The Saint Paul globe., 1901-06-03
ST. PAUL Is PROSPEROUS
LOCAL FACTORIES ARE CROWDED,
WHILE employees AND HOUSES
ARE SCARCE
BUILDING BOOM IN PROGRESS
Real Estate Man Makes Some State
ments COncerning RentabIe
Houses, which Points to LO-
cal Expansion.

Evidences Of st. Pauf's prosperity are
apparent on every hand Some weeks
| ago statement was issued by the state
labor commissioner showing that at the
present time there are more people en-
ployed by the local factories than has
ever been known in the hist1ry CT the
city. This record is especially significant
when taken into consideration with the
fact that only very small pro<oct-en CT
this increased number of bread winners
is boys or girls, and an overwhelm ing
majority are men,
These facts are interesting to stu5y IN
connection with some CLEANED from the
realty circles of the city. Fhere was
never time since ST. Paul d0nned the
airs of metropolitan city when it '. as
quite as difficult for real estate agents
to supply the demand for renting houses
ThlS means that at present there are
fewer vacant dwellings in the city than
has ever been known. One prominent
real estate man stated to a repo ter for
the G o b day or two ago t. a he
had at least twelve applications for
houses to rent, where he had one house
that he could offer He holds the agencY
for some of the largest and best re .:ns
houses in the city. including good. med
ernfzed flats, cottages and dWelirg gs AMI
only during the past few days he hss
been compelled to turn away any number
of people seeking places to live.
In the large majority Of cases these
people are thosewho are able to pay fair
ly high rent, and are therefore after
good, desirable places, and not the cheap
est in the most undesirabl section Of the
city.
''If they were after these kind" said
the gentleman, 1--WE might he able to
supply some of them, for about the only
thingwe have on hand now is few cheap
renting houses in ether undesi. abe parts
of the city or too far out in the suburb s
to make them worth much to the aver
age working man, who must be at his
work early and late
ALL BUILDINGS OCCUPIED.
The agent continued to say that near
ly all of his flats are entirely occupied
and have been throughout the spring and
winter. People have not moved about
as much during the past six months and
year AS formerly, and this he takes as
another indication eof the difficulty at
tending the search for houses. Flats
that are at all desirable, either because
of their location or improvements, are
taken as fast as vacated. In one fiat on
the West side the agency of which IS
neld by the gentleman quoted, there are
forty-three suites land all of these are
occupied at present and have been most
ly all spring and winter And in most in
stances the renters will or have re-
newed their leases for another year.
This condition of affairs alone would
not necessarily Indicate a healthy pros
perity in realty circles The question
very properly suggests itself Ifext, what
about the building Of houses?'
This can best be answered hy quoting
figures just issued by the city building
inspector. The books of that official
show that during the month Of May more
building permits have been granted and
the aggregate cost of building con-
templated is larger than any correspond
Ing period has Shown since 1889 There
were 1859 building permits issued in May
which representedea total of $5lS, ESQ to be
expended in this direction.
These facts will show that while there
is an unprecedented scarcity of houses
for rent, it is not due to a sluggishness
in the building Of the city A large mum,
her Of those permits were issued for
dwelling houses and during the current
month builders and real estate men OF
the city believe that Mays record will
be far y surpassed. There is substantial
talk Of erecting several new flats in the
city, as near the heart of the city as will
be pleasant and convenient. Sucn houses
would demand the best prices when It
came to renting them, for it is for this
character of dwelling that the demand is
most urgent. st. PauFs suburbs are, of
course, expanding constantly and no city
In the Union is surrounded by more beau
tiful outlying districts than the SANITY
City: the building in these sections is
rapidly progressing, but it is for the
house near the center of the city or
reasonably near that the demand comes.
1t is of course impossible to erect any
number of buildings, in the heart of the
city for that portion of ST. Paul is and
has been for many years, entirely oeeu-
pied by valuable structures.
st. Paul is perhaps as free from the
detrimental effects of a congested, souaI-
i'd population, Sc injuriously apparent
in other cities as any city in the coun-
try and there seems to be no desire to
pack" the central portions of the city
with large tenement houses, which have
long since been determined public
nuisances, but there is a growing demand
for handsome, rnodernly improved fats
within reasonable distances of the busi-
ness portion of the city.