The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1911-09-07
Concrete Street Paving.

Now that the WORK OF INSTALLING
the waterworks system has actually
commenced and it is promised to be
finished this fall, the question OF do
ing some paving in Leon is being
talked of again, and it would be we'll
for the city council and other inter-
ested parties to take note OF the su-
peror quality and cheaper cost OF
concrete paving which is being used
in many cities. That material for
paving has passed beyond the exper-
| mental stage. There is no longer
occasion for paying from $500 to
$3.50 and upwards per yard for
street paving unless the people pre-
| fer the rubber cement or asphalt paw
| ing. The latter have their advan-
tages, but will probably always be
| cOstlier than plain concrete.
Recently a contract was let at
Marshalltown, Iowa, for concrete
street paving at $1.1S per square
yard for a pavement seven inches
thick and two courses. The average
price of brick paving is $500. At
Marshalltown the saving to property
owners upon street paving at this
price is $1,000 per city block, over
and above other forms of paving
which average close to $500 per
yard. Marshalltown thus obtains for
Ill per city block a more durable
street pavement than Grinnell secur-
ed for $3.0SS per city block.
Commenting upon this remarkable
reduction in the cost of street paving,
the Marshalltown Times-Republican
says:
"While Sioux City has obtained
price as low as $1.1S per yard for
concrete pavement it has been for
pavement made in one course or all
at one pour, as the contractors call
it, which is said to be cheaper form
of laying a concrete pavement than
the two course work. At MARSHALL
town the specifications were for
five inch foundation of one part &C.
ment, three parts sand and five parts
of gravel screened over quarter
inch mesh, and for a wearing sur
face two inches thick of one part
cement to two parts sand. This is
an approved specification which has
been used in nearly all of the sue
cessful concrete pavements and so
far as the base is concerned has been
used for many years successfully as
foundation for brick and asphalt and
bitulithic and various other forms
of patented pavements.
1.-The contractors were required to
bid upon two specifications at Mar
shalltOWn, the second one calling for
the use of crushed rock as the ag
gregate in the foundation in place Of
screened gravel and the contractors
bids for this kind of construction
we're as low as $133 4-5 per yard
The fact that cement has dropped to
81 .06 per barrel and that labor can
now be had for S1.75 per day help TO
make the Marshalltown price posi-
BILE and these conditions should be
seized upon by cities desiring to lay
street pavements at a minimum cost.
''The facts are that this letting
should suggest to all city councils
the wisdom of drawing their specifi-
cations Immediately and having their
letting yet this fall for concrete paw
ing to be done next spring. Contract
ors could then have time in which to
protect themselves from any advance
in the price of materials The diff
ference in the price at Marshalltown
between the use of screened gravel
in the foundation and crushed rock
should also suggest to city councils
the wisdom of utilizing local mater
ials in concrete paving so far as pos
sible. While several of the firms
bidding at Marshalltown made the
same price upon both classes of ma
terial, five out of the eight bidders
bid lower upon the gravel than upon
the rock. 1t is understood that grav-
ell could be had at Marshalltown for
81 per cubic yard delivered at the
work, whereas crushed rock was said
to be quoted at approximately s1.57
per cubic yard on track at MARSHALL
town.
Hives and Prickly Heat Relieved