Bisbee daily review., 1909-06-19
C|TrS FINANCES
 ARE SOUND
Bisbee VIII Soon Be Free of Debt Except for Improve
 ment Bonds
IN ONE YEAR CAMP TO
 PAY OFF SIXTY THOUSAND

Aside from the water. street ani sewer bonds recently noated. Bisbee will be fres of all outstanding indebt. edness within less than one year. This means that more than s6o.ooo in debts will be liquidated within tha. time. and that for the next five years the city will have only the interest ] cLly the recent bonds to meet.
 The latter obligation will require but an annual expenditure of s19.0oo, thus permitting the building up of q surplus quite sufficient to meet the payment of the pincipal at the exl- ration of the five years. the principal amounting to S300,000. In other words. Bisbee's financial condition i-' gratifyingly sound. of which residents of the cam may well feel proud.
 Added to this laudable condition is the fact, that the 1909 assessments which will be turned over to the common council Monday show an in crease of nearly S1,000.000 in yalua ton over the preceding year. This increase is directly caused by the in crease in the percentage of assess ment, all 1909 assessments having been made on a basis of 75 per cent of the actual property value, while the assessment of 1908 was but 50 per cent.
 This condition makes it plain that the property increase has not been of much magnitude. yet the building re- gently completed, contracted for ard contemplated assures a splendid in crease to be considered in the as s..S.ment Of 1o.0, which, according 10 a rough estimate made yesterday by Mayor George H. Neale should bring total of approximately s5.0o0.000.
 The work of assessment has prac- tically been finished, and when turn ed over to he council on Monday the latter will then make arrangements to sit as a board of equalization. For this purpose they will convene Juiy and will remain in session until July 20 Upon the latter date all increases decided upon will appear in the regular form of publication. The council will again convene on the third Monday in August to receive complaints, and as nearly as possible make satisfactory adjustments.
 Upon their second adjournment the assessments will be final. the tax rate will be decided upon, and the list turned over to the tax collector on the first Monday in September.
 During the session of the council while sitting as a board of >equaliza- tion an amusing. as well as serious. condition is liable to be confronted. 1. It is the work of assessing such property as has been in dispute along certain, highways w1jch the city wished to appropriate for street i'm c,oyement purposes and for which in some cases, the city was required to pay more than what the city off'- cials thought was the actual value.
 Hieh-Priced Properties
 In such instances it will be the duty of the council to assess in ac- cordance with the values as origin ally proclaimed by the property own CTS, to which there will quite natu- rally be some rather energetic com piaints. In one instance, where the city wishes to condemn certain piece of property and use the same for street improvements the owner has placed a price on the disputed property just double what the city deems it worth.
 It remains to be seen what the at titude of the owners will be should the property be assessed in accor1. ance with the value they have estab- 1ished themselves. As a member ot the council expressed it last evening: Maybe some of those fellows want. ing. double prices for their property from the city will think differently when they find that assessments have been made in accordance with their own or original ideas of valua tion-"