Omaha daily bee., 1920-02-28
FIGHT CONTRACT
FOR BITULITHIC
ROAD PAVEMENT
Representatives of Omaha
Civic Organizations Threat
en- Legal Action Against
County Awards.

Its the rottenest deal that was
ever put over on the people of
Douglas county, and we are now
preparing to take action, in the
courts if necessary, to stop it."
These were the indignant words
of w. B. Cheek yesterday, regarding
the action of the board of Douglas
county commissioners, in awarding
a contract last Tuesday for paving
the Lincoln highway, from a point
half way between Elkhorn and Wa
terloo to the Dodge county line
with "bitulithic," composition
paving. @ ..
A committee headed by Mr..
Check is hard at work with Francis
A. Brogan, president of the Cham
Der of Commerce and prominent at
torney working out the legal aspect
OF the county commissioners ac-
ton and preparing a campaign to
stop the paving. "-
LIZ ioiioWluS die Oh tllC SOulillit-
tee with Mr.. Cheek and Mr.. Bro
gan: J. E. George, representing the
real estate men; F. L. Nesbit; John
Lionberger, representing the Oma-
ha Rotary club; ]. G. Brewer of the
Omaha Automobile club; Will H.
Wood, president of the Omaha Live
Stock exchange; Clarke Powell,
secretary of the Automobile Deal
ers association; and Frank Whit
more.
Breach of Pledge.
"The county commissioners were
absolutely pledged to brick paving
and to brick paving exclusively, be-
fore these bonds were voted" said
]. f. George. ut was upon this
proposition and promise that the
people of the county voted the
bonds. The present action is abso-
tutcly breach of pledge"
The pledge is to be found in the
county archives. 1t was written and
signed by the five county commits
sioners May 9, 1919, and. without
the preamble, is as follows:
For the purpose of meet
ing this situation, the undersigned
constituting the board of county
commissioners of Douglas county,
Nebraska. do hereby state, agree
and pledge that il the said bonds
are voted. the proceeds thereof will
be expended only in the construc-
tion of brick paving on the high
ways described in the resolution
adopted May /, 1919, by the board
of county commissioners of Douglas
county, Nebraska, and substantially
in the order named in the said reso-
luton"
(Signed)
THOMAS O'CONNOR,
SOPHUS NEBLE,
\. d. COMPTON,
CHARLES UNFIT,
H. +. M'DONALD."
But Five Miles of Brick.
In spite of this pledge, the county
commissioners asked and received
bids for "bitulithic," concrete, as
phalt and brick paving.
When the bids we're opened last
Tuesday there were found to be four
bidders, these covering only part of
tn. roads on which bids were asked.
That afternoon the commissioners
awarded contracts to the Allied
Contractors, Inc, for paving the
Lincoln highway from the end of
the present paving to the Dodge
county line, distance of little
more than 1888 miles.
Only 5.33 miles of this is to be
paved with brick. The remaining
IL miles is to be paved with btu
lithic," a composition material for
which the man who presented its
claims before the board declared
they would give "a guaranty of
just what your specifications call
for, which is none at all" He
said, however. that lit would be
good" paving.
Composition Cents Lower.
The price at which the brick paw
ing contract was let was $5.25 a
square yard or approximately $55,-
900 mile. The price for the "bitu-
lithic" was $435 square yard, or
approximately $4,000 a mile.
The bid of the Allied Contractors,
Inc, was Just cents lower per
square yard for "bitulithic" than
that of William Horrabin of Iowa
City, la. 1t was 10 cents per square
yard lower than that of the Hugh
Murphy Construction company.
The county commissioners rea-
son, given for paving more than
two-thirds of the first stretch of
Douglas county roads with "bitu-
1ithic," is that they can't get enough
brick.
"We can't get more than enough
brick to pave four and half miles
of Douglas county roads with brick
this year," said Commissioner
Neble.
"How do you know that?" he was
asked.
well, the brick men say So" he
replied.
Even Concrete Preferable.
County Commissioner H. F. Nc
Donald was the only commissioner
who voted against the "bjtulithic''