to expropriate or condemn the land neces- 
sary to establish, widen or extend these 
highways. The cost of the lands entailed 
in such procedure is then, in the same 
court, by the same commissioners estab- 
lishing the value of the lands taken, 
assessed against the private lands within 
a previously prescribed contiguous or 
abutting benefit district. In the case of 
streets, usually abutting lands ; in the 
case of boulevards custom has established 
the frontage upon the adjoining parallel 
street on each side as properly within a 
district specifically benefited by the estab- 
lishment of such highways. Later, after 
the properties have been acquired, some- 
times at the time of acquisition, the grades 
upon which these highways are to be built 
are established, and should there be violent 
changes of ground surface, thereby produc- 
ing possible injury to the abutting private 
property, opportunity is given to claim 
damages for this element, and the cost 
thereof is assessed in the form of special 
land assessment against the properties in 
the benefited district. 
Subsequent to the disposition of the 
question of damages due to the street 
grade or changes in ground surface there- 
on, the highway is graded to its estab- 
lished grade and the cost of this work 
assessed in proportion to the value of the 
property assessed and against the lands 
forming the normal frontage on the high- 
way so improved. After the street has 
been brought to the proper planes in ac- 
cordance with the established grades, and 
all subsequent to the proper legislation by 
both the administrative and legislative 
bodies, the city proceeds to improve these 
highways by first establishing the neces- 
sary drains, discharging these into the 
established sewer system or creating new 
sewer districts. The cost of such drain- 
age is assessed against the lands within 
the area to be drained, on the basis of 
cost in proportion to its area. 
The city then further proceeds to build 
the curbs, the street pavements, the side- 
walk pavements, and assess all of these 
elements against the abutting properties in 
proportion to the frontage. 
The city may, but does not as a rule, 
further assess the abutting properties with 
the cost of establishing the lawns on the 
sidewalk spaces, but does assess the cost 
of shade tree planting and care upon the 
abutting property in the case of the streets. 
In the case of the boulevards, the Park 
Commission, out of its funds, provides for 
the cost of tree planting and the lawns 
on the sidewalk spaces. 
The city does not assess for the estab- 
lishment of water mains, and the installa- 
tion of lighting equipment is an incident to 
the general contract for lighting, paid for 
out of the general revenue. 
The park and boulevard system is ad- 
ministered by a Board of Park Commis- 
PARK AND CEMETERY. 
sioners, one of several administrative 
boards, and charged with the particular 
duty of creating and maintaining this 
system. It has the exclusive power of 
selection, no powers of legislation, but 
exclusive powers of administration. 
Beginning twenty years ago to plan, 
under the writer’s direction, for a com- 
prehensive scheme of this class of im- 
provement, actual acquisitions were not ac- 
complished until approximately 1896. Since 
that time to the middle of April, 1913, the 
close of the fiscal year, the following gen- 
eral expenditures have been made on this 
system : 
SPECIAL ASSESSMENT. 
Acquisition by condemnation — 
(All purchases hav- 
ing been made 
through exercise 
of the power of 
eminent domain) .$5,1 15,187 
Boulevard improve- 
ment by tax bills... 1,412,473 
Boulevard grading 
damages 24,723 
General park and bou- 
levard maintenance. 1,863,906 
Special boulevard 
maintenance 78,730 
Miscellaneous collec- 
tions — 
(Accruing through 
special assessments) 120,000 
$ 9,615,019 
GENERAL TAXATION. 
Bond issue $ 500,000 
Apportionments from 
annual municipal 
revenue 1,353.000 
Vehicle tax 147,874 
Miscellaneous collec- 
tions, accruing 
through general tax- 
ation 64,009 
$ 2,064,883 
Aggregating $11,679,902 
Special assessment 82.3% 
General tax 17.7% 
100 % 
To understand perhaps more clearly the 
general scheme of administration and 
financing, it should be understood that 
Kansas City, Missouri, now a community 
of some 275,000 people, is east of the line 
dividing Missouri from Kansas. In Kan- 
sas City on the Kansas side, known as 
Kansas City, Kansas, there is a population 
of some 100.000 in addition. Kansas City, 
Missouri, and the City of St. Louis are 
the two constitutional cities of the state, 
each having its own charter and each 
having the exclusive power of charter 
amendment with reference to local affairs 
and the administration of local laws. 
Therefore, the city of Kansas City, Mis- 
49 
souri, is alone responsible for progress in 
local improvements, and through its con- 
sent alone, has the successful work there 
been accomplished. Among other admin- 
istrative boards, the Board of Park Com- 
missioners has exclusive charge of its 
park and boulevard operations. 
Like most other cities, the park depart- 
ment found itself faced with the question 
of waiting for years, perhaps never ac- 
complishing anything, if it relied entirely 
upon the doling out of the current annual 
revenues or upon possible bond issues, 
which the public in that city does not gen- 
erally favor. In this instance the park 
department had no hope of aid from cur- 
rent revenue and the debt making power 
had reached its limit for the purchase of 
water works. There remained only reli- 
ance upon private generosity or special 
land assessment. In applying, therefore, 
the principle of benefit assessments for the 
creation, improvement and maintenance of 
this park system, there were established 
certain assessment districts used as unit 
areas of taxation, for this purpose, and 
within each of which the private lands 
were directly assessed, presumably in pro- 
portion to the benefits derived by them 
from the purchase of land required for the 
several public improvements. 
If a park or parkway, defining the latter 
as a parked highway, was sought to be 
purchased, then, after the proper legisla- 
tion had been adopted, the circuit courts 
and commissioners under the judges of the 
local civil courts, hearing claims for values 
for the properties sought to be taken, and 
also claims usually in resistance of assess- 
ment to pay for these properties, found 
the values in detail and in aggregate of 
the properties taken under such procedure, 
and distributed, in accordance with their 
judgment, the cost of this acquisition 
against the private lands within the park 
district in which the park was to be loca- 
ted. Such assessments become liens 
against the private lands, subject to sale 
in the event of failure to pay at given 
times. Where the assessments were likely 
to be large, opportunity was made to pay 
the individual assessments in installment 
periods, usually of twenty years. At no 
time has the community at large been re- 
qrired to pay any portion of these pur- 
chase costs. 
None of this splendid accomplishment 
might have been done had not provision 
been made in the very beginning for the 
collection of the special assessments in in- 
stallments in the park districts for pur- 
chase. These installments have ranged 
from ten to twenty years, generally the 
latter. In order that there would be no 
necessity for waiting until the end of the 
twenty year term to obtain the funds nec- 
essary to pay for the properties taken, 
provision was made for the issue and sale 
of securities known as Park Fund Certi- 
