The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-04-17
Same In Business District.

IS Itio CUSTOM mere 10 larger extent
than in the large eastern cities.
Same In Business District.
THE same situation holds true In the
business district. If one goes about the
city he will find on Main and State
streets practically all of the locations
taken at tremendous prices for rent, in
some Instances as high as $1,000 for a
single location of no great size. 1t is
related of the head of new firm only
recently arrived in the city that he
looked about Salt Lake for long time
and was unable TO secure anything
which he wanted, and had Just decided
10 go back home when he discovered a
location for his business on a side street
where the rents were not so nearly pro-
hibitive as they had been on the main
thoroughfares.
TT has been said that this viii hurt
the city almost more than anything else.
Now. what is the result of all this and
how is 1t to be remedied? It is human
nature TO charge as much as the traffic
will bear in anything, and 1t is not to
be expected that property owner will
accept less than he is offered for a good
business location. It is true that the
city has been growing rapidly, and that
until recently ii was practically a one
street city. At the present time there
is a tremendous movement towards
State street and Third South for bust
ness locations, and the construction
OF the Newhouse theatre, the new Auer-
bach block and other buildings win at
tract people from Main street 70 q con-
siderable extent. and turn them to the
other less eongested localities.
This will give more room in the
business district. IT is sadly needed.
There should be at the present time at
least twenty vacant business locations
In the business district, and as a mat
Ter or fact, there are no vacancies and
q prospect of even fewer as soon as the
work OF constructing new roads through
the block south of the Knutsford hotel
is started. The situation remembered
by business men when the construction
OF the Judge building was commenced
still holds in the city. 1t is probable
that The congestion is Just as great, be-
cause I doubt if the increase in number
of business locations has kept pace with
the rapid growth of the city,
More Buildings Required.
We are building rapidly, and there
must be a large number Of business
structures erected. It is undoubtedly
true that rentals are high and even
somewhat higher than similar loca-
tions in cities of the same size, but this
thins is natural to any place in which
there is being carried out an adjust
ment to new conditions. 1t should be
remembered that We have had only
about two. or three years in which to
expand from country town to a me-
tropolis, and property owners are work
ing night and day to provide for the in
ereasing population, both in a business
way and in the way of homes.
AT the present time, the law of sup
ply and demand is working to increase
the rentals. or keep them at a high rate,
and they are likely to continue at that
rate until the city catches up with the
tremendous advance which is being
made.
This does not mean that We are going
ahead too fast. since to stop improve
ments at the present time would be to
leave conditions no better than they
are at present and to give no hope of
any Improvement. We must go on with
the present improvements as fast as
possible and attempt to catch up with
ourselves Just as soon as We can The
present situation comes from the fact
that we are progressing. and just as
long as the residence and business dis
tricts are congested as they are at the
present time, there is likely TO be the
cry Of high rents. We must have more
houses and more business structures
before there can be return to normal
conditions, or rather before there can
be any relief from the existing conges-
ton which in turn is producing the
present cry of lack of accommodations
of all kinds"