St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-12-14
THE HIGH BUILDING FREAK.

One of the ASToRs is to erect his mon
ument in the shape of vast hoStelry
on Fifth avenue, New York, seventeen
stories, or 225 feet, in height. There
are protests against permitting SO high
structure on the narrow streets of
that city. Such buildings shut out the
sun and make the streets damp and I'M
wholesome. But the lofty pile will rise
above all other structures in that city,
although those ten to fourteen stories
are becoming numerous. A few years
ago block eight or ten stories above
the ground was novelty, but the dis
position to get higher is growing, and it
is not certain that even the twenty sto-
ries of the Masonic building that has
been commenced in Chicago mark the
upward limit. Since the elevator sys-
TEN has been so perfected, it is practi-
cally immaterial whether the bust
ness place is up two, three or
dozen stories. The craze for
such lofty elevations will have its run.
There are fashions and freaks in such
matters that have their time when it is
found that the limit of profit has been
exceeded. Chicago has taken the lead
of New York in tall structures, although
the business occasion is almost entirely
with the Eastern city. IL is crowded
between rivers, while the Lake city has
unlimited room in three directions. 1t
has, however, much wider business
streets than New York. and the sun and
air cannot be so seriously limited.
There are now in that city four business
buildings more than 200 feet high, and
perhaps as many more under way.
There are more than dozen $50 feet
high, and those 100 feet are now
common. The twentY-story struct-
ure is to be completed before
the worlds fair, and will be enc of the
attractions for visitors to the city. Its
roof is to be made attrac tive with gar
den, and by its cenveniences for extern
sive views. There is no such natural
elevation within perhaps 100 miles. At
present any city that does not have
some edifice ten to fourteen stories high
is out of fashion. For time they will
be novelties, and, perhaps, as rule af-
ford fair returns for the investments.
In the portions of the great cities where
multiplication of area may be continued
indefinitely, but it willreduce the attrac-
lions and affect the sanitary conditions.
Narrow streets, lined with structures
that afford only meager glimpses of
sky, must be murky, dismal and I'M
wholesome. In the latest issue of the
Forum. ANDREW D. WHITE has an
article upon American cities. in which
he touches upon this point, and depre-,
Gates the disposition to go to elevated
extremes. He says that one of the char.
acteristics of Paris that makes it so
pleasant city is that there are no
buildings pushed up to such a height
as to cast shadow over whole quarters
of the city," 1t is probable that city
authorities may yet limit the height of
buildings as a sanitary measure, refer
ence being had to the width of the
streets. As yet the average height of
buildings in the densest business dis
trict in Chicago is but six stories. The
one and two-story buildings cover as
much ground as the ten-stories, and the
latter will eventually be found the limit
of profitable building in the larger
cities, and the higher structures will be
the few exceptions.