The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-06-07
ARE AT 1T AGAIN.
City Commissioners Divided on
Sewer Question.
Tandy and Bone VS.. Mayor Bill.
lard, Miller and Holman.
'sTHEY ARE THE ITS :"
Miller Mechanics Members OF
Opposing Party.
It's Claim City Contracts Are i'm
Grave Danger.
THEY ARE THE sITS.' !"

The breach between the board of
city commissioners was opened today.
War has been declared between them
and from now on the people may be
expected to witness a real, old time
contest between the reorganized reg
ulars" and the Insurgents.
The matter of allowing to the sewer
contractors, MCGUIRE & Stanton, por-
ton of their final estimates on the
construction work in Kenwood and
not obeying to the letter the law as
stated by the city contracts has open
ed hostilities between, the city COM
missionerS-with Commissioners Bone
and Tandy on one side and Commits
sioners Billiard, Holman and Miller
on the other.
Commissioners Bone and Tandy
claim that in voting to allow the sew
er contractors money for their work
instead of holding up this sum for a
maintenance purpose, the other COM
missioners have destroyed the effect of
the city contracts and have ruined the
specifications of the future. Commits
sioners Miller, Holman and Mayor
Billiard claim that in allowing this
honest sensible man would do-and
that the city has been in no way
placed in a dangerous position.
In few words here is the story:
Mcclure & Stanton built a sewer
for the city. They have finished it
and came before the city commission
ers for their money. They also did
$1,700 worth of extra work on the
sewer that was not in the contract
but was absolutely necessary. They
asked for this money but the commas
sioners claimed that they did not have
a written order from the city engineer
for the work and they would not allow
it, Then the contractors asked that
they be given a portion of their final
payment to pay their bills. 1t is the
custom for the city to hold up this
last estimate in order that all repairs
on the sewer for a year might be &C
complished by the contractor and the
city would feel safe. Tandy ana Bone
stuck to this custom. Miller, Holman
and the mayor thought that the con-
tractors should be given five per cent
of the money and give bond for this
amount. The remaining five per cent
should be kept by the city. A vote
was taken and Tandy and Bone held
together Holman and Miller also did
the same and Mayor Billiard gave the
deciding vote in favor of the contrac-
tors.
Thus the division of forces.
In an interview this morning Mr..
Miller takes a shot at the statements
given forth editorially by the morning
paper and at the commissioners who
"slipped" the alleged facts" to this
paper.
should take the pains to give the morn
ing paper some of the facts and very
would throw an entirely different light
on the matter-in other words, the
whole matter has been garbled to the
extreme
Then Commissioner Miller gives the
two sections of the commission nick
name. He says:
1.-THE fact that the It's voted one
way and the Ants the other, which
was purely accidental, is probably re-
sponsible for the editorial. 1t is an
easy matter to see just how this thing
should happen as it did"
In response to this commissioner
Bone fumed
Il don't believe 1 would say very
much about this vote if had voted the
other way" he said. 1T is serious
matter and will ruin the effect of the
city contracts 1t isn't the right thing
to do
In his statement supporting his vote,
Commissioner Miller said:
'rThis matter has been misreprese
to the people. No statement was made
to the effect that he hree commission
ers required the contractors to give bond
for the amount returned-this is the
same bond that the city used to re-
quire-and nothing else. The city is
secured in the same manner as in
years past and therefore fully protect
ed. There is an honest difference of
opinion between the contractors and
the city engineering department as to
whether plans for certain work done by
the contractor were placed on file and
presented to the contractors when they
bid on the work. The fact that the
part of the plans under which work
was done were not approved by the
council leaves open to question wheth-
er or not they were presented to con-
tractors when bidding on the work.
Every member of the city commits
sion agrees that the contractors did the
work and in all justice they should be
paid for 1t but owing to certain clauses
the commissioners could not legally do
so and were compelled to refuse pay
ment for work done. Under conditions
above mentioned and also owing to the
fact that work has practically been
completed for several months the COM
missioners voted in favor of taking A
maintenance bond in place of one-half
the cash deposit which fully protects
the city. We did this as matter of
justice, not depriving the city of one
cent of money or giving contractors
one dollar they were not entitled to-