USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Quincy > Inaugural address of the mayor, with the annual report of the officers of the city of Quincy for the year 1909 > Part 15
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About three miles of einder walks were built and as the cinders are free from clay they make a much drier walk than binding gravel. Cinders should be covered with a thin layer of stone dust to give a wearing surface as the cinders crush easily and then track on shoes and soil clothing. Some of the walks built have not been covered but this should be done early in the spring. 1
About 2.8 miles of roads were resurfaced principally with crushed stone. Minor repairs were made on thirty-two other streets in various parts of the city and one team was used most of the time filling in small depressions.
STREETS BUILT DURING THE YEAR 1909
Ward Length Width
Surface
Drains 8 inch 10 in. 12 in. 20 in.
Catch Basins
Arlington street . 6
257.4
40
Gravel
246
1
Bates avenue
. 4
1225.0
33
Macadam
21
185
2
Billings street
. 6
670.0
40
Gravel
Brook road
.3
978.0
40
Granite block
26
30
235
2
*Cummings avenue ... 6
1002.7
40
Gravel
*East Elm avenue .... 5
1711.7
40
Gravel
East Squantum street. . 6
Not built
Farrington street ... 5-6
3300.0
40
Macadam
1176
12
Fenno street
.5
2330.0
33
Gravel
*Franklin avenue
.5
1092.5
40
Gravel
Granite street .
.3
2800.0
33-40
Macadam
150
110
340
8
Hancock street
.1-5
2740.0
64
Granite block
80
1
*Holbrook road
. 6
580.0
50
Gravel
Marlboro street
. .
. . 5
712.0
40
Gravel
26
50
2
*Merry Mount road .. 1
699.0
40
Macadam
40
1
** Murdock avenue .... 2
588.7
40
Macadam
*+Newcomb place .... 2
920.7
33
Macadam
430
*Norfolk street .. .... 5
625.0
40
Gravel
*Quarry st. extension .4
1155.3
40
Macadam
South street ..... .2
3800.0 33-50
Macadam
* Indicates built under Betterment Act.
not finished.
drain built under surface drainage appropriation.
342
3
·
343
The bulk of street construction was done in the last half of the working season whereas during the first part of the sea- son there was little work to be done. As the department has only one good steam roller we were somewhat handicapped in the work. A new roller is badly needed to properly carry on the work economically as the small roller is too light, too weak for certain kinds of work and not worth spending much money on for repairs. This roller is worth much more in an exchange for a new one than it is to the city to repair. What the city needs is a good fifteen ton roller.
The portable crusher is going to prove a good investment for 'the city as crushed granite can be used for all but the top of our roads. It was purchased too late to use on Farrington street which I intended to build of tar and granite and it could not be used on Quincy avenue or Taber street as these were not built.
BROOK ROAD AND HANCOCK STREET
The paving of these streets was a wise expenditure as the heavy granite teaming is too much for a macadam road. On· Brook road alone during the last twelve years nearly the cost of the paving work has been spent on fixing this road. Han- cock street was paved on the westerly side and curbing set from Grant street nearly to Merry Mount avenue. The large stone excavated from the street were run through the porta- ble crusher and used in fixing up a portion of the street not paved.
FARRINGTON STREET
The moving of the car tracks to the centre of the street, the building of a macadam roadway on each side, the filling of the street to the full width, the providing of surface drain- age and building of sidewalks on both sides of this street has made a thoroughfare out of a road which was almost impas- sable at certain times in the year.
344
I wanted to build one half of this road of tar macadam using crushed granite but the portable crusher did not come in season. The fixing of this street and Newport avenue has diverted some of the teaming and automobile travel from Hancock street and therefore I believe this street should be . oiled during the coming year.
The streets built under the betterment act were surfaced with macadam or binding gravel according to the locality or nature of the travel. Grass borders were built on each side of the street and gravel sidewalks were built. The roadway on several of these streets and the borders on all of them will need a raking and rolling in the spring but otherwise than this the streets were finished.
