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Communication and following -opinion ream Mayor Seebirt and City
<br />Attorney L. W. Hammond filed and approved. -- - - -
<br />November 17th., 1924.
<br />Board of Public Works,
<br />South $end, ' Indiana .
<br />Gentlemen:- e d
<br />I have examined the opinion of Mr. Hammond City Attorney, filed with your
<br />Board under date of November llth., u.por .the subject of rev5is;ion, of the fortes of writing
<br />minutes of your Board. I think Mr. Haumiond has covered the matter very Weill and "has
<br />outlined all the requirements of ,the. law and that if your minute--s were kept in forms
<br />suggested in ,this opinion %hat ,you. would do all that is necessary+ for the proper record-
<br />ing of your business.
<br />I sincerely hope that these suggestions will be adopted and that:we can:
<br />materially sp"k. up the bringing of these records down is date.
<br />Yours very sincerely.
<br />e ELI F. SEEBIRT
<br />MAYOR .
<br />Board of Public Works,
<br />City of South Bend, Indiana.
<br />Gentlemen:
<br />Pursuant to -your request of October 28th., 1924, I have examined the minutes
<br />and records kept by the Clerk of your Board, with a view to reducing the amount of time
<br />and labor incidental to keeping the same. In making the following r000mmendations,. I have
<br />had two things in m*nd: First, the importance of having in some form a cepplete record
<br />of every offical action of the Beard, and Second, a purpose to avoid useless repetition
<br />and duplication of records, and the elimination of matter that is not required by law to
<br />be required. �
<br />My first recommendation is, that only those things be written in the minutes
<br />of the Board that are necessary by reason of the requirement that " all actions of the
<br />Board, together with a r. eedrd of the vote of each member, where the vote is not unanimous
<br />shall be recdrded by the Clerk". It will be noted that this requirement of the, Statute
<br />does not make it necessary to'reeord all the varioxis contracts., resolutions, etc.,
<br />adopted by the Board in full in the minutes, but of course it is important that such m
<br />matters should retain of record in some form. I would therefore recommend that wherever
<br />possible, resolutions Snd-contracts, construction and maintenance bonds, and other,
<br />instruments requiring the action of the Board to appear either for their execution or
<br />approval, be executed in- duplieate. That it, -that two copies should remain in the poss�-
<br />possession of the Board, one of which should be filed and indexed under the appropriate
<br />resolution number and title, and the other of which, together with all other papers upon
<br />which the Board acts on each separate day , should be kept in a separate.file.indexed
<br />according to the date. These files can then be made a: part of the record merely by
<br />rreference in the minutes. To illustrate, I have taken for example, the minutes of the
<br />meeting of Tuesday , April 259 1922, which I find to be fAitly representative of the
<br />proceedings of the Board at one of their regular meetings. The minutes of this meeting
<br />consist of.fourteen pages of typewritten matter. •I have condensed this record as follows:
<br />and 'believe the same contains legally all that is required to be kept in the minutes, and
<br />all that is otherwise useful:
<br />Tuesday, April 2591922. Board met in regular session at 9:00 A.M.
<br />All members present. Petition of et al, filed • 1922 for
<br />lights on South Michigan Street from Monroe to South Streets, submitted. Board ordered
<br />one light at alley on east side of Michigan Street between Monroe and South.
<br />Communication from H.- A.. Wood Realty Co-., dated April 21,19M
<br />relative to cancelling order for certain lights in Marquette Park, .read and. filed. Order
<br />for lights referred to, cancelled and Clark ordered to notify electric company of canal-
<br />lation.
<br />Building Commissioner -reported that he had condemned as unsafe #
<br />cerlA in barns as follows: Barn at 114 E.'Calvebt St., owner Chas. Bechtel, Breman,
<br />Ind., barn at 113 E. Navarre St., owner M. N. Dinan, South Bend, Ind.,; barn at 630
<br />S. Michigan St. owner and agent L. M. Hanmierschmidt, South Bend, Ind., ; barn at 727
<br />N Scott St. owner Robert P. Kasier, South Bend, Ind., Hearing s&t For May 391922 at
<br />7:15 P.M. irid clerk ordered to issue notice to above parties.
<br />One 100 C. P. light ordered at northeast corner of Keasey and
<br />Columbia Street. On petition of et al for pavement of Bowman Street from Miami
<br />to High Streets, resolution ordered.
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