The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1907-06-13
Mayor German Secures Consent
of Northwestern to Pave and
Sewer West Main Street
LEAVE GRADE UNDISTURBED
Company Has Agreed to Spend Between
Thirty and Forty Thousand Dollars
for Street improvements in
Kenosha This Year

Mayor James German has won his
long light against the Chicago and
Northwestern Railway Company in
regard to that company paying one
half for the paving and sewer on West
Main street, and after a memorable
half day session on Thursday at the
offices of the company in Chicago the
Mayor returned to Kenosha with
proposition from the company in his
pocket. With this proposition was an
ordinance which the company will ask
from the city in return for the big
outlay that viii be made in footing
the bills for the paving.
Mayor German and w. D. Cantil-
lion, the assistant general manager of
the company, have been ''fussing'
over West Main street for the past
year and half and it al last became
personal matter between the two
men, and when the Mayor went down
to Chicago on Thursday he went for
action. He declared that if the North
western was willing to do this work
he wanted the assistant manager to
say so, and the assistant manager
when he found that the Mayor was
out for business gracefully yielded,
and if the city is willing to accept the
conditions the company will put up
the money for the paving and for a
sewer on West Main street just as
soon as the brick can be laid and the
tile buried.
In return for the company paying
it's share for the pavement and the
sewer the city is asked to pass an or
dinance which will leave the present
railway grade between Middle street
and Elizabeth street as the estab-
lished grade for West Main street,
covering, however, only the territory
between the two streets. The inn
provement, as proposed, will cost the
company between thirty-fve and forty
thousand dollars and the officials of
the company claim that they will
never reap a cent of benefit from the
work save the fact that the patrons of
the company will have better road to
travel to and from the railway station.
The present grade of the railway
between Middle street and Elizabeth
street is in no way Objectionable,
but it is admitted that the railway is
not at the present time at the exact
grade of the street. 1t is most prob.
a BILE that the hundreds Of people who
use the street daily never considered
the fact that the railway company
was in places a few inches from the
grade of the street, but this was no.
ticed by Mayor German and as well by
the railway officials, and to the Mayor
and the Common Council it offered a
splendid whip to force the company to
/ do something for Kenosha. Some
time ago the company took up the
question of assisting in paying for
the paving, and when this had been
| agreed to, Mayor German, acting on
the policy of tWhen you're gettin'
get plenty went to the company
and sprung the proposition for the
company to pay one-half Of the cost
of the sewer on the street.
Property owners on the street have
for a long time been in need of the
sewer and while the company will
probably never get any use out of it
Manager Cantillion has agreed with
| the Mayor to stand one-half the cost.
/ The ordinance is in the hands of the
| Mayor as is the proposition of the
company to pay one-half the cost of
/ the paving, but the Mayor is not go
ing to have any slips in this agree
ment and he insists that the PROPOSE
ton be sent back to the company in
order that the sewer clause may be
properly inserted that it may become
binding on the company. When the
proposition is properly filled in with
the provision for the paving and the
building of the sewer the proposition
and the ordinance will be presented
to the Council for action. 1t is gen
orally believed that the Coun Gil will
be willing to pass the ordinance and
that this action will be taken at an
early date. Under the laws of Wis
consin it would be impossible to force
the Chicago and Northwestern Rail-
way Company to pay one cent for
public improvements in Kenosha not
withstanding the fact that the COM
pany is the owner of large amount
Of land in the city. The Courts of the
state have held that no railway cor
poration can be forced to pay for a
public improvement unless it is shown
thatit is directly benefited by it. Ke-
nosha. has had taste of the working
OF this law as few years ago the city
of Kenosha paved Grand avenue and
an assessment was levied against the
Northwestern to aid;.in paying for
this Improvement. The company de-
clined to pay and went into Court and
tits the opinion of the city attorney
that the city has the short end of the
suit.
Mayor German also took up this
matter with Cantillion in the recent
interview and the Grand avenue
trouble will be disposed of at this
time by the railway company dismiss
I 49, ~. - Z - ~