USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Dedham > The record of the town meetings, and abstract of births, marriages, and deaths, in the town of Dedham, Massachusetts, 1887-1896 > Part 25
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All of which is respectfully submitted,
March, 1893.
DON GLEASON HILL, Town Clerk.
Article Forty-three-Voted to raise and appropriate the sum .of three hundred dollars to purchase a piano for use in Memorial Hall.
Article Twelve was taken up and the vote passed thereon, on the third day of April, was reconsidered, and it was voted to ap- propriate for the support of the public schools, and the payment
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of the salary of the Superintendant of Schools for the ensuing year, and for instruction in the elementary use of hand tools and in sewing in the public schools, the sum of thirty-eight thousand five hundred and fifty dollars, five hundred dollars of said amount to be used for sanitary improvements at the Ames School, twelve thousand dollars of said thirty-eight thousand five hundred and fifty dollars to be taken from the Treasury, and the balance to be: raised by taxation.
James M. Ellis presented the Report of the Committee on Article Twenty-four of the Town Meeting Warrant of 1892, which Report was accepted, and is as follows :-
Report of Committee on Art. 24, of Town Meeting Warrant ·of 1892. .
The Committee appointed under this Article, to see what ar- rangement could be made with the town of Norwood, for a supply of water for fire and other purposes, beg leave to report.
That they have had a meeting with the Water Commissioners. (of the town of Norwood) who expressed their opinion that the: town of Norwood would supply water to West Dedham, and charge for the amount of water used, provided the town of Ded- ham would put in the necessary plant - pipes, and probably a standpipe, but the Commissioners would feel justified in cutting. off the supply of water, should there be at any time a scarcity of water for Norwood.
Your committee is opposed to any such arrangement, believ -- ing that the Water Company of Dedham is the proper party to give West Dedham a supply of water for fire purposes, and the citizens of West Dedham are taxed for water which they do not receive.
Respectfully submitted,
JAMES M. ELLIS, - W. W. BAKER, Committee. HENRY E. FRENCH, )
Elisha Greenhood presented the Report of the Sub-Commit- tee appointed by the Committee of twenty-one to consider and report directly to the Town, some method of keeping down the rate of taxation, which report was accepted, and is as follows :-
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Report of Sub-Committee.
The Sub-Committee appointed by the Committee of 21, "to- consider and report directly to the Town some method of keeping. down the rate of taxation," have attended to that duty, and the. majority beg leave to report as follows :-
We have not deemed it our duty to look into the individual' appropriations, or into any estimates of needs, or into the admin- istration of any department of town affairs, for the purpose of criticism ; but it is due to our personal opinions for us to say that, with a town practically without any debt, as we are, with the- insignificant amount of permanent improvements which we are fostering, and with the comparatively large amount of taxed prop- erty which the town has in its limits, there is something radically wrong, either in our system of raising money at the present, or in our system of appropriating or of spending money, when we are exposed to a tax rate, fluctuating between $10 and $18.70 per- $1000, as ours has been between 1877 and 1892, and when it is: perfectly evident that we will have to face a tax rate of $18.00 this very year.
The appropriations recommended by the Committee of twenty-one, aggregate $111,349.50, and so far, the recommenda- tions have been reduced, net, only $200.00, and there remain to be acted upon only $5564.50, about 3% of the whole sum. Add- ing the same sums which we were obliged to pay last year for- state and county taxes, $10,754.00, which will probably be larger- this year, we have a total of $122,000.00 ; now deduct $10,000.00- for corporation and bank taxes, $2500 more than last year, and $4000 for poll taxes, and you have net $108,000.00 to raise on the property in the town. Then there is the Poor House problem to face, and the town will have a substantial sum to be raised to pay the town's share of doing away with the grade crossing on River- Street. But addressing ourselves to the trouble we have on our hands, and without borrowing any trouble, we will have $108,000 to raise on probably $6,000,000.00 of property, at the most, or - a tax rate of $18.00 per $1000.
Any man who would say that the town is inviting with such a tax rate is certainly a very hopeful man. We are growing with extreme slowness in population ; we attract no industry, and keep what we have with great difficulty, and our valuation is $60,000~
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less than what it was in 1876, 17 years ago, while our appropria- tions are 60 per cent. higher.
