81 ‘The’ minutes of a Regular Meeting of the City Council Austin, Texas, February 02, 1891. Hon. John McDonald, mayor, presiding. Roll [illegible] : Present – Aldermen – Anderson, Roll Glass, Jackson, Nitschke, North, Phillips, Platt, Schneider, Schuler, Sexton, Townsend, Wingfield, Ziller – 13. Call Absent – Assmann, Carleton, Graham, Hume, Minutes Linn, Morris, Newton – 7. The minutes of the meetings of the City Council which were held on the 5th, 8th, 10th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 17th, 19th, and 23rd days of January, 1891, were adopted as recorded. Officers Reports. Reports of the City Physician, City Sexton, City marshal, City Clerk, City Treasurer and City Assessor and Collector were read, and referred to their respective Committee. Printing Comtee. Alderman Schuler, for the Committee on Printing, submitted the following report: To the Hon. Mayor and Board of Aldermen : Gentlemen – Your Committee on printing beg leave to report that in accordance with a resolution of your honorable body proposals were invited for doing City Newspaper and job printing until December 1, 1891. After due Consideration your Committee recommends that the newspaper printing be awarded to the Capitalian, and the job printing to Eugene Von Boeckmann. With reference to Stationery your Committee would recommend that, in view of the Small quantity Consumed, no Contract be let. On motion the report was adopted. Cemetery Comtee. Alderman Ziller submitted the following, which was read and ordered filed: To the Hon. Mayor and Board of Aldermen: Gentlemen – Your Committee to whom was assigned the duty of inviting proposals for the establishment and maintenance of a City Cemetery, would report: 1. That they have received but one proposal which they herewith submit. Your Committee have Carefully examined the tract designated in the proposal, and would state that in their estimate the topography of the ground is everything that Could be desired for Cemetery purposes. 2. The Conditions stipulated in the proposal, under which the proposed Corporation would organize, meets the approval of your Committee. 3. Your Committee is of the opinion that the ground designated is too far from the Center of the City, the Same being a distance of about three miles, and would therefore ask your [illegible] to deliberation either for or against the Same, but ask the Council to take Such action as they may deem best. W. Ziller, --- Page break --- 82 Chairman, Jno. W. Phillips. Alderman Hulme entered the Council and answered to his name. Cemetery - new. Alderman Ziller introduced the following proposal: To the Honorable Cemetery Committee of the City Council of the City of Austin: With a View to the Establishment and maintenance of a Cemetery for public purposes, We make you the following propositions, to-wit: 1. We agree to organize a Cemetery Association and incorporate same. To acquire and forever dedicate for Cemetery purposes Sixty acres of land, to be selected by your Committee, from a tract of about one hundred and fifteen acres situated about 2 1/2 miles East of the City of Austin, fronting on Magnolia Avenue, and now owned by the Young Men's Real Estate and Invr. Company. 2. To lay off such sixty acre tract into lots, blocks, walks, streets and drive ways in such way that blocks in the new Cemetery shall be the same size and shape as those in the present Cemetery. The drive ways, streets and walks shall not be less in width than of the present Cemetery. 3. That blocks and lots will be immediately placed on sale at the same prices at which the City of Austin now offers the same in the present Cemetery, to-wit: $50 per block; half blocks and quarter blocks in the same proportion. Subject to the maximum price. 4. To give the City ten acres of land in Exchange for the 2 1/4 acres now owned by the City, adjoining the old Cemetery, said ten acres to be used as pauper grounds. To enable us to establish and maintain this new Cemetery we would ask the City to agree: 1. That the present Cemetery shall not be enlarged or extended, nor shall any extension or addition thereto be made by any person, nor shall any Cemetery be ever opened or established within the Corporate limits of the City of Austin; nor shall any dead be interred within the City limits except within the present existing Cemetery and then only by virtue of rights now existing. This article to be in force for such period of time as there may be available ground within the proposed new Cemetery. 2. To bury its pauper dead in the proposed new Cemetery, and to purchase of the new Association the necessary lots therefor at the aforesaid stipulated price. 3. To grade and keep in repair and condition for funeral processions Magnolia Avenue or College Avenue to the Eastern limits of the City as they now are and as they may be extended. 