Another Special Election

Monday evening, the council called a special eleotion for the purpose of giving the taxpayera an opportunity to vote on the question of whether $5,000 additional shall be raised this year, for the purpose of building new crosswalks about the city This election will be held on Monday' June 30, and as the time ia short a thor! ough examination of the necessities in the case ahould be given to the public. At first jf lance it appears that the city should be able to get along on the regular appropriation and that the expenditure of $5,000 extra this year would be an extravagance 1 But there are phases in city afhirs which put a different light on the matter, and in fact show the absolute neeessity of voting for the measure. Lïat year more miles of new sidewalks were ordered laid than in any dozen years in the history of the city. Tbe citizens almost to a man responded to the summons and built tbe walks ordered, giving Ann Arbor a better lot of walks than any other city of its size in the country. In many cases the building of the walks ordered was really a hardship to the owners of the property, but they were built. As the walks were built by private parties, the Board of Public Works found that they were hampered in domg their share of the work, building crosswalks wherever new sidewalks were ordered, by the smallne8s of the appropriation placed at the disposal of the board and the depleted condition of the city treasury. To order i-idewalks constructed and then for the city not to do her nhare in the line ot ionprovements, is au injustice by the city ae;ainst every resident and property owner. But this is what it will be necessary to do unless the board receives the assútance asked at this election. There are at present 200 crosswalks whioh should be boilt at once. Many oí these are at the intersection of blocks and on streets where now walks have been lsid, and where is now a " jam off place" because the city has not now the mjans to do her share of the work. This certainly is not as it should be. If the $5,000 is not granted, not more than twen'y crosswalks can be built this year, at which rate it will take ten years before our citizens can walk aboutihe city in 8atety. The expense of this additional tax would be tnfling, not over ten cents on $100 valuatioD, and this amount would not be missed by even the poorest of our taxpayerg. As a matter of economy, if the sum aeked was cwice as large the caxpayers would eave money by voting for it. Should a single accident occur at any one of these "j:imp:ngoff places,'1 the city would be liable for damages which miglit be more than the amount askad ; and if' each of' these places should furnish a single accident the damages sought would probably be enough to cripple the city for years. Vote for the tax.