The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1916-09-01
Others Also Who Opposed This
Sort Of Operation
TALKS TO CITY COUNCIL
Bids For Various Work Were
Opened BY CounciImen
Today
From Mondays Daily.


Clark street between Parsons street
and the Silver Ravine shall be cut
down eight or nine feet or shall re-
main as it is, was the question OF
a lively debate that occurred this
morning at the regular session of
the city council.
There appears to be a sharp divf-
sion of sentiment between those ow-
ing property on the north and south
sides of Clark street. Those on the
north side, which is lower, are gen.
orally in favor of cutting down the
street, while those on the north side,
already perched pretty high above
the "cameI's hump" claim that they
need that hump to climb up and down
upon. ".i
Some time ago petition for this
change in the level of the street was
filed by John WI Schmitt and sew
en- or eight others. The council set
this morning as the time to hear ar
guments pro and con, but no action
on the matter was taken by the coun-
Gil. Mayor Lamm stated that the
proposition would have to be acted
upon in the regular course of bust
ness, according to the procedure
prescribed by law.
- Matter of Public Necessity.
Mr. Schmitt argued this morning
that this Improvement was matter
of public necessity. A person pass
ing up or down the Silver Ravine
road could not tell that there was a
city on the other side of that hump.
Silver Ravine road was too narrow
and it would be necessary to cut
down that hump to widen that road.
The petitioners were willing to stand
the whole cost of the grading and
would take care of any pipes that
might be exposed by the cutting down
of the street. The block on the
north side of Clark street should be
cut off into lots and improved. The
city was growing and those lots were
needed for dwellings. He said the
objection had been made that Pros
pect avenue, already very steep, by
which Prospects Heights was reach
ed, would be made still sleeper. He
did not think it would matter much
as that route already was one that
was filter to be travelled by an ele-
vator than by anything else. He sug
gested that Lewis street afforded a
better route for the people of Pros
pect Heights to come down town
He argued that the benefits from the
improvement would be far greater
than any damages that would be
done. The people on the south side
of Clark street who already might be
said to use ladders to get to their
homes, would not be materially dam
aged by the addition Of few more
rounds of these ladders. 1t was not
intended to change the height of the
sidewalk on the south side of Clark.
Opposition Is Heard.
Attorney Ivan Bowen, speaking
for the opposition, declared that
the cutting down of the street as
proposed meant the benefiting of the
property on the north side of the
street at the expense of that on the
south side. Mr. Bowen remarked
that the petitioners were willing to
pay the cost of the work of the grad
ing but he asked whether they were
willing to pay any damages by which
the city might be liable, on account
of harm done to the property on the
south side of the street.
Jay J. F1achsenhar declared that
with the street cut down as was sug-
gested he could not get in and out
or down with coal and other loads.
Others who spoke against the pro-
posed change in grade included E. G..
Willard, w. W. Davis, M. G. Willard
and H. J. Roberts. A written re-
monstrance was filed, signed by
ri 1ah I lot oh L r
Roberts, E. C. Willard, w. w. Davis
and M. G. Willard.
Bids For Concrete Slab.
Bids were opened on the construc-
ton of the concrete slab over War
rem creek near the normal school.
Fowler & Pay bid $5OS and S. X. Fow-
Ter $3.50. The city engineers estim-
ate was $432 The contract was
awarded Mr.. Fowler.
Bids were opened also for the curb
and gutter work on Byron street and
James avenue. Johnson Brothers
bid 63 cents a lineal foot; Fowler &
Pay, 81 cents; S. X. Fowler, 81 cents;
and A. j. Lundgren, CT cents. The
contract was awarded to Fowler &
Pay on the understanding that that
firm would sublet half the job to S.
X. Fowler, as these two bidders
were tied for low.
A petition from property owners of
Fulton street was present, asking for
water mains. The petition was
signed by George Polchow, G. G.
Johnson, Albert Thurber, Hugh K
Jones and others.
There was some discussion of the
question whether both sides of the
street could be assessed for the wat
er mains as some of the lots could
get water from another street. City
Attorney Phillips was of the opin-
ion that both sides could be assessed
The matter was at length referred
to Councilman Peterson to investi-
gate and report at the next meeting
The assessment for grading the al
leys in blocks six and fifteen of Van
Brunt's addition was confirmed; also
the assessment for the sanitary
sewer on Thompson and North Sec
ond streets.
The bonds OF Lars Overn for the
construction Of the storm sewer in
West Mankato, John Mccall for the
water mains in Dukes addition, and
C. M. Masters for the plumbing in
the city hall building, were accepted.
The council accepted the alley paw
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