The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-09-22
FOR A CITY PLANT
Mass Meeting Goes on Record in
Paving.
Favor City Doing Work With
Its Own Machinery.
SOME LIVELY TALK.
Joab MuIvane Leads the Brick
Forces.
Bitulithic Is Represented by
Fred Webster.
Figures on Actual Cost of Re-
paving Wanted.

:
cuss resurfacing Kansas avenue voted
; informally last night in favor of a
! municipal asphalt plant to do the
) work. number of Kansas avenue
property owners were present. some OF
the largest owners of realty in the
; city. and together with these We're
others who were tax payers but who
had no interests along Kansas avenue.
About so representative citizens of the
city attended
The attendance was large enough to
insure some net results but there was
d lack of unanimity of opinion, which
might have been expected. In fact
there was dearth OF leaders but the
following business was not popular. A
rev had made up their minds definite
~ on the character of material for re-
Surfacing, others were Indifferent Just
so that work was done and still others
desired further investigation of the
respective merits of brick, asphalt and
bitulithic before arriving at a de-
cision.
Ten petitions requesting the city
council to purchase d municipal
asphalt plant and calling for the re-
surfacing of Kansas avenue were
drawn up ready for presentation but
with the exception of two three all
of the property owners baked at
signing until the matter had been
threshed out further.
Until definite figures showing the
exact cost of a municipal plant of the
size necessary for Topeka, the cost of
operation and finally the cost of re-
surfacing, figuring in all the ex-
penditureS for material. labor and ma
chinery, are presented the petitions
cannot hope to be extensively signed.
An informal vote to secure the
sense of the meeting on the purchase
of municipal asphalt plant and the
tresurfacing of Kansas avenue carried
by vote of "A to Is. The opposition
/ developed was in favor of brick. The
vote was not taken until shortly be-
fore the adjournment of the meeting
during which Joab Mulvane valiantly
aided the fight for the recognition of
brick.
/ A number of those who were pres
ent failed to vote either way. w. 5.
| Bergundthal, eX-mayOr, who was
lshouldered with the responsibilities of
chairman of the citizens mass meet
1ngS to secure revision in the Edison
electric light company's rates, was
j chosen to fill similar office at the
mass meeting last evening.
The chairman introduced +. G. Dren-
ming, the city attorney, who made i
few explanatory remarks concerning the
business of the meeting. He said: ION
my trip to Detroit this summer found
that they were laying their asphalt
there at a cost of from II to IS cents.
All of this done, too, with long hauls,
some of them six miles. Here in To-
peka all the hauling we woulf have to
do would be WITHIN few blocks and
hauling would be a very small matter.
The plant at Detroit cost $15,500, but
there was a whole lot of fancy rigging
about it that we haven't any use for.
Then the way they pay common
labor there too is something. Why
they pay just an ordinary raker $500 a
day and for team they pay 81 a day.
It's all the unions there, and though
they are all right, the wages are Ger
tainly sky high.
1.-THE way they mix this asphalt they
use about 80 per cent sand, about per
cent cement and from to II per cent
asphaltum We have the sand right
here we can get the cement at lola, and
believe that we can get the asphalt
by shipping into Galveston just as
cheaply as they get it in the east. A
$4,000 plant would serve our purpose
here and would answer every need. We
have approximately 100000 square yards
of asphalt pavement IN the city ana
there will be enough for the plant to
do to resurface all oe this.
why 1 was told while in Detroit
that they had saved enough between the
; contract price Tor laying and the price
for which they are laying it now to pay
for the purchase Of their plant INSIDE OF
four months and four days.
Sterne Introduces Resolution.
w. E. Sterne then introduced resolu-
ton declaring it the sense of the meet
ing that the city purchase a municipal
| asphalt plant and that Kansas avenue
be resurfaced with asphalt.
Il should like to know if it is the in
tention of this meeting simply to dis
cuss municipal asphalt plant
and that all other materials aside from
asphalt are disbarred,' said Joab Mui-
vane II understand that the city coun-
Gil instructed the city clerk to advertise
for bids for different kinds of material.
I think that we ought not to act pre-
cipitantIy but to act on simply prelim-
inaries is certainly acting hastily.
think there is no question but what
property owners want Kansas avenue
repaved.''
Il think that the report of the city
engineer showed that brick could not
be used on Kansas avenue said ex-
Mayor Bergundthal.
-sWell. engineers like doctors some
times disa gree returned Mulvane. Il
don't think that any of them say it is
impracticab1e to pave with brick.
At this juncture j. H. FOUGHT, the
North Topeka hardware merchant,
wanted to divorce North Topeka from
the resurfacing agitation. Il don't be-
tUeve there is any need in doing anything
until you have to do it. don't be-
Iieve that l have heard of any property
lowners over there that want any pave
ment."
IN the interests of harmony I trust
that Mr. Sterne will withdraw his mo-
ton said Mr. Mulvane. We ought
to pave Kansas avenue at once. And
I believe that everything considered the
property owners ought to do the re-
paving"
II don't feel disposed to withdraw
that motion" said w. E. Sterne. 81
don't want to make a fight on Mr.
Mulvanes brick plant but 1 think that
it is impractical to repave with brick. "
Brick Man Shows Reports.
E. L. O'Neill, secretary and treas
urer of the Capital City Vitrified Brick
company, then endeavored to show by
a system of reports from engineers
and diagrams that brick had a de-
cided superiority over asphalt.
MIR. O'Neill is, secretary and treas
urer of the brick company, and you