The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-01-30

thru a wager among councilmen was
one that right minded citizens should
always regret. Already I understand
that suggestions have been made for
encroaching upon Loring park in ORDER
to secure a more direct line Of traffic.
Such encroachment is likely to be
about as successful as the repeated at
tempts to cut up Boston Common, all
of which have raised such a popular
cutlery that the promoters were I'M
able to make Roadway. If there is a
reason for this suggestion, it is that
the outline Of this park cuts across,
what would be a direct line of travel,
criticism that can not be made of
the tract recently acquired thru the
courtesy of Mr.. Lowry and others.
right angles to it's present location
with one end up the slope toward
| Groveland Terrace and the other end
touching the railroad tracks, without
| liberal traffic roads across it, would
be such a barrier that public opinion
would soon require the establishment
of such roads. Already there are
points in your park system where the
| city will ultimately be compelled to
| make special provision for the accom-
mediation of the public-one at the
narrow strip between the cemetery
and Lake Calhoun thru which the
whole course of business and pleasure
traffic between the city and the Lin
den Hills sections must pass. Now,
| there is no serious congestion. The
| time will come, however, when it will
be found necessary to carry the
pleasure road over the traffic road, as
the pleasure road is now carried over
ultimately be a demand for traffic
road between the cemetery and the
Linden Hills region from Kings high
way.
| The Real Problem.
II have referred to these various
features of your park system in order
| to make it clear that such system
must be regarded as an essential part
| of your city plan. 1t is not question
| of the am cunt of acreage to be ac-
quired, as compared with the acreage
of other cities, but it is a question of
the amount of land that is required for
! convenient and attra ctive means of
| communication and the character Of
land selected for such passageways
| IF this land is never likely to be of
| much value for commercial and agri-
cultural purposes, that is, if it is never
| likely to bring considerable fnan-
cial return to the city or it's citizens,
/ then it would be better to include this In
! your system of public reservations, for
such land already has beauty of its
! own, or it is capable of producing a
| beauty that will add immensely to the
| attractiveness of your city. This at
Effectiveness in itself is a commercial
4 asset of another kind than that already
| referred to, but quite as potent In
bringing prosperity.
An Outlying System.
4 AS yet Minneapolis and ST. Paul
have not begun to consider seriously
/ a comprehensive metropolitan system
lying so far outside the city as to pro-
vide for all future growth.
''It should be the purpose in such a
system to preserve such typical and
characteristic landscapes as are repre-.
sented by the Marcot lakes south, the
4 wire grass bogs north of st. Paul, Mt
I Giibore, and the Minnesota river bluffs
4 and lakes south and southwest of Min.
4 neapolis. know this proposition GOV.
Il ering, as 1T does, territory with a ra.
dius Of eighteen miles may seem g
i visionary one to many.
4 You will ask at once why should
! include within such a system range
of territory wider than that OF many Of
the great park systems. It Is because
all our great park systems are sure tt
be enlarged In one form or another II
{ the course of few years, owing to the
increased rapidly and ease Of com.
munication by electric cars and by au
tomobiles, which will make parl
system ten or twenty miles from
4 the city no further from the peopl,
than existing park systems now are.