Imperial Valley press., 1936-05-08

Just as it is good business for
clothing store to be housed in attractive
quarters, it is good business for city
TO be an attractive place to live. Behind
its attractive front, the clothing store
needs a cloSe-grained business admins
tration if it is to be successful. So, too,
does a city need thorough-going busi-
ness administration of its financial af-
fairs if it is to give the taxpayers their
moneys worth The new Ell CentrO
city council, it is evident, intends to set
its affairs in order for the best interests
of those who live in Ell Centre.
Launching into the business before
it Wednesday night, the city council ac-
complished several long-needed steps
toward city Identification. Among
them are campaign to clean up streets
and alleys, campaign looking toward
eventual development of full play
ground and park facilities, and bond
election to determine if the city wants
new city hall-library building.
The cleanup Of streets and alleys
will eliminate a health menace as we'll
as an eyesore. Those who will not CO.
operate voluntarily in the drive will
find the city cleaning up their premises,
then billing them for the work There
should be no omplaint-business is bet
ter in a more preSentable city, and bet
ter business boosts the prosperity of
every merchant and tradesman in the
city.
Concrete benefit in dollars and cents
savings will be the result, too, from
elimination of many fire hazards With
the summer at hand and the danger of
spontaneous combustion in rubbish
heaps this fire hazard is far more than
an imaginary peril to the financial well
being of Ell Centre.
From small beginnings, the play
ground campaign inaugurated by the
council may be expected to develop
eventually into a full sized undertaking
to furnish the youth of Ell Centre, and
the adults too, to a certain extent, with
something to keep them out of mischief.
Idle minds are dangerous to their own
we'll being and to the welfare of the
community Juvenile delinquency is
far greater in a community without
playground facilities than in one fully
equipped with such facilities. 1t is a
natural thing, because youngsters will
find something to keep them busy. They
need help if they are to find the right
things.
Indoor baseball diamonds, as out
lined by Councilman J. P. Eyer, prob
ably will give the young people great
er chance for recreation at this time
than any other development, since it
will reach a greater number of them.
In eventual development, however, the
board should not lose sight of the neces-
sity for tennis courts, handball courts,
swimming pools and other facilities.
They cannot be installed at this time be-
cause of financial stringency, but they
could be developed easily over period
of time.
While large snare of its attention
was devoted to municipal playground
and Identification, the council has not
forgotten the hard cash part of its ad-
ministration. Through the modern
bookkeeping system to be installed in
city offices, taxpayers of Ell Centre will
be assured of protection in the spending
of their tax dollar. This is as it should
be. At least as much as any private
business, and probably more, the city
needs a thorough accounting system by
which the path of every dollar can be
traced from receipt to expenditure; In
stallation of such a system will be
triumnh for the new CITY board