And yet we are a rich town. A high tax rate is to be looked for in a poor town, and a low one in a rich one. We have taxed property of $800 to every man, woman and child in Dedham. Less than 25 out of 351 towns in the State can show that result of the Assessors' work. And yet though we are one of the rich towns, and though we ought for that reason be one of the lowest taxed in the State, it is probably safe for us to state that there will not be over six towns in the State with as high a tax rate as we will have this year, unless we adopt some heroic remedy.
What can be done? Cut down appropriations ? Past expe- rience in efforts in that direction has not furnished much hope of accomplishing much along that line. Raise the valuation ? The people say that they are already appraised high enough. Unearth ·covered-up property ? That is easily said, but hard to do. The time to fight an appropriation is when it is in the bud. It is pretty hard to collide with it when it comes, up for renewal.
We have to now determine whether we will adopt some set- tled policy, or be content to let things take their course whither they will. Either a low and fixed rate must be secured by some .arbitrary method, resting on a fixed basis of action, or we will drift into that condition of things where we will be positively ob- :noxious, as a town, to outsiders. A fickle, fluctuating rate of tax- .ation is almost as bad as a fixed high rate, but there is merit in a fixed rate, high or low, because a man knows what he will have to pay. A man likes to know when he is coming to a town, for business or mere residence, how much he will have to pay for itaxes as well as for car fares, and if he is told that Dedham has a fluctuating high rate, Dedham is not helped any. Our tax rate .should be limited and uniform by a settled policy. Boston's is limited by law.
Then people will not pay 2 per cent. to the public treasury if they can help themselves.
A tax rate of not exceeding $12 per $1000 is what Dedham .ought to have, and we should adopt such policy as will bring us to it. The treasury is practically dry, so we cannot look for relief .there. A spasmodic fit of economy, in which we hit the first head we see, is not the thing for us to do. Borrow for permanent im-
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provements ? That provides practically no remedy, because we: only have recommended to us less than a dollar and a half on the thousand for such.
We must begin to borrow, for a limited a period of years, for even : current expenses, and hope for redemption from our present trouble through becoming the borrower for say 10 years, and in the meantime through a low tax rate, so greatly in- creasing our valuation that, with a system of rigid economy in- sisted upon, the assessors, doing their utmost to find covered-up. property, and raise values where justified, and thereby getting to a basis where the necessity of borrowing will have disappeared, and we will still have a low tax rate.
This plan contemplates that the loan this year will be larger than in any future year. We recommend that a loan of $36,000 be contracted, at not exceeding 4 per cent., the rest of the money needed for appropriations to be raised by taxation. This will reduce the tax rate $6.00 per $1000. We will have to pay it off in ten years, laying by.8 per cent. yearly on the principal, and 4 per cent. say for interest, in all $4320 a year, and we not only ex- pect that we will have to borrow less each year, but that the in- crease in valuation and reduction of expenses will be sufficient to pay off the debt without any variation from the $12 rate.
We recommend the following votes :-
Resolved that. the town shall have a fixed tax rate, limited to $12, if possible ; that we borrow money to secure that end ; that our financial condition requires a thorough-inquiry into every 'department, with a view to retrenchment, without crippling any. department, and that a committee of three be appointed to inves- tigate and make report in print not later than Feb. 1, 1894.
Voted that the selectmen be authorized to borrow the sum 'of $31,000 on the notes of the town, and not exceeding 4 per cent. interest, payable in ten years, to defray to that extent the appro- priations already made, and that the balance. needed to defray such appropriations be raised by taxation.
(Not signed.)
And on motion at ten o'clock p. m., the meeting was dis- solved.
Attest : DON GLEASON HILL,
Town Clerk.
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TOWN MEETING WARRANT.
[Town Seal.]
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.
NORFOLK, SS. To any Constable of the Town of Dedham, in said County, Greeting :
You are hereby required, in the name of the Commonwealth aforesaid, to notify and warn the inhabitants of the said Town of Dedham, qualified to vote in town affairs, to assemble at Memo- rial Hall, in said town, on MONDAY, the fifteenth day of May, A. D., 1893, at half past seven o'clock P. M., to act on the follow- ing articles, namely :-
Article One-To choose a Moderator to preside at said meeting.
