Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1920-02-26
NORTH AND SOUTH SIDE
BROUGHT ONE STEP
NEARER GOAL
STAND FOR A WEEK
COUNCIL DlSPOSES or WHAT
GIVES PROMISE Of BEING MOST
IMPORTANT PIECES OF WORK
DURING THE NEXT FOUR
YEARS--LAWS TO BE FINALLY
ACTED UPON MARCH 30.

The ordinance providing for paw
ing North Ottawa, as unanimously
agreed upon last night by the city
council, fails to provide any changes
in the street car tracks from the orig
inal specifications. In the beginning
the administration made its plans Tor
laying the n. l. h. 4 T. company
rails within the parking provided for
Columbus street north of the Rock
Island railway to the old feeder. Al
the pr\ hearing property owners
advanced the argument that the street
would be greatly enhanced by shift
ing the rails to one side OF the street
or the other and this arrangement
was tentatively agreed upon by the
Board of Local improvements. This
scheme would leave lthe boulevard
free of intrusion.
Opposition TO that idea was voiced
by Public Engineer George h. Farms
worth who assured the council that
to move the street car rails to one or
the other sides of the street, would
violate all the rules Of engineering
symmetry and result in making a
partial botch Of what otherwise could
be made Il perfectly acceptable job.
Engineer Farnsworth announced it
was not his intentions to try to in
fuence the council in altering its
arrangements for beautiiying Colum-
bus street, hut from professional
viewpoint he would advise against
placing trolley lines anywhere but in
the center of the parking. THE final
decision" he said, "is up to the may
or and commissioners, and if they
decide that they want the tracks on
the side of the street, they can have
that change made at any time. This
ordinance does not in any way take
from the council its authority in the
matter, and, after thinking it over
il the mayor and commissioners want
the rails moved to one side Of the
street, that can easily be done at any
time before the actual work is start.
ed"
Ordinance Long Affair.
The business of the nights grind
was given almost entirely over to
reading and approving the north side
ordinance. City Clerk Curtis read
the elongated document from begin
ming to end following which came an
abbreviated debate over the location
OF the street car tracks. After Engi-
neer Farnsworth had registered his
fOndnesS for the original scheme for
disposing OF the n. |. L. & T. tracks
the matter was discussed pro and con
with the result decision will be
finally reached on the point in dis.
pute at a later date.
When all the scores of points con
tanned in the ordinance were ironed
out to the ediiicatiOn of the council
men, vote was delayed as required
by law which makes it imperative
to hold the ordinance over for week
before final passage, until next Wed.
nesday night when the law will final
ly be enacted and the way paved for
getting into the courts with the legal
phases of the proceedings.
South Side Ordinances.
Ordinances providing for the i'm
provement OF the First avenue and
Van Buren, street districts. followed
the north side law, and We're speedily
disposed of. The clerk READ parts
of both proceedings and they We're
subjected TO the same course as fol-
lowed on the north side matter. There
was no discussions of the two south
side laws, that detail having been
disposed Of while the resolutions
were up for disposal before the I'M
prOvement board.