The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-02
FOR CITY IMPROVEMENT,
Merchants to Make Many Wise
Suggestions to the SUI
perViSOrS.
NEW ORDINANCES WANTED
Streets to Be Opened and Closed by
the Street Superintendent
Only.

The annual meeting of the Merchants
Association last Wednesday evening dem
onstrated one thing, that was that the
efforts and work accomplished by its board
of directors during the past year were very
satisfactory to all. This encouragement
will incite the new board to even greater
efforts, and they have already set to work
in earnest. They are carefully reviewing
the suggestions made by the several speak
ers at the meeting. The practicable fea-
lures will be adopted and put in operation
as soon as possible. David Rich of the
Half-milIion Club made several sugges-
tons which have practically been accepted.
Ernest McCullough's ideas will next re-
ceive the attention of the directors As
soon as the latter know exactly what they
want they will arrange their ideas in a
petition to the Board of Supervisors.
Among the ideas already accepted and
which the Supervisors will be requested to
enforce is the fencing of lots so that sand
and dirt cannot drift upon the sidewalks
and into the streets. The owners will be
required to fence in their property when
the ground is higher than the streets.
Another will be the passage of an ordi-
nance compelling contractors erecting
and tearing down buildings where sand
and mortar is used to erect a fence around
the edges of the sidewalks, so that the
refuse will not be scattered all over the
streets, as is the case with the Safe Deposit
building Improvements Oh California and
Montgomery streets.
The association will request the enact
ment of an ordinance relative to the open
ing and closing of street pavements by
individuals and corporations having fran
chises to lay water and gas pipes and
nn6QrUrpnn6 ThnSa fal-
but little pains in restoring the pavement
after they are through with their work and
the result is the streets are ruined. The
merchants propose that the City shall at
tend to the reconstruction of opened streets
and that those who cause the work to be
done shall pay for the cost.
The police and Supervisors will be asked
to see that more attention is paid to gar
bage carts and that the drivers are com
PEELED to comply with the law requiring
that such carts shall be covered with cam
vas while passing through the streets, and
thus prevent ashes, dust and filth from
being blown broadcast. Another ordinance
will be asked for prohibiting the painting
OF Objectionable signs upon the dead walls
of the City.
In the same ordinance will be clause,
the purpose of which will be to reduce the
size and number of signs on places of bust
ness. The idea is that mammoth adver-
tisements on business houses, on the prin-
cipal streets especially, detract from the
general good appearance of the City. If
all storekeepers and merchants would de-
crease the dimensions of their signs to
Uniform size the general appearance of the
City would be greatly improved. The nu-
merous cheap cloth banners strung across
the entire face of buildings announcing
goods sold at Sheriff's and creditors sales
impresses the visitor with the idea that the
entire City is in the hands of creditors
Still another important matter will be
impressed upon the minds of the Super
visors-the necessity of making provision
for the Street Superintendent depart
ment, so that he can make repairs to
streets at once. Many small holes and
breaks in the pavements have remained
unrepaired for months because the Super
intendent of Streets has no money to do
the work. Matters will remain in this
condition until after the LIST of July.
Upon the advice of the consulting engi-
neer, Ernest Mccullough, an ordinance
will be framed permitting the use of
asphalt as well as bitumen. Asphalt
makes a superior pavement when scientif-
cally mixed with sand, carbonate of lime
ETC., but it costs more. Bltumen is asphalt
that. nature has mixed with these and
other ingredients, and consequently the
proportions are not always the same.
As result one part of a street
will wear better than another. At
present the specifications name only btu
men, and the merchants believe that if the
property-owners want to stand the ex-
pense of putting down better materials
they should have the privilege.
By the time the next Legislature meets
the Merchants Association will have
framed az act by which the City can COM
pei street and other contractors to guarau-
tee their work for two, three or five years,
the same as in the large Eastern cities.
Under the present law this cannot be done.
Hence the shoddy work that begins to
break up as soon as accepted.