St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-06-15
A MARKET QUESTION.
What Should Be Done With
the Present Market
Incubus?
The Old-Time Idea When st.
Paul Wore SWaddling
Clothes.
e.
How Early Aldermen Opposed
the Market Building
Scheme. Il;
The Scattered Shed Idea in
Most Favor at This
Time. u.

v
of building market house was first
agitated, and it soon engrossed the COM
munity. Public men and private cltl-
Zens discussed the all-important topic,
"Shall we have a market house? and
the individuals in the humber walks
took up the subject and argued it pro
and con. 1t would amuse the citizen of
the present to take up the files of the
newspapers and look over the columns
of editorials and interviews which were
printed about the topic. st. Paul then
had less than one-third of its present
population. There were no paved
streets. Brick sidewalks were a rarity,
and only existed where some enterpris-
ing person had put them down in front
of the few feet of ground he occupied.
while stone walks were conspicuous by
their absence. Boards formed the
walks, where walks existed. Sew
enth street, then a back street,
was primitive compared with now:
and Third street, then ''the"
street of the town, had steps at inter
walls down the hill, to the peril of femi-
nine drapery and the danger of limb of
belated pedestrians. The era of build
ing inaugurated by old commodore"
Davidson was just beginning. Public
improvements were just being agitated.
st. Paul was on the eve of the BOOM
not the typical, ephemeral boom of
the far West-but the substantial boom
which has made it what it is to-day.
one of the foremost cities between the
oceans. A consensus of public opinion
voiced by the papers was in favor of the
market house project, and it was &C
cordingly determined upon. Col. Allen,
then in the city council, championed it.
aldermen at the time, opposed It. He
thought it would be great expense to
the city, and argued that it was not the
province of the city to built market
house costing $4,000, or perhaps $780,
600, with all the expense OF maintenance
that such structure would entail. He
favored market space or spaces and the
erection of sheds for market purposes.
"Glve us market house," the people
clamored, with hall where big meet
ings can be held" 1--WE have no pub
lie buildings" said one gentleman to
reporter who went to interview him."
by all means let us have market house
such a structure as can be shown with
pride to the visitors to our CITY," So
the council ordered it, and the marked
house materialized. Very funny. all
this, in the light of the present, isn't
it?
Less than dozen years have passed,
and the s.
QUESTION NOW ARISING e
is. What shall we do with the market
house property? Since it's construction
the market house has been run at an
annual loss, with the single exception
of the year 1889. The big hall has been
useful during the times of conventions
and large public gatherings, but even
it's conversion to that purpose is no
longer want, since the hall has beeh
let and reconstructed into an apology
for a theater. The market has
been, on the whole, an elephant
upon the city's hands. 1t has
been proposed to tear it away
and build upon the site public library,
and sharp business man is now before
the council with proposition to rent it
for fifteen years at an annual rental of
$4,000. The property is too valuable,
however, to be leased upon such terms.
The growth of the city has been SO
rapid that the present market is entirely
inadequate. For several years the
teams of the vendors have been located
along both sides of Seventh from Wa
basha to st. Peter and along ST. Peter
andeW ashington streets to Sixth. Street
and electric cars now run up and down
Seventh, and the traffic of the street is
so great that the dealers can no longer
be permitted to use the thOroughfare.
The cathedral authorities object to a
further use of their street front, and the
remaining space has been secured by
an enterprising gentleman and will be
sub-let to market gardeners. Not only
is the business of the street impeded by
the lack of room, but a more serious Oh
lectS in the vicinity in such quantities
that it is all but inimical to the public
health. Sc the question reasserts itself,
What shall we do with the market prop
erty?
The experience of other cities has
been-and st. Paul can join in the cho-
rus-that huge market buildings are a
failure. There is a market master and
an engineer, with good salaries, and
heaven only knows how many other ex-
penSes incidental to maintaining such a
place. The time has come when the
city must make different arrange
ments." The public, always slow to
action, has not yet taken up the ques-
ton; but prominent citizens and public
men have been considering the matter
for some time. Aid. Henry Weber, of
the old council, some time ago introduced
resolution calling for the conversion of
certain property in the Second, Fifth,
Eighth, Sixth and Ninth wards into
market grounds, suitable sheds to be
erected thereon for the carrying on Of
market business. From the opinions of
other gentlemen it seems probable that
this idea will be carried out. The reso-
luton was referred and is still buried
in the,archives OF one of the committees
of council.
President Cullen, of the common
council, said recently that he was 'sop-
posed to market houses. They are too
expensive, and again do not believe in
the city conducting such BUSINESS 1t
is too much like interfering with the
Business of Individuals -
who pay large rents, etc., to carry on
such trade. l favor selecting con-
venient places about the city and put
ting up sheds for the convenience of
market gardeners and the public. Our
market house property is growing more
valuable every year. l think it would
be unwise to lease it for a period of
years, as is proposed. we can sell 1t,
or it may be that 'ere very long some
purpose may develop to which it can be
advantageously put"
"Yes," said Charles N. Bell. 81 was
opposed to the market house project
when sat in the council. We would
have defeated it If Smith had held out
with US. think subsequent events
have fully demonstrated the correct
ness of my views about it. 1 believe, as
does Mr.. Cullen. that market places
should be selected in available sections
of the city, if the city is to have mar
ket system"
The new marketmaster, William
Platte, has instituted a number of i'm
provements in the conduct of the affairs
Of the market house during his short
term of Office. He feels the lack of
room, and only yesterday remarked:
ut will be but few years until they
mill houo fn or fror, have