The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-10-24
DEPL ORE TASTY CONSIDERATION
 OF ARCHITECT


 Former Senator George B. Clark, asked why four members of the Board of Education voted against ern- Dloying a High school architect at the meeting. last night, said, today:
 "I was opposed to making a snap judgment. I was opposed to dncurring an expense for which no funds had been appropriated. Out of town archi- tects had been invited in. They were entitled to deliberate and fair consideration of their proposals. It would, in my judgment. have been an error, to take on so large an expense in so hasty manner"
 Lynn w. Wilson, who also voted against contracting with an archi- tect, said:
 Assume that the board employs an architect under such conditions. It will owe him for his work. This will be a deficiency Once this deficiency exists, any taxpayer can get an in Junction preventing any board from making an appropriation to pay it.
 'sThe East Side needs a High school. It needs it badly. The whole city needs it. Not to have it causes a large waste of the funds of the tax payers. It cannot be designed nor Indeed. the board desires to resort to those general powers, it is presum- ed to have, by which 1t can meet school needs, regardless of the att1-
  ernment- This course which should be taken only in desperate case.
 '"The ground which has just been gained was hard to gain. It will be easy to lose. Public boards must spend no money until they have tt.''
 When the Board of Education re- fused. last night, to proceed with the GOT GontTact @ Wlth @ an & architect % to design bers in the negative were not ae- tuated by trihing motives They were not seeking delay.
 .They were trying to keep for the people certain advantages which have come after prolonged and painful struggle, following many years of az itation-
 'sThe charter says that obligations shall not be incurred where no ap- propriation exists from which to meet them
 The charter says that if such an obligation is incurred, appropr1a- ton shall be made to pay it.
 "It Is an old evil fully described in the LiH report
 "Disobedience precipitated the in junction against the Bridgeport Con struction company, and other 1n5unc- tions against the payment of all de- fiency claims These claims were that the practice would terminate
 'twhen Mayor Atwater took office, he caused a six mill tax to be laid, for the purpose of cleaning up ac-
  start, and to live under the law.
 "It is true that the city attorney sent in through one of the members an opinion. The first half of the cation cannot employ an architect II 1t has no money available.
 ''But the second half says that the board can employ an architect if he will agree not to ask any pay, unless an appropriation is subsequently made"
 The opinion of City Attorney John A. Cornell given to MT. Challenger is as follows:
 "Replying to your recent inquiry, is is my understanding that you de- sire to know whether there would be anything illegal in the Board of Ed time authorizing the employ ment of an architect for the erection of a pro- posed new high school. In connec- ton herewith you submitted the, faet a9a for this purpose but that a. site has eben Selected upon which it is ultt- antely proposed to erect such d high school.
 ''If there are no funds available to pay an architect who might be re- tained by your Board, your Board power to hire him except under ex- ceptional conditions which do not understand exist.
 However, there is nothing to pre- vent your Board from adopting a res olution designating a particular ar- chitect as the architect who shall pre- pare the plans and specifications and supervise the erection of such a high school provided said resolution is so worded as to make clear the fact that the Board is not making 8 present commitment but that the services of such architect shall be ultimately made to depend upon the Boards later having at it's disposal sufficient funds to meet the obligation and pro- -cy1Sey does not arise there shall be no 1tabil- 3ty on the part of the Board.
 ''In other words it is entirely pos sible for the Board of Education to retain a particular architect for work to be performed in the future, pro- vided that the liability of the Board Tn connection with such retention is made dependant upon the availability Of funds to perform the work