The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-05-09
THE SOUTHERN SUBURBS,
Building BoomS at South San
Francisco and the
POtrero.
The Sixteenth-Street Electric Road
Almost Complete-Queer
Street Work.

There is peculiar piece of street work
in progress in South San Francisco that
the people of that suburb have not fully
comprehended so far. Contractors ara
cutting through Ninth, Tenth and Elev.
enth avenues, a block east of Railroad
avenue. That part of the city is a low
ridge that extends from the avenue to
Hunters Point drydock, a distance of a
mile and half. The contractors are pen
etrating the ridge endways, and it is be-
ieved they will go no further than L
street.
This Improvement" will leave num-
Der of houses forty feet up in the air and
give the occupants tiresome climb when
they wish to reach their homes. Before
the cuts were made the houses we're pic
turesquely situated on hillsides, but now
many are located upon unsightly cliffs of
blue rock. As the owners are nearly all of
the poorer class and unable to grade down
to the street level, cutting the streets
through is regarded more as a hardship
than an improvement.
If it was for the purpose of getting level
streets through the little peninsula the
people might stand it. But now it is only
so they say, disfiguring the hills in order
that contractors may get material for filing
several low streets.
The people of South San Francisco are
taking considerable pride in the new side
walks that are being laid on both sides of
Railroad avenue from Butchertown to
Eighteenth avenue. For years past in
many places it has been a case of wading
in the mud when it rained
Henry Miller of the firm OF Miller d
Lux is constructing a cold-storage plant in
Butchertown. When complete it will cost
$50, 900. He is putting up several new
buildings and other improvements.
This locality is in the throes of a small
building boom. Frank Kespert is erecting
a $500 house on Seventeenth avenue, near
Railroad, and his neighbor, ]. Mcdonald,
is putting up $1,000 residence on Six
teenth avenue.
w. Finch states that within two months
six new houses will be under construction
by people who have recently purchased
lots.
AS an evidence of better times South
San francisco and the Potrero will soon
have another weekly newspaper as rival
to the Mail. Two brothers named Uooley,
recently connected with the State Printing
once at sacramento, last week went over
the. ground in both places and made the
preliminary arrangements for starting
weekly in the interests of both localities.
The big steamer Columbia, now on the
Union Iron Works dock undergoing about
$4,000 worth OF repairs, is furnishing en-
ployment for many of the residents of the
Potrero.
Nine new boilers are being placed in the
California Sugar Refinery.
The work on the Sixteenth-street electric
road is progressing rapidly. 1t is now in
shape to Solano and Texas streets and by
the end OF the month will join the Ken
lucky street line.
There is building boom now at the Po-
trero. The new two-story schoolhouse is
houses are being constructed.
Sloss Bros. are building a new hotel
2ox100 on Kentucky street, near Solano.
1t Will be patronized largely by the work
men in the sugar refinery.