SURFACE DRAINAGE
I am very glad the City Council saw fit to continue this work as it is the most essential part of street construction and maintenance. An early appropriation for this work is advisable so that one trained foreman can do all the season's work as it is permanent work and should be well and thor- oughly done. Ten to fifteen per cent. can be saved on the la- bor bill and better work obtained and I would suggest that an early appropriation be made the coming year for this pur- pose.
Wherever possible a short piece of stone was set back on each catch basin with proper inlet to the basin. This almost doubles the value of a catch basin as it provides another inlet if the grating is covered or clogged.
There remain many small and some large drainage pro- jects although the latter are probably a matter for the future.
The following drains, catch basins and appurtenances were built during the year :
345
SURFACE DRAINS BUILT DURING 1909
8 inch
10-inch
12-inch
15-inch
20-inch
2 - Catch Basins
Arlington street
Arnold street
24
200
Adams street
100
Arthur street
53
280
3
Bates avenue
21
185
2
Botolph street
725
2
Brooks avenue
90
260
4
Brook road
26
30
235
2
Buckley street
14
210
1
Fayette street
105
250
300
2
1
Federal avenue
110
1
Furnace avenue
130
330
Farrington street
1176
12
Granite street
150
110
340
8
Hall place
40
Hancock street
80
1
Marlboro street
26
50
'2
Merry Mount road
40
1
Murdock avenue
28
595
3
1
Newcomb place
430
3
Newport avenue
46
202
2
North street
38
664
2
North Central avenue
60
230
4
Prospect avenue
27
217
2
·1
Washington street
110
320
533
7
·1
Wilson avenue
200
Winthrop avenue
125
1
Whitney road
50
500
5
·1
West Elm avenue
40
1
Fenno street
3
-
-
2700 4238 2553
330
530
77
5
Manholes
246
1
346
SURFACE DRAINAGE RECOMMENDED FOR 1910
Beach street near Billings road, Old Colony street, Taylor street, Cottage avenue, Norfolk street, Prospect avenue, Goffe street, Phipps street, Billings road, Glendale road, Cranch street and Scotch Pond place.
LOCATION OF CATCH BASINS
10 Adams street
10 Independence avenue
2 Arlington street
2 Intervale street
2 Arnold street
2 Kemper street
2 Arthur street
12 Liberty street
1 Atlantic street
4 Lincoln avenue
4 Bates avenue
2 Madison street
1 Baxter place
2 Marlboro street
3
Baxter street
4 Miller Stile road
3 Beach street
2 Murdock avenue
6 Beale street .
2 Nelson street
1 Bennington street
2 Newcomb place
2 Bigelow street
2 Newcomb street
1 Billings road
2 Newcomb square
3 Billings street
4 Newport avenue
5 Botolph street
3 North street
1 Bradford street
3 North Central avenue
4 Brooks avenue
2 Old Colony street
4 Brook road
1 Phipps street
8 Brooks street
1 Pond street
-
2 Bromfield street
6 Prospect avenue
2 Buckley street
2 Quincy avenue
4 Canal street
4 Revere road
6 Centre street
2
Rogers street
4 Coddington street
4 Sagamore street
5 Common street
5 School street
2 Cottage avenue
5 Smith street
1 Cottage street
3 South street
14 Copeland street
3 South Central avenue
5 Crescent street
2 South Walnut street
347
1 Cross street
2 Squantum street
2 Cushing street
2 Station street
1 Des Moines road
2 Sumner street
2 Dimmock street
8 Taylor street
4 East Howard street
1 Union street
2 Edwin street
1
Upland road
4 Elm avenue
2 Walker street
9 Elm street
1 Walnut street
4 Elmwood avenue
1 Warren avenue
15 Farrington street
33 Washington street
3 Faxon road
15
Water street
3
Fayette street
1 Wayland street
2 Federal avenue
2 Webster street
2 Fenno street
1 West Elm avenue
5 Garfield street
4 Whitney road
3 Glendale road
10 Whitwell street
4 Goffe street
10 Willard street
23 Granite street
2 Willow street
10 Grove street
3 Winthrop avenue
13 Hancock street
3 Wollaston avenue
6 Highland avenue
4 High School avenue
2 Howard street
4 Hunt street
GYPSY AND BROWN TAIL MOTHS
This work is a part of the "white man's burden" but Quincy is better off than many places. The work cost less this year and the results were better. The power sprayer was a great help and with the experience gained this year in hand- ling this kind of work a considerable saving can be made. We need a small sprayer to help out but I think this may be partially worked out by working over time during the spray- ing season which is short.
