Arizona republican., 1909-05-12
A TEMPE DEPARTMENT @
STYLE IF BRIDGE
 THAT TEMPE WANTS
THE CORRECTION OF A RUMoR
 THAT IS AFLOAT.
J. C. Goodwin Writes on the Subject
 of an Electric Line.

It seems from rumors that are going around the country that the citizens of i Tempe are not in favor of a bridge strong enough to carry an electric
 car. Perhaps the foundation for this rumor is based on something l wrote i that was published in The Republican some days ago in which l called the
 attention of the public to the fact
 that, under the present territorial law a territorial highway could not take over bridge that carried an electric ! line.
 While the people of Tempe have
 only asked for money sufficient to
 build a wagon bridge, they have taken
 up the interest of constructing a
 bridge across the river at Tempe to carry an electric car as well as wag-
 ons. The people of Tempe have al-
 ways worked with the belief that be- ! fore a contract is let to build a bridge
 at Tempe that the board of supervis- l DTS that are empowered under the general bridge law can make an ar rangement with an electric car com 1 pany to pay a part of the cost for the construction of this bridge. A com
 mittee of Tempe citizens have been for some time and are now corre- spending with some companies trying
 to interest them in constructing an electric railway from Phoenix to Mesa City.
 An estimate for the cost of the Tempe bridge, strong enough to carry an electric car, made by the El Plso Bridge company, was published in the Gazette a few nights ago; they esti- mate that such d bridge complete would cost probably s7O.OC0. The same kind of d structure at the foot Of Center street would cost probably S125,000.
 I think the people of Tempe feel that the board of supervisors can make arrangements with an electric car company to put up from s3O.OOO to S35.OOO of this money and that would cut the cost of building such bridge down to about half.
 The Center Street bridge people talk of building an urban line from Phoe- nix running south into the Chandler country. This is one of the induce ments that they hold out to voters liv- ing south of Phoenix and south of Mesa City. They do not guarantee at the present time any such road will be built, and as l understand, they have no company formed for building such a road. Building any kind of d railroad through a sparsely settled country is not a business proposition. and l would suggest to the tax payers who expect to get a benefit from this road immediately that I am afraid they will be greatly disappointed. I cannot conceive how any urban road can be made a paying proposition when they come in competition with the Phoenix & Maricopa. Few people on the Phoenix Bridge committee know that there is a branch road run ming from Kyrine east to within three one-half miles of Chandler's ranch south of Mesa City. and that instead of Dr. Chandler shipping his hay and grain from Mesa City that he shipped from this point. and that also the NJ. X P. are contemplating just as soon as the reservoir is built, and the sparely settled country around south of Mesa City is more thickly populat- ed to extend their line on east into the Chandler country thence north to -ntSd AllN- ne M. 6 r. ONnllR the line on the north and another line eight miles south, with this loup prac- tically covers all the country that an urban line could hope to cover More than half the land lying south of Tempe and Mesa City would be within two miles of the line on the north or south and moreover if the Phoenix will come to Tempe they will find that the rails to complete this route are now piled up in the railroad yard at Tempe. If it be- comes a business proposition the NJ & r. can build another spur some four or five miles from any point along the M. & P. south of Tempe into the Heard country. so you see that all the will be practically corralled by the M. & r. road. so the only way that an electric car line can be built and expect to become d paying propo- sitiOn is by direct connection with Mesa, Tempe and Phoenix.
 When the lands around Mesa are divided up into small holdings (which will be done in the next two or three years) the possibilities are within ten years Mesa City itself will have a of 10000 inhabitants. and Tempe will grow in like proportion So l f anyone thinks that the people of l Tempe are against the electric line. it | s all a mistake and is done to preiu- lice voters who are in favor of an | electric line connecting Mesa City with Phoenix.
 JAMES C. GOODWIN. Tempe, May II.