USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Somerville > Report of the city of Somerville 1903 > Part 2
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Public Grounds.
Several improvements have been made in the city's public grounds during the past year, chief of which was the completion of the Prospect Hill park, which I have mentioned at some length elsewhere in this address. The old Bennett schoolhouse has been removed from the lot at the corner of Poplar and Joy streets, and the lot graded and put in use for the children in that district for a playground. At Lincoln park a large portion of the old clay pit has been filled in with material from Prospect Hill park, and with ashes deposited by the board of health teams. A new straight-away running track has been completed, and a fence ten feet high constructed on a portion of the westerly boundary of the park for the protection of the adjoining private property.
The city maintains at the present time three good athletic fields, namely,-a portion of Lincoln park, the enclosed field on Broadway near Powder House square, and the field on Broad- way at the corner of Cedar street. These three grounds are in constant use by various athletic teams throughout the baseball and football seasons. The grounds on College avenue, op-
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ANNUAL REPORTS.
posite Morrison avenue, have been maintained for tennis playing and other games. I would recommend that an addi- tional playground be provided by taking that portion of Broad- way park adjoining Mystic avenue and converting it to that use, or by purchasing additional land in that section.
The rockery and basin, generously provided for in the will of the late Joseph F. Wilson, has been constructed in Central Hill park, and adds much to the beauty of the spot.
The total area of public grounds maintained by the city at the present time amounts to over fifty-eight acres, not including a boulevard about one and one-quarter miles in length. The cost of maintenance for the past year has been about $11,300.
Prospect Hill Park.
One more area in the city's park system has been practically graded and completed during the year,-the land purchased on Prospect Hill. A roadway and walks have been laid out and beds of shrubbery and trees planted, which eventually will make it one of the finest pleasure parks in this section.
This park will always be of great historical interest on ac- count of the encampment of soldiers on this hill, both in the Revolutionary and Civil wars. A portion of the old hill has been left at its original height, on top of which a granite obser- vation tower has been erected. From the top of this tower an unobstructed view may be had for miles in every direction. Bronze tablets are being made, with inscriptions of historical events, and will be placed on the Munroe-street retaining wall at the base of the tower. The corner-stone of the tower was set July 7, and the park was dedicated with appropriate exercises on the twenty-ninth day of last October.
The entire cost of this park, including the building of the observation tower, will not exceed $75,000, of which amount about $50,000 was for the purchase of the land.
Engineering Department.
Very important work has been carried on by this department during the past year, practically all of which has been treated under other headings. The work of the department has been performed in an able, faithful and systematic manner, and to the satisfaction of all having business with the department.
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MAYOR'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
Water Department.
The construction operations of the water department dur- ing the past year have been largely of a routine nature relating to the general maintenance and efficiency of the water works system, such as the renewal of street water mains, construction of mains in new streets, repairs of mains and house service pipes, inspection and maintenance of our extensive fire hydrant system, laying service pipes to new buildings, setting water meters, set- ting and maintaining waterposts for the street sprinkling depart- ment, setting new hydrants and stop-gates. and improving the water circulation. Every building in the city has been visited at least once for the purpose of obtaining data for the water-rate levy and for the restriction of water waste.
The year's work has been signalized by the removal of prac- tically the last of the old cement-lined water mains, and the city now possesses a modern water distribution system that is second to none in point of efficiency. Six thousand, six hundred sixty- four feet of pipe have been renewed the past year, and in extend- ing the water pipe system 3,280 feet of iron pipe have been laid, while 5,529 feet of service pipe have been used in making con- nections between the street mains and new houses. Thirty-one fire hydrants and forty-four stop-gates have been set and re- newed, nine blow-off connections have been put in, and one waterpost has been constructed for the highway department. The length of water mains now in the city is over eighty-nine miles, and the appurtenances connected therewith comprise 973 fire hydrants, 1,319 stop-gates, sixty-nine waterposts, and eleven drinking fountains and troughs.
The subject of the general use of water meters has received much careful consideration during the year, and, in accordance with the policy proposed one year ago, 366 new premises have been metered, making a total of 635 operating meters in the city at the present time. The result of this metering has been gener- ally very satisfactory; to the consumer in being able to obtain his water, in most cases, at a lower price than under the flat rate, and to the city in being able to stop, in some cases, excessive waste of water where other means have failed. The metro- politan water and sewerage board has completed its installation of meters on the main supply lines to our city with the view, in ยท the near future, of measuring all the water supplied to us. I have been informed by the board that, if the present waste of
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ANNUAL REPORTS.
water continues, it will be necessary, in a very few years, to en- large the works at an estimated expense of about $40,000,000, of which amount Somerville will be called upon to pay approxi- mately $1,600,000. I have positive information that at the next session of the legislature a bill will be introduced, at the sug- gestion of the board, and will undoubtedly pass and become a law, providing that the water supplied the different cities and towns in the metropolitan water district shall be measured, and the state water tax assessed according to the amount consumed by the respective cities and towns. When the water tax is as- sessed on that basis, it will be of the utmost importance to take such action as will restrict the waste of water and bring the con- sumption down to a basis of liberal but legitimate use, and this can only be accomplished by the further extension of the meter system. Certainly the use of meters tends to an equalization of the water charges and to a restriction of water waste, both very desirable conditions, and therefore I recommend that the meter system be installed in all buildings where water is used for other than strictly domestic purposes.
