forced to use conduit common
to all, under proper and fair regulauohs.
and to pay a sum for the use oil the same
that would in the aggregate pay interest
and n sinking fund on the cost Inc cor
porations would then have better ana
more available conduit at far less COST
to each one than separate CONDUIT ana
pavement cutting and repair 1or eacn IL
independent work had TO be done. Inc
people would also gain greatly by not nav,
ing dozen new pavement destroyers anu
ditch diggers interfering with traInc' en-
dangering health and spelling our costly
streets. No time can be more propitious
for q decided move of this kind than now.
Spring and Main streets are just about TO
be resurfaced. They will be all dug up Tor
this. Now is the time to make the nght
for this essential reform. Old corporations
having present conduits, as LOT wafer
and gas, can be left alone under an ordi-
nance that will require them 10 use the
new city conduit when they renew their
pipe lines. as they must from time 10 time.
Thus such a policy would forever protect
the streets from injury, the traffic from In
terruption and the taxpayer from the cost
OF repairs now due TO defective methods OF
street work.
The time of the corporations now ordered
to put their works underground can be ex-
tended for this purpose most wisely. 1he
city engineer is acquainted with the needs
of our streets and of the easy pracucapii-
ity of the common conduit for all. He Is
heartily and earnestly in favor Oh such
work in the public interest.
Here then is situation in which both
the public and the corporations will beneft
in convenience. The work can be arranged
to cost the public nothing through the in
terest and sinking fund being paid by the
users and to cost the corporations far less
than a number of Independent conduits
would cost, all Of this without hardship
to any one, New connections and all con-
nections should be made by manhole un-
derground or before the pavement is laid.
The chamber of commerce,th Merchants
and Manufacturers association, the board
of trade and the Better City Government
league can do no better work than to advo-
cate this important improvement X.