The San Francisco call., 1907-06-22
ASSOCIATED SAVINGS
BANKS DENOUNCE PLAN
Geary Street Road Project
Condemned as Being
Most Unwise
ADOPT RESOLUTIONS
Members Declare That the
Taxation Would Be a
Burden on City
ADOPT RESOLUTIONS

Contending that the conditions of the
city at present make it inadvisable to.
appropriate $4,000 to construct the
associated savings banks of San Fran
cisco, the organization comprising all
local savings banks, at meeting held
Thursday, adopted resolutions con-
demning the enterprise and asserting
that there are other necessities and
emergencies which call for large ex-
penditures more needfu1 than the street
railroad. The resolutions follow:
Whereas. the board Of supervisors in making
appropriated s72o.00o for the purpose Of recon.
strncting the Geary street railroad and to
operate the same as municipal street rail.
road, and In so doing has caused an excess Of
the so called dollar limit of the charter. which.
in our opinion, should only be done In cases of
great emergency Or necessity; and whereas, the
cent the interests Of over 100 600 depositors,
large part of whom are tax payers within the
California, whose dividends are decreased by
any addition to the tax rate and will in fact
nay about S2e0, 600 of said additional taxes IL
the same be levied; and whereas it is the first
duty of the savings banks of this city to pro-
teet the interests of their depositors and
whereas the members of the said associated
savings banks of San Francisco firmly believe
that the reconstruction of the said Geary street
railroad Is not of such great necessity or
diate levy of tax to raise such large sum
of money. and further that the said sum could
eca see pc IN sns now Therefore be 'e sau
Resolved. that said associated savings banks
of San Francisco sregardless Of any question
entire disapproval of the above addition to the
tax rate for such purpose and In part for the
following reasons:
First|That the above contemplated appro-
priation is not for purpose of such great
necessity or emergency as Is contemplated by
the be attempted to be enforced. i'm
posing expense upon the city with the
danger of invalidating the whole budget
Second-That many crying necessities and
emergencies as contemplated by the charter do
exist and call for the expenditure of large
sums of money far more than the obstruction
of municipal railroad, however desirable that
might be in other circumstances, that the mex
pedency OF expendfng this great sum for the
emergencies may be specified as follows: The
purchase and operation of freboats; the repair
of cisterns damaged by the fre and the cIea.
auxiliary water supply for the protection OF
the city: the immediate need, recognized by
all, of improving the conditions of the Streets
the absolute necessity of fire engine houses in
newer parts of the city, the important need of
more schoolhouses the necessity OF immediate
repair OF important public buildings. instead OF
the payment of present high rentals for tenn
in the construction and reconstruction of sewers.
Many other demands of more Importance than
the establishment of street railroad might
be mentioned. and it seems would immediately
occur TO most citizens of this city. The tax
payers here are expending over million dollars
per annum i'm FIRE insurance premiums In excess
of what other cities similarly situated pay, and
in excess of what they would have TO pay with
proper fire protection.
The associated savings banks of San Fran
cisco have no objection to necessary taxation
to rehabilitate the city, but they feel that 1t
is lamentable that such large sum should be
spent for the purpose of constructing street
railway when by efecting some of the things
above outlined the confidence of the financial
centers of the world might be restored to San
Francisco with the result that still further
improvements could readily be made by the sale
of municipal bonds. which sale would become
possible upon restoration of confidence,