4. That as soon as the City undertakes to own or operate its own Waterworks, it will, at its own expense, lay suitable mains and pipes into the new Cemetery grounds, and will furnish free of charge, all necessary water for Cemetery purposes. 5. That the City give us the right to Construct, own and operate a street railway along Magnolia Avenue, such line to connect with other City lines over such --- Page break --- 83 Streets may be agreed upon by and between us and the City Council, and to extend East and into such new Cemetery grounds. This is a brief outline of the points that we would ask to be incorporated in a Contract, in writing, to be formally entered into by and between a new Cemetery association (that we propose forming) and the City of Austin; and such association would expect to receive the moral support of the City, in its maintenance. Very Respectfully, H. B. Barnhart, J. H. Green, W. S. Drake, S. A. Patrick, Joseph B. Winn. " Alderman Ziller moved that the proposal be laid aside without action until the next regular meeting of the City Council, and that the Cemetery Committee be instructed to again advertise and invite proposals for the establishment and maintenance of a City Cemetery. The motion prevailed. Dam. The mayor presented a report from Chief Engineer, J. P. Frizell showing the progress that has been made in the Construction of the proposed Dam and Canal, and the railroad to the site of the dam, during the month of January. It shows that heavy and repeated rains "have" not only interrupted the work during the Continuance of the rain but by softening the ground, flooding the excavations and raising the water caused, prevented the resumption of the work for one, and sometimes for two or three days after the termination of the rain." On the railroad to the dam, which is now the most important work, the grading is hardly one-fourth done. With good weather it would have been very near half done. The masonry is more than half Completed. At the dam, the earth work has Consisted mainly in the Construction of an Embankment or Coffer dam to enclose the masonry between the low water Channel of the river and the high ground. The work is nearly Completed, only a part of it requiring to be raised for the Excavation for the hydraulic Canal has progressed favorably. There remains but about 100 yards in length to be opened in order that this work may extend as far as the City owns the land. The Cutting of granite for the dam is now going on at Granite mountain, Burnet County. No estimate of this work has been made but it is believed that 1000 Cubic yards are now quarried. Quarries of limestone were discovered which yield a stone for masonry, the requirements of the water. Submitted to Committee and approved. The Estimate No. 6. from Payment of Howard Carrigan. --- Page break --- was made to suspend the rules and place, it on its second reading, which was lost by the following Vote: Yeas: Aldermen – Anderson, Glass, Jackson, Newton, Nitschke, North, Phillips, Platt, Schultze, Townsend, Wingfield – 11. Nays – Aldermen – Hume, Schneider, Sutor, Ziller – 4. Alderman Anderson then moved to refer the Ordinance, to a Special Committee of three; to be appointed by the Mayor, with instructions to Confer with the Board of School Trustees, with reference to the question and report at the next regular meeting of the Council. The motion prevailed) and the Chair appointed as such Committee Aldermen Anderson, Hume and Wingfield. The following was read: Austin, Texas, January 31, 1891. Hon. John McDonald, Prest. Board of Public Works. W. Jips. Dear Sir: Owing to the Kind and nature of business in which I am engaged, it is impracticable for me to occupy the position of member of the Board of Public Works without violating Sec. 9 of the Ordinance Creating the Board, and the rules adopted by Said Board governing its actions, etc. The restrictions in the Ordinance and rules referred to are eminently proper and Should be strictly adhered to. Circumstances combined therewith beg leave to resign my position as member of Board of Public Works. Assuring you that I will continue to take a deep interest in the successful accomplishment of the great dam enterprise, I am, Yours most respectfully, Walter Jips. Alderman Phillips moved that the resignation be accepted and that the thanks of the Council be extended to Mr. Jips for faithful and efficient service rendered the City while a member of the Board of Public Works. The motion was unanimously adopted. alley in Blk. 69. Alderman Platt introduced an Ordinance appropriating the sum of $1.000 to improve the alley running North and South through block 69. It was read the first time and on motion of Alderman Anderson referred to the Street Committee. The Council – then adjourned. Morton Morris, City Clerk.