Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-03-25
WOULD HAVE PAVING
WORK GUARANTEED
Resolution Introduced in City Council!
Providing for Guaranteeing the
Work Five Years.

approve a recommendation made in
communication from the committee on
streets providing that contractors who i
lay pavement in the city guarantee
their work for a period of five years.
The recommendation was tabled for
week. The committee recommended |
that surety bond be written which |
would obligate all contractors on hard |
surface street Improvement to make |
good any defects either in material or
workmanship which may develop at
any time within five years after the
work IS completed,
The recommendation which was sign
ed by Chairman Stolz and his associates
Siegmund and Hatch follows:
RIVE, your committee on streets, be- |
ieving that there is a general and
growing demand upon the part Of tax
payers and property owners that a sure
ty bond should be written which will
obligate the contractor on all hard sur
face street improvement contracts to
make good any defects either in mate
rial or workmanship which may develop
at any time during period of five
years after the completion of any hard
surface street, beg leave to recon-
mend to your honorable body that on
all contracts hereafter entered into be.
tween the city and any contractor lay
| ing hard surface improvement, that
provision be made requiring the con
tractor to sign surety bond condition
ed that if any defects shall develop in
any hard surface pavement laid by any
such contractor under city contract
within the period of five years which
may be the result of poor workmanship
or defective or improper material, that
such defects in the pavement will be re.
paired and made good at the expense of
the contractor.
"We recommend that instead of this
surety bond being indirectly paid for
by the property owners liable to the
assessment for the construction of any
such pavement that the premium upon
the same be paid annually for the pc,
riod of five years by the city out of its
annual funds.
"Your committee after giving this
matter much thought believes that the
element of risk which the city takes
applies to all hard surface streets alike
and arises out of three different ele.
ments, first, incompetent workmen,
second, defective or improper material,
and third deliberate design or purpose
upon the part of the contractor. We
feel that the surety bond required by
the charter is not altogether a complete
protection to the city inasmuch as lat.
ent defects very frequently develop
after pavement is in place, which the
most rigid inspection and careful su.
pervisiOn upon the part of the city may
fail to discover at the time that the
pavement is being laid and these de.
fects may come from any of the three
causes assigned above and we feel that
If for no other reason than this that
this class of additional security should
be given to the property owners by the
city at large.
"There is another point that appeals
to your committee strongly, and that is
that there is but one class of pavement
namely, cement concrete, which is being
laid under specifications prepared by
the city and as to the character of
which the city officers and inspectors
are able to judge with any degree of
accuracy as to the material, general
workmanship and accurate compliance
with the terms of the specifications and
contract All other pavements are
either of a patented material with spe.
cial processes Of preparation or else are
constructed of bituminous material re-.
Quiring elaborate tests for determining
the kind Of material entering into the
composition Of the pavement and its
special fitness for the particular pave.
ment being laid, 1t therefore seems
only just and fair for the city to un.
dertakc, at the nominal expense neces.
sary to guarantee all of these pave.
lmcnts by a payment out Of the general
fund by way Of a premium upon a sure
ty bond signed by the contractor and
some responsible surety company, Your
committee would recommend that a sum
, not less than 10 per cent of the estimat
ed cost Of the pavement as computed by
r the city engineer and Incorporated into
the contract, be used as the extent OF
the liability.
"Your committee wishes to state
that the provision in the specifications
calling for saw dust or other protcc
tive covering Of streets constructed
with cement concrete is proposed to be
kept in place under the supervision OF
the street department for much long
er period than has ever been done bo
fore as we believe that this cushion II
knnL nn hn sirnnt will Nery mntnrinllN