Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1920-12-31
TWO MILES OF ROAD
BUILT HERE IN 1920
Trustees Have Made Ready Their
Report for Year

More than two miles of permanent
street. 400 feet of sewerage, 2)0 yards oil
sidewalk and a reorganized fire depart
ment are among the features of the
report of the Village Trustees for their
administration during 1920. These
Improvements and the probability of a
decrease in the taxpayers toll the
Board will present to the voters at the
annual village meeting on January 49,
In an interview with the Register
Robert F. Pinney, chairman OF the
Board Of Trustees. stressed the point
that in spite of the criticism that had
been directed toward the alleged ex-
travagance of the 1920 administration
of the village affairs, their report would
be satisfactory recommendation to
the taxpayers. The salient points in
the report he enumerated as follows.
A little more than two miles of per-
manent street had been built in the
village since Spring On the west side
Of the bridge two fifths of mile ex-
tending from the N. S. Foote place on
College street to the Catholic church
and then east to the Mary Tilden cor
ner; on Seymour street another two
fifthS of mile was built from the cor
ner Of the Congregational church to
the Doctor Martin place on Elm
street. two fifthS of a mile was built on
North Pleasant street from the 6. Z.
PinneY place to the village limits at
Hunts greenhouse. OF this last all
except 2o0 feet had been built in 1919
but was washed out in the freshets. re-
quiring its complete renovation this
year. 1t was resurfaced two loads deep
and with the remaining 200 feet built
new. There was three tenths of a mile
built on High street from the corner
of Elm to the f. P. Wood residence.
Beginning at CartmelPs garage on
Washington street one half mile was
built to the Wright place at the cor
ner Of Seminary and then down that
street to the Wainwright residence.
The total cost of the roadbuilding was
$l97S9.S9.
The approaches to the bridges were
given to a contractor for bid of $1,000
In fact the actual cost was found to be
only s2364.S5, substantially less than
the estimate. Incidentally the town
paid only Sl342 for the construction
Of the roadbed over the bridge instead
of the $500 of the contract. The diff
ference between the contract price and
actual cost of both of these jobs is
explained by rebates allowed by the
contractor to the village and town for
material.
The four hundred feet Of sewerage
was laid with 1S inch cement tile. One
of the drainage problems solved was
the remedving of the South Main
street nuisance which had each spring
caused flood i'll that locality, neces-
stating the use Of axes to permit of
traffic The IS inch tile was used there
and is expected to have done away
with the yearly freshet. The cost of
the sewers was Sl0OO4l.
The care of the village parks neces-
STATED an expenditure of $25000, the
biggest item of which was labor.
The reorganization of the fire depart
ment. merging the three companies
INTO but one. marks a departure in the
management OF the FIRE fighting
force. The Battell Hose house was
abandoned for the more commodious
quarters of the Volunteers of 'SS on
Main street. The new truck has made
the local department one of the very
best in the state. the size of the town
considered. and much better than that
OF certain larger communities, accord
ing to the opinion of an expert who re-
Gently made a survey locally in the in
terests Of the Fire Underwriters. The
new home of the department is owned
entirely by the village. while the other
house is situated on leased land. The
cost of the equipment for the depart
ment was S9990l, including the ex-
pense for the new truck, $500, of
which the college has promised to pay
one quarter The salaries OF the mem
bers and the costs of the few alarms
rung amounted to S96O68.
The village stone crusher required
repairing to the amount OF sl575.56 in
spite of a similar expense the last
CONTINUED on page four