Article Two-To hear and act on the report of the Com- mitte on the Almshouse.
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Article Three-To see if the Town will vote to purchase a new lot for an Almshouse, and to build the same, with the neces- sary out-buildings thereon, or to see whether it will vote to re- build on the old lot, and raise money by borrowing or otherwise, and appropriate the same for either of the above purposes.
Article Four-To see if the Town will accept Alpine Street, from Cedar Street to Winthrop Street, as laid out by the Select- men, and raise and appropriate money for the same.
Article Five-To see if the Town will vote to accept a new street running from Sprague Street, in a southeasterly course, to the line of the Boston & Providence Railroad, as laid out by the Selectmen, and raise and appropriate money for the same.
Article Six-To see if the Town will vote to locate one of the horses provided for the use of the Fire Department, at the last town meeting, at Hose No. 3's house, East Dedham, instead -of having both at the Steamer house as then voted, and to take the money to provide the accommodations occasioned by the change from the appropriation made at said meeting for procuring horses and accommodations therefor, or to see if the town will vote to provide an additional horse for said purpose, and raise and appropriate money for the same.
Hereof fail not, but make return of this warrant with your
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doings thereon, unto the Selectmen, on or before said day and time.
Given under our hands, and the seal of said Town, at Ded- ham, aforesaid, this fourth day of May, A. D. 1893.
THOMAS P. MURRAY, - GEO. W. WEATHERBEE, FERDINAND F. FAVOR. HENRY E. FRENCH, J. EVERETT SMITH,
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Selectmen of Dedham.
On this Warrant the following return was made :
Norfolk, ss. Dedham, May 13, 1893.
By virtue of this warrant, I have notified and warned the le- gal voters of the Town of Dedham, aforesaid, to meet at the time and place, and for the purposes specified in said warrant, by posting attested copies thereof in each of the post offices in said town, and in twenty other public places in said town, seven days .at least before the day of said; meeting, and by causing a copy thereof to be published twice before the time of said meeting, in the Dedham Transcript, a newspaper published in said town of Dedham.
IRVING DONLEY, Constable of Dedham.
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.
Norfolk, ss.
At a meeting of the inhabitants of the Town of Dedham, in said County, qualified to vote in town affairs, held pursuant to the foregoing warrant, at Memorial Hall, in said town, on Monday, the fifteenth day of May, A. D. 1803:
The meeting was called to order at the time and place named in said warrant, by the Town Clerk, who presided at the choice of Moderator.
Article One-J. Varuum Abbott was appointed and sworn by the town clerk a teller to aid the town clerk in receiving and · counting votes for moderator. John R. Bullard was chosen mod- erator by written ballot, in receiving which the check list was used.
Article Two-A majority and also a minority report was pre-
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.sented and read to the meeting, and it was voted to accept said reports, and the reports were as follows :
The committee on the location of the almshouse beg leave to .. submit the following report :
Your committee at their first meeting considered the question of the desirability of rebuilding on the old site, and the advan- tages to the town of owning and managing a large farm. While in the past such a farm has been run with more or less profit, it seemed to a majority of the committee, looking to the future needs of the town and the necessity of building an almshouse that should meet all the requirements of the state law in regard to the safety of the inmates, that an alms house should be erected on a lot of land near the water service of the town, if possible, or where there was an abundant supply of water with sufficient arable.land for raising such farm produce as would be needed by the inmates of the almshouse. It was therefore voted almost unanimously not to recommend rebuilding on the old site. Owing to the ground being covered with snow for. a large portion of the winter the com- mittee were unable to make a proper examination of the lots sug- gested until the spring had opened. Ten or twelve pieces of land .were visited and: examined, and of these, two were selected for final action. One known as the Wentworth lot on Elm street. containing ten acres mostly wood land, with a never failing brook running through it at its lower extremity, for which the committee have a refusal for $1500.
The other lot, known as the Doggett lot, on Sandy Valley road, consisting of 193 acres of wood, pasture and arable land, within a few hundred feet of stand-pipe of the Water Company, and this land was bonded for $2500.
Your committee finally decided, by an almost unanimous - vote, to recommend to the town the purchase of the Doggett land and the immediate construction of the almshouse thereon.
