Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1917-03-23
AGREE ON bills
FOR ALb TO PAY
FOR NEW Paving
House Gets Favorable Re-
port on Abutting Property
Compromise Plan
URGE ITS ADOPTION
BEFORE SESSION ENDS
STAR Correspondent.

9NAM Correspondents
DOVER, Del, March 2s.-Every ef-
fort is to be made before the Legisla-
ture ends its consideration Of bills
sometime tonight OF early tomorrow
morning to have passed the two bills
providing for the paving of unim-
proved streets and the renewing of
paved streets in Wilmington. The
bills reported favorably from the
House committee late yesterday, are
a compromise, and It IS felt they will
be satisfactory to all Wilmington
members of the Legislature, inasmuch
as they provide that those whose
streets are paved or unpaved shall
pay a proportionate share of future
paving.
OF the two abutting paving bills for
Wilmington one provides for the as
sessment against property owners Of
D portion OF the cost Of existing i'm
proved street pavements. and the
other provides for the paying OF q
portion Of the cost OF future street
pavements.
In this way the objection to all pre-
vious abutting paving bills has been
reconciled in that the property own
ers now abutting on an improved
street are required to pay a portion
OF the cost of such improvement and
therefore have no unfair advantage
over those property owners living on
an unimproYed street who will be re-
Quired TO pay a portion of the cost
OF improving the latter street.
The bill assessing existing improved
pavements is known as the Baltimore
plan and classifies all properties in
the city of Wilmington into three
groups, A. B, c.
Glass A properties are those situ-
ated on streets having roadways over
so feet wide.
Glass B properties are those on
streets with roadway between 20 and
80 feet in width.
Glass c properties are those on
streets with roadway 20 feet or less
In width.
The tax on Glass A properties is 16
cents per year per front foot abutting
on the street, Glass B properties IL
cents, Class c properties s cents. Cor.
ner properties are not assessable for
more than twice the shortest frontage
should both abutting streets be i'm
proved. The tax continues for a per
iod OF ten years, unless a majority OF
the frontage owners petition for the
repaving of the street at which time
the tax ceases.
Property owners who have paid fol
the existing street surfaces in from
OF their properties are exempted. The
city shall keep the streets in repair
out of general funds.
The second bill provides that streets
not improved shall be paved upon pc
tition of a majority of frontage owners
and one-third of the cost of such paw
ing shall be borne by the owners o
property abutting on each side of the
street. The city pays for the pave
ment of the remaining third and thu
intersections.
The property owners may pay TO
this work any time within four months
after its completion and earn small
discount If they elect they may pa,
for it in seml-annual payments eX
tending over a period Of three years
Corner properties are not required Il
pay for more than twice the shortes
frontage, the city paying for tho re
mainder out of the general funds
The city also pays for repairs out o
the general funds. That portion o
the payment for which the Traction
company is liable on streets havinI
trolley tracks is deducted from tn
cost borne by the property owners.