The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-02-28
MORE PAVING TALK
Street Committee Meets With
Citizens.
Several Broad Street Residents Ex.
press Themselves in Favor of
Asphalt.

The street committee or the council
met Thursday with the city attorney
and city engineer to consider the mat
ter of doing some paving. Previous
to this meeting, an open meeting was
held in the council chamber, the
mayor, all of the aldermen except Aid.
Heinze, Messrs. Carpenter and Nc
Laughlin of the Barber Asphalt Co.,
and several Broad street property
owners and other citizens being present
Chairman Leonard of the committee
presided and called upon those present
to make any remarks that they desired
to. ...
Mr.. Carpenter was first called on and
said that he would answer any ques-
tions that were asked Of him. A num-
Der were asked. He said that when
Milwaukee had taken up the matter of
street improvement its city engineer
had written to the city engineers of
thirty-6ve leading cities in regard to
the best kind of paving. and the
large majority favored Trinidad lake
asphalt. Mr.. Carpenter read letters
from many city engineers commend
ing pavement made of this kind of
asphalt. He said that no doubt other
asphalt companies would make the
same guarantee on their work as the
Barber Co. and would fulfill their ten
years guarantees, but after the expir-
alton of that time the cost of making
repairs would be more with land
asphalt than with the Trinidad lake
asphalt. Mr.. Carpenter gave figures
to show what it had cost different
cities to keep their asphalt pavements
in repair after the guaranty had ex-
pired. st. Paul used Trinidad lake
asphalt, and Minneapolis used land
asphalt.
Mr.. Carpenter said that Marshall
town, Iowa, put down eighteen
blocks of asphalt pavement last fall,
and already there are two petitions in
to the council to have it extended this
year.. He read letter from the Mar
shalltown city engineer commencing
the pavement.
A. NJ Stein asked whether the pro-
perty owners were not to be consulted
before pavement was ordered laid.
1t would be a hardship on some of the
Broad street property owners to have
to pay for the pavement.
Aid. Leonard assured him that all
would be given hearing.
A. G. Roemer said that he had not
come to protest against the paving.
but to find out what was proposed to
be done. If any paving was to be
done, he favored making start on
Front street, as some of the residents
on Broad street could not afford it.
Clement Schroeder said that when
he was a member of the council he
had favored experimenting with pave
ments If this had been done then,
the city would know more about
different pavements now. He was
now in favor of paving the streets
with asphalt.
Col. Gus Widell said that he had
travelled about good deal and had
found that cities that have asphalt
pavements have the only good streets.
Mankato has every poor streets and
it is time that they were improved.
He was in favor of paving the
streets with asphalt, and would begin
on Broad street. .....
T. R. Coughlan said that he was in
favor of asphalt pavements. He
owned three lots on Second street and
hoped that that street would be i'm
proved. He would be very glad to pay
for asphalt pavement in front of his
lots. He had learned from his travels
that asphalt makes the best pavement.
1t also increases the value of property
and poor people get the full value out
of it. Seattle, WASH, has miles of
asphalt psvements, and property that
could not sell before the pavements
were laid is now sold readily at good
figures.
P. b. Carney said that if he owned
property on Broad street he would
favor asphalt pavement. He had trav,
eled a great deal and had ascertained
that the Barber Co. lays the best pave
ment.
Messrs. Roemer and Stein said tina
they were not opposed to asphalt pave
ment, but even if the payments were
! extended over term of years it would
be hardship to many.
|, Mr.. Carpenter said that in all citieI
where paving is done it is hardship
to some, particularly in the south
, where pelople are poorer as rule thar
| in the north. His company took certi
, fcates at low rate Of interest and die
: not press the people for payment, bu
> used them we'll
Mayor Petersen said that if the cit,
waited for everybody to get read,
s there would be no pavement laid
4 He said that when the Byron an,
. Broad street sewers were laid some O
3 the we'll to do property owners pro
r tested the strongest BE believed tina
r the time has come when MankatC
4 should make start toward havin
lgood streets. He favored asphalt pave