The Alaska daily empire., 1914-02-18
WATERFRONT CLOSED
 TO FISHING FLEET

uG dDDGdA dhNN VI tA AAeAaAo
 Juneau harbor will soon be rare sight" said a waterfront man today, unless something is done to encour- age them in coming here There is no longer any possibility of small craft finding a place in which they can be beached for repalrs-and winter quarters in Juneau cannot be found"
 Ed. Webster's piledriver is rapidly eliminating the little remnant of beach that has withstood the encroachment of industry along the waterfront. This little spot between the Juneau Iron Works and the Alaska Soda Works has in the past been a favorite spot for bleaching to receive repairs and for winter quarters for the fishing boats and other small craft that go to make up the mosquito fleet.
 'Tn the past" said Front street business man, Juneau looked to the fishing fleet and other small craft ply ing in and out of the harbor for sus- tenance, and other industries are driv- ing this resource away from Juneau It is up to the town to do something toward retaining this valuable asset.
 "The municipality of Juneau invest ed S1O,OOO in dockage improvements to assist in getting a cold storage plant established for the benefit of the fish ermen, but if the fshinlg fleet is to be kept away from Juneau by adverse conditions prevailing, the storage plant will be of little use. Seattle recognizing the value of her fishing fleet has provided winter quarters for more than thousand vessels in the trade. What is Juneau going to do about holding the considerable num- Der that have heretofore made this their home port?
 "It is said that there is a fine beach between Juneau and Salmon creek, a sheltered spot suitable for winter quar- ters and where suitable marine ways can be constructed for hauling the craft out for repair. This beach in front of the Burridge homestead is said to be available if the business men of Juneau will take advantage of it.
 "The time is rapidly approaching" continued the Front street business man, flor a radical change along the Juneau waterfront. The municipal government should decide on def- nite plan that will get the greatest eco' homie value from the limited area that is available for shipping purposes. This plan or scheme must of necess- ity be designed to benefit all of the commercial and industrial interests of the community and will naturally em- brace:
 'First-SufIicieut dockage facilities for the economic handling of freight; a municipal coal yard with bunkers having a capacity to provide against fuel famine and with ample facilities for loading so that more than one wag- on can be loaded at time.
 "Second-There should be a dock with a frontage of at least 600 feet so that more than one vessel can be ac- commodated at time and so that such vessels can unload from more than one hatchway at a time.
 "Third-There must be built sys- tenn of thoroughfares that will make this waterfront accessible. It would be fine to have a new street laid out following the contour of the present waterfront and reaching from the southern city limits to the government road beyond the Casey-Shattuck addi- tion.
 Tt is understood that there is a possibility of getting a new dock with a frontage of 600 feet or over in the near future, probably this spring, if the business men of Juneau and the citizens generally take to the idea. If this is done the problem of providing better facilities for the municipal coal business, and for the fishing fleet will be solved. The present city dock would be ample to serve for this pur- pose and in my opinion could not be Joyot,d tO hatfar uoo