The San Francisco call., 1906-11-01
MAY END MOVE To
CLOSE HIGHWAY.
Discovery of Old Franchise
for a Railway on Ocean
Avenue Confuses Situation
SUPERVISORS HASTY

! The fact that franchise to operate
street car line on ocean avenue was
granted by the Board of Supervisors
| in 1898 NAV effectually prevent the
Board of Supervisors from carrying out
its resolution of intention TO close tnat
thoroughfare from Corbett avenue 10
the Great Highway. The resolutloh
was somewhat hastily passed oy the
board on the agreement OF the Sprlns
! side Realty Company to dedicate 10 the
city another public highway runhlns
somewhat parallel to Ocean avenue.
| 1t was ascertained definitely yester-
| day that in 1895 the Market street
Railway Company was granted iran
chise to operate a street car line COM
mencing at the intersection of MISSION
street with Ocean avenue. thence along
Ocean avenue to the westerly end ana
| then upon any extension OF ocean
avenue or along any interseeting street
or streets which are now or hereafter
may be laid out under the authority or
the Board of Supervisors to the ocean
/ beach or Great Highway.
There appears to be doubt as 10
whether the Board of Supervisors has
the right to close a thoroughfare upon
/ which a franchise has been granted 10
run a street car line. The United
Railroads, as the successor in interest
of the Market Street Railway Com
pany, has not as yet asserted its rights
in the matter. but II is expected that
the corporation will not passively sur
render any rights it may possess.
While it is likely that the franchise
for Ocean avenue has been forfeited
owing to. non-use, still numerous de-
cisfons have been handed down de-
claring that a franchise is contract,
and as such cannot be abandoned or
forfeited without the consent of both
parties subscribing to the contract
in this case the city and the United
Railroads.
WILL DEDICATE HIGHWAY.
In the petition of the Parkside
Realty Company for the closing of
Ocean avenue it is stated that the own
ers Of all the frontage on Ocean ave-
nue. are in favor Of its closing and
are about to dedicate for street pur-
poses in lieu thereof another strip of
land seventy feet in width. the route
of which is as follows:
From the intersection OF Ocean ave-
nue. with the westerly line Of Corbett
avenue and running thence in north
westerly direction to Market street;
then along Market street to it's west
erly termination and then in a north
westerly direction TO intersection with
the Great Highway.
The Market street mentioned should
not be confounded with the main ar
terry of the city. but is a street about
400 feet long and 125 feet wide near
the Great Highway and running rather
parallel to Ocean avenue
The Parkside Transit Company has
applied for a franchise to operate a
street car line along a route which
practically talIies with the route of the
proposed new boulevard to be donated
to the city The Supervisors intend
to invite bids for the street car line
and are preparing to pass an ordinance
| ing.
ROUTES ARE SIMILAR
The route of the line as laid down
in the ordinance is as follows:
Commencing in Ocean avenue oppo-
site the southerly termination of Cor
bett avenue, then through private
property to Nineteenth avenue. then
I across Nineteenth avenue at a point
approximately 9s6 feet southerly from
the south line of W street then
/ through private property in a general
1 westerly direction to what would be
the line of Market street il extended
/ then along Market street to its west
/ erly terminus. and then through pri-
vate property in a northwesterly df-
rection to the easteiIy line of the
! Great Highway.
1t will be observed that the route
of the proposed boulevard and the
route of the street car line accord so
far as the general direction is con-
/ cerned and that both routes include
Market street, so-caIIed. The street
car line is to be on private property
for its greatest length and the fran
chise will cover only the public streets
which it is proposed to pass. including
Market street and Nineteenth avenue