Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1919-07-16

Another huge improvement project
that will add much to the value Of an
immense acreage Of land by prevent
ing overflow and draining water soak
ed soil was put under way Tuesday
afternoon when the board of SUPER
visors let the contract for digging the
new channel Of the Iowa river from the
Hardin county line to the northwestern
limits Of the city. The work involves
Strengthening the Iowa river channel
| and the project Is designated as Iowa
river valley drainage district No. 1.
On bid Of 11.5 cents per cubic yard
for the excavating and $50 an acre for
clearing the land the contract was le
Ito Pollard & Campbell, drainage ditcf
| contractors, of Omaha. There were
| nine bidders, the firm to which the con-
tract was awarded being one of two
| next to the lowest bidders for excavat-
ing and the lowest bidder for clear
| ing.
List Of the Bids.
Tho following were the bidders and
their bids:
Sternberg Bros, st. Louis-Excavat-
ing, 11.25 cents per cubic yard; clear
ing. SIS an acre.
Pollard & Campbell, Omaha-Exca-
| waiting 11.5>c cents per cubic yard; clear
ing $50 per acre.
Thomas & Sweet ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ing, 11J5 cents per cubic yard; clearing,
s!s per acre
Fred c. Morgan. indianapolis, Ind
Excavating, 11.9 cents per cubic yard;
clearing, S65 per acre.
Charles r. Lewis & Sons, Cham
paign. nl.-Excavating, IL cents per
| cubic yard: clearing, $75 per acre.
Mcwilliams Dredging Company, Chi
cago-Excavating 1925 cents per cubic
yard; clearing, cost, plus 10 per cent.
E. j. Stermberry & F. NJ Morton.
Chicag 12.47 cents pei
cubic yard; clearing. SIS per acre.
Dunn Mccarthy Company. Chicago
-Excavating, 1873 cents per cubic
yard; clearing, 800 per acre.
John Marsch, Incorporated, Chicago
-ExcavatingJ 10 cents per cubic yard !;
clearing, 500 per acre.
The low bid of Sternberg Bros, was
rejected because 1t was entirely irreg-
ular. It provided for a stipulated sum
| Of $4,000 when the dredge was deliv-
amounts at later dates.
Will Cost Nearly $2oo, 1000.
The project will cost in the neigh
borhood Of 100000. Based on the es-
innate Of 100000 cubic yards Of earth
to be moved and about sixty acres Of
land to be- cleared the total figures
$175,500. which does not include enSi-
neering cost and any damages that
may have to be paid.
On a cost basis Of 5000, 200, the i'm
provement will run about 100000 over
the estimate Of F. 3. Ingersoll, Of this
city, especial engineer in charge Of the
district. However, the estimate Of the
engineer was made more than a year
ago and since then labor and materials
have advanced. He figured excavating
at 9 cents per cubic yard, whereas the
bid on which the work was let was
lis cents.
The whole cost will be assessed
against the land benefited. The con-
tractor will be paid either by special
drainage warrants or by money raised
by the sale of special drainage bonds
secured by the land benefited.
Is Very Large Undertaking.
The contract will provide that work
is to be begun at once, but 1t Is prob
able that it will be as late as Dec. 1.
before the dredge can be shipped to tho
starting place, set up, q camp estab-
lished and digging actually started.
The contract provides the work Is to
be finished by Jan. 1, 1922, and it Is
estimated that 1t will require not less
than year to complete the work.
Payment is to be made on monthly
estimates of the engineer, go per cent
Of each payment to be held back until
the contract Is completed. o..
The ditch will be fifteen miles long,
ranging from seventy-six to eighty-six
feet wide at the top and forty to fifty
feet wide at the bottom and will be an
average of twelve feet deep.
It will drain 1900 square miles Of
land in Bangor, Marietta, Linn, Lis
comb, Iowa and Taylor townships, and
will benefit 10000 acres. The ditch Is
designed to have fall Of 2.32 feet to
the mile. It is one Of the largest drain
age districts projected in central Iowa
in recent years.
Work With Huge Dredge.
: It is the first drainage district in the
county to be established that Is large
enough to require a floating dredge to
do the work Of digging.
Pollard & Campbell have q three and
one -l1alf yard shovel dredge at Omaha,
which will be knocked down and ship
ped here. The dredge alone will re-
quire six freight cars to move It. It
will be taken to the upper end Of the
district at the Hardin county line in
Bangor township and there set up in
the water. Floating as 1t digs, the
dredge will slowly come down the
channel until the work Is done. II the
winter is at all open, work will con-
tinue thru the cold months with = pos
sible shut down Of q month or two in
the most severe weather.
Petitioners Started Il.
The project was launched late in
1917 when owners of land in the Iowa
river valley petitioned the supervisors
for tho establishment Of the district.
The land these petitioners own Is valu-
able, but is subject to overflow and 10
water soaked in rainy weather. The Pc
titioners posted a bond guaranteeing
the expense Of the cost of tho survey
and engineering data In case the dis
trict was not established.
Those who Detitioned for the district
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