Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-05-14
Is Causing Much Thought
and Consideration,
Washington Asked ioT Engineer
10 Select New One.
Station Clearly Stated in letter
from Guy 4. hiIdreth.

The committee of the Gardiner
\ Board of Trade appointed at a meet
ting of the board some time ago tC
have in charge the negotiations for q
new post office building, to which com
mittee at the meeting of the board on
Tuesday evening was referred the
matter of the purchase of site by
the Board of Trade and the selling OF
the site thus purchased to the United
| States government for a considera-
| ton which shall come within the APP
| preparation passed by Congress, il
keenly alive to the situation and is
doing all in it's power to bring mat
tiers to a focus before the adjournment
OF the present session of Congress, SO
that the appropriation may not lapse.
| A dispatch was sent to the post
! office department at Washington
| Thursday by the committee, asking
that an engineer be sent from Wash
| ingtcn to select a new location for a
ptsto,fice building. While the location
| at the corner of Water street and
Brunswick avenue was the one which
| was picked out by the government ex-
pert sent here some time ago, yet it
| is understood that at least one of tire
| abutters will want to retain certain
| rights in case the property Is sold,
but this cannot be done, as the gov
eminent insists that there shall be
no incumherances of legal technical
ity to prevent the undisturbed occu-
| patton of the land as a government
poStofflce The reply to the dispatch
is being anxiously awaited.
| The following communication is re
| ceiyed from Guy A. Hildreth:
| To the Editor of the Kennebec Jour
1 mai.
| There has been a considerable inter-
est manifested up to date in reference
| to the location of a post office building
| in Gardiner, and it seems to me that
| this interest should in no sense die,
but increase very rapidly within the
next few days. The situation is as fol-
| lows, as | understand it:
| Through the efforts of Congressman
| Burleigh; $4,000 was appropriated by
! Congress to purchase building site
| for post office in Gardiner Maine,
and an expert was sent here, and af-
ter considerable investigation, he gives
his opinion to those in authority above
| MN III HIS liilCII III w e1oiIiho wi,
| that the only site available is situated
on the corner of Brunswick and Wa
| ter streets, now occupied by the bowl
| Ing alley and the stores just below,
so it would seem that if Federal
| building is located at any point in
| Gardiner, it would be located upon that
building site, and it is the best build
ing site in the city for this purpose,
| there can be no doubt of that.
| Now the question is, are we to have
| a new post office building built by the
! government to cost MANY thousands
| OF dollars-p probably 100000, or are we
| to let the matter go by and sleep sound
" ard contentedly with no Federal
| building in this city? The building of a
| $1,000 post office-a Federal building
| in Gardiner-woud be a great help to
| this community; much labor would be
| emploved. and much mercantile busl-
| ness transacted in reference to its
| erection and in the end we would have
a handsome ornament and a useful
| public bhilding.
| Tho proposition which blocks the
! treasury department in this matter
| is that $4,000 only has been approprl-
| ated by Congress for the purpose OF
| buying site to erect the building
| upon, and the owners of the property
| rightfully value it, as they claim, at
more than $4,000.
| The citizens of this city should get
| together at once and find way
| don't care how, as long as 1T is legal
and equitable to overcome the stumDl-
ing block which would prevent us hav-
ing this large sum of money spent IN
onr midst in the erection of this
Federal building. There are several
ways in which it could be done.
one is for the owners of the prop
Iertv. near the site above mentioned, -
subscribe something, and at the SAM
ltime the owners Of the buildings be
lmost cautious in the appraisal of this
property, so that the property may be
iacouired by a sum at hand made up OF
| subscriptions and by the government
1apportionment OF $4,000. This plan i
mot the best one Men should not be
called upon to subscribe to help built
a post office, unless all other plans
fail.
Condemnation proceedings could bt
instituted by the government, and the
lot taken and the awards, which
! SilUuiu De tuultdDlt anu .Htihit ith'' pom
to the property owners by the Govern
ment
The other way is for the owners y
the buildings to get together and i'm :
spirit of fairness mark down tn
property until they come within
SIS 900 appropriation will not lapse, %
owners of the buildings. nor would h
, ask them, to sell their property at
substantial loss.
NV suggestion. on the whole, is tina
there be much interest shown in th
lby the public and that the Board o
Trade committee appointed at TIL
meeting on Wednesday, be given ever,
assistance by the public in reference
to the purchase of this site. and
further. that some organized effort b
: made to save the situation so that thi
SIS. geo appropriation will not lapse. o
be lost to the City of Gardiner.
We must act at once. and what i
llone must be done before this session
tof Congress adjourns, and the ad
journment will probably occur withi
| a month.
:! GUY A. HILDRETH.
+ Nav 18th, 1909. sbdGt