Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1922-01-05
A BOND ISSUE I
IS NOT COSTLY
WOULD INSURE COUNTY GET.
TING ALL STATE REWARD
CRATIOT MAY HAVE.

During the past few days one Of
the best qualified road men in Gratiot
pointed out that the County has 81
miles of trunk line road and "a miles
OF Colgrove road, making a total Of
7S miles Of trunk lines in Gratiot
County. About ten miles Of this, with
the paving on the trunk lines in Alma,
st. Louis, Ithaca and Breckenridge,
which was paved this past summer,
has been improved. This leaves GO
miles of trunk line roads in Gratiot
still to be improved.
This road could all be improved, it
was pointed out, at very small cost
to the individual taxpayers Of the
county.
1t was suggested that il half Of the
total amount of the road left to be
improved should be paved, or 80
miles, at a cost of approximately
$4,000 per mile, it would call for a
total expenditure of Sl,290,000.
If the other half of the total
amount of trunk line roads still to
be improved was made into first class
gravel road at cost Of approx
mately $4,000 per mile, this would
call for an expenditure Of $4,000.
Thus it is readily seen that the
total cost of improving the trunk
lines Of Gratiot county would be about
S1,53O,OOO.
If the county should bond for
100000 to secure money for this pur-
pose and the state furnish three
fourths of the money needed for the
cost of the state trunk line road, it
would still leave handsome sum
which could be used for the >improve-
ment of the other roads Of the county.
AS result it would not be many
years before Gratiot could boast. Of
plenty of good roads and be in a po-
siton to compare very favorably with
the other counties Of the state in this
respect.
The payment of such a bond issue
and the tax of such an issue lie Of
course an important matter. 1t is
shown, however, that while the pay
ment and the interest charges may be
important, they would be low enough
to compare very favorably with the
various low tax charges, and so that
school taxes and other Of the high
taxes could not be compared with the
annual cost Of caring for such road
bond issue. 80.
1t would be very conservative tax
spread over twenty year period. The
county has a valuation Of $54, $780,
501.50, so it is readily seen that
bond issue Of this size would be less
than one per cent Of the valuation Of
the county. Thus on a valuation of
81 900 the interest charges for such
a bond issue would be less than fifty
cents per year. Add to this fifty
cents per thousand of valuation for a
sinking fund, towards paying the
bond issue, and one will have total
tax charge of less than one dollar, per
year on 81 200 of valuation in paying
for the bond issue and paying all in
terest charges against such an issue.
During this time Gratiot County
would have the use of miles of the
finest of roads, which would cut down
haulage costs thousands Of dollars to
the farmers of the county. True it
would prove a blessing to autoists,
but there is no question but what it
would prove far greater blessing to
the people of the county who have &C.
casion to use the roads every day Of
the year.
Alma, st. Louis, Ithaca and Brock
enridge, it is pointed out, all have
pavement on the trunk line roads
within their corporate limits, and IL
is only because they realize the great
value of good roads to Gratiot county
that they are boosting for better
roads in the rural districts. 1t is also
pointed out that the farmers in their
county taxes and in their state taxes
must aid in paying for the pavement
on the trunk line roads in this way in
the rural districts, and the people of
Alma, st. Louis, Ithaca and Brecken-
ridge would be called upon to pay a
large proportionate cost Of the roads
that are improved in the rural dis
tricts..