The advantages of this lot over the Wentworth land are :
1st. Almost double the quantity of land. 2d. The Doggett land contains five or. six acres of good soil for cultivation, while . the Wentworth land has only an acre or two of cleared land. 3d. There is on the Doggett lot wood land of good growth for imme- - diate use. 4th. The stand-pipe is within about 400 feet of Doggett land, and there would be sufficient pressure to raise the water-
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from 27 to 60 feet according to spot selected for the building. 5th. The Doggett location is within ten minutes run from the house of the steam fire engine. .
The Committee do not recommend the sale of the town farm at present, believing it will be of more value in the future.
The Committee, through a sub-committee, visited several Alms Houses of recent construction, and have examined several plans. They recommend a building to be constructed of wood with the following general features :
A structure of two stories and an attic (to be finished later if required) in the form of a parallelogram, with central portion for Superintendent, and two wings, one for men the other for women, with bath room in each wing, and one in central portion, a main staircase and one on each wing, the whole to be heated by steam or hot water.
The committee submit the following estimate of cost to town of building on either of these sites or on the old location :
Doggett lot .- Land,
$2,500
House,
12,000
Barn,
1,200
Water connection,
800
Total Cost.
$16,500
Wentworth lot .- All the items are the same in this lot, except for water connections, $1500, and land $1500, making total cost $17,200
West Dedham lot.
Land (estimated value.)
$5000
House,
12,000
Barn and Outbuildings,
2500
Water,
1500
Total cost
$21,000
Mr. Laforme, who had acted as one of the committee, believ- ing that he had no right to serve after the election of the new board of selectmen, resigned, and his place was filled by the appointment of Mr. J. E. Smith.
It may be proper to add that up to the time of Mr. Laforme's
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resignation he had been in full accord with the action of the committee.
Respectfully submitted,
THOMAS P. MURRAY,
GEORGE W. WEATHERBEE,
J. EVERETT SMITH, HENRY E. FRENCH,
JAS. M. ELLIS, HENRY SMITH,
JOHN CROWLEY,
HOWARD COLBURN.
Minority Report of the Committee on Location and Expense of Con- struction of a new Alms-House in Dedham.
' It has now been nearly seven months since the Town ap- pointed a committee of nine to suggest a location and expense of a new almshouse, during which time the committee have investi- gated and considered every available site coming to their atten- tion. In the beginning it was the unanimous opinion that a location should be obtained on the line of the Dedham Water Works. After many attempts to find such a location and failure. it became necessary to obtain a location elsewhere. The loca- tions which could be obtained and appeared most suitable, were the lot owned by A. B. Wentworth, Esq., on Elm street, and a lot on the Sandy Valley Road, known as the Doggett homestead.
The undersigned, the smallest possible minority, while he is able, substantially, to concur in the main with the committee, re- grets exceedingly his inability to join them in their recommenda- tion as to the location. During the deliberations of the committee who present the majority report, it does not appear in any way that they have given any consideration to sanitary conditions, which must necessarily arise. Their report on the condition of the Elm Street location I leave, with the exception of calling the attention of the voters of the Town to its excellent natural drain- age ability, rising in no point to an extent from the street of over 8 feet, sloping gradually in every direction, rendering the disposi- tion of necessary drainage an easy problem. As to the Doggett lot, it appears to the undersigned to be undesirable in every par- ticular, and that is sufficient reason why the building should not
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be located on that spot. It is situated on the north side of what is known as the Sandy Valley road, about one-third of a mile from Highland Street, rising abruptly from the street with a grade of not less than 20 per cent., and in some parts more. It is very ledgy, with only a few acres of tillage land, not over five, all of which is on a slant. The street leading to it, a third of a mile, will require considerable repair at an expense of not less than five hundred dollars, and a drive way to where a building would be located would also require a considerable outlay, not less than five hundred dollars more ; neither item has been considered in - the majority report. This location is too near the centre of the town, because it will afford an inducement for inmates to run -away for the purpose of getting to the village, which would neces- sarily cause considerable trouble to the Superintendent. The building must necessarily be located at the top or near the top of the eminence where it is chiefly ledge, and therefore expensive in ·construction of cellar and driveways. It becomes necessary to locate it nearly on the highest portion of the land or on the north slope of the hill on account of the drainage, which does not ap- pear to have been taken into consideration by a majority of the committee. It cannot be located on the southerly slope, because the drainage would necessarily force its way to the street or the foul meadow on the opposite side of the street, which would soon become an unbearable nuisance. Should the building be placed on the top of the eminence, it is difficult to understand, with the present height of the standpipe, how a supply of water could be obtained for service in the house at all times, without any fire .service whatever. Failing to find a location on the line of the water pipes, or within reasonable distance, it seems to the minority most reasonable and judicious to return to the old lot on Fox Hill in West Dedham, where the Town already owns not far from 80 acres, much of which is as good land as can be found in the County of Norfolk; sufficiently level in the upper portion to render it inexpensive in grading, and yet a sufficient fall in the rear to render drainage easy and successful. There is also sufficient good water on the premises which may be furnished by the wind- mill process or by some inexpensive engine. This location, with the exception of the lack of fire service, appears to meet every requirement for such a building as is now proposed, and it is not
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impossible before many years that West Dedham will have a good water supply, therefore this minority report recommends this site.
