Illinois Cent. R. Co. v. City of Decatur

• Decision Date: 30 October 1894
• Citation: 154 Ill. 173,38 N.E. 626
• Parties: ILLINOIS CENT. R. CO. v. CITY OF DECATUR.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

154 Ill. 173

38 N.E. 626

ILLINOIS CENT. R. CO.

v.CITY OF DECATUR.¹

Supreme Court of Illinois.

Oct. 30, 1894.

Appeal from Macon county court.

Petition of city of Decatur for appointment of commissioners to levy and assess special taxes for the paving of portions of East Wood street. The Illinois Central Railroad Company filed objections, which were overruled, and it appeals. Affirmed.Outten & Page, for appellant.

James M. Lee, for appellee.

MAGRUDER, J.

This is a proceeding by the city of Decatur, instituted by direction of the city council, providing for the making of a local improvement in East Wood street, in that city, by paving said street with brick from the east line of Franklin street east to the west line of South Broadway street, and from the east line of Webster street east to the west line of Peake street, in said city; and also providing that the cost of said improvement shall be paid for by special taxation of the lots and parcels of land abutting upon said portions of said street upon both sides thereof along the line of said local improvement, according to frontage, not including street and alley intersections and crossings, and that the cost of said local improvement across all street and alley intersections shall be paid for by general taxation. Appellant, whose right of way abuts upon the portions of the street embraced in the improvement, filed objections to the confirmation of the assessment roll. These objections were overruled, and judgment was rendered against the property set forth in the special tax roll. This appeal is prosecuted from such judgment.

One of the objections discussed by counsel is that the ordinance declares the improvement therein directed to be made to be a local improvement, and that the common council has no right to declare what is a local improvement.The municipal authority cannot make such declaration arbitrarily and unreasonably, and without reference to benefit. City of Bloomington v. Chicago & A. R. Co., 134 Ill. 460, 26 N. E. 366. But the power of the city council or board of trustees to declare what shall be local improvements is necessarily implied from the power to make the same in the mode and by the means prescribed in the statute. City of Chicago v. Blair, 149 Ill. 310, 36 N. E. 829. Under the statute, such councils and boards are clothed with power to determine what the nature and character of the improvement of streets shall be. Cram v. City of Chicago, 138 Ill. 506, 28 N. E. 757;Galesburg v....