The San Francisco call., 1903-09-15
Property Owners Op-
pose Grab of Six
teenth Street.
Supervisors Postpone Action
on Petition for Bay
Shore Line.
Heavy Business Concerns Will Insist
on Access to the Water
Front and Cheap
Freights.

Ere1ghtS.
The vigorous protest of property own
ers against the proposed grant of fran
chise to the Southern Pacific Company
for a bay shore line with respect to the
privilege of laying many tracks across
Sixteenth street so as to obstruct traf-
fic resulted in action thereon being post
poned yesterday by the Board of Super
visors until next Thursday at p. m.
when the bill will be made special order
on passage to print.
The debate on the question was long
and at its close the ordinance was
amended so as to permit of twelve tracks
on Sixteenth street instead Of ten or
more, as the original bill provided. The
company further agreed to widen Six
teenth street on its northerly side from
Seventh street to the water front by ten
feet and in that shape some of the Su-
pervisors desired to vote on the bill. but
others successfully pleaded for postpone
ment of action.
The protest of property owners against
granting a franchise for all tracks asked
for by the Southern Pacific Company on
Sixteenth street was read by the clerk
The protest is signed by the Potrero
Nuevo Land Company. George Center, A
F. Morrison, r. s. Moore and Andrew
Moore, Claus SDreckels by A. B. Spreck
els, his attorney in fact; N. Ohlandt &
Co., H. w Newbauer, Wilson Estate
Company, c. L. Tilden and Union Oil
Company. The protest says in part:
We are not opposed to the granting Of the
main franchise. but do emphatically oppose
the granting Of the franchise for all the
tracks asked on Sixteenth street The South
ern 6c n ia a
their tracks in such manner as to appro-
pirate Sixteenth street from Sixth to Ken
lucky. This destroys the one outlet to the
water front of an entire district, which is
being utilized for manufacturing purposes.
We petition your honorable board to deny the
right Of the Southern Pacific Company TO fan
out its tracks Sixteenth street in the man.
ner proposed and further petition your board
to deny said company any rights said Six
the city of San Francisco additional property
twenty feet in width from Mississippi street
to the water front TO be used for the widen
ing Of Sixteenth street.
WOULD oBSTRUCT TEAMING.
J. H Eells. attorney for some of the
protestants, said there would be no access
10 the water front for heavy teaming on
Sixteenth street If sixteen tracks were
allowed to cross the street named and
heavy teams would be compelled to go a
roundabout way for two miles and this
would mean a practical confscation of
lands utilized for manufacturing and in
dustrial purposes.
THE property owners are willing to put
up with the inconvenience of two tracks
on Sixteenth street" said Eells, land the
railroad company should be willing to
fan out it's tracks on its own land be-
yond Sixteenth street. We ask that the
clause granting the company the right to
use ten more tracks on Sixteenth
street be amended so as to limit the
number of tracks to two"
John Deahl objected to the grant of
franchise on the ground that no provis-
ion has been made for outlet to the
marketplace lots which ii is proposed to
lease to the Southern Pacific Company.
Il want this board to compel the COM
pany 10 build an approach to the lots"
said Deahl, otherwise they will be of
no value to any one except to the com
pany If this approach is eXacted 1 am
ready to bid more than $500 per month
which the company agrees to pay as ZEN
tai l want those blocks to be put in
such a condition that they will be of per
manent value to the city. The company
says you ask too much when you ask it
to reserve a strip of land through the
marketplace lots for street. but |
would like to ask in what particular the
railroad company has shown itself to be
generous?"
Charles Wesley Reed, attorney for pro-
testants, said that the specific ground of
objection was that the company was To be
permitted to fan out" its tracks on Six
teenth street and it should be required to
go beyond Sixteenth street for that pur-
pose. Reed then read the following state
ment:
Traffic from the Mission district demands a
highway to the water front. There is now
none but on Sixteenth street. The building
of the bridge will not give this highway. The
grade of per cent is prohibitive OF heavy
trucking. a
Kentucky street Is to be widened as an off
set to relnquishing the bridge Fifth street
Much more should Sixteenth street be widen
ed Looking ahead twenty-five years. shall
see the railroad business of San Francisco
concentrated around the China basin. We
shall also the manufacturing industries
largely concentrated in the Mission district
Sixteenth street should be widened in order
to afford an outlet for this traffic. One stree.
is entirely insufficient for the business of the
future. The one street TO be utilized should
Material sheds are to be built on Seven
teenth street. Although the streets in that
neighborhood have been closed the property
OF the city in them has not been abandoned
If the Southern Pacific is to use the streets
of the city without compensation, they should
gestion Of trucking on Sixteenth street by
granting an increased width of street
The Santa Fe has already asked for addi-
tional franchise west OF Seventeenth street;
all the more should Sixteenth street be kept
open and widened.
Sixteenth street should not be obstructed by
ten to twenty tracks. The franchise should
allow the railroad to cross Sixteenth street
with only two tracks. and the tracks should
fan out north Of Sixteenth street to the
Southern Pacific terminus and should not fan
out south of Sixteenth street This is the
main objection which 1 offer here. and the one
evil of all others which / ask you to rectify
The Real Estate and Development
Company, by Fred Clark, president,
owner of five and half blocks of land on
Sixteenth street, petitioned the board to
impose, among other conditions, that no
frogs. switch throws or movable lead
rails be permitted to be laid on Sixteenth
street, and that a definite limit be placed
upon the number of tracks that may
cross Sixteenth street.
II. s. WHITLEY, secretary of the Real
Estate Company, said his company was
willing to donate five feet along Sixteenth
street to widen the street If the Southern