Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1911-08-03
BOOSTER SUGGESTIONS
CRITICISMS.
NOT

CRITICISMS.
Probably about the least expen-
siVe advertising that a city can get
is the advertising done for it by the
commercial travellers who visit it.
These travelling men talk about tn
towns they visit and can do lot of
good or a lot of harm as the case
may be. They are business men and
when they strike an up-to-date live
town they talk about if to its advan-
tage
improvements either already made
or in the course of being made are
talke6 about. If a city is putting
Il pavements, connecting up sewers
and water pipes preparatory to paw
ing extending and improving its wa
ter system, etc, these things are all
talked about by the travelling men
all over the country and the city is
given some advertising that costs it
absolutely nothing. Now the point VS.
are heading for is this, is Grand
Rapids getting any of that free adver
Using and is it the desirable kind or
the other? 1t is pretty well under
stood 4bat wa ara IN bavo n pauanant
extending from the c. M. & St 2.
depot to the library and now is the
time that sewer and water connection
should be made The ground will
then have cnance to settle before ths
pavement is constructed and there
will be no hollow pockets to cause
trouble after the pavement is down,
Another thing is the much talked Of
widening of Oak street. Why not
stop talking and get to work widen
ing the street? Procrastination new
er got any one anywhere and it is
beginning to look as though the wild
ening of Oak street had been talked
death. We have a Booster organiza-
ton and if they would get behind and
put their shoulder to the wheel, a
whole lot could be accomplished. We
need more public drinking fountains
and we need them on the west side
One more thing is the condition of
our streets. Did you notice, after
the recent rain, the many lakes and
ponds along our business streets? 1t
would not be much of job for who
ever is responsible for the cleaning
and repairing of the streets to have
the mud and accommodations cleared
away from the catch basins
so that the water could flow into the
sewer. The street department might
clean up the market squares once in a
while just as sanitary precaution
against disease The Council meets
next Tuesday and we hope some actor
will be taken to remedy our stree
troubles and do other things to put
our CITY on the map. The attention
of this newspaper has been repeatedly
called to these conditions by differ
ent business men. Some of the bu-
siness men are unselfish enough and
are filled with the real booster spirit
enough to give some of their time
and thought to the real needs of this
city
1t is not our purpose to criticise
unjustIy but as a newspaper. a city
boosting newspaper, to call atten-
ton to what we need to make our
city a real city and put it before the
world in the best light possible.
We want to cooperate in every move
for the betterment of the city and we
invite comment from the citizens.
We would like to have the citizens
write articles on any subject that is
of interest to the citizens of Grand
Rapids; we will be glad to give space
to any worthy article but we DON'T
wan to hear from knockers. We
are out to help build up this city and
whatever criticisms appear in this
paper are not meant to hurt anyone's
feelings but are meant to benefit the
city as a whole by calling attention
to our defects and asking that they
BE- improved.