Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 274, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 November 1918 — UNEARTHSSTONE ROAD SCANDAL [ARTICLE]

UNEARTHSSTONE ROAD SCANDAL

REVIEW CLAIMS BENTON COUNTY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ROBBED BY CONTRACTORS.

The Benton County Review gives a great amount of space in its issue of this week to what it claims is the big-1 gest steal that has ever been attempted in Benton county public affairs. State board of accountants and engineers have made an investigation and claim that the Fleming gravel road in Pike township must be recon-

structed. / The following is extracted from the Review article: The report of the engineer and examiners is quite a mild document and does not use any melodrama in telling the tale of one of the biggest single steals that has ever been attempted to be put over on Benton county. As it is rather a long and in most parts uninteresting to the average reader we have clipped from it only the following parts: “The records show that the petition was signed by 22 freehold voters. After proper publication of petition and notice to bidders the contract was awarded to Evans, Son & VanNatta, low bidders.-

Date of contract, May 1, 1917. Length of road, 9,100 feet or 1.725 miles. Price per mile, $5,853.15. Date for completion, December 31, 1917. “We find that the plans and specifications were filed as provided by law, which plans and specifications provided for a gravel road of the fol- ; lowing construction: * “Article 4 of said specifications read as follows:

“Sub-grade: A sub-grade shall be shaped to conform with cross sections shown on drawings. “The width of the sub-grade shall be 27 feet, except as follows: From station 244 to station 40, the width of the sub-grade, exclusive of side ditches shall be 27 feet wide.” “The profile adopted by the Board of County Commissioners under which the contract for this improvement was let shows the surface of the ground and also shows the finished .sub-grade by 'lines and figures frornVwhach the depths of the excavations and embankments are determined. “We have made a re-survey of this road and find that the sub-grade has not been completed according to the profile, for the reason that the excavation and embankments have not been made as required. Our calculations from the survey which we have made show that to have completed the sub-grade according to the plans and specifications the contractor would have been required to move in addition to what he has moved 5422 cubic yards of excavation and 1154 cubic yards of embankment. “We have taken the original profile of this road and from the level notes of our re-survey platted thereon a line in green ink which shows the unfinished state in the sub-grade and the deficiency in the depth of the excavation and embankments. .

> GRAVEL “Article 5 of the specification read as follows: “ ‘Gravel: The width of the gravel shall ba i? itet. The thickness of the gravel shall be 12 inciej. The •gravel shall be the best quality material from the Atkinson Pit, or its equal. “ ‘AM rocks and stones above three inches in the largest dimensions shall be thrown out.” “We have examined the gravel and find thafHt has 'been placed on the sub-grade 11 feet in lieu pf 12 feet as required. We have also measured the depth of the gravel and find that it is 8 to 9 inches w 3 inches less than required*. The gravel would settle to a certain amount from being subjected to the traffic that would necessarily come upon the road but the settling caused from, such traffic should not equal the above deficiency in the depth. “We further find that the gravel is of a very inferior quality, containing as much as 50 to 75 per cent of fine sand and loam and is in no wise equal to the Best gravel that could have been had from the Atkinson Pit as' specified. “We further find that what is known as the VanAtta ditch crosses this road. The material excavated from this ditch is made up of a mi*ture of gravel, fine sand and loam. The per cent of fine sand and loam predominating. We find that it wan from the spoil banks of this ditch that the contractors procured the gravel that- they used in the construction of this road, except that the sub-contrac-tor stated to us that the gravel on the last half mile was hauled from the Atkinson Pit; after this statement was made to us, we made ah inspection of the Atkinson Gravel Pit and while the gravel on the last half mile of the road may have been hauled from this pit we find that it does not compare in quality with the best of the gravel that could have beep bad from the pit. CULVERTS " “The specifications provide in Article 6 as follows: “ ‘Bridges, culverts and tile ditches shall be constructed as shown on the plans and profiles.’ “The plans show that all culverts are to be made of a standard grade ’ of corrugated iron pipe. Concrete' bead waH of the following dimensions | were to be constructed: Ail head, IwaHs to be in thickness 18 inches at /the base and 12 inches at the top. In height from one foot below the bottom of the pipe to the top "bf the finished grade. The length to 'be equal bo the diameter of thespjpe plus four feet The concrete in"thcge head walls to be mixed in the

tion of one (1) part cement to. rive . (5) parts of clean, weU graded gravel. “We find upon investigation that I these head walls are from one and one-half (I’A) feet to two (2) feet short: that they are six (6) inches I less in thickness at the base than reI quired; that there willJbe a deficiency I in height when the fills have been I made as provided. We find that the I quality of cement used is inferior to | that specified, so much so in fact, I that some of the walls are crumbling

down at the present time. I “We have examined he records of the county commissioners, and failed to find any order by said board accepting said road, nor do we find any endorsement upon the petition of the Contractor, or the statements of the Superintendent or Engineer, noting any action of the Board, accepting said road.’’ CONCLUSIONS “We conclude after our examination of the record relative to said road and our investigation of the road I that no action should be taken by the Board of Commissioners accepting said road until it has been reconstructed and made to comply with the plans, specifications, plats, profiles and contract under which the improvement was let. “To reconstruct this road so as to make it conform with the plans and specifications will require the following; I The removal of 5422 cubic yards z of excavation at 37 %c per cu. yd. .. .$23033.25 I Removing the present gravel off the road, 3015 cu. yds. at 37tic .......... 1130.62 I New gravel, 4062 cu. yds. at I $1.75 7108.50 ITo concrete head walls, 10 I cu. yds. at SB.OO per cu yd. 80.00 I Est. services of Supt. and Engineer • • 200.00 Total . $10552.37