The San Francisco call., 1910-03-12
APPROVfSPOTRfRO
TUNNEL PROPOSAL
Mission Promotion Association
Indorses Plan for Piercing Hill
at Twentieth Street
By v. ]. CHURCHILL,
Secretary Mission Promotion Association.

Secretary Mission Promotion Association.
Having obtained an appropriation to
macadamize and bring to grade Fif-
teenth avenue South, the Mission pro-
motion association, in furtherance of
its efforts to bring all the outlying dis
tricts into direct contact with the heart
of the Mission. has approved the petit
ton of property holders in Twentieth
street to tunnel the Potrero Nuevo hill
and render the thickly populated resi-
Dental section of the Potrero accessi-
BILE.
The issuance of bonds for the per-
formance of this work may be consid-
cred the most important Of all the tun-
neling projects now before the people
of this city.
A conservative estimate places the
number of persons who have settled In
the last three and a half years between
Potrero avenue and Tennessee, SIX
teenth and Twenty fifth streets at
26, 900, mostly a permanent population
who are buying their homes on a grad
ual payment basis, in a section the cli-
matte conditions of which are so ex7s
cellent that the immense city and coun-
ty hospital is being built at Twenty
third street and Potrero avenue in
preference to all other locations.
CUT FOUND IMPRACTICABLE
Some five years ago a project was set
on foot to grade the hill and cut Twen-
tieth street through its entire length.
1t was found however, that this was
not feasible and the matter has laid In
allegiance until the tunneling project
I,ra6 lNxyf hn mr.
motion association.
The association proposes that Twen-
tieth street be leveled between Hamp-
shire street and Potrero avenue and
that the tunnel begin at the base of
the hill about 100 Ieet east of Potrero
avenue, directly beside the st. Cath
crime home.
AS Twenty-second street is now be-
ing graded by the property holders
east of Potrero avenue, it is proposed
that the residents on the summit of the
hill use Twenty-second street as a
means of approach to either mouth OF
the tunnel. On the bay side Twentieth
street is cut through from the seawall
to Carolina street. The proposed tun-
mel would issue at Carolina street and
direct communication would be thus
assured between the Potrero and the
Mission.
III ARfA III
One of the more obvious benefits that
would result from this Improvement
would be the establishment OF ade-
quate transportation facilities, which
is the greatest need of the locality
affected The proposed Mission-Devisa
dero street crosstown line, instead OF
ending at Twentieth street and Po-
trero avenue, could be continued
through the tunnel to Kentucky street
RI ha wall two blocks
south of the China basin.
While at present the center of the
city can be reached only by circui-
tous route over Sixteenth street, with
the continuation of car service direct
from Valencia street over twentieth
to Kentucky street, the time entailed
in travelling at present would be short
ened by half. This is one of the con-
siderations that make Twentieth street
the most feasible of all the streets 1t
has been proposed the route of the. tun-
mel should follow.
NEW PAVEMENT SECURED
The petition of the Mission promo
ton association that an entire new
pavement be laid on Folsom street has
been acted upon favorably by the board
of public works, and the employees of
the municipal asphalt plant are en-
gagged in newly repaving the street
from Sixteenth street southerly. The
two blocks between Fourteenth and
Sixteenth streets have been nearly COM
pleted. The basalt block pavement
that has been laid is considered suit
able for the heavy traffic that passes
through the manufacturing district.
With the paving of Folsom street and
the raising of it to grade it is assured
that no more floods will be experienced
during the heavy rains in this section,
as the main Channel street outlet sewer
is well under construction, section B
being nearly completed. With the
establishment of the official grade
corresponding improvement is noticed
in front of private property, side
walks being laid as soon as the paving