The Greeley tribune., 1903-10-29
CITY COUNCIL MUST BE ECO
NOMICAL NEXT YEAR.
Electric Railway Franchise Dis
cussed.-Grading and GRAY
cling CT Eleventh Ay-
enue This Fall.

this year than they were las wear.
The total difference will be ABOUT
$500. The levy was made by the city
council at its adjourned meetin1 last
Monday evening, and although the
levy is Ii mills as against II mills
last year, the total valuation has
been cut down so that the revenue
will be $685. 20 less. CUmpared with
the enormous levy of the little towns
in the county the l6-mill levy appears
very small.
Last year the total valuation was
ST, 552, 242, which at IA mills gave
S2l, 73l IS revenue. This year the
total valuation of city property Is
81, 800, OlO, which at l6 mills will
give revenue of $50, 1896. l6.
There was more discussion of the
proposed electric railway franchise,
but it was left to be taken up at
special meeting to be announced at
the next regular meeting of the coun-
Gil.
The discussion that was opened
with the introduction Of the fran
chise question bid fair to be lively,
and for time 1T looked as though
there was to be renewal of the scene
when George j. Spear was trying to
secure the Independent telephone
franchise. Mr.. Spear informed the
mayor that the council was perfectly
competent to determine the kind OF
franchise that they would grant for
an electric railway, and tnat the peo-
pie had chosen them as their repre-
sentatives, and that the mayor was
not the council. The little tiff was
brought about by the mayor telling
Mr.. Spear that the land owned by
the old Colorado Northern, upon
which Mr. Spear was figuring for a
station, would not be given him, as
franchise for line to Denver
direct was going to be applied for by
another company, and that was the
line thev wanted to aid. Alderman
Barber suggested that it was better
to wait until such franchise had
been asked for before there was talk
of granting it. Good feeling soon
reigned again.
Eleventh avenue is to be graded
from the ditch to Eighteenth street.
And the work is to be done this rall.
The thing came about so quickly
that the council hardly knew how it
happened. When the meeting opened
a long line OF quiet and scholarly
looking gentlemen were sitting on
the waiting bench patiently abiding
their time to be heard. or to hear
the report of the street committee on
the grading and graveling of Eleventh
avenue and its cross streets. The
men we're Professors Arnold, Abbott
and Bullock OF the State Normal, all
residents Of the streets in question.
This section has but recently been
added to the city and there seems to
have been sort of agreement that if
the section would come into the town
the street should be graded almost at
once. Other streets have, however.
been allowed to slip in and take
precedence. The committee had
consulted with the county commits
sioners, who promised some assist
ance in opening and grading the
streets. But all the com m issioners
would do was to give s2s. The quiet
and scholarly looking men then asked
the councilmen Il the work could be
done, providing they could secure 500
toward the cost. This was finally
done, and the party filed out, still
quietly. The meeting was almost
over and quiet was reigning over the
discussions, when the quiet gentle
men burst into the room, not so
quietly, and offered sl75, which they
had been able to raise in the interim.
The councilmen showed tirmness,
quietly, and the visitors finally prom
ised to make up the other s25 out of
their own pockets. They had been
persuading the county conn issioners,
and B. d. Sanborn, agent for the
Crawford estate, owing most OF the
real estate in the district affected, to
put up the sl75.
j. NJ. B. Petrikin and W. C. Will
son were before the council with
request on behalf of the merchants of
the town for an extra night watch
man. The recent burgaries had
made the merchants feel sort of
spookish and it was thought best to-
have another night man on the
police force. Some of the council
men thought so too, in fact they all
did, providing the merchants would
stand the cost for the month the man
was wanted. In the request there
had been no provlso made for this. so