39 Iowa 543 | Iowa | 1874
I. Chapter 65, Laws of the Thirteenth General Assembly, provides that the city council or trustees of any incorporated city or town are empowered to provide an ordinance for the grading, pavingor macadamizing of any street, avenne or alley, and for the construction and repair of gutters and sewers, and to provide by ordinance for the levy of a special tax upon the lots or parcels of ground fronting the improvement, to pay for the same.
Section 1, of Ordinance No. 27, is as follows: “ That whenever the city council shall be satisfied that it is necessary or expedient to improve, by excavating, filling, paving, macadamizing or repairing, curbing or guttering, or by any other mode of improving any street, lane, avenue, alley, including sidewalk, wharf, market place, or other public place or highway, or any part thereof, within the corporate limits of said city; or to repair or renew the same, it having been improved by the same or other mode of improvement, it shall be lawful for the city council, by resolution describing the street, avenue, lane, or other place to be improved, and the character of the improvement, to order and direct such improvement, and require the cost and expense thereof to be levied and assessed as a special tax upon the lots, parcels of ground, or any part of either, fronting upon or lying along the street, avenue or lane to be improved, which said resolution shall be published at least once, with the otlier council proceedings, or otherwise, in some paper printed in.said city, and all persons shall take notice, thereof and make objection, if they have any, in writing, within seven days from the adoption thereof; and no objection to the validity of said resolution, or the right of said city to make said improvement and said levy, shall ever be made, unless the same shall have first been filed with the recorder of said city, at or before the next regular meeting of the council held after the adoption of said resolution.”
About August 21st, 1871, the council ordered a portion of Locust street to be improved. The contract was let, and a portion of the contemplated.' work was completed, when the collection of the assessments made under said proceeding was
Pending this appeal Chapter 45 of the Fourteenth General Assembly was passed, repealing Chapter 65 of the Thirteenth: General Assembly, and all other provisions, whether general or special, whereby a city or town is -authorized to levy special, taxes for the improvement of streets. Section two of this chapter is as follows:
“ That the city council or trustees of any such incorporated city or town are hereby empowered and authorized to provide by ordinance for the constructing of the’ sidewalks, for the: curbing, paving, graveling, or macadamizing of any street,, avenue, or alley, or any part of either of the same, and for the. construction of gutters. And that such city council or trustees shall have full power and authority to provide by ordi-1' nance for the levy of special tax upon the lots or parcels of ground, or any part of either of the same, fronting upon .oh lying along the street, avenue, or alley, which is to be: improved, or is improved, under the powers conferred by this section, for the purpose of defraying the cost thereof: Pro--, vided, that no permanent sidewalk- shall be laid, no paving,: curbing, graveling, or macadamizing of any.street, avenue, alley, or construction of gutters shall be ordered to be made,-until such city council or trustees shall have presented to them a written petition, signed by a number of the owners of-property abutting or lying along the contemplated improve-, ment, equal to a majority of- the resident owners of such property lying along the contemplated improvement, and' subject to assessment for the cost thereof, except when the: same shall have been ordered to be done by not less than three-fourths of the whole number of members composing, such city council or trustees of any such incorporated city, or town.”
Under this statute the city passed an ordinance as follows::
“ Section 2. Whenever a petition, purporting to be signed, by a majority of the resident owners of property abutting the portion of any street, avenue, or alley, thereby askéd to be-paved, guttered, curbed, graveled, or macadamized, or for the';
Thereupon, on the 11th day of November, 1872, the council, by a unanimous vote .of all present, one being absent, adopted the following resolution:
“ Whereas, It is expedient and necessary to improve Locust street from Main to Eighth street, by curbing, guttering and macadamizing the same; therefore be it
“ Resolved, That said street be macadamized, curbed and guttered from Main to Eighth streets, and that the costs thereof be assessed to the real estate abutting upon said part of said Locust street, as provided by law and the ordinances of said city, and that the internal improvement committee be, and they are. hereby authorized to advertise for bids for said improvement, which bids shall be presented at the next meeting of the city council.”
No petition signed by the resident owners of property abutting the improvement, asking that the improvement be made, was presented to the council, preliminary to the passage of this resolution. Under this resolution contracts were let, the work was completed, and the assessments in question were imposed.
It is claimed, however, that under section one, of ordinance number twenty-seven, above set out, the objection to the valid
Affirmed.