Spraying was done for the Elm Leaf Beetle as well as the Gypsy Moth with very good results. To help this work considerable street tree trimming was done in several wards of
.
348
the city. There is still considerable trimming to be done in Atlantic and Wollaston, a portion of which is under way at the present time.
It is reported that the Leopard Moth, which has done so much damage in Cambridge, is in our Elm trees. The Elm is a beautiful tree but at the same time it seems to be a prey to every pest and for this and other reasons I would advise the planting in the future of one or two of the varieties of Maple which make a fine sturdy clean street tree.
PERMANENT SIDEWALKS
One and forty-two hundredths miles of permanent side- walks were laid during the year. With two exceptions these were of tar concrete and as a rule had curbstone set.
On Kemper street the curbing was set on an eight foot line and four feet of concrete walk laid. This leaves a flat turf border or tree space three and one-half feet wide which will help to prevent damage to the walk from tree roots, gives the street a better appearance and costs less to do. All of the streets in this locality should be treated in this manner as it leaves ample roadway for ordinary travel and gives the street trees a chance to thrive.
This is all permanent work and I wish the appropriation could be made twice as large for several years as the side- walks in our residential districts are a disgrace to the city. There are miles of sidewalks on which the curbstone, which is the principal expense, could be left out for years and a nar- row walk built as is done in other places. By doing this we could have three feet of walk where we now have one and later on the curbstone could be set without undoing any old work.
SEWER DIVISION
An appropriation of $30,000 was made by the City Coun- cil for the extension of the sewerage system and later an ap- propriation of $9,000 was made to extend the sewer from Fur-
349
nace Brook parkway to the Gridley Bryant school in West Quincy.
Construction work was begun about the first of May and carried throughout the season by two gangs of men. The work consisted of building approximately 3.5 miles of pipe sewers ranging in size from eight inches to fifteen inches in diameter. The sewers were built mainly on petition of abut- ting property owners and others at the recommendation of the Board of Health.
The extension of the sewer to the Gridley Bryant school was an important piece of work and made it possible to con- nect with the public sewer the last remaining school building in Quincy.
Included with this report is a table in relation to sewer construction for 1909.
PARTICULAR SEWERS
This year no appropriation was made for the construc- tion of particular sewers. Instead the City Council voted that the receipts be devoted to carrying on the work. These con- nections were, with one or two exceptions, of five inch pipe and three hundred and six (306) were put in, making a total length of 139,537.21 feet or 26,427 miles. 526.70 feet of con- neetions have been abandoned thus making a length of 138,- 962.51 feet or 26.318 miles of connections now in use.
There were six stoppages in the particular sewers during the year some caused by roots and others by improper use of the sewer.
Following is a table of particular sewers:
By Wards
Ward
1 46
2
3
4
5 90
6
Total
45
40
13
72
306
350
Cost per Foot
Under
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90 Over
to
to
to
to
to
to
to
to
$.20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90 1.00 1.00 Total
4
14
92
105
46
24
8
7
2
4 306
Cost per Connection
Under
$10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
90
Over Over
to to to to to to to to
to
$10
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
200
300
Total
10
192 72 18 2
2
1
2
1
3
1
2
306
Classification
Single houses
206
Double houses
65
Three apartment
19
Four apartment
1
Six apartment
1
Stores
7
Railroad stations
2
Church
1
Hall
1
Foundry
1
Business block
1
Restaurant
1
Schools
2
Hospital building
1
Total 309
Average length per connection
49,903 feet
Average cost per connection $23.32
Average cost per foot $0.467
351
Record plans of the work for the year have been made by the City Engineer and placed on file in this office. |Assess- ments aggregating $16,000.00 were levied Dec. 30, 1909.
