Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-12-27
A PROTEST FROM B STREET
Property Owners and Residents Opposed to
Railway Tracks.
Why the Capital Traction Company
Should Not De Allowed to
Occupy That Street.

A petition signed by twenty property
owners and residents on B street between
LIST street and Delaware avenue was today
presented to Mr.. Mcmillan, chairman OF
the Senate committee on the District of
Columbia, protesting against the bill intro
duced in the Senate and referred to the
District committee, authorizing the Capital
Traction Company to lay tracks on b
street. New Jersey avenue northwest, and
across the Capitol plaza. The petition re-
cites that B street north fronting the Cap
itol grounds is one of the narrowest streets
in the city. being only thirty-five feet from
curb to curb and having no sidewalk on the
side adjoining the Capitol grounds, and
states that double tracks of rapid transit
cars would utterly destroy the thorough
fare for purposes for which 1t is now used
by the property owners living thereon. The
petition says that this street has already
been Oh ce narrowed to the great 3etriment
OF the property owners, this being cone
when the Capitol grounds were extended.
and with the further occupation of its
tbirty-five feet by rapid transit tracks it
would be impossible to back up a coal
wagon or furniture van to any one of the
fine houses on this street.
The noise of the cars and the changing of
the bells through two-thirds of the nights
would be under the very caves of the
dwellings and the committee rooms of the
down to LIST street west the buildings. in
Guiding the Maltby House, now owned by
the government, are built on filled or made
ground to great DEPTH and the constant
Earring of the heavy electric cars would
shake, settle and impair the foundations
of these buildings and result in the crack
ing of their walls, according to the petit
TONERS street, the petition says, is the
national inaugural parade route, and as an
environ of the Capitol should be preserved
intact. The petition further states:
Inc proposed tracks on & street and
New Jersey averue would completely cut
CT the Senate committee rooms in the
Mditby building from the Capitol inycly-
ing with this rapid transit system danger
to the lives of senators in crossing and re-
crossing to and from the Capitol. and also
completely encirc!c the Arthur School
building, increasing the iaasor to the lives
of the many little children attending that
school, which danger has already had it's
baneful influence or the school from the
tracks on c street
TIE proposed occupation of the plaza on
the east front of the Capitol is not ONLY a
blot on the Capitol grounds degrading the
Capltol TO the level of d mere station for
me dement, OF the railroad company, but it
also puts a dangerous barrier across the
great through-route east and west for pri-
vate carriages wheelmen and thousands of
persons attending the Marine Band con-
certs at the Capitol.
Finally, there is no necessity nor ade-
Quate reason for any other route for the
Capital Traction Company 1t already oc-
cupies the street south of the Capitol. and
an inspection of this ptiful street sufficient
ly Indicates its blighting influence upon
property values, utterly precluding prop
erty owners from making any improve
ments in proximity to the Capitol grounds.
The plea that the grade of the route south
OF the Capitol is TOO steep for the electric
cars is without foundation, as any cleo
trician knows. That this railway company
should be allowed 10 further 1nutilatn and
degrade the present approaches to the Cap
itol, and seriously damage, if not utterly
destroy the property values of private citi-
zens, is contrary TO every right of property
and public policy, and your petitioners do
most earnestly protest against the bill"