The San Francisco call., 1897-10-17
PESSIMISM
CONTROVERTED
Continuity Of Business on
Market Street Not
Interrupted.
Prominent and Well-Informed
Citizens Forming an
Association.
The Projected Improvement Would
Add to the Attractions of the
Thoroughfare.

| SoAaJ q pClAOU 10 )OSSlUlS SuSSSSbS lOl-
lowing out the idea expressed by Regent
Relnstein and conceded in by such we'll
known property-owners as E. A. Denicke,
Irving M. Scott, ex-Mayor ElIert, George
Center, J. w. Kerr and others, for form
ing an association for the purpose of ac-
curing the entire parcel of land from the
present owners.
The pessimistic view entertained by a
few OF the property-owners who are in
possession of the lots fronting the City
| Hall on Market street, that if the prop
erty should be converted from its present
use into an open park it would break the
continuity of business on that street, is
| held by business men and others in this
city to be but a himsy pretext to thwart
| a movement that would be the making OF
Market street one of the most attractive
retail thorough hfares in the world.
| Following are the opinions of business
men on the subject:
Julian Sonntag, general manager of the
Giant Powder Company. 430 California
street:
alt would benefit the entire of Market
street. clean out to Valencia. A park
| there would be an attraction day and
night. w hen that place would be Lighted
up with electric lights, which it would
| when turned into beautiful park, it would
break the monotony of the street and add
| to its attractiveness.
"Place shrubs, rose bushes, grass and
in time statuary there, and conceive what
| a charming place it will be. in preference
| to a collection of saloons ana Dl-kept res
| taurants.
"Oh, l say get the property by all
means and convert it into a pleasure
ground. 1t will just be the making OF
| Market street."
c. Edward Grunsky, civil engineer, $50
| California street: "The greatest mistake
ever made by people was 10 have sold
the property for building purposes.
| "Get 1t back bv all means and make a
park Of it. 1t will m axe Market street an
ideal thoroughfare.
at cannot and will not break the con-
tinuity OF business. On the contrary, il
| will be such an attraction that it will be-
! come the center spot of the city.
at is narrow view to take of it, when
the gap is beins set off against such a
| beneficial improvement"
Professor George Davidson, who in
| knowledge and experience is second to
| no other man in California on this sub
ject, said: why, there are some people
who cannot look three inches in front ot
! their nose.
What happened to New York with its
parks right in the center of the business
| portion? Has Broadway stopped at Mad :
son squareP On the contrary, it is just
what has made that street what it is to-
day. And so Will this projected move.
ment be the making of Market street.
| III might as we'll be advanced that the
! currents of the ocean could be stopped by
calms as that business would DO retard ed
| on Market street by break in the cont
{
| the street Tor retail business, and nothing
| except a ten-foot wall thrown across il
can stop its commercial Importance or
detract from its value in real estate fol
| store purposes Now is the time to cor
rect the blunoer made twenty-five years
| ago, when this property was given away.
Business will always follow progress and
| provements."
W.. Dutton, vice-presidenl FIreman's
| Insurance Company: Il cannot accept
the views of those who hold to the opinion
of the proposed improvement being an
injury TO trade and business on that street.
On the contrary, / take New York as an
example. Here, Broadway is virtually
| blocked by park at Fifth avenue, and
yet il is Broadway all the time, and
business is just as good on one side of this
| park as 1t Is on the other. L say make a
park of the ground in front of our City
Hall now. Don't wait any longer"
c. a. Fisher, pioneer halter at Mon t.
gomery street, an ex-Supervisor and a
| large property owner: 1t cannot stop
business on Market street. On the con-
trary it will be of great benefit to ii. The
| same objections were raised in former
years regarding sand hills and low lying
| land. But trade and commerce overcame
all those objections just as they will in
this instance. / am in favor of the move
| ment."
Raphael WE'LL, proprietor of the White
Houss dry-goods store: at would be a
| decided advantage to the business on Maj
ket street right through. You might as
| well try to stop a running stream by
throwing in shavings as to try to stop
| business on Market street by the intro
duction of parks or open squares.
Look at New York, with her parks in
| the business centers. The great trouble
| with San Francisco is that there are too
many property-owners troubled with a
shortness of sight. They cannot see any,
| thing ahead of them. 1t was sacrilegious,
in the first instance, to ever sell the prop
erty for business purposes"
| Bernard katschinski, proprietor of the
| Philadelphia shoestore, 10 Third street {:
'It is all the veriesr nonsense to say that
| break of few blocks on Market street.
| when turned into beautiful pleasure
ground. lighted up at night by arc lamps,
will interfere with the continuity of busi-
| ness.
'It will Just have the opposite effect. 1t
| will attract strangers to the place poth
day and night. Who ever saw a public
! building erected in the back yard of a
great tnoroughfare, such as Market street
| is? When that property is laid out in
grass and flower plais it will be an adorn-
ment TO the entire city, and must most
assuredly attract every visitor who comes
to our city,"
]. w. Raphael of the firm of Raphael
| Bros, 13 kearny street: alt is the
| greatest OF nonsense to talk about this
break in the continuity of business by
adding such an attraction to Market
street as the proposed PARK will If put in
proper condition. 1t will have Just the
opposite effect on the upper end of that
| street.
1T must be borne in mind that there
are more residences south and west of Lar
Kin and Ninth streets than there are this
side OF those streets, and it naturally fol-
lows that business must GO outward in
stead of inward in any growing city.
Let US have the property for park
now while the question il being agitated.
Business will and must follow improve
| ments-"