The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-10-06
MORE THAN DOUBLE
WILL BE TIE SIZE OF SAVANNAH
WITH NEW LIMITS.
IF THE PLAN GOES THROUGH
INCREASE OF SEVEN SQUARE
MILES CONTEMPLATED.

Few Have Had Comprehension of
the Extent of the Proposed Adj
ditiOns to the Area of tho City.
The Present Area Is 81 Square
MiIes-If the Limits Are Extended
as Proposed, 1t VIII BE About 1875
Square MIIes-ProbabIe That There
will he - Fight on the PROPOSE
tion-Many Property Owners Who
Would Be Affected Have Already
Been Making Inquiries.
The plan formulated by the Special
Committee of Council for the extern
sion of the city limits, contemplates
the enlargement of Savannah by more
than its present area. This seems
rather startling, but such is the case.
Those who read the account in the
Morning News yesterday. giving the
new limits, realized that there would
be considerable accession Of territory,
but they scarcely conceived Of the ex-
tent to which the boundaries Of the
city will be pushed outward.
Five and one-tenth square miles con-
stitute the area Of the city within Its
present limits, as it has north-and-
south dimension of about two miles,
and an east and-west average dimen-
sion of about the same distance. This
means 1924 square acres, 65 of which
are of water, as the present limits ex-
tend to the northern bank of the Sa-
vannah river.
When the new limits reach to Fifty
second street on the south, to the
northern side OF Hutchinson's Island
on the north, to a new line on the west
and to a new line on the east. which
extends northward $3.50 feet east of
the west side of Waters road, the area
of the city will be something like 1915
square miles. The north and south d.
nension will be about 3& miles, and
the east-and-west dimension will be
about 31a miles.
The report of the Special Committee
will be considered by Council at its
next meeting, Wednesday week. 1t is
by no means certain that it will be
adopted. Certainly it will not be adopt
ed without some sort of a fight against
it. A contest seems already to be
framing up, for there are many prop
erty owners who do not like the idea
of having to pay taxes on their subur-
ban possessions.
win Take in Many Factories.
Quite a number of the industries that
are now operated beyond the city linn
its established quarters purposely
where city taxes could be avoided.
They will make most strenuous protest
against being incorporated. Before
Council, in all probability, will the OBJ
jections be entered, and, falling before
that body to prevent all the proposed
property being taken into the city
limits, ii is not improbable that they
will carry the fight before the Legisla-
ture, where authority for the extension
has to be secured.
Quite a number Of suburban property
owners paid a visit to the office of the
city engineer to ascertain just where
the new lines would run. Some were
considerably depressed on finding their
possessions would be included. AS a
rule, the applicants for information
found that they would be caught, for
In few cases did any have the proper
conception as to just how far the linn
its would extend. Their ideas fell short,
for so considerable an extension as the
committee contemplates had not oc-
CURED to them as probable. The new
western line, for instance. will be the
present north-and- south line at the
southwest corner of the limits, extend
ed 1850 feet southwark and northward
TO the north shore of Hutchinson's ISL
and. Such line, extended, would even
take in a part of the old water works
tract west of the city. There are quite
a number of valuable manufacturing
plants intermediate, SO that there will
be sources in plenty from which pro-
tests may be looked for.
Truck Farms Included.
The limits, as projected, will extend
frrr oil IL
that number of truck farms will be
included. Taxes win, of course, have
to be paid upon the lands, but no bus
mess tax can be imposed. The city has
not the right to demand a license of a
planter. The farms of Mr.. NJ. L. Exley,
Mr.. c. E. G. Fell. Mr. Fletcher Exiey-
all extensive truck growers, will be
included in the new limits. These are
on the west of the city, where a portion
of West Savannah will be taken in,
and on the east, localities now regard
ed as distant will be included. The
golf links, for instance, will be crossed
by the eastern line. which will take in
the Catholic Cemetery.
The new limits will be defined by a
figure, save on the north and for the
southeast corner, that will be almost
rectangular parallelogram. To have
carried out the scheme on the southeast
would have been to take in the Fair
grounds, and that the committee did
not desire to do. for the reason, 1t was
stated, that the lands were low. Some
of the lands that are to be taken in,
however, are even lower.
1t is not improbable that some of the
members of Council will not be in
clined to accept the report. Efforts
were made to induce some to express
themselves, but they did not like to do
so in advance of a conference upon the
question. Mayor Myers was asked for
his views upon the limits as outlined
by the committee. but he did not want
to express himself.