Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-06
THESEVBNTH STREET. FILL

A Talk BetweeIs the Railroad Ofneials and
City Authorities-ShaH it be an Iron
Bridge, or a Roadway with Stone
Arches?
At o'clock yesterday afternoon meet
ing was held in the Office of the mayor to
consider the matter of constructing a
roadway over the creek from lower Sew
enth street to Dayton's bluff, in place of
the old wooden bridge at that point. The
meeting was called by the board of public
works, and those invited to be present were
Mayor Rice, J. J. Hill and Mr. Marvel of
the st. Paul & Manitoba road, James
Smith, Jr.. of the st. Paul &
Duluth road; W. P. Murray, city attorney;
Mr.. Rundlett, city engineer. Mr.. Earring
ton, president of the board of public works,
was expected to be present but he sent
word that he was sick and could not be
there. The board was therefore repre-
scented by Mr.. J. G. Terry.
A year or two ago when the matter of
bridging Lafayette avenue and some
other streets, and constructing the road
way under the tracks, at the foot of Fourth
portant meeting OF the city
officials and railroad men was
held to consider the question of how. the
expresses of the bridge, the roadway and
the approaches thereto should be appoT-
toned, that is, how much of them the city
shonld baar oDd hour ro1ob sbo1Id foI
upon the railroads. At that meeting it
was agreed that the railroads should build
the abutments and the bridges, and that
the city should sustain the costs of
all the approaches to them. A sim
liar question is presented By the
proposed improvement of lower Seventh
street, and it was for the consideration of
this point, particularly, that the meeting
yesterday was called. The tracks Of the
ST. Paul & Manitoba and of the ST Paul
q Duluth road, run along the ravine under
the wooden structures now in use On lower
Seventh street, which it is proposed TO re-
move. and construct in place thereof a
solid roadway sixty six feet wide, by filing
in with dirt and building arches of stone.
The railroads do not seek to avoid the
agreement entered into at the former
meeting referred to, but they maintain
that that agreement applied only 10 new
structures, and not to the repair of old
bridges that were in use at the time the
agreement was made. This old wooden
bridge now in use on Seventh street is the
Same one that was in existence when the
agreement referred to was entered into,
and the railroads maintain that the pro-
posed building of q roadway sixty six feet
vide by filling in the raVine with dirt and
building stone arches, amounts 10 a re-
pair Of the old bridge, and there
fsrs docs not come unds. the agree
msnt This was the subject matter
that occupied the attention of the gentle
men named from 2 till 5 O'Clock yesterday
afternoon. The gentlemen representing
the city desired to learn what the roads
were disposed to do, that is how much of
the expense of the improvement the roads
would be willing to bear. 1t is understood
that the expense of the whole work will be
about 100000.
Mr.. Smith,of the st. Paul & Duluth road,
did not think the proposed improvement
would benefit his road at all, except in an
indirect the same as any other proper
~ q long distance off might be
benshted in a general way. He expressed
the opinion that considerable portion
Of the expenses of the improvement ought
to be paid by the city at large, and that
the remainder of the expense shoHld be
assessed upon Seventh street, up as
far as Wabashaw street, upon the
property on Dayton's bluff on both sides
of Seventh for some distance north of
Seventh, up nearly to where Broadway and
Mississippi streets unite, and 30 on pretty
broadly on both sides of Seventh street.
He did not think his road was in any con-
dition to pay anything towards the work.
The st. Paul & Manitoba road people
maintained that it would be better and
cheaper to construct an iron bridge. That
road admitted that it would
to have the grade raised
over It's track, and that road would be will
ing to bear its portion of the costs and ex
penses of the improvement to that extent,
but it did not wish to be assessed for the
general work, that is for the general I'LL.
Mr.. Murray maintained that the agree
u10ub IolCIIcu W dOOEO, bnd1 Nab AhnNO d
year or two ago, was not limited to new
bridges, but included Just such cases as the
present. All these matters were discussed,
or rather talked over in an informal and
very friendly manner. While the rail-
roads take the positions mentioned above,
they manifested perfect Willingness TO
do the fair thing, and bear fair share Of
the expenses.
1t was finally determined that a. no
estimate had been made of what the neces.
sary expense of the abutments for the
railroads would be. and, as further legis-
lation would be required to complete the
improvement, the meeting had better be
adjourned to allow the engineer lime to
make the estimates Another meeting will
be called as soon az the estimates are con-
cluded, when some definite conclusion will
probably be reached.