New-York tribune., 1907-12-01


qeln,,rt tunnel it has lately: and yet il is di!ii-
.uit 70 see why the people OF Greater Ne" horh'
especially Of Manhattan, ana more fat '''
those responsible for the latter's commercial and
Industrial welfare should have, for long uIlle
,sssed v HE opportunities there oered-in its SITE
thai level and plain, and in the extreme
accessibility thereof-foT the establishment oL
heavy industries, of terminal facilities, ana OF
homes for the accommodation Of the crowded out
reople Of the congested districts ol ''e
gIcater city.
In an earlier articIe-one in which South Brook
ha was described The relief Tor ihc CoIiseS'eu
conditions OF lowe ManhGlt tan-it was SHOWN 'hat
things arrived such pass in the latter uia'
the expense OF doing business Is wholly dlspro-
poItionate to its volume. and, consequently PiO
i1ibtize Of fair profit IN lesser degree ike CON
.i:ions obtain in the rest Of the borough ana 10
siese are added the increasing COST OF nNiHs'
the difficulty of getting about and the unheaIlhIul
surroundings the inhabitants OF its oVeTcro"ueu
residence districts OF course. Inc bf"IlA "4iN
Westchester and The nearby Jersey towns nav
offered these oppors UnitCE for escape from 'e uii
foaard conditions: and. perha1s until now Inc
better transportation facilities afforded oy 'I-eSe
have had their weight in turning oo1h uuS'.-ee -
and hCmeseekers tlitherwaTd- but lle t'l"IiA -
ALREADY garnered its share of mis- haFNesl-1liu -
orlrs will scarce admit that Jersey Is entltieo u
,an HAT which il mas received There remains
fnen. only Long Island City For bFooAl!H = ~
the same. though perhaps ho' -
prcdicament, as Manhattan ILL.
,,,ricc,,sl,- enou,-h-New Workers generally
seerr To know little Long Island CITY or 10 nav
not taken it seriously, it may be productive oL
GOOD if some space is here devoted to deScipooi'
Of A Mace that and IL no distant daH' i Y '"i -
,es,,n,a ereat Importance manufacturing
centre, embracing-as Il Will-wlthln It's Ili's 'le
most important and most comprehensive 1eIlliiai
systems both for land and water transportation
service , -, o.,-.
facilitate the establishment OF the vast improve
,nents projected for Long Island Cl'y' ana '"dt =
,bo Slight and temporary character OF its earlier
constructions. for these viii not operate as cechs
,por immediate development since the latter VIII
compel no demolition Of fine buildings ana otneF
costly works Again, as VIII be ShoWh IateI
on there are no difficult rock formations to en-
counter in this territory. which. though it is as a
whole as said. a treeless plain IS somewhat dl'
xersifed hv low hills swamps ana meado"s' III
snv case all that will he necessary VIII be 10 cut
down the hills, and dump The dirt from them into
the hollows
Perhaps one reason Of the backwardness OF Long
Island City the fact that the locale was, dnuI
# became the First Ward Of the Borough OF
Queens. divided mp among number Of villages
such as Flushing Stcinway. Astoria, RaVensWooo,
Woodside Hunters Point. etc, some OF them
purely manufacturing communities. others purel!
residential towns all having diverse interests and
all pulling against each other 1t takes team
work" to build up 4 town. as it does a business
and among these conflicting interests ORGANIZED ell
fort was conspicuous by its absence Now all these
onetirne villages. and sections OF one town.
1ner have resolved themselves into civic assocla-
lions. and these are actively engaged-not only in
11rsentinS the claims of their city and in jealousy
guarding its interests. but-in strenuous and we'll
. directed endearors to mould events and conditions
into aspects favorable to these
An organization which might serve as a model for
many large communities is the Astoria Taxpayers
Association. which has membership of over three
hundred business and property owners of the
section No holding office is admitted II is
aggressive body. established in 1902. and has
splendid record Of good work accomplished Among
ether things II secured that 20 per cent reduction
in the preposteTous general Improvement assess
lnent. Chapter 6f4. Laws of 1898. A commission
large had been appointed in that year-note that it
before the consolidation-to make general i'm
Erovements and levy taxes thereon. The assess
Inents debited to the properties in due time
hut in q majority Of cases the improvements for
which the charge made under
taken. When Greater New York created about
Seee0.0o0 the books against property
in Long Island City This account. The Astoria
Taxpayers Association protested. and instructed
Mr. Leach. its counsel 10 take the necessary legal
steps, with the result above mentioned.
This is but of the many battles waged in de-
fence Of Astoria property owners where once upon
time abuses Of them many.
THE TOWNS IMMEDIATE NEEDS.
The issues which engage the attention of all
these associations are practically those that arc
heinc deterninedly pushed by the Business
Mems Association of Long Island City, of which
Witt, secretary. and which comprises about one
hundred and fifty Of its principal manufacturers
and business While of these issues
arc purely local, others concern the Borough
Of Manhattan, and, indeed. the greater city; but,
as it is not always possible TO separate these
il may. perhaps. be well TO present all of
Them To take up transportation questions first:
The tariff that should be charged for transport
lion from the various points in Queens, over the
trolley lines and through the Belmont tunnel,
Manhattan. there Is unanimous recognition of the
necessity for the tunnels being put Immediately in
commission, and the majority of citizens believe in
suspicious event. especially they are confident
that the laws OF supply and demand will
IS urgently reeded for two reasons. One that the
community has outgrown the ferry service: and the
other, that such large Sums have already been laid
-,ap,istior the tunnel Is eSpecfed 70 bring VI
AnotIler crying need of the community is the
completion Of The BlackweIls Island Bridge, so
whole northerly portion of Queens.
a third is the resumption Of the ferry service
from Hunters Point 10 James Slip; the long haul
the most congested portion of Manhattan. to reach
the lower section Of the latter, is upon
The resources OF Long Islands City's manufacture
ing industries.
consideration OF this association is the franchise
Tor At thT9ugh trolley line over We Thomson % avenue
sought by three different transportation interests.
Railway is favored by the association for the
reason that II Is the only one OF the three which
has its terminus in Long Island City and that it
considered better equipped TO render the latter
satisfactory service
transportation issue before this association
OF inducing the city TO remedy matter in which
and City. The latter has practically public
docks waterfront facilities. present, and there
have the authorities convert the property the
foot Of Mott avenue to that purpose: il was orig
lion of municipal electric light Plant, but the
project has been abandoned
Of