The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-11
YAM NESS AVENUE FENCED.
Rights of Property Owners
Di6regarded by a Cor
poration.
ALL IMPROVEMENTS STOPPED.
The City's Most Beautiful Thorough
fare Completely Blockaded
at One End.

The San Francisco Pioneer Woolen-mil1s
Company presents the only obstacle at
present III the way of making Van Ness
avenue the most beautiful, the best paved
thoroughfare from Market street to the
bay. The company has boldly invaded the
street, put a fence across it and established
racks behind it, which are not only un-
slightly but which are in plain violation of
the rights of property-owners. The atten-
ton of THE CALL was attracted to the mat
ter by the receipt of the following letter
yesterday:
Editor Call: Cannot THE CALL do something
toward having removed the unsightly wooden
fence erected by the wooIen-min corporation
long ago crossing the avenue at Nortn folnt
street and illegally obstructing public street
of great importance? Then, with the avenue
opened and fairly graded TO the beach, Van
Ness avenue would be the great thoroughlare
from Market street TO the bay. where steam
boats from Marip County and elsewhere could
stop if desirable.
A SNAIL PRoPERTY-HoLDER OF THE NORTH
END.
In compliance with the wish expressed
in the letter reporter visited the neigh
borhood Yesterday and found matters in
even worse shape than represented. Clear
across the avenue at North Point street the
unsightly fence of the company extends.
Behind it and completely filling up the
street space between the mills and the
United States reservation, thoroughly cut
ting off travel to the bay, are the still more
unsightly racks, which look like blackened
skeletons of the prosperity that once ten
anted the big brick pile when the shuttles
clicked in the loom and hundreds OF
workers fitted to and fro at their daily
labor. Now all is hushed about the mill
and the racks are bare and blackened,
and al obstacle n TAnbtIp
ment.
For months past the property-owners on
the avenue above Green street, to which
point it has been bituminized, have stood
ready to 60 down in their pockets for the
amount of money necessary to grade, curb
and pave the avenue from Green street to
the bay. But just one thing has stood in
their way, the unlawful occupation of the
avenue at North Point street by the
WOODEN mills company with its fence and
its racks. These distractions brought
them to dead halt and they have been
halted ever since, except in that number
of them some time ago entered formal
protest with the old Board of Supervisors
against this unlawful occupation. There
was some hope for time that relief would
come, but in some mysterious manner the
protest was pigeonholed and that is the
last that has been heard of it. The fence
still remains and the wooden mills CON-
pduy mas IeHldlu6u particularly dpdIH6llCs
Despairing of ever getting the obstruc-
tons out of the road, several of the prop
erty-ownerS resolved to make some i'm
prOvements on their own account seeking
to beautify the avenue and to make the ap-
proaches to their property somewhat more
attractive than the stretches of sand which
covered the avenue. Among these was
Herbert Z. Law of the Viavi Company,
who owns nearly 800 feet frontage on the
avenue at Chestnut street. He graded his
sidewalk and along the front of his prop
erty laid q substantial board sidewalk.
That sidewalk was all right for couple of
days until the sand began to drift in, and
now one can only find it with pick and
shovel. The sand, the shifting of which
the property-owners could have stopped
by illuminating the avenue, has drifted
over it to the depth of foot and half.
1t is the same way with the curbing that
all the proPerty-owners have joined in
putting in. 1t is buried clear out of sight
by the drifting sands.
Nothing can remedy this. and the prop
erty-owners know it, until the street is
bituminized from Green street to the bay.
This cannot be done until the WOODEN
mills company removes or is compelled to
remove its distractions, although the
property-owners stand ready, as they have
stood all along, to furnish the funds for
the work. They are all well known and
their sincerity and good Intentions in the
matter cannot be questioned. Seven of
them who signed the protest against the
fence and the racks and who own an aggre-
gate of 400 feet frontage on the avenue
are: John J. McGovern, Herbert E. Law
H. Law, Percy Beamish, Oliver Eldridge,
Hugh L. Farley and Hugh Farley. They
but ask for justice and seem to get nothing
but silence. The wooden company's action
is nothing but plain usurpation of power
and disregard for the rights of citizens, and
it will be strange if some method is not
found to bring it to time so that Van Ness
avenue can be made the grand thorough
fare, from the bay to Market street, that it
should be.