47 Wis. 267 | Wis. | 1879
According to the allegations of the complaint, it is very certain that the common council never took the steps prescribed by the city charter, which were essential to make the expense of grading, claying and graveling West street chargeable on the adjoining lots. The charter provides that every resolution for doing such work at the expense of the lots, on being introduced, shall be referred to some appropriate committee, and shall not be adopted sooner than fourteen days from the introduction thereof, nor until ten days after the pro
The complaint avers and shows that these and other provisions of the charter were not complied with on the part of the common council; and it follows, of course, that the adjoining lots were not chargeable with the work. And because of this failure of the common council to make the lots chargeable, it is insisted that the city is under obligation to pay for it. The difficulty, however, with this position is, that there is a further clause of the charter which declares that whenever any work has been done under a contract of the character of that mentioned in the complaint, the contractor shall be entitled to certain certificates, etc., but that “in no event, where work is ordered to be done at the expense of any lot or parcel of land, shall the city be held responsible for or on account thereof, or for any proceedings for the collection of the pay thereof.” Section 12, ch. XI. It is impossible to hold, in the face of this pi’ovision, that the city is liable to pay for the improvement
These remarks are deemed sufficient to dispose of the question as to any general liability of the city to pay for the work. It must be presumed that the plaintiff contracted with the city with full knowledge of this provision in its charter, which exonerated it from all obligation to pay for such improvements. But it is said that the case made by the complaint does not fall within the provision, for the reason that the work was not ordered to be done at the expense of the adjoining lots. But all the allegations, especially the certificates set out in the complaint, negative this position, and show that the common council attempted to charge the adjoining lots with the expense of the work. Indeed, we find no provision in the charter which authorizes the city to make such improvements
In Allen v. The City of Janesville, 35 Wis., 403, the city had power under its charter to contract for the improvement of streets at the general expense of the city, and there was no provision exempting it from liability on that ground. In that case it was held liable as a matter of course.
It is objected that the provision exempting the city from liability is invalid, within the doctrine laid down in Durkee v. The City of Janesville, 28 Wis., 464, and Hincks v. The City of Milwaukee, 46 Wis., 559. Rut the principle and reason of these decisions have no application to the case at bar; for all persons contracting with the city to make these improvements 'are chargeable with knowledge of its exemption from liability to pay under its charter. Besides, the provision is a very common one in the charters of the cities of this state. In whatever view, therefore, we regard the case, we are constrained to hold that the complaint states no cause of action.
By the Court. — The order of the circuit court is reversed, and the cause is remanded for further proceedings.