The City Council’s Messy Printing Contract
A fiery session at City Hall erupts over a printing contract, with allegations of cronyism and backroom deals over the city's official records.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The session of the city council last night was attended by an unusually large number of citizens. The only business was to pass upon the assessment roll of Chestnut and Cedar streets. Delegate Drew presented a resolution of regret at the death of ex-Mayor Bailey Gatzert, which was adopted. Bids were then opened for the printing of the revised ordinances. Lowman & Hanford bid $3,284; Pioneer Printing Company $3,336; F. Anthony $2,486; and Koch & Oakley $3,296. Lowman & Hanford submitted a remonstrance against the bid of F. Anthony, claiming he owned no type or press and that the work would be done by the Sunset Printing Company, of which Delegate Coryell was a member. President Kloeber moved that the protest be tabled, calling the allegations an unwarranted reflection upon a member of the house. Kloeber denounced the allegation as a lie, insisting that Coryell had shown great delicacy in the matter, and moved that the bid of F. Anthony be accepted. The motion carried, and the bids were sent to the board of aldermen, where the contract was promptly approved without discussion.
“He had only asked that firm what the cost of printing would be if he put in a bid... he denounced the allegation as a lie.”
Contract battles at City Hall have been a staple of Seattle politics for over a century. The tension between local vendors and the influence of elected officials on municipal procurement remains a recurring theme in city governance today.
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