The Wilmington Morning Star

Board Decides To Request Interview With Powell, Road Commissioner

The city commissioners voted yesterday to strike another blow for a state-built lane in Wilmington over which to route oil trucks.

The matter was brought to the attention of the commissioners by J. E. L. Wade, city commissioner of public works, who reviewed past negotiations with the state highway and public works commission relative to the proposed truck lane's being built by the state.

"I strongly urge and plead with the board to request immediately through W. B. Campbell, city attorney, that a conference with State Highway Commissioner A. F. Powell be arranged so that we may again present to him the pressing need for action."

His motion passed after Campbell told of a conversation with Frank Dunlap, chairman of the state highway and public works commission three weeks ago in which he said Dunlap told him that the only way to get the lane built would be to get Powell to bring the matter up before the entire commission again.

After the last conference which the city had with the commission, he said, the commission discussed the matter at length and declared that it would have to be a "district project to be built if the district had sufficient funds." This was not satisfactory, Campbell said, and he told Dunlap so. It was then, he said, that Dunlap made his latest suggestion.

The commissioners voted to ask Powell for a meeting at his convenience to urge that they be given a conference with the entire commission on the matter.

Wade estimated that the cost of such a truck lane to the state would be less than $100,000 and that more than $35,000,000 in revenue is received by the state annually from taxes on gasoline which passes over the streets of the city.

Since the inauguration of efforts to secure a truck lane, he said, the city has widened Dawson street which would reduce the cost of the lane to the state if the most recently recommended route were used.

The commissioners also considered action necessary to the completion of the codification of the city ordinances and agreed to meet two days next week to review the entire body of ordinances as recently codified by the League of Municipalities with the aid of the WPA.

At the opening of the meeting the commissioners refused to sponsor a rat eradication campaign here such as was sponsored by the city in August and September of 1939. Conductors of the campaign wanted an appropriation of $125 or less and planned also to canvas business houses in the city for contracts to eradicate their businesses of rats.

On motion of Commissioner Wade the commissioners voted to award a contract for an asphalt plant to be used in the city-WPA street paving project to E. F. Craven company, of Greensboro.