Los Angeles herald., 1907-01-25
PENINSULA PLAN
MEETS OBJECTION
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IS
DETERMINED
Hsrbor Committee Sends Protest to
Government Engineer-Makes
Strong Demand for an Alb
solutely Free Port

Greater Los Angeles an absolutely free
harbor and at the same lime prevent
corporate and other influences from
shuttin.: Wilmington completely out of
the frontage of the inner harbor, the
committee on harbors of the Los An
geles chamber OF commerce Is making
strenuous effores.
The committee, which Is composed of
William ID. Stephens, chairman; +. q.
story. J. o. Koepfli w. c. Mendenhall,
Bradner w. Lee, G. d. Willard and w.
j. Hunsaker, has sent to Captain A. A.
Fries, government engineer, second
protest against the granting of the re-
quest of the Banning company and the
Southern Pacific for permission to
carry out what is known as the penin-
sula plal for the inner harbor.
This letter. which was approved by
the board of directors of the chamber
of commerce, is as follows:
"In response to your invitation to
citizens or civic bodies Interested in
harbor matters, to submit comments
and recommendations upon the plan
now generally known as the peninsula
plan, proposed by the Banning com
pany, the Southern Pacific and the Salt
Lake company, jointly, in a letter to
the secretary of war under date of
December 4, 1906, for the reclamation of
certain overflowed lands in the inner
bay of San Pedro, the Los Angeles
chamber os commerce, representing es-
pecially the commercial interests of
this city, and to a certain extent those
of surrounding country, has, through
it's harbor committee, given most care
full consideration to the plan in all its
phases, except the technical engineer
ing phase, with which we realize that
the engineers of your corps Will deal
far more thoroughly than could we;
and as result of that consideration
we recommend that the plan, as it has
been submitted to you, be not ap-
proved.
"In our study of the commercial and
public aspect of all harbor questions
we are influenced by a desire to attain
three ends, which we deem of para
mount Importance to commercial in
terests, and we are inclined to regard
any harbor plan favorably or unfaVor-
ably as it is deemed likely to advance
or retard the attainment of these ends
"These three fundamental objects, in
the order of their importance, are:
"A-To assure a free harbor;
"B-To expedite harbor develop
ments, and
"C-To secure government aid in
harbor building.
BY a free harbor we mean harbor
with a sufficient area of land publicly
owned and controlled and fronting on
the established harbor lines to assure
access to deep water and to wharfage
facilities, at any time, under reason
able conditions, to responsible and
competitive commercial and transpor-
tation interests.
1--WE wish to expedite harbor devel-
opment because we realize that facil-
tiles at present are utterly inadequate
for the needs of commerce, and we are
heartily in favor of any plan which
will increase these facilities, If it does
nf pOn6i-
will increase these facilities of condi-
tions more important even than
promptpess.
I'VE believe in a harbor built by the
government because in that way only
is it possible to secure the development
and adoption of comprehensive plan
which will utilize to the utmost all
the opportunities presented in the in
ner bay of San Pedro Private inter-
ests, controlled by the necessity of
paying dividends on capital invested,
cannot be expected to carry out so
broad q scheme.
'Guided as we have been by the
above fundamental considerations, we
are led to recommend adversely to the
peninsula plan, because:
I'VE believe that the title to the
greater part of the area affected by
the plan (title to which is now claimed
by one or more of the petitionerS) can
which have already been instituted by
this chamber), be declared to be vested
in the state, and that then it will be
possible to develop free harbor in
the vast basin.
I'VE believe, further, that If the pc
titioners' request is granted and their
plans are carried out, the claim to
private ownership in the tide lands will
be so greatly strengthened that dis
possession will become difficult, and
that then practically all lands abutting
on the harbor lines as finally estab-
lished by the government for the future
inner harbor will become fixed in
private or corporate control with great
resulting injury to public interests.
I'm the plan as proposed none of the
area to be filled is to be set aside for
public uses; all the waterways Will be
surrounded by private holdings and
Wilmington will be separated from
deep water by strip of land in private
ownership, through which she could
have access to the water 'front.' only
along her streets.
THE public control over this situa-
ton, through the power over wharf
franchises in the strip between the
bulkhead and pierhead lines. is not
sufficient to insure commercial free
DOM. The adoption of the plan would,
in brief definitely bar the public from
an effective voice in the control of the
great east basin.
again, we feel that the possibility
of securing federal aid for harbor con-
struction would be seriously leopard
lied by the granting of this petition,
because the policy of the government
in harbor matters is clearly against the
expenditure of public moneys where
the chief benefciaries are private inter-
ests rather than public.
FINALLY, we believe that permits may
be issued for immediate improvements
which will not interfere with the future
comprehensive federal plan' but VIII De
fullv as effective in relieving the pres
ent inadequate harbor facilities as
would the granting of the petitioners
prayer
"These reasons we regard as sur
ficient to make the formal acceptance
of the plan as it is now before you
most undesirable"
INTERPRETATIONS