The City Engineer has designed a system of sewerage for Houghs Neck which has been approved by the State Board of Health and adopted by the City Council.
Work should be begun on this as soon as posible so that at least a portion of it may be available for the coming sum- mer population .
There are several petitions on file in this department for the extension of the system and estimates will be prepared for these at once.
PIPE SEWERS CONSTRUCTED IN 1909
Ward
Street
From
To
Size
Length
Manholes
1 Adams street
Metropolitan sewer
Southwesterly
10 inch
25.0
1
6 Ash street
Walnut street
Southerly
8 inch
217.6
1
5 Beach street
Billings road
Cummings avenue
8 inch
586.5
2
1 Beacon street
.
Station 5 plus 48.5
Northwesterly
8 inch
209.3
2
6 Brooks street
Hollis avenue
Henry street
8 inch
220.65
0
5 Calumet street
Vassall street
Billings road
8 inch
485.
2
2 Cherry street
Curtis avenue
Easterly
8 inch
300.
1
352
5 Chester street
Berlin street
Northeasterly
8 inch
364.5
1
5 Chick street
Morse street
Private way
8 inch
514.15
2
4
Common street
Copeland street
Northerly
8 inch
533.83
3
2 Curtis avenue
Washington street
Cherry street
10-12 inch
528.1
2
1 Edgemere road
Woodward avenue
Easterly
8 inch
274.0
2
1 Euclid avenue
Beacon street
Roselin avenue
8 inch
732.77
3
5 Farrington street
Wilson avenue
Southeasterly
8 inch
385.0
0
5 Hamilton street
Mason street
Easterly
8 inch
306.46
1
6 Hancock street
Myrtle street
Walnut street
12 inch
109.18
2
6 Henry street
Faxon road
Easterly
8 inch
610.89
3
ـن
.
5 Highland avenue
North Central avenue Franklin street
Northeasterly Easterly
8 inch 1130.0 7
6 Linden street
Oak avenue
8 inch 185.0 2
5 Morse street
Watkins street
Chick street
8 inch
152.32 2
6 Myrtle street
Hancock street
Oak street
8 inch
517.81
3
To the end
8 inch
858.39
5
2 5 Nickerson court
South Central avenue
Northwesterly
8 inch
245.1
2
6 Oak avenue
Myrtle street
Linden street
8 inch
275.5
0
6 Oak street
Myrtle street
Northerly
8 inch
127.72
1
5 Old Colony avenue
Standish avenue
Southeasterly
8 inch
357.80
1
4 Playground
Hall place
Northwesterly
12 inch
746.3
2 0
2 Private Land
Union street
Newcomb place
8 inch
347.54
2
353
6 Private Land
Sagamore street
Passage way
12 inch
274.0
2
4 Private Land
Ward 4 playground
Rogers street
12 inch
798.5
4
6 Passage way
Hancock street
Northeasterly
12 inch
143.3
1
4 Quarry street
Furnace Brook parkway
Hall place
12 inch
448.7
2
5
Quiney Shore Reservation East Elm avenue
Sachem street
10 inch
244.0
1
5 Randlett street
The Strand
Watkins street
10 inch
247.37
1
1 Rock View road
Sta. Oplus 76.4
Southwesterly
8 inch
58.6
0
4 Rogers street
Willard street
Easterly
12 inch
210.92
1
1 Roselin avenue
Euclid avenue
Beacon street
8 inch
424.13
2
5 Sachem street
The Strand 1
Southwesterly
8 inch
312.5
1
Northwesterly
8 inch
200.0 1
3 Kendrick avenue
Newcomb place
Union street
5 Sachem street
Quincy Shore reservation The Strand
10 inch 30.64 2
1 Saville avenue
Woodward avenue
Westerly
8 inch 463.1
1
2 Scammell street
Glencoe place
Easterly
10 inch 169.18 1
2 Scammell street
Station 1 plus 69.18
Easterly
5 inch
50.00 0
5 South Central Terrace
(see Nickerson Court)
5 Strand
Sachem street
Randlett street
10 inch
655.88
4
5 Vassall street
Cummings avenue
Calumet street
8 inch
266.25
1
Vassall street
Freeman street
Southerly
8 inch
50.0
0
5 6 Walnut street
Hancock street
Westerly
8 inch
1050.00
4
5 Watkins street
Randlett street
Morse street
8 inch
426.4
1
4 Willard street
Rogers street
Northerly
8 inch
550.
