Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-05-20
ROWS OF HOUSES ON
Stills OCCUPY SITE
OF RECLAIMED LANDS

That portion of the city where the
tide flats are being reclaimed presents
an altogether different appearance.
Fronting the observer are long rows of
buildings, mounted on tall piles or
frame supports such as house movers
use. all OF them between twenty and
thirty feet In the air, waiting for five
million cubic yards of dirt to be sluiced
down under them from the hills above.
II a foreign visitor, unacquainted with
Seattles ways OF handling hills and hol-
lows In her own sweet fashion, were
suddenly to view this forest of stills
surnrounted with rows of houses he
might be justified In imagining that 1t
was to escape some monster tidal wave
that the residents had planted their
dwellings in midair.
Stretching to the south from this
portion of the city are two new and
wide arteries of traffic which will rev.
olutionize the aspect Of things in the
southern limits of the city. These new
roadways are now on stills. or, more
properly speaking, built up In the air
on piles. Beneath the level plank road
ways thirty feet of filling Is to be made
as soon as the countless tons of sand
and gravel are washed down from the
vide greatly needed means of hand.
ling traffic of all kinds from the central
wholesale and retail districts of Seattle
to the southern portion Of the city ana
the country beyond. They will be USED
by automobilists working their way TO
the verdant rural districts south OF the
city; by the owners of fancy turnonts
and by all manner of teams bringing
produce from the gardens ana farms Oh
the nearby valleys.
Such a vast amount of Improvement
is necessary because OF the unlortu
nate selection OF the city's site. Henry
Yesler built a sawmill and another EEL
low came along and put up a poarolns
house to feed the mill hands. That was
the birth of Seattle. Yesler selected
this site because there was a spring
nearby and with no thought of the mil
lions his Observation-Disclosures would cost
other generations. Had he gone half a
mile either north or south all TINS
trouble and expense would have been
saved. But neither Yesler nor anyone
else had any idea that city was go
ing to grow around his sawmill.
At first the population divided itself
into separate towns, located here and
there in the valleys nesting between
the hills. owing to the natural diffi-
culties in the way these places main
tanned their separate individuality
much longer than they otherwise would
have done. They are all included In
the corporate limits OF Seattle now, ex-
cept Georgetown, although the city has
grown completely around this place and
two miles to the south of 1t.
The necessity for cutting away the
hills and providing arterial highways
between the valley towns now merged
into one city 10 based on the principle
of life that without circulation the
body cannot thrive. To induce proper
tv owners to bear the expense OF the
work the argument was'a advanced that
into whatever portion of the body the
best circulation enters there are the
best developed organs. city must
have accessible streets for its traffic
or It will develop chronic commercial
invalfdism.
The work is authorized by condem-
nation proceedings in court. When
rearade Is decided on in a certain dis
trict the cost is first estimated. then
careful examination Is made OF each
piece of property that will be benefited
by the Improvement. The present
market value Of the property Is ascer-
tanned, as well as the enhancement of
value likely to result from the I'M
provement. A special assessment Is
then levied on ali property within the
zone of benefit, and the work rushed
to completion as rapidly as possible.
Sometimes only the property In the I'M
mediate vicinity OF a regrade Is as
sessed, and again the benefits will ex-
tend a mile and a half from the scene.
The work not only proves of inestima-
BILE value to the city. but invariably
results in enormous profits to property
owners.
The rebuilding of Seattle is causing
wonderful transformation in the
place. At one point a big hill has been
cut down 144 feet to let ninety-fcot
thoroughfare go through directly under
where a house formerly stood. A
double-track tunnel a mile and half
long has been bored under the city In
order to get rid of the trains. Half
dozen churches have been shifted and
five-story school building has been
pushed back out OF the way. In the
retail district a bargain sale was In
progress in one of the stores. The
shoppers were rushing in and out of
the big brick building without knowing
that 1t was on wheels and sliding back
ward nine feet
Copyright. 1908. by Frederic ]. Hasiin.)