The Savannah morning news., 1904-10-09
FIRST STORE UNDERGROUND.
From the New York Sun.

The subway railroad is but the be-
ginning OF big underground New
York" said one of the passengers on
the record breaking train run last
Monday, from the City Hall TO Har-
lem for the benefit of the newspapers.
1t was during the halt on the down.
town trip at the handsome Twenty
third street station. that this remark
was made.
E. p. Bryan, vice president of the
company, had just mentioned the fact
that there was talk of an arcade from
that point along and under the south
side of Twenty-third street to Broad
way and Fifth avenue.
Il don't doubt that that arcade will
be built" continued the optimistic pas
senger. There will be that arcade
and other arcades. There will be a
city underground. There will be bril-
liantly lighted streets under the side
walks with gay shops of all kinds and
restaurants and theaters, maybe. Why
not? If it's possible here and from
here to Broadway and Fifth avenue,
why is it not possible elsewhere2
New York has gone skyward about
as far as it can go. William Waldorf
Astor said that when he was here the
other day. He doesn't know, but he
said it. and he must have heard those
~ NAA hAAON Tain aOOuL lNctA CSNANC
while he was here. Besides, it's sense.
We can't climb much higher heaven
ward, so where are we going to go?
Why, into the ground of course. This
subway has shown us the road.
THE demand for downtown space is
going to go right along increasing.
Stores that want to be downtown will
soon have to get under ground. And
If you want any demonstration that
fine stores can be made under ground,
Just look at this one here at this Twen
ty-third street station
The store he pointed to is connected
with the big Mercantile building at
Twenty-third street and Fourth ave-
nue., on the site where not long ago
stood the Young Mems Christian Asso-
citation building. You go up a short
flight of steps from the subway station
platform level to get to it. and it is
right on the way up to the sidewalk
over head.
1t is a large store, all finished in
white, and with big plate glass win
dows all along it's front. the same as
are seen in the big stores in the shop
ping district. The ceiling is rather
low. That is the only conspicuously
noticeable feature distinguishing it
from the stores on the surface.
1t is understood. although the fact
can not yet be fully verified. that the
big room is to be occupied by de-
partment store and that the same
store will have the floor above. It is
large enough and the possibilities of
electricity make it easily within the
cards to have it light enough for the
display of any kind of goods desirable.
With this store in operation it will be
possible for women in bad weather to
dive under the ground near their homes
away up in Harlem somewhere, come
downtown, do their shopping and not
emerge from the subterranean realms
until they have got back close to their
homes in Harlem again.
If an arcade is built along to Broad
way and Fifth avenue. this will of
course, extend by just so much the
area of the Harlem or uptown wom-
ans predatory range in the subterra-
mean shopping regions. And if the
arcade goes to Broadway and Fifth
avenue, why not on westward to Sixth
avenue? The coming West Side sub
way might intervene somewhere, but
that would be only a detail of going
up and down couple more flights of
stairs at the most.
Thus far the arcade scheme from
Twenty-third street and Fourth avenue
to Broadway and Fifth avenue is who'll
ly in embryo. The only step taken to-
ward it is an agreement on the part of
the mercantile company having the
present underground store at the
Twenty-third street subway station to
throw open its underground sidewalk
to connect with any similar sidewalk
underground which the property own
ers between that point and Broadway.
along the south side of Twenty-Five
street, may hereafter decide to make.
The property owners affected have
not yet reached any definite determi-
nation on the subject. but the project
is being considered, and it is believed
that ultimately and probably at no dis