Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-04
THE POINT PICKING UP
Extension of Trade Toward District
Once Thought 0utgrown.
A BUSINESS HOUSE AND A HOTEL
Expected to Grace Penn Avenue Before q
Couple of Years Pass.
HAPPENINGS OF A DAY IN TWO CITIES.

Projects are on foot now which, when
completed, will mark, the beginning of q
new era for the Point district of the city.
While building construction has been
pushed in other directions the portion of the
city lying between Sixth street, Penn avenue
and the rivers has been left to its pristine
beauty. But now the ban will probably be
raised by the erection of two massive
structures within this line. One of these
will be Joseph Horne & Co.'S new store,
and the other the hotel referred to in THE
DISPATCH some months ago.
Both of these buildings will be on the
same block. The Horne store is expected
to occupy the site at the corner of Fifth
street and Penn avenue, on the Leonard es-
tate. The site has frontage of .12O feet
on Penn avenue and 140 feet on Fifth
street, and runs up to within one house of
the Fourth ward school house. This house
belongs to the Speer property. Rumors
have been current for a few days to the eff
feet that Joseph Horne had purchased this
site.
THE SALE NOT YET EFFECTED.
On inquiry from Steele F. Roberts, the
agent for the Leonard estate, it was learned,
last evening, that SO far no sale had been
reported to him. He said that Mr.. Horne
had been looking after the site, but no con-
summation of the matter had been reached.
He thought he was hesitating about the
price, which was $26O,OO0 This, Mr..
Roberts said, was not high figure when it
was considered that 10 good houses on the
site would have to be pulled down. None
of the Messrs Horne could be found in ref
erence to this, but rumor had it very clearly
that the new Horne store would occupy this
site.
The hotel scheme is expected to come to
head within the next two weeks There
will be a meeting of gentlemen interested
in it on the 18TH, and it was stated yester-
day, very confidently, that the project
would be go. The site is considered by
hotel men and others as being excellent 1t
is 270 by 240 feet, and has four frontages-
one on Fifth street, one on Penn avenue,
Through the Speer house, one on Duquesne
way and the other on Cecil alley. The
Allegheny electric ears pass it on Fifth
street, and it is within block of the Penn
and Fifth avenue cars.
THE FIFTH STREET EXTENSION.
The widening of Cecil alley already pro-
vided for by Councils, will extend Fifth
avenue to the river, and naturally divert
much traffic which now flows along Sixth
street Major Speer said yesterday that
the agent for the investors still had an
option on the property. He had no recent
advice as to what was being done, but he
understood there was probability of the
matter being consummatej.
'It is in this direction" said a
Sixth street storekeeper yesterday, "that
the business portion of the city
mus. naturally extend. The hump
precludes any extensive building be-
yond it and already both Penn and Lib
erty avenues are built up as far as their
business limit, the Union depot. Since the
Point has been cleared of Its dives, in
vestors have been looking in that direction,
and without a doubt, bounded on two
sides by extensive wharfage, it
should be the center of the
business district jenkins warehouse is
the only store on the Point side of Sixth
street, and it only needs some other big
trader to build store close by to mark the'
of the end so far as the Point is
concerned. The transit lines will follow
he traffic, and 1t may not be many years be-
fore the Penn avenue line forms loop on
Water street instead of at Cecil alley"