Los Angeles herald., 1907-01-09
MAYOR SIGNS
BIGGEST Of
SUBWAY BILLS
Provides for Tunnel
on Fourth Street
Temple and Hill Street Measures Are
Held UP for Higher compen-
sation by Trolley In
terests


Mayor Harper late yesterday after
noon signed the principal subway
measure of the series designed for the
extension and Improvements needed by
the Hartman trolley interests in Los
Angeles.
This measure will permit work to be-
gin Immediately on the western subway
parallelng Fourth street, which is the
one which first met official approval
here.
The mayor is ready to sign the other
subway measures as soon as the Los
Angeles-Pacific railway agrees to pay
$4,000 instead of $1,000 for the privilege
of burrowing under the city's cemetery
and high school property northwest Of
the business district around the court
house. The ordinance provides for the
payment of only $1,000.
Real estate men have advised the
mayor that the privilege Is worth $4,000.
Some day this will be valuable business
property they say, and as the tunnel
will be only fifteen feet below the sur
face of the ground any prospective
builder there would not have very deep
basement room.
Begin Work This Month
Engineer c.. H. Ellison of the trolley
company said last night that within
two weeks the work of construction on
the big subway would be in progress.
The first work will be done at Hope
street and at Vermont avenue. Later
4,
points simultaneously, and 1t will be
rushed so that all Of it will have been
finished in less than three years.
1t involves a gigantic engineering
proposition, as many city water and gas
mains. sewers, telegraph, telephone and
electric light wires and conduits will
have to be moved, hills pierced, concrete
walls, floors, arches and overhead steel
beams laid, aside from the construction
of the magnificent sky-scraper which
will be the main depot for the company
on Hill street.
Final Conferences
| Mayor Harper, City Attorney Leslie
r. Hewitt, the engineers for the road
and the board of public works members
have had repeated conferences over the
subway question, which Mayor McAleer
| turned over to his successor
About 5 o'clock last night Mr.. Hewitt
was once more called into the mayors
office, and then the executives signo-
ture was attached.
A special message will be sent to the
council in regard to the others.
Mayor Harper laid his pen down with
a sigh of relief as he looked at the Or
dinance.
1T is big thing for Los Angeles, and
Los Angeles is a big thing" he said.
Il took the ordinance home with me
last night and studied the situation
carefully.
II have been advised that we can do
nothing toward regulating the fares,
except to provide for half fares for
children and free rides for city en-
straight through to Santa Monica we
could insist on 25-cent round trip fares
to the beach.
"The rich men back of the enterprise
stand ready to put in the improvements
at once"
Judge Pope Pleased
When Judge John r. Pope, legal ad-
wiser of the Hartman lines, was told
of the mayors act by The Herald he
said:
Good! Harper is going to be great
mayor!"
The Fourth street subway is a gigan-
tic one, beginning at Hill street, where
the new Hartman building will stand,
and running to Vermont avenue and
beyond. At Flower street the company
will cross on grade, and here safeguards
will be provided, cars stopping to take
on and discharge passengers When the
roads are in operation it is thought the
cars will go fifty miles an hour in the
subway. Property owneds In the
northern end of the city have worked
hard for the passage of the other sub
way bills, aIs it will open up their Sec
tion to further trade, save time in
going to and from the beaches and bust
ness center and raise values.
Around Temple and Sunset boulevard
the desire to get the other tunnels built
is very strong and everything will be
done to get the mayor and the bidder to-
gether. The property owners are will
ing to sacrifice the pathway for pedes
trians which they wanted so badly
rather than to hinder the carrying out
of this vast work.