3
354
18,418.88 ft. 88 In 1909-3,487 miles.
Total miles to date, 55,739 Total feet to date, 294,306.60
355
WATER DIVISION Financial Statement of Water Rates
Total assessment for water rates for
1909
$117,534.44
Rebates for vacancies and
non-use of
fixtures
$2,646.95
Amount uncollected
3,646.02
Amount due from premises shut off . . 724.26
Amount collected of 1909 assessment. 110,517.11
$117,534.44
Amount collected on assessments pre-
vious to 1909
$3,384.75
Amount collected on 1909 assess-
ment
110,517.11
Total collections for 1909 $113,901.86
Against this assessment must be charged up the following items :
Bond payments for 1909 $42,500.00
Interest payments for 1909 25,885.00
Metropolitan assessments 51,230.04
Maintenance
11,900.00
$131,105.04
Apparently this will leave a deficit of $17,113.18 but as a matter of fact there would be a balance of $12,886.82 if fi- nances were properly audited to the credit of the department and in time this balance would be enough to pay for all exten- sions, setting of meters, replacements and admit later on in a reduction of water rates.
The Water Department of a city is supposed to be and should be in a nature of a private business held in trust for the citizens by the City Government.
Being such, it should be self supporting and its affairs should be financed to that end. A private water company must not only meet its interest, sinking fund, maintenance and oth- er charges but must make its own extensions as well.
Properly financed for a few years the Quincy Water De- partment can do this and at the same time put off the day
356
when additional mains will have to be laid to reinforce the present system.
This can be accomplished by keeping down the cost of maintenance, charging city departments for water used charging a hydrant rental to taxation, where it belongs, charg- ing construction work with water used, stop laying temporary mains and services and installing meters on every service.
The claim is made that charging the municipality for wa- ter is only using one hand to wash the other but this is not a fact, for the following reasons, viz:
First-The consumption for maintenace purposes would be reduced nearly one-half and the cost of running the vari- ous departments more nearly given.
Second-Water used for construction work should be charged up to the cost of the work just as much as the cement brick or other materials used. Also the water used for street sprinkling should be paid for from that appropriation.
Third-The extra cost of large mains for fire protection should be borne by the property that receives the protection and not by the water taker. This would mean a hydrant ren- tal, to be paid for out of the tax levy, by occupied and unoccu- pied land as it should be.
Public fountains are a small item but are in the same class as hydrants.
CONSTRUCTION WORK
The appropriations and expenditures for the extension of mains and laying of services were as follows :
Appropriation for the year 1909 $42,000.00
Balance for 1908
617.33
Receipts from services
8,597.28
Total
$51,214.61
Expended
50,790.54
Balance
$424.07
35.7
The accompanying table shows that nearly sixty main ex- tensions were made in various parts of the city and gives the lengths, sizes and other details.
As we were late in placing the contracts for supplies other cities had the preference on delivery so that some of the small- er fittings and valves had to be bought at retail and some ma- terial sent back when finally received. .
The work consisted in extending the pipes to Squantum and piping some of the streets there, in extending the pipes to Rock Island and piping the streets and laying of nearly forty scattered extentions.
A mile of ten inch pipe was laid to Squantum, then eight inch, six inch and four inch pipe, with hydrants and gates, and cost about thirteen thousand, one hundred and six- teen (13,116) dollars.
