The San Francisco call., 1909-10-23
GOVERNMENT SURE
OF CITY'S FUTURE
Millions Spent in Federal Build
ings Offer an Indication
of Confidence

When the United States government
has erected the new subtreasury build
ing on the site recently purchased from
Mrs Vanderbilt for the sum OF $375, 900
the total expenditures for public build
ings and grounds in San Francisco for
national use will. exceed $4,000. 900.
Taken as an indication OF national rec
ognition of the commercial Importance
Of San Francisco this fact is valuable.
The total of expenditures has been
large. and will be 'of increasing impor-
tance in promoting and maintaining
realty values in business centers of
this city.
The appropriation made by congress
for the purchase of the new subtreas-
ury site was s375,ooo According to
the records on file this was the consid-
Grafton Included In the deed. Possibly
$500, 900 more will be expended with
the construction of the building de-
signed for treasury uses. Unlike other
structures for the government in San
Francisco this will not be of relatively
great cost. 1t will be a building pri-
marily for Offices and accounts, with
large vaults for the receipt and stor-
age of treasure and other moneys SUI
peradded.
WILL RESEMBLE BANK
The expectation is that it will be
handsome of exterior and ornate in the
interior, but it will be largely in the
nature of the type of a banking build
ing. Presumably it will be- confined
solely. to the uses OF the subtreasury.
Prior to the firs OF 1905 the building
in which the subtreasury was housed
also furnished accommodations for the
land departments Of the federal gov
ernment in this district. This will
not be the case, in all proba bflity, in
the new structure.
No accurate estimate of cost can be
made of the new subtreasury structure
because the law does not authorize the
employment of a craftsman until an
appropriation has been made to defrsy
the structural cost. The first appro-
priation, solely for the purchase Of the
building site, has been exhausted.
Congress must now make provision for
construction. A clear title has been
obtained to the land and it is an
nounced that the search of title was
entirely satisfactory in its results.
Possibly the needed appropriation may
be made at the next session.
BUILDINGS DISTRIBUTED
The geographical distribution of fed
eral buildings in San Francisco has
been of value to various neighborhoods
Naturally the custom house, which for
its long series Of years also accomnlo-
dated the postoffice, was originally To-
Gated not far from the~water front and
convenient to the wholesale interest
to banks and to shipping. When the
government decided to replace the old
custom house with the new one and TO
construct new postoffice on the site
selected at Seventh and Mission streets
the reasons that led to the original
selection Of the site of the custom,
house still obtained.
For similar reasons it was found ad-
visable to have the appraisers build
ing as close as possible to the custom
house. The relations of the two in a
business way were intimate; public
convenience demanded that they should
not be separated The construction OF
the seawall fixed for all time the zone
to be devoted to foreign and domestic
commerce by sea and the Panama
canal increases the Importance of the
present locations for the indicated
uses.
SELECTION OF SITES
The site of the mint was selected
without special regard to the conye-