Los Angeles herald., 1908-11-10
CITY WILL AID
IN DEVELOPMENT
OF GREAT PORT
COUNCIL VOTES ASSISTANCE
TO HARBOR BOARD
MOVEMENT FOR CONSOLIDATION
GIVEN IMPETUS
Members of Legislature from Los An
aeIes County Urged to Favor
Law Permitting Union
of Cities

|" HE city's attitude toward harbor
ACQUISITION and improvement Is
Il on record as the unanimous action
of the council yesterday, in resolutions
which pledged the city TO immediate
Improvement of the water front ana
authorized the harbor commission 10
prepare legislative bills allowing con-
solidation.
The harbor commission presented
report to the council which styled san
Pedro harbor when fully developed
zone of the best harbors of refuge ana
commerce in the world" The report
paid compliments to the Wilmington
trustees and to Senator Flint ana the
government corps of engineers for re-
sistance to attempts to bottle up the
harbor.
Secretary Fleming of the harbor COM
mission. who presented the report in
person, called attention to the lnJus-
tice of present conditions by which, ne
said, "a city of 100000 population Is dis
criminated against in a most unjust
manner simply because 1t has free
holders charter.
This is a most important matter"
declared Mr.. Fleming, and the city
ought to declare itself for enactment
which will give relief"
"I think so, too" said President Pease
of the council, and the other members
agreed and expressed their confidence
in the harbor commission by passing
the resolutions presented unanimously
This Is Third Step
The adoption of the resolutions is the
third step in what appears to be TAR
reaching plan in the commission
work for free harbor. Following the
organization of the commission the
plans for instituting the tidelands suits
were carefully worked out with the re-
suit that Attorney General webb de-
clared to Secretary Fleming When the
papers were presented that there was
nothing left except the aflXlhg Oh nus
signature.
The commission has now started the
next movement in the campaign for
free harbor by the city's declaration
for relief which will permit consolida-
tion.
The report presented by Secretary
Fleming was as follows
sThe harbor commission, anticipating
the time a little at which it should fle
it's annual report, submits for your con-
sideration, and we hope approval the
following:
"This commission from the time of its
appointment has been active at al
times, taking the aggressive and push
ing every move looking to the Iinal
making of San Pedro harbor free from
private control for the use and beneht
Of fhe public. seeking to bring about
conditions that will unite in one mar
monious whole the railroad, the steam
ship. the warehouse and the factory
thus realizing to it's fullest extent the
ideal commercial condition.
after a strenuous fight opposed
upon every side by selfish interests
harbor lines, recommended by captain
IH.in hapn
nv the government established ana
made permanent, and this commission
firmly believes that when San Pedro
harbor is fully developed in accordance
with this plan that we VIII nave at
our door one of the best harbors or
refuge and commerce in the world ana
one that will among the harbors or
the world be recognized as the city OF
Los Angeles is now, namely, the great
est residential city in the world. and
destined at no distant day to take a
foremost position as commercial
manufacturing, maritime city.
Exposes Private interests
"Priyate interests have sought,
through the obtaining of long term
leases. to gain such a hold upon the
harbor as to defeat it's successful de-
velopment by the public in the future,
hut through the vigilance of your COM
mission the able work of as loyal a
corps of government engineers as was
ever entrusted with the development of
a public improvement, the personal
effort of Senator Frank P. Flint, the
chamber of commerce and the board of
trustees at Wilmington have prevented
private parties from securing fran
chises under the guise of making i'm
mediate improvements, when in fact,
their real motive was to gain control
of the water front and continue to
further stife the commercial interests
of our city.
1.-THE commission, acting under in
structions given it by the resolution,
so promptly and with such commend
able unanimity adopted by you, re-
tanned James A. Anderson as special
counsel, and in conjunction with the
regular attorney of this commission
and the city attorney had prepared
the necessary complaints to commence
suit for the recovery of all of the tide
lands acquired by private parties in
San Pedro harbor under a misinter-
probation of the law which were pre-
sented to Attorney General U. S. Webb,
who Immediately authorized the COM
mencement of said suits to recover the
same for the use and benefit of the
public accordingly six suits have been
commenced in the superior court, and
viii be pressed to a speedy determina-
ton, and we think, judging from the
time taken to settle suits of like nature,
that in from eighteen months to two
years the people will be in possession
of from 1900 to 1900 acres of land, the
value at the present time of which
will reach into the milic'-- and VIII
as time goes on become more valuable.
For Consolidation
"At this time another condition con-
fronts us, if Los Angeles is to come
into her own, the many municipalities
surrounding San Pedro harbor must be
united under one government, and there
is no law upon our statute books
whereby a city governed, as is ours,
by a freeholders' charter. can CONSOLE
date with a city organized under the
general law which is manifestly an
unfair and unjust discrimination
against cities governed as is Los An
geles, and of such Importance vas this
situation that both of the dominant
parties declared in their platforms in
favor of the enactment of law that
n.