The San Francisco call., 1897-10-16
MORE LIGHT ON
THE CITY HALL,
A Brief History Of the Sale
of Yerba Buena
Park.
Attorney Creswell's Opinion
Makes the Proposition
Feasible.
Several Property Owners Express Their
Views on the Under
taking.

The property which is now desired by
all classes of citizens to adorn and beau
tify that portion of Market street fronting
the City Hall, when offered for sale by Jonn
Middleton d Son, the then auctioneeIs
on the 14Ih OF August, 1871. was presented
to purchasers on The very easiest of terms.
The conditions upon which the properly
was offered were the payment of % per
cent on the day of sale and 70 per cent
payable in equal installments in one, two
and three years, with interest at the rate
OF 10 per cent per annCm until paid.
How many of the purchasers availed
themselves of these liberal conditions il
would be difficult to say, but this much is
made manifest that there had to be con-
siderable coaxing and booming done to
induce purchasers to invest in cemetery
land in those days.
As protection against any flaw in the
title the conditions went still further anu
added: Upon the full payment of the
purchase price and interest, as above pro-
vided, deeds will be prepared, executed
and delivered by the said Com mission rs
to each purchaser or his assigns, which
| deeds shall be prima facic evidence of the
regularity of the proceedings in the said
act provided for, and shall be evidence OF
title and right OF posse sion in the grantee
his heirs and assigns, upon which action
Tor the recovery OF real property or for
injuries thereto may be maintained and
defended in all the courts of this State
having Jurisdiction thereof"
Tne Citv Hal. Comm issioners pledged
all the right, title and interest of the CITY
and County OF San Francisco in the lard
known and designated as ''YerDa Buena
Park" under and by virtue of an act of
the Legis ature approved on AprIl 4, 1870
NtaA l.
frontage $6i5 200. and on Park-avenue
fronla,e $685., 500, making a total OF
1858, 700
Tnis, it was contenGed by the boomers,
would be suffice 10 build the hall
The difference between those figures
and what the hall has actually cost is well
known 20 the taxpayers, and as a result
the people almost to a man iavor lhe re-
covery o. the park in front of the hall,
that the public for all time to come may
see that bind economy did not stint tn EN-
IN erecting as good a building as was pos
siole from the plans accepted by The tnen
Commissioners.
The San Francisco people are deter
termined now to have their City Hail on
an open plain, tree from distractions and
the disagreeable presence of back yards
and unsighUy shanties closing in every
avenue leading 10 the building.
The only way 10 avoid these disagree
able surroundings IS TO obtain the entire
frontage from Jones street to LArkia
through and through and convert the en-
tire plateau into beautiful park, where
green grass, exotic and native plants NAV
bloom.
Th following are the opinions of few
OF the property owners given in inter
views yesterday, and while majority of
these are somewhat opposed from a
purely business point of view, yet ali are
willing to deal ;airly with the people in
case a determined stand should b. taken
10 convert the property into a park.
h w. Hyman, the second largest owner
OF property on the City Hall lots, when
asked 10 G We his views on the proposed
park was unhesitatiLg in entering his OBJ.
lection to the proposition.
He said: From a business point of
view II would be the worst thing the CITY
could do 10 take 1900 feet of business prop
erty out OF the center OF Market street and
convert /: into park or pleasure ground,
''And besides this il would cost f..lIy
5,0000 600 10 recover the ground ana re-
move the buildings. This expenditure. at
a time when business is dull and taxes
already too high would be bad business
policy.
II am free to admit that the property
never should have been sold in the first
instance, but inasmuch as it was sold,