The water furnished us by the state has been of good quality. The works of the metropolitan system, to the cost of which we are, next to Boston, the largest contributor, are making good progress toward completion. The assessment which Somerville paid this year as its proportion of the expenses of the works was $77,288.43, and the total payment made by this city since the beginning, in 1898, is $260,418.09. The water income of the city for 1903 was, approximately, $223,000, an increase of about $9,000 over the previous year. The expenses of maintenance, operation and extension of the local works, payment of maturing water bonds. and the metropolitan water works assessment, amounted to about $158,000, leaving a surplus of about $65,000.
Buildings Department.
The commissioner of public buildings has the care and maintenance of twenty-six school buildings, eight fire depart- ment buildings, the city hall, city hall annex, public library building and police building, together with the buildings con- nected with the health, highway, public grounds, sewer, poor and water departments. During the past year a num- ber of routine repairs and several important improvements
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MAYOR'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
were made, among which was the installing of a new electric switch-board and motor generator, contracted for in 1902, in the English High school building, to be used in connection with the chemical and physical laboratories and the stereopticon in the lecture hall. A radical change was also made in the arrangement of the first-floor rooms at the Latin school, the large classroom being made smaller, and two new recitation rooms being constructed on the westerly side. This change was made absolutely necessary by the increased at- tendance of pupils and the need of additional recitation rooms. The old-fashioned shutters in several of the older school build- ings have been removed, and cloth shades substituted in their places. I would recommend that a sufficient appropriation be provided for the outside painting of several of the school build- ings, as this work appears absolutely necessary to prevent the decay of the woodwork, which in some cases has already begun.
A considerable change has been made in the arrangement of the mayor's offices. A private lavatory has been provided, in connection with, and a private exit from, the Mayor's room. The offices have been partially refurnished, and are much more com- fortable and attractive.
During the year 232 permits have been issued for the erec- tion of new buildings and for alterations, the estimated cost of this work amounting to $507,855. A systematic inspection of buildings under process of construction, and the plumbing of the same, has been made during the year, and the department has en- deavored to see that the building regulations have been strictly complied with.
Department of Electric Lines and Lights.
This department has the care and maintenance of all elec- trical appliances belonging to the city, which include the fire alarm and police signal systems and the electrical apparatus of all schoolhouses and public buildings. It also has under its care the street lights and the supervision of all poles and wires in the public streets. During the year the department has successfully maintained its usual high standard in the care of all the electrical appliances under its charge, all alarms having been correctly transmitted, and the schoolhouses having received most careful attention.
1
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ANNUAL REPORTS.
Seven arc lights and twenty-one incandescent lights have been added to the city's lighting system during the past year, making a total of 485 arc lights and 453 incandescent lights now in service. Taken as a whole, Somerville is one of the best- lighted cities in the state, and there is every reason to believe that we shall continue to maintain our excellence in this respect.
Schools.
The American public school is the bulwark of our American institutions. In no country in the world are the people so intel- ligent, so well-read, and so well-informed as in the United States, and that this is so is due entirely to the influence of our public schools. While the public schools in Somerville, as elsewhere in the nation, continue to be the chief item of expense, it should be borne in mind that the returns from this expenditure are larger than could be obtained in any other way. Money ex- pended in training our youth to be law-abiding, self-supporting American citizens is money well expended.
To-day there are 400 more children in our public schools than there were a year ago. That the number of pupils will con- tinue to increase as long as our city continues to grow is certain, as is also the fact that we shall continue to need additional schoolhouses to provide for this increase. We shall undoubtedly be obliged to authorize a considerable expenditure to adequately accommodate our pupils, but I do not feel justified in recom- mending any specific appropriation for construction purposes until I have had further opportunity to acquaint myself with the condition of our schools, as well as with the financial condition of our city. I shall doubtless take occasion to make this matter the subject of a special message at some future date.
Public Library.
Our public library during the past year has done an in- creased amount of work in nearly all its departments. There has been a decided gain in circulation over previous years, upwards of 315,000 volumes having been given out. The number of books distributed through our schools has largely increased. Of 227 rooms in our public schools, 163 have been supplied with permanent libraries consisting, in most instances, of forty books. There can be no doubt that the public schools supply one of the
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MAYOR'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
best possible mediums for getting good books before a large number of readers.
