The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-02-28
CITIZENS ADVOCATE
 PAVING OF STREETS Prominent Tax Payers Urge
 Street Improvement ENHANCES CITY VALUES H-I
Good Street Paving Makes impression On Visitors-People of Brming- ham Are Now Able to Pay
 for Improvements.

Yesterday N. L. Miller. the well known lawyer, and c. B. Mccormack chairman of the board of the American Trust Com pany and Savings bank, discussed the matter of street improvements in Bir- mingham.
 T am a great believer in good streets" said MT. Mccormack, "and I thoroughly agree with twhat has been said in The Age-Herald in regard to this matter. believe that the streets of the city should be paved with the very best material that can be procured and paved as soon as possible.
 ''The people of Birmingham are able to pay for these improvements at present and for that reason this is the best time to improve the streets
 T do not think that any inferior paw Ing should be used. That which has to be repaired so frequently is very expensive. and 1t is never in condition. For instance there are maeadam streets in Brming- ham that wash badly in rainy weather. That paving is not good where there is grade, for it washes so badly that it is always full of ruts and holes.
 T am always glad to pay for street i'm provement assessments near my property for 1t improves the value of the prop erty
 "There is another big feature to street improvements It makes an impression on the stranger in the city that nothing else does If a man spends Q few hours in Birmingham and sees that the streets are well paved he naturally goes away and mentions that fact to his friends. He is favorably impressed and tells others about it.
 q do not know what the conditions ln Chattanooga are at present, but some years ago that city was far ahead of Bir- mingham in it's pavings.
 q certainly favor the street improve ments'
 MT. Miller's Views.
 Mt Miller said:
 'I am in favor of street Improvements and commend the effort of The Age Herald to increase the interest of the public in this matter.
 "Teh improvement of streets is a busi- ness proposition which should be carried forward with judgment and discretion In determining upon the cahracter of the improvement the board should keep in mind the uses of the streets and the pres ent and prospective value of the prop erty to be assessed with the cost. More of the streets should be paved with high glass pavement, but it would be unjust to put the most expensive pavement on those streets which are little used and which are abutted by cheap property
 "The indiscrimnate demand of the pub lie for street Improvements is unjust and finds it incentive in that selfshness which prompts the user to demand good streets and neither knows or cares whether they be economically built or their cost equitably apportioned.
 Tt frequently happens that in building new streets and establishing new grades, parts of the property abutting the new ly constructed streets are greatly dam aged and the custo moi the city to arb- trarily opportion and assess the cost per front foot, both in changing the grade and in building the street, is unfair and works great hardships.
 No method of appeal from the action of the board has been provided and the general approval of those who use the street without paying any part of the cost of the improvement should not make the board careless of the rights, or deaf to the demands of the individual prop erty holder who is subject to be assessed with the cost.
 Let no mere kicker or obstructionst stand in the way, but let the board carry forward the improvements and then give more consideration to individual rights in the changing of grades and apportion- ing and levying of assessments.
 "If it will do this, a great deal of the opposition to street building will dis annear