New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-04-15
nd THE BROADWAY ROUTE.
pporEsTS OF MERCHANTS AND
RANKS NOT Needed.

,ur PROTESTS OF MERCHANTS AND
BANKS NOT NEEDED.
,-.erNc THE ARGUMENTS OF PROM
- nr,s1NEss MEN AND THEIR REPRE-
srSrAr1vE THE ASSEMBLY CITIES
COMMITTEE DECIDES NOT TO
AMEND THE RAPID
TRANSIT BILL
A,-n Ill Archibald Murray Of New
A.0a n.r argued before the Assembly Cities Com
YORK .s,s afternoon in favor of amending the
nH'e v.rr Rapid Transit BILL embracing amend
New. % the present Rapid Transit law. HIS
ns". .,,s nrovide that Broadway below Four
s" :, shall be exempted from an Underground
49, 80 and that openings in Broadway oe.o"
,..~ fourth-st. shall. be bridged 50 as TO allow a
.rr,nce OF street traffic while the ROAD Is De-
ng built. . ,-,,.rtv.ovn-
.rd merchants He said the Rapid transit
.,s intended to construct the underground rail-
Wv, IN broadway not by tunnelling but by ex-
ting from the surface Of the street Inc eX-
S',a,,on was to be seventy feet In width extend
- ,rono house line to house line. 50 that the en-
= sr,fsce Of the street would be torn up. Four
..r,ts excavations were TO be made FIRST tne
.ssualk on side or broadway anu 'hen LEG
80. sidewalk were to be taken Up ana en-
,,ons made 10 a depth Of from eighteen 10
.~snty feet. Then two separate excavations were
. =. made al different times In the centre or
n.avay each twenty feet or more in depth
Ne said that It not clear that the RAPID
..,s,t Board intended to bridge these excavations
:. a, 10 carry the street traffic While the plan
,,sv Rad adopted provided. still their expert
.rglnsers publicly said that the way they proposed
,ct n
,,,ssc He thought this question should be settled
ssentely by the Legislature.
Va continued: The fronts of over 80 per cent OF
p,osaway buildings must be supported and the
foundations carried down as deep as the proposed
,.,va,on for the railroad. This is because the
foundations OF the buildings are shallower than the
,u,nel excavation will be. The possible damage to
tud,ngs by reason Of this excavation in such close
,rorrnty to their foundations should be avoided.
r,sre BY adopting equally desirable route oe.ow
rour,eenth-st, this danger can largely be avoided
Nm this subject ex-Mayor Hewitt says that Broad
v,y ought not 70 be used unless the exigency Is
ruch as admits Of no possible alternative.
The damage to AUDITING property resulting from
the taking of vaults should be avoided south of
rOureenth-st.. the Elm-st. route is equally de-
srabe The value of the vaults from Chambers-st.
10 Fourteenth-st is shown TO be about 100000
This loss would be averted by the use OF Ernst.
The loss Of rentals resulting from the construc-
tim Of the railway would be very serious. The an
rua value OF rentals from Chambers-st TO Four
feminist, was shown 10 be s6.0O0.G00 II this Is
diminished one-half for three five years the loss
q property-owners would be from 100000 TO N5,-
MWN Wherever the boilers are under the side
walk the tenan; will be evcted by the landlords
sa.Ere to supply elevator service heat. etc. result
ngln further damage
The damage to business will be incalculable.
The business from Chambers-st. to Fourteenth-st.
Is estimated at <0o,0Ooo0o per annum. A diminu-
ton OF one-half in amount Of this business for
three to five years will result in the bankruptcy Of
Broadway business houses, will drive them to
new localities
The Madson-ave case is a precedent for the
amendment now asked. exempting Broadway be-
low Fourteenth-st In 1892 Madison-ave. was ex-
empted by the Legislature from an underground
. railroad after the Rapid Transit Commissioners
had located railroad to run under that street.
"Elm-st Is equally available for underground
railroad from Fourteenth-st. to Chambers-st, ana,
therefore. Broadway between these points should
be exempted. Elm-st is parallel to Broadway and
only 400 feet eastery therefrom. and. when widened
and extended under the proceedings now penang
to that emo. viii extend from Fourteenth-st, 70
There are no vaults to be damaged. and no valuable
buildings whose foundations will be endangered
eventually I aa ' be- needed is unfo"nded there is
necessity for an eight-track road Four tracks Will
viii be iessegn sdP by several mons Of dollars
These merchants and institutions were present
s ca T Ts o. K s q Mssr CO.. R'
Howard Sweetser. OF Sweetser. Pembroke Co:
Arthur Glib, Of Mills & Glib; D. 3. Hixon. Of Hi
J. Park. Of Park T:lford; NJ J. Beldng' jr -. OF
lor; H. H.. Treadwell, Of Tiffany & Co.; G. N.
Of IAvaneux & Underhill: the Manhattan Savings
lrstl,uton. Importers and Traders National Bank'
Ninth National Bank. Chemical National Bank,
Wheeler & Wilson Manufacturing Company. repre-
sn,ei by Mr.. Brewster; Hodgman Rubber Com
pany represented by William F. Wysham; r. \.
Taylor. Samuel D. Brewster Of Deer,ns g M nan
Hotel. and Frederick Butterheld & CO.; repre-
scented by James E. Chandler. Letters from the
Central National Bank, j: sloan ana Brook $
Arguments in favor Of the Murray amendments
we're made by William F. King J. H. sweetser'
Seth Low. one OF the RAPID Transit Commits
Ioners thought the people who had appeared be-
fore the Cities Committee TO argue ,or me MofrSy
ubishng route for the system had been thought
q carefully by practical men. who. after thirteen
sion that ROADWAY was the most feasible stree.
through which TO construct the road Elm-st; had
been spoken Of but to use that street would be
!mpract.cable The merchants who appeared Tor
the amendments to-day would in after years regret
II I the Commission should now change its lire
and adop. Elm-st instead OF Broadway.
A. B. Boadman counsel for the Rapid Transit
Commission argued against any amendments
there vas one all-prevailing reason why Broadway
sloud Be chosen. and that wac that II any other
ke company 10 bid for the proposed franchise
!ne Commission had solved a great problem, ana
vas unreasonable now to propose 10 override
The committee decided to report the bill favorably
q 1t was prepared by the Rapid Transit Commits
"0n ano without the Murray amendment"