Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-01-18
INVESTIGATORS At
LAST REPORT ON
OVERLOOK WORK


tice said: II don't know what your
investigation may hav resulted in, but
l do know thai it has been a thorough
one. / know the people of this county
viii be satisfied with the result you
have reached. l think 1 speak for the
people when l thank you in their be-
half for the manner in which you have
devoted your time to the work"
The court then discharged the com
mission.
building committee Is censured for not
employing architects of "the best .alent
available" A review of the build ng
contracts is given, n the architects,
Hurd & Suson, are blamed for not
stopping the use of the Objectionable
character of stone that was used at the
outset of the building. Tho build .ng
committee was also blamed for not
providing sufficient and competent in
spectors. z
Regarding the stone work the report
says:
Stone Work Criticised.
1t Is quite evident, however, that the
county has not secured the best re-
suits so far as the stone work Is con-
cerned. The responsibility for this
condition in the first instance Is with
the building committee, who were the
active and controlling representatives
of the board. In a building operation
so extensive as this, involving so large
an amount OF money, no quarry should
have been specified and no stone de-
cided upon without a thorough inves-
tieation and expert advice. but nothing
OF that lind was done or apparently
thought OF. So far as he could learn
the stone question was never brought
up in committee at ALL"
The committee is also censured for
not awarding the contract for electrical
work 60 the lowest bidder. The cop
per work, the maple flooring and the
branches of The construction work Is
critfsed for not being up to specifica-
tons. The architects were allowed
their regular 8 per cent. commission
and were paid in addition thereto $l2,-
$685. "A for engineering work. The COM
mission does not sanction that pay
ment, and objects to the allowance of
commissions of 5 per cent. on the
$56, 900 furnishings. This s2,s00, the re-
port characterizes as unnecessary ex-
penditure and waste of public money"
Plan 10 HAY.
A phase of this matter which has
impressed the commission is that at no
time during the history Of the work at
Overlook did the board, the building
committee or the architects have any
clear idea or definite plan as to the
number of buildings TO be erected or
the amount of money to be expended.
AS one group Of buildings was fin
ished it seems to have suggested
others; as Mr.. Sutton expressed 1t, W
grew up to additional buildings" The
only sum Of money to be expended
which anyone appeared to have had In
mind at the beginning was 100000.
Up to this time there has been laid
out over 50. 100000, showing clearly that
no intelligent or businesslike consider
alton was given to the matter at the
time the proposition was launched, and
that no one had taken the precaution
to lay Out the whole scheme in advance.
The report condemns the practice of
purchasing specified patented or special
branded articles which can be obtained
only from the owners. Reference Is
made to laundry machinery, and the
equipment for the leading system.
THE effect of this practise" says the
report, mot only stiles and prevents
honest competition in bidding, but COM
pels public bodies to pay exorbitant
prices" The building committee Is also
criticised for it's loose method of re-
cording the minutes Of it's meetings.
There Were NV chairmen of the public
buildings committee during the con-
struction of the work. Ihe lack OF
b~usiness-like system Is commented up
on in the report.
Careless Expenditures shown.
The conditions revealed by the minute
books of the committee on public build
ings and the testimony of witnesses In
dicated carelessness of expenditure, pre-
vented th%oroughness OF inspection and
left an extraordinarily difficult task to
work itself out headless and inco-
herent.
No doubt nearly all Of the omissions
and faults pointed out in this work
would have been easily avoided had
the task been placed in the hands Of
a continuous body, and large expense
would have been saved the county.
1t was not TO be expected. perhaps.