Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-10
GOVERNMENTAL OBSTRUCTION.
sidewalk Corners of the Interior De-
paHtment Are Dangerous.
To thA Editor of The Evening Star:


To the Editor of The Evening Star:
There have been some very curious ac-
lions by the Commissioners in connection
with the widening Of G street and the fall
ure to require the railroad company to pay
a portion Of the cost. Two years ago they
pres ,nted a separate bill for widening the
street, providing that half the cost should
be assessed on the abutting property.
When the bill came before the Senate COM
mittee protests were made by some OF the
property ownsrs. and at the hearing the
committee decided to strike out that feat
ure, and said emphatically that there was
no justice in taxing the property holders
for the benefit of the railroad company, es
it was obvious that the necessity for
widening the street was entirely due to The
presence of the railroad tracks. and which
were laid two feet further apart than other
tracks, with the hope of ultimately getuns
The trolley poles erected all the way to the
treasury.
Why the then Commissioners should have
permitted this unnecessary appropriation
of the width of the street has never been
explained, nor can 1t be, except on the
ground that some peculiar influence was
brought to bear by the railroad company:
Last year, instead Of q separate bill, the
provision under which the present work is
being done, was inserted in the District ap-
preparation bill, without notice to The
property holders. except those at the west
u,
AS soon as we found there was such
provision in the bill, 1 called on Commits
sioner Ross. VINO said he didn't know about
it, that those matters were under the
charge of the Engineer Commissioner, and
1 should see him. 1 went from his room
to Commissioner Powelrs. and attempted
to get his attention to the matter, insist
ing that it was an outrage to tax the prop
crty holders and let the railroad company
go free, especially in view of the facts
that 1t was the occupancy Of the street by
the railroad that created the necessity,
that the company never paid the District
a cent for its franchise, and that the citi-
zens and the Congregational Church. be-
tween 9th and 10th streets. would be put
to a heavy expense in grading down their
terraces, removing and reSettlng their
| iron fences, steps. ETC.. In many cases
,ndering the entrances to their houses
very inconvenient
Mr.. Powell did not appear to want 70
| talk about or consider the matter, he sim
My saying that some Of the property hold
| ers nearer 18th street had signed the pc
| tition of a year or two before, ana Wnicn
| 1 told him of the decision Of the Senate
committee and also called attention to the
fact that at that very time two other bills
| were pending for street railroads, one OF
| which provided that the railroad company
should pay the entire cost of the land to
| he taken for the street geo feet wide. as L
rec ollect 1T, and the other requiring the rail-
| read company to pay the cost of widening
the street in whole or IN part, nave iof
| gotten which.
Getting from him no explanation Of why
| this difference, or any satisfaction what
ever, a remonstrance setting 1ortn tne
| above facts was filed with the Senate
| committee before whom the bill was then
| pending, and the result was they ahanged
| The bill so as to stop the work at loth
| street.
| we all agree, now that the railroad has
| possession of the roadway, it should be
| w.dened, not merely TO 9th street, but as
far east as 5th street. II not to Massa'
chusetts avenue. There is full as mucr
necessity for widening it east of It'll. ir
front of the post office and all along there
as there is west of 9th, il not more.
There is another point also in this con
rection that demands attention. AS al
know, the patent office grounds projec
over into the streets both on the G and thu
F street fronts, making at all four corners
very abrupt turns and creating great trou
BILE in the passage of vehicles, and which
is greatly aggravated by the existence o.
the street railroads on all four sides. since
the introduction Of the cable on eth stree
and now the electric line on 9th and soor
to be on F and G also, this diffic ulty i!
and will be still more vastly increased.
So great has been the difficulty and dan
| ger at the corner of 9Th and F that as lonl
| ago as when Mr.. Mullett was engineer
| plan was agreed upon by the United State
government for widening F street. 1t con
| templated removing the steps at the iron
of the patent office and making the mai
= 1
, floor, ard widening F street ten feet O.
: the north side. Unfortunately. although
/ this plan was agreed upon by the Commits
, | sion on public buildings and grounds, Nj
, Mullett was supplanted soon after by an
, | other, and nothing was done.
Bad as the F street side is, the G stree
is much worse, because it is ten feet paI
rover than F. The patent office ground
, on the G street side project SO far Fort
that the curb on the south side of G /
front Of the patent office is ten feet furthe
, north than is the curb on the north side c
, G elsewhere! This makes a much NOR
' | abrupt turn at 9th and It'll street corner
of G than those on F street and shows tn
absolute necessity for a change
| all injuring the patent office grounds as
, | is forty feet from the curb on c street
: the steps on the north front, SO that tweI
ty feet can be taken of as we'll as no
| thus widening G street that much, an
that with the Mullett plan on the F stres
side, would make a most complete improv,
ment and remove what is now a gres
E obstruction, as well as the four dangeror
corners and crossings.
Or If these plans canrot be carried GU
1 | very great relief could be effected b
!, simply rounding the four corners of tt
i patent Office grounds by an oval curv
e leaving the grounds in form of an oval II
stead CT square, as at present. TIL
r would not at all injure the appearance nor
: any manner incomnnode the building, viii
it would be of vast benefit to the publ
! though the ether plan would be decided
y preferable, but more expensive and +,
: that reason probably more difficult to s
> cure. Three or four years ago 1 called IL
. attention of the Senate committee to II
I necessity for widening street on Il
= north front of the patent Office and at IL
request of Senator Spooner prepared
map showing the condition of the stree
and grounds. He agreed that it ought
u be done, and that he would take steps
+ have 1t done, but IL was 50 late in the Sc
: sion that he concluded 1t had better 20 oy
IS to the next session; but owing to other ma
" tiers Occupying the attention of Congress
:. and nothing being done by the Comml
Z sfoners, the matter dropped out of sight
Is 1 am satisfied that if the Commissions
and citizens interested will take hold
=, the matter in earnest the improvement cs
II be had, and 1t seems to me that it ia
l. proper matter for the board of trade
g advocate.
n What should be done is for the CommI
:. sicners to prepare a suitable bill special
for the work. and which should proyt
. that the street railroad companies shou
4 defray reasonable portion of the co.
r the balance to be paid out of the Distri
y revenues. as other business street il
Us provements are and as the Senate comm
le tee decided it ought to be when the sire
wa hefo t,ayo