To have bought the pipe at Squantum belonging to the City of Boston at their price and laid the necessary ex- tentions for this year would have cost this amount and then the City of Quincy would have a lot of old pipe on its hands, been obliged to buy water from the City of Boston and later to lay the main from Atlantic. All of this pipe, even in the ledge, was laid below frost and no temporary piping was laid.
At Rock Island a mile and one-tenth of pipe was laid to supply the new houses recently built there and afford fire protection. No temporary pipes were laid and as a great deal of ledge was encountered this work was quite expensive, but it is a permanent job.
The other extensions were made in almost every case for new houses and where there would be a reasonable return on the investment. All of these pipes were laid below frost and were six inches in diameter, excepting in such places as there would be no further extensions of the pipes.
As a rule the cheapest and best way to make extensions would be to finish each street when on the work and connect up dead ends but it would be imposible to do this with the money available and serve all the new takers. A great saving
358
could be made in doing work in this manner and I know that the cost for laying pipe this year was less per foot on account of the greater amount of work done.
A few hydrants were set on old mains but there are still about twenty places where hydrants should be set to give good fire protection.
WATER METERS
The Committee on Water Supply were in favor of taking the bull by the horns and metering the whole city and as this did not materialize, we only had the balance remaining from 1908 for setting meters. About two hundred meters will be set before the end of this winter on new services. The winter months is the best time to set meters and I would suggest that if wholesale metering is not done next year that a fall appro- priation be made for that purpose. This would cover the law, save interest and give profitable work during the winter months.
Again I would suggest that an early appropriation be made for construction work so that stock may be contracted for and the work finished as early in the summer as possible :. This would save some money on materials, some on the laying and during the last year would have enlarged the receipts somewhat.
During the year 411 services were put in, making a total number in use 6814. The cost of these was $10,839.09, of which $6,669.46 was charged to the owners, and $4,168.63 to the city. To January first 1910, 94 meters were set, leaving about one hundred and fifty on hand to be set. Total number of meters in use is 2,032.
29,482 feet or 5.58 miles of street mains were laid and 3,116 feet taken up, making the total length of street mains 586,230 feet or 111.06 miles. 19,963 feet of service pipe was laid, of which 5,461.45 feet belong to the city.
42 hydrants and 72 gates were set, the location and size being given in the accompanying tables,
359
A list of stock, which I am glad to say is larger than a year ago, is on file in the office.
During the year the city lost the services of the superin- tendent of the Water Department, Mr. J. F. Gleason, who has been connected with the water works ever since the beginning of the system. Mr. Gleason knew every foot of the system, was a fine mechanic, had good executive ability, had good discipline with the men and took an interest in the works which he has seen grow up, year by year.
During the last year I have tried to see that a greater portion of the water rate assessment was collected. The water rates are not a lien on the property and for this reason the rules regarding collections should be rigidly enforced.
The purchase of stock at the water works shop has been stopped excepting in a few cases of emergency as it is not fair to the tradesmen in the city and many of these small bills have to be called for several times before they are paid.
I hope the visit of the committe on water supply to the water office, where they were shown the method of receiving applications, keeping records of all the underground locations, charging for construction work and handling over seven thousand accounts and four thousand shut-off notices, showed them that there were no loose ends and that the work is econ- omically and accurately done. I think the system a fine one, second to none and is handled at much less expense than in most cities of our size.
Respectfully submitted, RANDOLPH BAINBRIDGE,
Commissioner of Public Works.
HYDRANTS SET IN 1909.
Ward
Street.
No.
Size
1
Allerton Street.
1
5-inch
Location. 120 feet East of Camden St. 280 feet West of Camden St.
1
Allerton Street,
1
5 "
1
Babcock Street,
1
4 "
cor. Malvern St.
1
Babcock Street,
1
4 "
cor. Newton St.
6 Bayside Road,
1
4 "
cor. Middlesex St.
360
1
Beacon Street,
1
4 "
near Euclid Ave.
6
Bellevue Road,
1
5 "
cor. Wedgewood St.
6
Bellevue Road,
1
5 “
cor. Gladstone St.
6
Bellevue Road,
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