Semi-weekly herald., 1909-07-12
SIDEWALK SUGGESTIONS.

To the Property Owners of the City
of Durango:
The condition and future OF the side
walks of the city has been the sub
ject OF recent careful consideration
and discussion by the city council and
by the property owners themselves.
II is well known that large num-
ber OF the sidewalks are in greater or
| less need OF repair. and II Is safe
to say that 75 per cent of the side
walks will need replacement at no dis
| tpnt day Increasing traffic and use
OF the walks, with the inevitable wear
and decay, point TO the retirement of
board walks in many parts of the city.
| The unsubstaEtial nature of many
such walks. their aptness TO he or
become defective and out of repair
with consequent danger of damage
suits; their expensiveness durability
| considered) make their continued con
struction an economic mistake. at all
points, and especially in the more tray
eled portions of the city. The cement
| district has been recently extended by
| ordinance to take In the principal
| parts of the city as far east as Fourth
avenue, and on Main avenue as far
north as Brookside, and ii is ques
tion in the minds of many whether
portions of Fifth and Sixth avenues
should not properly have been in
cuded.
Again. the present and past method
of sidewalk construction for years is
productive of many inconvenience
and disadvantages. Successive city
councils have felt called on to alter
grades and curbstones, width and ma
terials of sidewalks, at many points
as experience seemed to render
changes necessary or advisable, and
the resulting tendency is to want oi
uniformity and an inequality OF ex
pense TO citizens residing in the same
general locality, according to the time
when their walks must he construct
ed
Cement walks, aside from the bare
lwrestion of their initial cost, have
proven their superior desirability and
worth in every lQsality and every cit,
where they have been adopted. In ap
DC arance alone they constitute an i'm
provement upon property which en-
finances selling price in every subse
ouent transfer equal TO or in exec.
}ot the cost thereof. While in the mat
| Ter OF durability, board walk mus
be reconstructed and repaired man.
times over while cement walks nee'
lno attention And if the cost oil ce
ment walks can be distributed owe
o the years to come. so that the growt
, OF the city and increasing propert
:, values is made to, in manner, TAX
/, care of the expense of sidewalk cor
struction and the total ultimate cos
of cement construction rendered les
lihap construction and maintenance
N board walks during the same period {
wears, there would seem TO remain n
- ground for hesitation as TO whic
n course Is the more preferable.
n. Under the provisions of the act
1893, pages l51 ct seq OF the Session
Laws Of Colorado of 1893, sidewali
?. may be undertaken and constructe
10 by property owners, under superi
m tendence of the city, by a petition d
n soribing the material to be used al
Va an estimate is made, bidding encoo
Is aged and the contract let. The G
pense may be divided into any nul
IT. ber OF yearly payments, from TWO
es twenty years, as may be found me
ey satisfactory-ten years Is uSua
re more neutrality-suspicious. 10 bear
ry terest at per cent per annuh'
ng A full discussion is desired, ana
this end the city has caused this
dress TO be prepared. The bonds
W. be disposed of and definite arfan
nd ment in regard thereto reached
of any time. oon,,s