Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1922-11-02
FORBES ANSWERS
CLAY ON ROAD TAX
Richmond, Ky-I Nov. 2, 1922
} the Editor of the Register.

/; 10 the EdItor OF tHe Register,
: SIR
/ Answering Mr.. Be T. Clay's ar
ticle on the 20 cent road tax.
{ In regard to the IS35,OO0 bond
Issue for the constd dlction of the
Clay's Ferry BRIDGE these bonds
were held up, and Dot issued, as
stated by Mr.. Clay5 because Of
conditions arising oft of the war.
When, later, conditions became
favorable to building this bridge,
Fayette county was! not able or
ready, to provide hek part of the
cost. Now, slice thefDixie High
way has become a Federal Aid
road, it is unwise for the two
counties, jointly, to undertake
this proposition, when it is only
a question of verb few years
before the Federal Government
will participate in thS work. The
Court, therefore, dedided that it
was fair to the voters to spend
this money on the pike leading
to this bridge especially when}
the State and Federal Govern
ments together were paying IS
cents to Madison oounty's 25
cents in the construction of this
road.
The contract price on the Lex
ington pike is not $4,000, but
$4,000, BUT Madison county is
paying one-fourth of this, or
So, 500 for I miles Of concrete
road. In other words, Madison
county is getting 7 miles of high
grade concrete road for about
the price of a good macadam
road, and i'll addition, is getting
rid of the maintenance of this i /
miles forever.
As regards the proposed $780,
600 building only the proposed
road to Mckee. There is only
scant 3 miles of this road to be
built as new proposition in
Madison county. About year
ago [ made a survey and plans
and specifications for FL miles /
of State road in Perry county,
which is well known to be one !
Of the toughest counties of the
state, geographically speaking, !
and this two miles of road is far :
more difficult than any part of
the Big Hill. However, the con-
tract was let for this road, ,toi
Codell-Byars Co., of Winchester, !
for $87.671. s or a cost of aboutj,
$41.750 per mile. The new road
up Big Hill can be built for one
half of this cost and has been
estimated by the State Highwav
Department at 100000, of which
Madison county will only pav
If the proposed 100000 was
divided pro-rata among the IS
miles OF the state primary srs-
tenn, the amount would be $346S,
per lie, BUT the actual amount
Of state road in the county, bv
survey, is S5.l1 miles. OF this
1.96 miles is already under state
contract or maintenance, leaving
4 balance Of only So miles and
If this So miles two are now up
o state standards but have not
been taken over because they
ire isolated sections, 80 that the I
actual mileage to be handled by
he proposed tax is only 81 miles.
For our $300,0o0 the state put;
Up a like amount and the Federal
lid plan will add something be-
ween Sl5QO00 and 100000 more
making a total amount avaiia-
Die of between $4,000 and ;
or approximately $15,-
100 per mile.
A great many of the advocates
# this proposed 70 cent tax are
moderately large taxpayers, to
,ay the least. and some of the
argest in the county are in ia
ior of it. In this connection, it {
should be borne in mind that the !
:. & N. R. r, pays about one
sixth of the total county tax and