J. W. CHASE.
Dedham, May 15th, 1893.
Article Three-Voted to rebuild the almshouse buildings upon the old lot. After this vote was passed a motion was made to reconsider the same, and on a verification of the vote, it was found that fifty persons had voted to reconsider, and one hundred and ninety-eight persons had voted not to reconsider the same, and the motion to reconsider was declared lost.
Voted to appropriate the sum of sixteen thousand dollars to erect an almshouse and necessary out-buildings, and to borrow that sum on the notes of the town, payable respectively in one, two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight years, in sums of two thousand dollars each, at a rate not exceeding four per cent. per annum, and that the town Treasurer be authorized to borrow said sum and issue the notes of the town therefor, and on a verifica- tion of said vote, it was found that two hundred and eleven persons had voted in the affirmative, and one person in the nega- tive, and the moderator declared that the same had been passed by a two-thirds vote.
Voted that a committee consisting of Howard Colburn, John Crowley and the Moderator of the meeting, John R. Bullard, be appointed to rebuild said almshouse buildings, and that said committee have power to fill vacancies. Howard Colburn stated that he wished to decline, but on motion the town voted not to accept his declination. Also voted that preference be given to Dedham architects, and so far as practicable to Dedham workmen, in the construction of said buildings.
Article Four-Voted to accept Alpine street from Cedar street to Winthrop street, as laid out by the Selectmen, and raise and appropriate four hundred and fifty dollars for the same. See Report-Highway Book, p. 138.
Article Five-Voted to accept a new street running from Sprague street in a southeasterly course to the line of the B. & P. R. R., as laid out by the Selectmen, and raise and appropriate five hundred dollars therefor. See Report-Highway Book, p. 138.
Article Six-Voted to appropriate three hundred dollars to
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provide an additional horse for the purposes of said article, and that said amount be taken from the Treasury therefor.
And on motion the meeting was dissolved.
Attest : DON GLEASON HILL,
Town Clerk.
TOWN MEETING WARRANT.
[Town Seal.]
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS.
NORFOLK, SS. To any Constable of the Town of Dedham, in said County, Greeting :
You are hereby required, in the name of the Commonwealth aforesaid, to notify and warn the inhabitants of the said Town of Dedham, qualified to vote in town affairs, to assemble at Memo- rial Hall, in said town, on Tuesday, the sixth day of June, A. D., 1893, at half past seven o'clock P. M., to act on the follow- ing articles, namely :-
Article One-To choose a Moderator to preside at said meeting.
Article Two-To see if the town will vote to rescind all the votes passed at the last town meeting in relation to the location and building of, the appointment of a building committee and the appropriation of money for, an Almshouse and other necessary buildings connected therewith.
Article Three-To see if the town will vote to purchase land and buildings thereon, on the West side of Washington street, known formerly as the McGee property, and now owned by Kim- ball heirs, and appropriate money for the same, and to act on any other matter in relation to the property that may come before the said meeting.
Article Four-To see if the Town will authorize the Select- men to establish a Lockup in the basement of Memorial Hall, and to discontinue the use of the steamer house for that purpose.
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