The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-16
ROADS ASK PRIVILEGES.
CONCESSIONS NEEDED FROM THE
CITY FOR UNION STATION.


| Florida Central and PeninsuIar
and Southern officials Join in a Pc
titiOn to Council Asking for
Rights, Privileges and Concessions
on and Near the Proposed site for
the DepOt-ROads Show What VIII
BE Done for the City-CIaim the
Concessions Asked Are the Least
Possible.
The Georgia and Alabama, the Plant
System, the Florida Central and Peninsu-
lar and the Southern Railway have taken
the first step to gain the city's aid In their
scheme to build a handsome and commo-
dious union depot in Savannah. A petition
| for rights, privileges and concessions was
| filed with the clerk of Council yes erday,
and last night it was received in Council
and referred to the Committee of the
| Whole.
The petitioners to Council are President
John Shelton Williams and Secretary w.
w. MackaI of the Georgia and Alabama.
Mr.. Williams being president of the Flor
ida Central and Peninsular as well, Pres
| ident Samuel Spencer and First Vice Pres
ident Frank S. Cannon of the Southern,
and President r. G. Erwin and Mr.. w. L.
Clay and of general counsel of the Plant
System.
A member of the firm of Charlton.
MackaH & Anderson, general counsel
for the Georgia and Alabama win prob
ably appear before Council when the petit
ton is acted upon. if the slightest objec-
ton to granting the privileges the roads
ask is manifested The requests made,
| however, may appear sufficiently reason
able to the members of that body to make
it unnecessary for anything further to be
said upon the question than is conveyed
by the petition.
Chief Engineer Tutweiler of the Plant
System has been carefully over the ground
plan for the union station and its APP
proaches, acting for all the roads inter
ested. He was instructed by the officials
of the Plant System 10 make every effort
to SO arrange the plans as 10 admit of
the slightest possible concessions from the
| city.
The petitioners state that they intend to
| proceed without delay TO organize com
pany for the purpose of constructing and
! operating a union passenger sta
ton to be used by the South
ern Railway, the Savannah, Flor
ida and Western Railway, the Charles
| ton and Savannah Railway, the Georgia
| and Alabama Railway, and the Florida
Central and Feninsular Railway the struc-
ture TO be handsome, commodious and
| thoroughly modern, complete in all of its
| appointments, and to compare favorabiy
| with similar buildings and facilities in
other cities and affordlnS suitable passen-
/ ger terminal arrangements and facilities
| annlU 10 meet the needs of savannah Tor
many years 10 come.
The railroads have already purchased the
site for the erection of the proposed sta
ton, together with the greater portion of
| the rights of way necessary to afford ac-
cess except as TO certain lands belonging
to the city. A part of these lands is de-
sired by the roads and through o.her por-
| lions rights of way are wanted The site
| already acquired for the station fronts on
| West Broad street and dies between Stew
| art street and a projection of the latter
| on the north. Roberts street on the south
| and West Boundary street on the west
| part of the northern portion of the prop
| erty being owned by the Georgia and Ala
| bama Railway for local freight depot pur-
| poses.
The roads set forth that the need of
| passenger railway station has long been
| manifest in Savannah and that the advan-
| tages of such a station have been rec g
nized and sought after by nearly an the
| larger cities of the country, so much so
| that many of the most progressive cities
| of this and other states are now making
| strenuous efforts to obtain them and are
Offering very material inducements and
manifesting a willingness to go to heavy
expense in the way of the re-arrangements
| of str Gets, the building of Viaducts,
| bridges, etc, for the purpose of faclitat-
| ing, INVITING and rendering safe ard prac-
| ticable the operation of such property
Fstafr nc
here without any solicitation from the
| city but in order 10 carry 1t into effect
| and in order to render the operation of
| the union station convenient, practicable
| and safe, they find 1t necessary to ask
| for certain concessions, privileges and
| grants from the city. The following are
| the concessions asked for, and which the
roads submit have been reduced 20 mimi
mum and are only such as in the opinion
of able engineers, who have investigated
the subject, are actually necessary for
the depot purposes:
"(a) That the city will grant on reason
able terms the lot of land belonging q
the city, located on the north side OF
Gwinnett street and west of West Bound
ary street, bounded west by lots 81, IS and
50 Springfield plantation.
"CO That the city will grant a right
of-way 100 feet wide from the western line
of the said city lot through the lands be-
longing to the city in the Springfield plan
tation and through the northern part of
the new water works tract to Stiles ave-
nue. to connect on the west side of Stiles
avenue with the right-of-way already Sc
cured by your petitioners leading to the
railway junction near the four-mile pos
on che Central of Georgia Railway
"(c) That the city will lower and re-
arrange the grade of Gwlnnett street, be-
tween the said city lot on the north and
lots So, 66 and 81 Springfield plantation on
k1nAN h. -.
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