Evening journal., 1913-04-30
FEARS PRIVATE
WATERFRONT OWNERSHIP
& WILL BALK CITY'S GROWTH
contInued From FIrst Page.

nnN NuhAAiNnN NtN'tRIAh'ni WAtiAOAt n
water front for the accommodation Of
ocean going steamers. In addition to
the canal question, there is little
doubts in our minds but that within
few years the inland waterways
will be completed. thereby connect
Ing New York, Trenton. Philadelphia,
through the Delaware and Chesapeake
canal, with Baltimore and Washing
ton Without a water front ] am un-
able to see how this city can be bene-
fitted from the construction OF that
inland waterways Our Chamber %
Commerce has sent delegates to the
inland waterway. Our Chamber Of
cause we desire the construction. but
what can II mean 10 Wilmington
Ships plying between New York and
Baltimore would not stop here if we
did not have a water front
City May Lose Advantages.
With the waterfront making cheap
communication between lower parts
OF Delaware and thereby bringing to
Wilmington the food supplies at
cheaper rates and with Wilmington as
The terminal for q big railroad center
like the Wabash the Wilmington of
the future has no limit Rapidly VIII
mington would become one of the large
cities oi the Atlantic seaboard; busi-
ness would develop. snyscrapers
would rise on every prominent corner
Of Market street tho merchants of
our city would become merchant
princes of tho East and Wilmington,
instead of being a small city. would
.fdcvelop rapidly into one Of the great
cities of the world It is because I
hope for large things like this for the
city Of Wilmington hat ] have taken
my stand to cndcavor to secure for
nthe city of Wilmington such a water
front in order that it may take adyan-
taee Of the stragetic position in which
T. Is pleced
But the deplorahlc fact about all
this Is that Wilmington seems -otmed
TO lose all this great advantage be-
cause OF the fact that her river front
As today ownel by private individuals
and held by them for purposes Of
spccula,.on
s'M'e afe safeFH;e5 that ;he United
State government VIII this -prins give
nul the contract for competing the
3o-foot channel beginning ON Ches-
ter TO the mouth Of tho hrlstiana
river and that tho government anx-
lous to build p bulkhcad front on our
river I'M order that Il may
dump the dirt that is remov-
ed In deepening this channel be-
hind such q hulkhcad rather than
carry il out TO sea II proposes 10
build a bulkhcad and All i'm back OF
that bulkhcad I'm such a way that
about 500 acres OF land in front OF
the city of Wilmington will be re-
deemed
"The government has refused to do
this If the llttoral owners, being pri-
vate individuals. are to reap the profit
by the building OF the bulkhead and
making this fast land. As the gov
eminent has taken this position. ii
means that unless the city of Will
mingtOn gains control OF her river
front that ahc will lose this oppor-
luuity of having the land filled in back
OF the bulkhead. and | feel that II
this opportunity Is lost now that not
during your day nor mine will the
city OF Wilmington obtain a water
front sufficient TO accommodate sea-
going vessels To mako water
front will require tho removalof thou
sands and thousands OF tons of earth
0and the present littoral owners or
any other private individuals will NOT
be likely TO make the water front at
so great an expenditure OF money
when that expenditure is largely ex-
perimental on their part and there
fore If we DO not take advantage OF
the deepening of this channel, then
perhaps we will not get another op-
portunity until It is necessary at some
long distant future date TO again
deepen the cha~ III of the Delaware
river. When | say that the filling i'm
back of the bulkhead by private in
divduals is largely experimental. /
mean that we do not know the char
acter Of the fast land that will be
made by filling IN. An opponent of
The river front tells us tnat after the
land is filled In. il VIII be of no use
whatever for manufacturing sites. be-
cause OF the fact that there is no
solid bottom 10 Cherry Island marsh,
but the land could be used as a park
and playground system for the city of
Wilmington and the edge adioining
the river could be filled in and COM
rlcted In such a way as 10 make a
pcsa'hie 10 construct wharves there.
on. Private individuals. therefore
could not cxpend the large amount of
money necessary to al I'm this land
back of the bulkhead unless they
could know that by doing so they
would be making that land which was
Yaluable TO them to sell for manufac.
turing sites. But now we have the
opportunity TO have the bulkhead