The herald., 1894-11-23
FIGURROA STREET.
PETITIONS PROTESTING AGAINST
THE ABANDONMENT.
Aastnsr Petition Was Filed Yesterday
Contents of tho One Read
Before the Council
Yesterday.

OF late the city council has been be-
oisged with protests against the aban-
lonmsnt OF Figueroa street from Sixth
TO Pico. Yesterday several property
owners on that street. between Ninth
and Tenth, filed petition with the
council declaring their opposition to the
proceedings.
The petition avern that the closing OF
the street, at least between the streets
named, would greatly ipjure the prop
ertv of the petitioners, and would bene'
fit but one man, who unfortunately,
SAYS the petition, owns the majority OF
frontage, which is not improved. The
ptotestants further cay that portions OF
Figueroa street have been illegally sp-
propriated by certain individuals, end
that if the ordinance should be enforced
they will test the legality of ouch action
before the courts.
The most important protest that has
vet been filed against the abandonment
was that read at the last session of the
council, which referred particularly to
that portion of Figueroa street lying be-
twesn Sixth and Seventh.
The protest is as follows:
''Figueroa street is tho longest and
best residence street in the city, being
fully FIVE anG one-half miles long lii
straight line. The city dedicated that
street to public use and sold the prop
erty in blocks fronting on that street.
and it has no legal or moral right to
abandon it without compensation to the
property ownsrs. The public interests
require that the street be maintaine ed
% Wv frpna SiXth
70 Seventh streets.
"This street is obatructed from Pico
to Sixth streets, q distance of less than
one mile. From Seventh street to
Orange street the property is entirely
vacant and unimproved. A territory
each side OF Figueroa street and north
of Sixth street, comprising more than
200 lots, demands an outlet on Figueroa
street from Sixth to Seventh streets,
and all of the property in that vicinity
is greatly damaged because Figueroa
street is not opened and graded from
Sixth street to Seventh street. There
are no valuable improvements upon
Figueroa street between Sixth and
Seventh streets. In fact, the land is
entirely vacant for majority of that
distance and wholly 30 from Orange
street to Seventh street. A few parties
have fenced up Figueroa street between
Orange and Sixth streets and have made
the same their back yards, without
authority of law and greatly to
the damage OF their neighbors
and all of the property owners on
Figueroa street for it's entire distance.
We respectfully submit that all the
property owners on Figueroa street,
along its whole length OF over five miles.
are directly interested in maintaining
that street in it's entirety, and were they
compelled to pay ten-iold the amount of
the adverse claims to q portion OF that
street it would be better to submit to
that imposition rather than to forever
lose q portion of that important thor
ouRhfare.
"Whatever may be the public neces-
sity of maintaining Figueroa street south
of Seventh street, there certainly can be
no doubt as to the public necessity of
maintaining that street from Seventh
street north to Sixth street. From Sixth
street north for nearly three miles FL
gueroa street is unobstructed.
''Seventh street, with its double track
street car line, is one of the most i'm
portant thoroughfares across the city.
Into this street Figueroa street demands
an entrance from the north.
During the past three yeara this mat
ter has been three times before the city
council and referred to three different
city attorneys. and in each case that law
officer, after carefully examining the
abstracts, maps and records, hae unhes.
and unquaIifedly advised the
council in writing that the city OF Los
Angeles owns Figueroa street along it's
entire length, and that the obstruction
of that street from Pico street to Sixth
street is wholly unwarranted and con-
trary to law"
The petition is signed as follows:
o. L. johnson, $50 feet; Win D.
Gould and Mary l.. Gould, 671 feet
James II. Blanchard. 200 feet; S. W.
Luitweilsr. 1872 feet; Allieon Barlow,
600 feet; William Prldhsm. 162 feet; }.
3. Lankershim, 1900 feet; Main Street
8. B. and L. company, 30 feet; Geo. II.
Bone brake, $50 feet; 1. W. Hellman,
per 1. w. Hellman ir. 800 feet; G. Du-
commun, 100 feet; estate of P. Beaudry.
+. W, Wood, executor. 450 feet; Jamea
F. lowell. 1879 feet; G. II. Churchill,
lS0 feet; John M. @. Marble, 142 feet
F. SAbichi, 147 feet; I. D. Stimaon, 140
feet; Fred Eaton. $50 feet.