Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-03-22
B00z DEFENDS
$4,000 bills
Aldermen Can Expect More
Bills, According to Special
II R. R. Crossing Engineer
EXPERT ADVICE COSTLY
May Cost City $10,000--M
Deadlock on Plans With
Railroad Engineers

Louis p. Booz, Jr. the engineer
engaged by the aldermen to repre-
sent the city in the grade crossing
elimination proceedings. this morn
ing made a statement in defense OF
his bill for $4,000. which resulted
in a battle of words between MEM
bers of the Board of Aldermen at
their meeting Monday night. Mr'
Rooz maintains that his charge has
not been excessive and 1ntlmateS
that more bills will be Forthcoming
.rom him before he has completed
his work for the city. He polnts
cut that the securing of expert al
vice. that of Professor SWAN h
Harvard University, is in ;tseir
big item and states that .Wneh ne
was engaged by the councll ne toio
the aldermen that the cost OF TINS
engineering work would ne at ieas'
$4,000.
Mr., Booz denies that there is any
deadlock between the city ana the
railroad as the result OF the iorlnet
refusing to accept the rallroads
plans and the latter refusing u az
eept the city's.
'rrhere is no deadlock in regard
10 the elimination of grade crossins
mere, Il1e DIOpOSlliOb 10 la'>A'S
regular course of procedure that an
similar matters take before the Pub
lie Utility Commission. In all cases
like this the parties interested pre-
: sent their own data and plans ana
The Utility Board then acts on the
evidence submitted, this action being
in the form of an arbitration. IL
is also unusual for them to submit
their own plans, or, in other words
draw their own conclusions NY
Booz said.
Mr.. Booz's statement with regard
to the $4,000 in bills which he has
submitted to the aldermen for pay
ments follows:
".n regard to the proposition c.
criticiZing the bill presented to the
city for work done l would say that
the question of time has little to do
with the engineering profession an
might be compared to the medical
profession in this respect. 1t would
be Just as much a mistake to try
and question the amount of time Il
man puts in on an engineering pro-
position of this kind where special
lists are involved as it would be to
Question the fee of a prominent
medical specialist asked by him fol
an operation because of the fac'
that same did not require much time
"There is a definite way of figur-
ing the cost of engineering on work
Of this kind and it is very often GUS
to1..ary for the preliminary engineer
ing and designing on work such as
this to cost as much as two and one
half per cent. and more of the tota
cost. In this case estimating the
total cost of the proposition to DC
s2,OOO,OOO this would mean the en-
gineering fees would amount IT,
$4,000.
'"The stand of certain aldermen or
my bill for $1,000 would hardly seen
anything but ridiculous in view OF
these facts, $4,000 being only ap'
proximately one-quarter of one pei
cent Of the total cost of this work
When. the question of pay came III
In regard to this work at the time
was appointed, to those aldermen
who asked for information I stated
the est of this work would be abou
t1O,t D, this being only one-half o.
pne Ger cent. or only one-fifth o.
what might be called the standard
pr just fee with regard such work
(Continued on page ~