The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-12
Spring Valley Company Oh.
jectS to the Lowering of
a Grade.
PROTEST AGAINST MONOPOLY
The Petition of the Point Lobos I'm
proVement Club for Red
Rock Denied.

hC OOlSCb SOlIlulGlcc VI bnc pOdlo vi
Supervisors met yesterday, Messrs.
Hughes, bunker, Morgenstern and Benja-
min being present. Hughes presided and
the session, which began at II 80 o'clock,
lasted until after 5. The Point Lobos I'M
provement Company had two important
petitions before the body, both of which
were denied. 1t desired to have the Office
of City Engineer vacated and new one
created, and also to have the macadam Or
dinance eliminated in so far as it affected
the pavement of certain property in the
district.
! Attorney kellogg and Engineer Schuss-
Ter appeared on behalf of the Spring VAL
ley Water Company to protest against
changing and lowering the grade on
Seventh avenue and II street. Attorney
Kellogg begged the committee to defer
action on the matter. saying that the
board would be enioined if the work was
ordered. Engineer Schussler said that
the work was unnecessary and 1t would
entail a vast amount of useless trouble in
moving the mains, and would place the
entire Western Addition at the mercy of
fire.
The main in question, he said, was the
main artery of the water supply in that
portion of the City. The change of the
grade was asked for, he said, in order to
gain another entrance to the park, which,
he understood. the Commissioners would
not permit. He had spoken to Chief Sulli-
van, who assured him that the shutting
off of the water supply would be very
dangerous proceeding. Further debate of
the matter was postponed until Septem-
Der 5.
The protest of the Point Lobos Improve
ment Club against the RATHER test of rock
obtaining where pavements are to be laid
in and around Point Lobos avenue and in
the Richmond district was next heard.
George R. Fletcher, superintendent of
the Odd Fellows cemetery, voiced the
objections of the property-owners. He
said that portion of the City was growing,
that considerable improvements were now
in the course of progress. Sewers had been
laid and if blue rock were now to be put in
it would be at great loss to the property
owners. He asked that the macadam
ordinance be not made to apply to that
district. For years the people had been
satisfied with the red rock macadam and
were still satisfied with it. Gray Bros, he
said, handled the only rock which could
stand the RATHER test, and consequently
there could be no com petition for the work.
There would be long hauls of material and
the contractors could charge any price
they pleased. On the other hand, the
material which is being used is easily
accessible and the property Owners will
have their pavements laid at a reasonable
figure.
The committee took the matter under
advisement, and later in the afternoon de-
MED the petition on the ground that its
predecessors had ruled the same way and
that it saw no reason to change.
The City Improvement Company asked
- Ho
Scott street, between Hayes and Fell. The
Market-street Railway Company, it was
stated, had removed its tracks, but had
not relinquished its franchise. A legal
question, consequently, had arisen as to
whether the Market-street Company should
pay its proportion of the expenses. The
petition was referred to the Superintendent
of Streets, to ascertain the obligations of
the Market-street Railway Company and
to require it to pay for the portion to
which it had franchise.
A petition was received from the Point
Lobos improvement Club, asking for the
appointment of City Engineer. The
office is now filled by statute by the Sur
veyor. The petition dwelt on the impera-
tive necessity of having such an officer in
the employ of the City.
Questions of Importance" it noted,
"have arisen which have shown that your
honorable board has had no engineering
talent on its staff to meet the corporations
and governing bodies which had been
called into existence within this City"
Attention is then called to the engineers
of the water and railroad companies, and
the employment of an engineer by the
Harbor Commissioners. The petition
cites that the board, in few days, will be
asked to place hundreds of thousands of
dollars in the hands of inexperienced men
to make streets, roads and boulevards.
The engineer of the City, it is said should
be member ex-officio of the Board of
Health and the Board of Fire Commission
ers. In conclusion the board was asked to
adopt and pass such resolutions to estab-
lish the office to be governed by the rules
of the civil service; to be composed of an
engineer in charge, one or more draughts-
men and a secretary, all the appointments
to be made by the engineer.
The engineer shall pass on the qualifica-
ton of inspectors of public work and the
Superintendent of Streets shall be answer
able for the faithful performance of the
duties assigned to the inspectors.
The idea of the petitioners, it was said,
is to create the office of engineer for Pro-
lessor George Davidson in compliment to
the work he has done for the Pacific Coast.
The committee decided that the board had
no authority to declare the position of City
Engineer vacant as it was fixed by statute.
Property-owners on Page street, between
Fillmore and Market, appeared before the
committee to inquire if the Market-street
Railway Company intended building a
street railroad according to the terms OF
it's franchise. They desired to have the
street paved. they said, and were DESTROYS
of knowing the position of the railroad
company. The clerk was instructed to
ascertain what the company proposed
doing with the franchise.
1t was decided to report in favor of the
protest against the grading of Eighth
street between Division and King and the
protest of George K. Frink against paving
the crossing of Berry and Fifth.
The following petitions will be reported
favorably: P. II. Livingston, to erect and
maintain an elect1ic-light sign at 415
Kearny street, William flanagan, to re-
move building from Chestnut street, be-
tween Mason and Taylor. to the corner of
Montgomery avenue and francisco street;
property -owners, against paving Howard
street, from Twenty-tifth to Twenty sixth ;
David Kelleher, to contract with the City
for constructing a sewer IN Van Ness av-
enue, between Lombard and Greenwich
streets; ]. j. Flynn, to contract with the
City for sewer in Thirteenth avenue, be-
tween California and Clement streets
property-owners for the removal of rock