The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-01-01
DISCUSSED IN COMMITTEE.
MERRIAM PARK CITIZENS DE-
MAND A CONTINUOUS LINE
FROM THIS CITY.
Opposed by Those Whose Property
Would Be Injured by the
Improvement.

being from the Midway district, met
with the aldermanic committee OH
| streets at the council chamber yester,
| day afternoon. The seven members
! Of the committee and a number
| of the members of the assembly
| listened to the discussion, which
| was on the ordinance Of Aid
| Shepard, relative to the changing of
the cable to an electric line and to run
| ming of the cars on Third street and
| Summit avenue. Aid. Shepard said the
ordinance contemplated the running
| OF continuous line from Broadway to
| Merriam Park. AS to the OBJ
| lection to running on Third
street and Summit avenue on
account of the grade on the streets,
Mr.. Shepard said electric lines We're
run in Saltwater on a grade of 9S5 per
cent. At Tacoma there were two hills
each one-half mile, on which the
! grade was over 10 per cent. At Sioux
! City one grade on which electric cars
were operated was II per cent AS 10
turning at the end of Summit avenue
| the ground at that point was level.
| BY carrying the line to the west side of
| injury to the driveway on the avenue
was done away with. By doing this
clear driveway Of forty feet can be
given outside of the car tracks Robert
street and Seventh street have only
| forty-foot driveway, and there were
ether business streets that wehe Just
as narrow.
S. L. Howell said the Midway district
was we'll represented and greatly in
terested in the ordinance. The street
railway company agreed to build a
cable line provided the citizens would
raise a bonus Of 100000, and construct
a sewer to Faiview avenue. Not a resi-
dent was able to use the sewer as it
| has no outlet. The taxpayers also spent
| S9O,OOO for a bridge over the Milwaukee
tracks. The company agreed to run
the line for five years, but violated the
contract, trusting that there would be
| no concerted action, which turned out
| as anticipated. Cars were run from
hfteen to thirty minutes apart and the
| residents nave been promised for the
past four years that as soon as a
| device could be secured on the line
the matter Of transportation would be
properly attended to. The city council
! had the power to make the railway
the Midway residents proper facilities.
The popular demand was for the
| change. He had a petition signed by
| 500 persons, not all residents of the
Midway district but including a cou-
pie of hundred patrons Of the line liv-
| Ing in the hill district asking for the
! change. AS to the practicability of
the proposed plan, he said there was no
| question about it. All citizens were
opposed to running on Summit avenue
| and spelling that handsome street. But
| If the public interest demanded that
the cars run over one block of the
street it should be allowed The plac-
ing of the line on the avenue would
| still leave a driveway of forty feet
available, which was about the same
as other streets in the city The peo-
pie In the midway district were not
| particular as to what route be taken
but they wanted through service from
the city TO Merriam Park. The grades
| ON Wh1ch cars were operated in Still
water Sioux City, Lawrence, Mass. {;
HaVerh1ll, Mass; Tacoma, Seattle were
much sleeper than the proposed grade
on Third street and Summit avenue.
Another objection was that the turn
on Th1rd street from Summit avenue
| was such that in case a car became
disabled or got out of the control nf
| the motorman there would be q bad
! acc1dent. There was no danger except
| such as might happen on a perfectly
level track and not near the danger
there was on the present Selby avenue
| nil route now used.
The Merriam Park peonle wera 1ova1
to st. Paul, but, unless the council
! TOOK some interest in their means Of
| transportation, they would have to on
10 some place where they could get
! better treatment. They had elected
an t;d aloernan, MI Shepard, on the dis
unct understanding that the street
! railway company would be forced to
| carry out the plan of a continuous
| line to Merriam Park.
| r. w. M. Cutcheon, REPRESENTING tha
| hltts0n property, now in the hands RI
the Title Insurance and Trust Com
pahy OF New York, said the tracks on
| summit avenue, as proposed were ~,
the west side of that avenue. The
proposition was to take a part of the
west boulevard and directly against the
| pouleVafd The proposed line shut off
all means OF reaching this property and
Would spoil the frontage of the same
he ADMITTED the inconvenience to the
midway district people, but it was not
just to destroy the value of the nron-
! erty he represented It was not possi-
bic to do it legally, and if attempted in
thlS case an appeal would be taken to
the court If attempted it would re-
l. suit IN a long litigation, which would
me T1yr
the city and property owners.
A forty-foot roadway was not ade-
| quate for Summit avenue. 1t was NOT
! question solely Of the convenience Of
| the residents, but Summit avenue was
the artery by which all the driving
from and to the hill was done. With
cars every two or three minutes II
would not be convenient to citizens or
TO property owners such as he repre-
scented.
He suggested that the line ruin IN
IhIrd street and on Summit place to
| Nelson avenue. Another route that
had been proposed was on Fort, Tenth
Rice, Summit and Nelson avenue. This
IS the one told about in the GIob O
yesterday. He saw no reason why the
street car company should not be re-
| CURED to operate another line to the
midway district, and thought it might
be advisable to let the cable line alone
and run another line out Rondo or lyle
| hart street to Merriam Park
Mr.. Shepard said it was not neces-
sary that the tracks be placed on the
west side Of Summit avenue. He
simply had this plan sketched out to do
! away with the objection that the street
would not be wide enough to drive on.
G. ID. O'Brfen suggested the condemn
ing Of twenty-foot strip of the Kilt
son property.
D. M. Robbins said it was practicable
to have device which would take the
cars UP the Selby hill and down with
absolute safety. This could be done at
very little expense with an endless
chain. He had never heard about
hn cf H.