Evening journal., 1896-01-08
THE PARK COMMISSION
Holds Its Annual Meeting and
Elects It's Officers.
MAY HAVE TO 60 TO THE COURTS

Transacted.
The annual meeting OF the Park Com
mission was held yesterday afternoon
The announcement Of the resppointment
of William p Bancroft aud Colonel
Henry A DUPONT BY Judge Grubb was
made. Tie meeting WAS called TO order
by George W. Bush. and William NJ.
Candy WAS elected president and Joseph
A. Richardson, Jr., secretary.
The principal question discussed was
the Misunderstanding existing between
the osmmission and the North Side In
provement Company, relative - the
strip OF ground from the north end Of
Washington street bridge to the
Boulevard and which the company had
agreed TO grade aud pave with broken
stone 1t appears that the company
started the worK and was gradiag when
Major Cauby, then park engineer, stopped
the company's men from removing the
dirt from the road on tue ground that it
belonged TO the park and should not be
dumped outside of it
Repudiated the Agree ment.
The company. thersupsn. at once
stopped work and claimed that this In
reference vitiated the agreement and
repudiated any promises made by or for
It making its decision final The park
engineer was, at q meeting Of the con-
mis- ion directed to communicate with
the company and In accordance the fol-
lowing letter was sent:
WILMINGTON Del. Jan 9, 1896
The North side Improvement Company,
Wilmington, Del
GENT EMEN By reference to the min
utes OF = special meeting Of the Board Of
Park Commissioners held September 10,
1892. We fad the following communica-
lion was received from ysur company:
In consideration OF the right Of way
over park lands for the opening OF q one
hundred feet wide avenue or boulevard,
and for the privilege Of erecting the
necessary abutments for the northern
approach OF the proposed new bridge to
bs located at or near the Washington
street site, by the Levy Court OF New
Castle county, the North Side Improve
ment Company hereby agrees TO brlus
the said avenue TO established grade, ana
topave the same through the park lands
with crushed stone or msoadsm from the
northern approach OF the proposed new
bridge at Washington street continued
in 2 direct line with the centre Of said
rect to Eighteenth street
Referred to the Executive Committse.
This communication was referred to
the ex. cutivs conmittse with power to
act, and 40 stated meeting Of the Park
Commission held October 4. 1892 the
minu es OF the special meating were
approved and the executive committee
reported that the proposition Of the
North Side Improvement Company in
relation TO paving the new avenue AZ
Washington street bridge was approved
AS over three years have now elapsed
since the above proposition VAS made aud
accepted, aud ss no work has yet been
done towards the opening, grading or
paving OF the said sveune through the
park lands, the Board OF Park Commits
sioners wish you 20 inform then why
this work Is delayed and what your com
psny proposes doing in the matter
Very respectfully for the Executive
Committee,
T A. LEIsEN, Park Engineer.
The Presidont's Reply.
This led to a special meeting Of the
directors OF the North Side Improvement
Company, at which the president was
instructed to send the following reply:
"In reply thereto. We beg 10 say: The
propositions contained in the agreement
referred to, we're not OF cur In , Ion - they
were agreed TO on our part by force Of
circumstances. upon a demand from your
body aud By reason Of the necessities OF
the occasion at the time ssid sgreement
was drawn
1t will be remembered that at the
time Of locating the Washington street
bridge, the Levy Court Of Nsw Castle
county and the Board OF Park Commis
sioners, Of Wilmington, the public bodies
then having the matter under c1nsldera
tion, after several conferences with
reference to locating the site Of the new
bridge. erected for the purpose Of opening
up public highway and thoroughfare
for public improvement and intended
for the use and benefit OF
the general public, and located
upon puolic property not having the
necessary fuads AZ their com nand could
not see their way clear to assume the
expsnss necessary for properly finishing
the work connected Herewith, aud
; 6uding themselves In a dilemma ap
pealed to our company as \ last resort
asking us to guarantee the complet tion
OF the work of improvement
/ through the park lands be
Ion giDg to the city, and realizing the
peril OF delay to our property interests
connected with our large tract Of land on
the north side, which was already bear
| ing its full share Of taxes, situated and
l lying not contiguous to this improve
msnt but At some distance beyond IL, We
agreed, under such pressure, to come 0
the rescue and assume the expense of ths
work demanded OF US, and under such
circumstances we entered into said
agreement In absolute good faith.
In subsequent efforts 20 carry out the
conditions Of this agreement, and
through the co operation OF the Levy
Court, our company had made arrange
ments 80 commence this work on JUNE
10 1898 aud requested grade stakei
which had been promised to be furnishes
us for that purpose. On that date, how
ever, we we're prohibited psrsmptorill
from beginning the work We hac
agreed to do by orders from th'
Park Engineer (Msjor Samuel Caoby)
who refused to permit any work what
over to be done on the park lands, unti
other ana new. conditions had been agreed
to on our psrt-snd that. too, after full
fsir snd repeated warnings that suol
new conditions would not be acceptable
/ 4 -. l. -,