During most of the year the library has had seven distribut- ing agencies, located in stores in different parts of the city. The policy of delivering books direct to the residences of the people by means of boy carriers has also been continued, upwards of 4,000 books having been delivered in this manner during the year. Both of these methods of delivery are much appreciated in localities remote from the central library.
The library has also sent to seven Sunday schools 1,511 books, and those schools that have accepted this service report it highly satisfactory.
Police Department.
The citizens of Somerville are to be congratulated on the efficiency of their police force. No city in our commonwealth is more free from crime, and in no section of our state are the perpetrators of crime more quickly apprehended.
Our police force at the present time consists of a chief of police, one captain, three lieutenants, five sergeants, one inspec- tor, forty-one regular patrolmen, and ten reserve patrolmen, making a total of sixty-two. During the year Sergeant Chris- topher C. Cavanagh and Patrolman John Hafford were retired on half-pay, having become incapacitated for further duty, and young men were appointed in their places. The system of retir- ing men, who, by reason of advanced age, have become unfit for service, is an excellent one, in my opinion, as it is an incentive to every member of the force to do his full duty, knowing that he will be provided for when age and infirmities come upon him. In addition, it infuses new life into the department through the appointment of young men, and maintains its strength and effi- ciency at a minimum of expense.
At present the interior of the police building is undergoing a great change, as the whole second story is being fitted up for the occupancy of the department, a change that has been con- templated for some time and that has been made possible by the removal of company M to the new armory. Additional changes are under way in the first story of the building, which will give the matron and the female prisoners much more comfortable quarters. When all of the improvements are completed, Somer- ville will have a police building second to none in the common- wealth in the completeness of its equipment.
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ANNUAL REPORTS.
Fire Department.
Somerville is very fortunate in having a fire department that for general efficiency is equalled by few and excelled by none in the cities of the commonwealth. During the past year ali alarms have been responded to so promptly, and all fires handled so skillfully, that we have again been free from a single conflagration. One hundred and eighty-eight bell alarms and 118 still alarms have been responded to, making a total of 306 alarms, but in only six cases has it been necessary to sound a second alarm to bring additional apparatus to the fire.
A new building is being erected for the department in Union square, to take the place of the old fire station situated on Som- erville avenue, Washington and Prospect streets, the old building having become so thoroughly dilapidated that it was inexpedient to spend any money on it, either for alterations or repairs. The new building, when completed, will not only furnish accommoda- tions for the apparatus necessary for the protection of the district, but it will be attractive in appearance, and will give evidence of the desire of the authorities to adequately protect this territory.
The general condition of the apparatus is very good, with the exception of engine number 4, which is sadly in need of a new boiler, only a limited steam pressure being permitted by the government boiler inspectors in its present condition. I recom- mend that a new boiler be purchased as soon as possible. A new and powerful engine has been purchased, and is now in service at the central station while engine number 1 is being re- paired. At present the manual force of the department consists of 117 men, of whom thirty-five are permanently employed, the remaining eighty-two being call men.
Assessors' Department.
During 1903 our board of assessors, in addition to the out- door work of visiting, examining and listing property, has held forty-one meetings, many of which were hearings on petitions for abatement and exemption. Seven hundred seventy-six such ap- plications were received, nearly all of which have been acted upon and the applicants notified of decisions, according to law.
Personal property to the value of $109,100 and real estate as- sessed at $1,347,200 was exempted from taxation, under the pro- visions of the third and seventh divisions of section five, chapter twelve, of the revised laws.
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. MAYOR'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
While there may have been no criticism of the efficient work of the board in assessing property, there have been a number of complaints of negligence in assessing polls, and therefore I would recommend that the board give this matter careful attention, that such complaints may have no foundation in the future.
Poor Department.
The overseers of the poor have rendered efficient aid to the poor of the city during the past year, there being reason to be- lieve that few, if any, cases of extreme destitution have escaped their notice. During the year 1,132 persons have been aided to a greater or less extent, and 220 families have been assisted at their homes. The city is now paying for the support of 106 in- sane, feeble-minded, and dipsomaniacs, and during the year has provided for 127 such persons. Five thousand dollars has been paid to the Somerville hospital for care and treatment of the sick poor settled in the city, and the hospital has also been paid $2,190.87 for the care and treatment of sick poor not settled here, this latter amount having been collected from the state and from different cities and towns. One hundred and sixty city patients have been cared for at the hospital for periods ranging from one day to twenty weeks.
Sixteen men and eleven women have been cared for at the city home during the year, and at present there are thirteen men and seven women there. The expenses of the home for the year were $7,548.39, and $3,031.40 was received from the sale of wood and produce, and for the board of certain inmates.
The total expenditures of the department for the year have been about $30,500.
