Evening journal., 1914-12-26

its owner as gift, it other land
needed for the proposed Southwest
Park can be secured.
Il seems to me best that | should
make "a very personal statement in con
nection with this proposal that the city
should apply for power to borrow
more money. IL is very disagrecablc 10
do 70, and il in doing IL | am making "a
mistake, | hope / may be excused.
II is said truly that We have more
park land now than We can take care of
properly Il would be practicable at
this time 20 obtain all or nearly all. the
tracts suggested above. II they are not
secured soou many of them can never
be obtained. Let us get them now, even
II improvement Of them must in a very
large degree be deferred for several
years, .etn.-
have been mich Interested for
thirty-dvc years in the city obtaining
park and playground lands. / am 20
years old and cannot very long be able
10 work in this matter. / am extremely
desirous that as much as practicable of
the land now suggested shall be obtain.
cd within the next two years, or within
q very few years.
circumstances NlN oNNn lNNl / lttl
able to do considerable amount to-
ward reducing the cost of the land to
the city.
II the proposed Southwest Park
and the proposed Grant and Bayard
avenues parkway can be obtained.
! am willing to see that the block
bounded by Scott. Howland, Lincoln
and Ninth streets, and the lot with
ten brick houses. on the block bound
ed by Scott. Ninth, Lincoln and Tenth
streets, also the tract at the south
west corner Of Clayton and Oak
streets. sometimes called Turtle
Park. shall go to the city without
any payment. and further. also on
condition that the proposed South
west Park and the Grant and Bay
ard avenues parkway can be OBJ
tained, that II a park of from ten to
twenty acres can be secured in the
Prices Run district. somewhat as
has been planned. half of the area
Of II shall go 10 the city without any
payment.
/ think few appreciate what a
desirable little park It would be II the
city had all the land bounded by
Scott Howland, Lincoln and Tenth
streets. II would have a large block
OF nearly level ground available as
1 Fairgrounds and the smaller block.
between. Howland and Ninth streets
close 10 the thickly settled Italian
district. with a very fine outlook from
IL across the Brandywine and up TO
the water tower.
For more than three years I have
held an option. at $500 an acre. on
the Robinson land, ffty-two acres.
needed for the proposed Southwest
Park. The city can take II at that
price.
OF the about 1890 feet frontage
on the proposed Grant and Bayard
avenues parkway. Woodlawn Com
pany owns about 3,944 feet. AS 10
this there would be no cost to the
city for widening The avenue. ox-
Z, cept TO pay for five small houses that
are on the land The city already has
the full width from Third street "a
Seventh. / believe that the owners
of much Of the other land frontine
on Grant and Bayard avenues would
without charge, give what would be
needed to make them 100 feet wide
Woodlawn Company owns land that
will probably be increased in value
II the Grant and Bayard avenues
parkway shall be secured. hav,
arranged that whatever value there
shall ever be in this land shall b,
used for Wilmington parks and othei
Wilmington public interests.
Having made this, TO me, yer,
distasteful personal statement. I an
| willing TO ask that for the sake n
Wilmingtonians OF the present an,
the near future and of the hundred
of thousads who will be here in
few generations. we shall endesvor {,
] secure. al the approaching session O
the legislature, power that will on
able the city TO go ahead with thi
work within the next few years.
VIM. Il. Bancroft.