Los Angeles herald., 1909-11-30
REALTY DEALERS
ARE MADE HAPPY
REACH A COMPROMISE ON
STREET WORK REQUIRED
HIGH GRADE OF CEMENT AND
CURB WORK MAINTAINED
Tract Owners Will Be Allowed to
Make Any Kind of Temporary
Road Surface They
Please

An informal meeting of a number
of real estate men with a majority
of the council held in the council
chamber yesterday afternoon resulted
in the real estate dealers going back
to their offices in a happy frame of
mind over the promise of a decrease
in the stringency of street specifca-
tions for new tracts.
The meeting was called by L. b.
Burck, II. H Cotton and G. c. c. Ia
tum and was in the nature of pro-
test against the specifications the city
has adopted recently for street i'm
provements. Until a few months ago
almost any kind of cement and road
work was considered sufficient, but
the street department had so much
trouble in caring for streets that were
laid out for show and not for use that
on the recommendation of the city en-
gineer high class of improvements
was demanded.
Under these specifications curbs must
be inches high and sidewalks 51s
inches thick, with cement work that
will pass muster. The cheapest spe-
cifications for road work requires 60
per cent gravel six inches thick.
Agree to Cement Requirements
The real estate men asked that they
be permitted to put in 9-inch curbs
and 3-inch sidewalks, but asked no re-
ductlon of the amount of cement re-
quired. They said the required curbs
were not necessary for outlying tracts,
where there is practically no traffic.
and that the sidewalks would support
the trucks that are used In the busi-
ness district They claimed 1t was i'm
possible to get go per cent gravel and
that money would not buy crushed
rock, as the quarres could not supply
aA1 1aQN In
class of improvements demanded would
add $500 to cheap lots and make the
price practically prohibitlve.
Z. Avery Mccarthy advanced an ar
gument that the council had to ac-
knowledge when he said that the road
work on the outlying tracts was only
temporary at best, and that if high
class of road work was done 1t would
be cut to pieces when the houses were
built en- the tracts and gas, water,
sewer and other pipes laid.
A compromise was reached by the
council agreeing to pass an ordinance
maintaining the high standard of curb
and cement work, but providing the
city should give the grade In every
case where new streets are laid out
and permitting the tract owners to
make any kind of temporary road sur
face they please. The ordinance will
provide that the maps of the tracts
laid out in this fashion will be ac-
cepted by the city.
Compromise Agreed To
Five members of the council attend
ed the meeting. They were Wallace,
Yonkin, Healy, Lyon and Dromgold.
and all five accepted this compromise,
which was proposed by Mr.. Wallace.
Among the real estate men were o.
e. Parish, j. Harvey Mccarthy, S. /.
Briggs, Charles G. Andrews, Sam
Wood, Fred Rosenfeld. c. f. w. Pal
mer, L. b. Burck, Robert Marsh, e. A.
Mccarthy, David Burke, Fred Forres-
ter. Charles A. Elder and c. c. c.
Tatum.
City Engineer Hamin and W. NJ.
Humphreys. inspector of public works,
opposed this compromise and it is
stated that other real estate dealers
also are opposed to any changes. When
the question comes before the council
today there may be hard factional
fight.
Last night Mr.. Humphreys issued the
following statement:
Humphreys Makes Statement
"For some time past our tract sub
dividers have been making an effort to
cause a modification in our street spe-
cif1cations which would practically
eliminate all IounudllOn 10 our rodu-
ways. Up to few years ago, city
roadways were matters of Indifference
10 the average municipality, but pro-
gressive cities have realized that good
roadways are material factors in their
upbuilding, and of recent date much
thought has been given to the subject.
"Our larger cities have found it i'm
possible to give proper maintenance
along old lines, and to give relief two
main changes have bppn 9ttplnptpd-
narrowing of the roadway and better
initial work. 1t must be apparent to
anyone who travels our suburban
streets that they are as villainous as
roadways could be imagined, and to
remedy this condition and to provide
something better for the future we
have made an effort. by more stringent