Somerville Hospital.
I consider the hospital one of Somerville's most worthy in- stitutions. In accordance with our custom for several years past, I recommend that there be appropriated for the care of the sick poor the sum of $5,000.
Law Department.
A number of important matters have engaged the attention of the city solicitor during the past year. By chapter 504 of the acts of the legislature for the year 1902, the city was author-
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ANNUAL REPORTS.
ized to take for a public park in West Somerville a certain tract of land, the owners of which had been endeavoring unsuccessfully to secure the right of blasting. An agreement was made this year with Messrs. Collins and Ham by which they were allowed to blast for a limited time under certain restrictions, and the city obtains the privilege of a dumping ground, and expects event- ually to become the owner of the land. No arrangement has yet been made with the city of Cambridge, which also desired the right to blast.
The question of apportioning between Somerville and the other municipalities the cost of the new bridge over the Mystic river at Middlesex avenue will soon come before the courts for adjustment. No arrangement has yet been made for giving the street railway company a location over the bridge or over Mid- dlesex avenue, owing, I am informed, to the fact that the railway company is unwilling to accept the terms offered by the com- missioners for a location on the bridge. The grade of Middlesex avenue will need to be changed when tracks are placed there, and it will doubtless be necessary for the city to negotiate with the railway company before the terms of a location can be deter- inined.
By chapter 327 of the acts of the legislature for the year 1903, a special commission was created, consisting of the mayors of Cambridge and Somerville and the chairmen of the selectmen of Arlington and Belmont, to take charge of improvements in Alewife brook. The commission referred the matter in large part to our city engineer, but action has been delayed at the re- quest of the metropolitan park commissioners, in order that, if possible, a comprehensive plan may be made for the improve- ment of the Mystic river at the same time.
Sealer of Weights and Measures.
The work of the sealer of weights and measures continues to increase rapidly, 72,211 tests having been made during the year 1903, as compared with 9,663 in 1897, the year in which the present sealer assumed the office. The expenses of the depart- ment for the year past were $1,424.83, and the receipts $392.77.
Inspector of Milk.
The work of this department has been practically the same as last year. About 800 samples of milk and fifty samples of
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MAYOR'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
vinegar have been tested, as well as a few samples of butter. License fees and fines amounting to about $600 have been turned over to the city treasurer.
It is pleasing to note that the quality of the milk tested has been better than in any previous year.
Soldiers' Relief.
During the year just passed the sum of $19,586.27 was ex- pended for the relief of veteran soldiers, soldiers' widows and families, under the provisions of the legislative act of 1890. That we have had this opportunity of partially lightening the burdens of those valiant men who risked their lives for their country, or of providing for their widows or families, must be gratifying to every Sonerville citizen. Somerville has always been careful that its veterans should not want, and it will con- tinue to exercise this same care.
No=License.
Somerville is to be congratulated on again voting no-license by an increased majority. There can be no doubt that our city's comparative freedom from crime is largely due to the no-license policy that we have pursued for so many years. It is needless for me to state that I purpose to vigorously enforce the no- license law, and that illicit liquor sellers, if there be any, will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
Gentlemen of the Board of Aldermen: We have accepted from our fellow-citizens a great trust and responsibility. Let us endeavor to so perform our duties, to so advance the interests of our city, and, above all, to so guard its welfare and protect its exalted name, that, when our official term shall end, we shall be deemed worthy of commendation by those who have entrusted so much to our care.
REPORT OF THE CITY TREASURER AND COLLECTOR OF TAXES.
Treasurer's Office, January 14, 1904.
To the Honorable, the Mayor, and the Board of Aldermen of the City of Somerville :-
Gentlemen :- The undersigned presents herewith the thirty- second annual report of the financial condition of the city, and a statement showing, in detail, the receipts and disbursements for the year ending December 31, 1903.
Public Property.
The value of the public property of the city December 31, 1902, was $3,602,384.98. The property acquired during the year was as follows :-
Contagious Disease Hospital and Land
$400 00
Public Buildings Construction, Clark Bennett School
502 55
Public Buildings Construction, Martha Perry Lowe School
42,544 71
Public Buildings Construction, Addition to Bingham School
17,280 44
Public Buildings Construction, Engine House in Ward Two
15,910 69
Fire Department, New Steam Fire Engine
5,375 00
Fire Department, New Steam Fire Alarm Whistle
510 00
Public Grounds, Improvement Park, Poplar corner Joy Street 250 00
Prospect Hill Park, Completion
1,205 19
Public Buildings Construction, Historical Building and Observatory on Prospect Hill
8,706 16
Water Works Extension
16,694 49
Furniture, School
2,290 00
School Books .
1,025 00
$112,694 23
Making the value of the public property December 31, 1903, as per Table A, $3,715,079.21.
Funded Debt.
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