The San Francisco call., 1905-01-19
WOULD CANCEL
THE CONTRACT
Board of Works Consider Re-
fusal of Yorke Company to
Repair Bituminous Streets
PERMIT FOR SPUR TRACK
Give United Railroads Priv
ilege to Build Curve at the
Corner of Post and Kearny
PERMIT FOR SPUR TRACK

The Board of Public Works yester-
day resumed consideration of the 3. M
Yorke Company's refusal to repair bi-
luminous pavements. A resolution was
adopted declaring the contract for
feited. 1t is possible that the board will
itself repair the streets, hiring day
labor"
F. M. Ycrke filed a long communica-
tion in which the course Of the Finance
Committee in refusing to pay demands
for work done comes in for a large
share of adverse criticism. The COM
pany's president alleges that the un-
favorable attitude of the committee
was based on the uncorroborated testi-
mony Of one Henry Brantjen. a dis
charged employe, who had testified
that the capacity of the plant was in
adequate to do the work charged for
repairs in August, which Is denied by
statement of figures showing that
the plant was capable of doing more
than the work charged for. Reference
is also made to the specifications
adopted by Phelan's Board of Works,
which were disregarded on the express
order of Inspector Boone, relative to
the filling in of holes exceeding 21A
inches in depth. The letter says, in
part:
When was assured by the official inspector
that strict compliance, in all cases. with
the specifications would seriously affect the
durability of repairs, +. NJ. Yorke & Co. con-
sented to the deviation suggested by Inspector
Boone. For this the company has been un-
Justly and maliciously abused and maligned
by the Finance Committee. Under the cir
your board that If F. NJ. Yorke g. Co. again
resume the work Of repairing the streets they
will insist. in all cases, upon strict and
absolute adherence to the contract and speci-
fications. If this results - a poor quality of
work let the public place the blame upon the
Finance Committee where 1t belongs.
There is now due F. NJ. YorKe & Co. over
$14, 600 for work upon the public streets. 1t is
quite apparent that, regardless of the business
of the demands. the Finance Committee intends
pers.stently to reject all bills presented by the
to be made the victims of political and re-
ligious bigotry. They will not resume work
until they are convinced that they will receive
honest and fair treatment at me hands of the
Finance Committee.
The resolution resembling the con-
tract was carried by the votes of Com
missioners Aigeltinger and Maestretti,
on motion Of the first named. Commits
sioner Maestretti voted in the negative,
harshly scoring the Supervisors for
their attitude, and saying that he did
not think the board had the legal right
to abrogate the contract, as he consid-
cred that the Yorke company had acted
in good faith. The resolution was then
repealed, as it was not desired to take
summary action. The board ordered a
copy of the communication from the
company to be sent to the Board of
Supervisors, which was also asked to
give the Works Board authority to pro-
ceed with the repairs of the streets on
it's own account. This course will bring
the matter to an issue.
TO PAVE MISSION STREET.
The board adopted a resolution ask
ing authority from the Supervisors for
the bituminizing and Improvement of
Mission street, from Onondaga to Mo-
hawk avenues, for which $80,000 has
been set aside in the budget.
The board ordered Holbrook Merrill
& Stetson to remove its spur track on
Townsend street, between Fifth and
Sixth, or the board would tear it up
Oh it's own account Although the Su-
pervisors grant permit for the spur
the Board of orks never granted a
permit to tear up the street.
Several property owners appealed to
the board to take steps to pave H
street, the contract for which was
awarded to f. M. Yorke, but was can
celed because the formal authority of
the Board of Supervisors had not been
first secured. 1t was said that the
Yorke company had declared that it
would begin injunction proceedings if
the contract was awarded to any one
else, as it had done $4,000 worth of work
before the contract was abrogated.
I'VE have been considering this mat
ter with a view of affording some re-
lief said Commissioner Maestretti,
but the action Of the Supervisors has
put a stop to the work. Bids were in
vited a second time a.-d the prices were
in excess of those made by the Yorke
company. AS some of the work was
already done there seems to be a legal
defect in the proposals that all the
work was to be performed"
THE property owners and residents
are not blaming this board for the de-
lay" said Frank Cornyn. ''The Super
visors are held to be responsible for the
cessation of work. The money for the
Improvement has been appropriated
and should be used. We are COM
PEELED to walk in a foot Of mud on H
street"
GRANTS PERMIT FOR CURVE.
The United Railroads filed a petition
for permission to construct a double
spur track curve at Post and Kearny
streets. This Is the point where the
old spur was torn up some months ago
because no permit had been granted
therefor. The board adopted a resolu-
tion granting the permit, after Man
ager Chapman had informed it that the
new spur would be fourteen inches far
ther away from the sidewalk curb than
formerly.
The curve will be seven feet away
from the sidewalk. Maestretti said
that numerous. requests had been re-
ceived from merchants on Kearny and
other streets that the curve would af-
ford better traffic facilities in the down.
town district.