Los Angeles herald., 1910-04-24
RESIGN, IS ORDER
TO HIGHWAY BOARD
Commission Is Given a MercileSS
Playing by Good Roads
Committee
INCOMPETENCE THE CHARGE
Report to Supervisors Says Body
Is Convicted of Gross
Mismanagement
INCOMPETENCE THE CHARGE

citation of the dilatory and inefficient
tactics Of the highway commission TO
the board of supervisors. The resig-
nations of the aresent members of the
commission and the appointment of
new body to superintend the building
of the county's new highways from
list to be submitted by the civic or
ganizations of the city are demanded.
The communication to the board of
supervisors points out that although
nearly two years have elapsed since the
voting of the 600 bonds for the
construction of the 307 miles of roads
only two and three-fourths miles have
been completed; that what has been
completed is not of the high standard
which the county has the right to eX-
pect for the price paid; that contracts
under which eighty-one miles of road
are now being built were let at an ex-
cessive price, $4,000 more per mile than
estimates of experienced road builders
calculated as the basis for thR issuing
of the bonds: and that contractbrs have
been deferred from bidding on the
roads because of the negligence of the
commission in not furnishing a suf-
ficient quantity of macadam.
Lack of sufficient quarry facilities
has also caused the cost of the Pros
pect avenue roadbed to run much high
er than estimated, although 1t has been
constructed by day labor under the di-
rection of the commission itself.
The members Of the present highway
commission are George II. BiXby of
Long Beach. chairman; Martin Marsh
of Los Angeles and j. w. Calvert of
AZusa.
The communication is as follows:
FAIR WARNING
The advisory committee, for your in
formation and that you may be able to
protect yourselves and the taxpayers of
the county of Los Angeles, submit to
you the following report and recon-
mendations:
At the time the election was called
for the purpose Of securing the ap-
proval of the voters to in effect place
a mortgage upon their homes of $3,-
100000 that they might enjoy the ad-
vantages of a permanent system of
highways extending throughout the
county, you assured this committee
and the voters that before any con-
tracts were let or any appointments
made, that both the board of supervis-
ors and the highway commission
would consult with and obtain the ap-
proval OF this committee.
We now say to you that both the
board of supervisors and the highway
commission have continually violated
their pledges in this particular and
have ignored this committee on every
important occasion, and this committee,
I'm the case of the sale of the bonds,
was obliged to and did resort to the
courts, and thereby saved the tax
payers directly about $150,00O and pre-
vented the sale of all of the bonds at
one time, and thus saved them paying
interest, effecting a total saving of ap-
proximately 100000.
FACING CRISIS
We are now facing a crisis and find
ourselves powerless, for both the board
of supervisors and the highway com
mission insist in pursuing what appears
to us to be a very wasteful and un-
businesslike coure, and the accomplish
ment of the purpose for which the
voters so generously provided the funds
will fail. for we face a serious short
age in mileage and the roads that they
have constructed and are constructing
are of inferior quality, and an aggrava-
tion instead of a pleasure, and con-
stant source of annoyance and will en-
tail a very great unnecessary expense
| In maintenance We find that before
the bonds were voted the taxpayers
were assured:
First-That for $500, 900 a total of SOI
miles of macadam road with bridges
| culverts and other accessories would be
constructed.
Second-That the construction would
begin at once and be pushed to early
completion.
Third-That the delays in calling for
the bond election were due to the fact
that surveys of the roads were being
made and other important arrange
ments were being perfected for the ac-
QUESTION of quarries and rock supplies
of suitable quality for the work con-
templated.
At the present time, one year and
nine months after the bond election
we find:
First-That but two and three-quar-
ter miles of road have been completed
Second-That eighty-one miles have
been contracted for and are under con-
struction in part.
Third-That no adequate arrange
ments have yet been made for sufficient
rock supply for the work proposed.
Is INCOMPETENT
We, therefore, charge that the high
way commission of the county, on its
record, stands convicted of incompe-
tence and gross mismanagement.
The people have afforded them every
opportunity to make good, have eX-
cused delay and cOndoned mistakes, the
flow from it and the other because "tC
err is human"
Because, now it appears that eX-
perience has profited nothing and the
money of the people is being unwisely
expended. the advisory committee be-
leves it is justified in demanding a
change in the administration of 'gooo
roads" affairs.
The advisory committee charges gross
Of h Ii
! important undertaking and bases the
statement on the unpreparedness of the
highway commission to efficiently carry
out it's work, on the inferior quality OF
the exceedingly small amount OF
finished road and on the excessive cost
per mile of the work already con-
tracted.
Taking up each item of the indict-
ment in detail, we say they are unpre-
pared because neither adequate road
building material nor the men to use
it have been provided. Since the first
contracts were let the contractors have
been made to suffer loss because suit
able macadam was not available. Con-
tracts let six months and more ago
cannot show one foot of finished
road Deferred, perhaps, by the ex-
perience of contractors now engaged on
the work. there has been lacking salts
factory competition for other than
grading and concrete work. We say
that the two roads finished, aggregat-
ing a length of two and three-quarters
miles are inferior in quality, because
both are rapidly deteriorating.
The highway commission at first re-