Evening journal., 1912-05-09
Mr.. KURTZ WANTS COUNCIL
TO 60 SLOW IN ACTING ON
RIVER FRONT PROPOSITION

NNohNhutu from fllSl IdBej
Your duty seems to be clear are hit
concluding words to the Council.
Mr.. kurtz's letter in full follows:
Mr. Kurtz's letter follows:
ITO the Members of City Council.
Il address this letter to your hon
orable body, although | take the lib
erty to make it public because it dis
cusses a public matter and is intended
TO reach your consideration before
you take any action thereon.
Assuming as a fact that your hon
orable body contemplates taking de-
cisive action on the river front matter
this evening, as one of our newspapers
asserts, | write this letter in the hope
and with the earnest request that no
such decisive action be taken today
II such be contemplated. ] make thit
request because | think the matte
under consideration is of such i'm
portance that it may make or mar
the citys future for generations to
come, and ! do not believe that suf
fcient time has elapsed TO have al
lowed public opinion to crystalize it.
self on the subject.
THE matter of a river front for
the city of Wilmington has been up
for discussion for almost a half CEN
tury, and now that definite steps in
that direction are to be taken. / think
that sufficient time should be given
to the subject TO insure that the ac-
tion taken shall be right and for the
best interests of the city. AS the elect
ed representatives of the citizens, 1t
is the manifest duty of Council to al
low a reasonable time for the opinion
of the citizens to be formed, with a
full and free discussion Of the ques-
tions and interests involved, and when
that public opinion has been crystal
lied, to be guided by what the people
want.
1T is unfortunately true that IL
seems almost impossible to get the
people of this city to discuss and
make known their opinions on public
matters until after decisive action has
been taken. and then you may hear
a lot OF resentful and spiteful grumb-
ling and protest. II seems to me TO
be the clear duty of City Council 10
institute such proceedings, whether
by public meeting or otherwise the
will result in free and full discus
sion OF the merits and demerits OF
the proposition now before Council. in
order that the action taken may APP
proXimately represent the wishes OF
the citizens on the subject.
Il must confess that my own mind
is somewhat undecided as to whai
action SHOULD be taken to safeguard
protect and preserve the public in
terests, largely, / believe, because
sufficient facts have not been dis
closed. nor any discussions had.
with my limited information. th'
subject presents itself TO my mind il
two aspects. The first one relates I,
the mere right or wrong Of the situa
ton and conditions involved whill
the second appears TO ME to be
question of policy.
In my opinion, when Chapter
Volume %. Laws of Delaware, estab
fishing bulkhead, wharf and pier line
on the Delaware river in front OF tn
city Of Wilmington was passed by tn
General Assembly, after having bee
approved by City Council the publ
interests were not properly protectel
and preserved by our representative
THAT law, in section ;, vests I'm fe
in the littoral proprietors all of tn
fast land created by dredging in an
filling behind the bulkheads recog
nize and appreciate the lawful right
of property Of the littoral proprie
tors. have not examined the lay
laid down by the courts, as 10 wha
rights and appurtenances go with sue
ownership, and | am not venturing a
opinion on the purely technical. lega
construction of those rights
Il understand, however that th
filling in hack of this bulkhesd woul
create approximately five hundre
acres Of new fast land, which neve
existed before, and which did not re
suit by natural accretion. / under
stand that the United States govern
ment desired to fill in back of thi
bulkhesd and on account of the larg
amount of material TO be dredged an
the short haul it was matter {
economy to deposit It behind the bull
head and benefit the private owner
OF the land. rather than to haul It
further distance and deposit It else
where without creating such beni
ft
But the money to be expended /
making this improvement and crcai
ing five hundred acres of new, fa'
land where none existed before, wa
to be done with public funds. and m
instinct of right and fair dealing tell
me that both parties to the transactio
should reap the benefit resulting frol
the creation Of this new value Eithf
the public, as represented by IN
United States government. or the cit
of Wilmington, as a sort Of residuag
grantee or devisee of the rights Of IN