The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-03-16

Agitation for the widening of Madi-
son avenue from Forty-sixth to Sixty
first street has again been renewed by
the Madison Avenue Committee of the
Fifth Avenue Association. This time
the campaign has a good chance of
reaching a successful conclusion mas
much as Borough President Frank l.
Bowling OF Manhattan has practically
promised that the city will make the i'm
provements IL the majority OF property
owners in the district to be affected
will agree to the plan.
With this encouragement from the Bor
ouBh President as an incentive Law
renee b. Gilman Of the firm of Pease
& Gilman has been making a canvass
of the property owners in the district
This canvass is almost completed, and
the Madison Avenue Committee, of which
Mi Gilman is chairman, believes IL can
show that the majority of the property
owners who have been approached on
| the subject are strongly in favor of the
| project.
The plan calls for the addition OF
seven and half feet to either side of
the roadway by removing sidewalk OBJ
structions beyond the building line, a
process which has bettered many of the
city's thoroughfares. notably Fifth
avenue.
Mr.. Gilman maintains that the pro-
| posed Improvement will have n tre-
mendous effect in enhancing real estate
values in the neighborhood, as it will
| attract a high class of tenants who own
their own motor vehicles. At present.
he asserts. the street is so narrow that
| there is no room for a moving vehicle to
pass between a standing street car and
| the curb. This condition. he says, has
| resulted in great congestion and con-
! scquent loss of time to residents in the
neiGhborhood and has deferred many
desirable tenants from moving into that
locality in the past.
| There are two other benefits which
Mr.. Gilman contends will accrue from
the widening of the street. One is that
the heavy burden of traffic which Fifth
| avenue has to bear at present will be
| l!Ehtened and the other is that the OPP
erations connected with the widening OF
the thoroughfare will give employment
to hundreds of soldiers and sailors.
War stopped Previous Effort.
Madison avenue from Forty-first
! street to Forty sixth street has already
been widened. and the Fifth Avenue AS
| ISOLATION, through its Madison avenue
| committee. was in the midst of a cam
paign to continue the improvement to
! Sixty-first street when the war broke
out and the movement was abandoned
| for the time being.
On February I Mr.. Gilman reopened
| the question in a letter to Borough
President Bowling, In which he said ::
| For great many years / have been
an ardent advocate of widening Madison
| avenue. In fact I thought that l had
| the assurance of the late Mayor Gaynor
that he would have Madison avenue
widened from Fortieth street to Six
tieth street, but there was one delay
after another and nothing was accom-
| plshed."
The borough president in responding
| to Mr.. Ellimau's letter OF February !
wrote: Il desire to say that | am re-
| !uctant to urge the further removal Of
| encToachments and the widening OF the
roadway at this time unless there IS a
| sentiment among the property owners
! interested that the work should Zoe done
and that they are willing TO remove the
| encroachments in front OF their own
! properties.
AT a conference held in the borough
| presidents Office on April "a, 1918, the
sentiment of great many property
owners was expressed 7 enclose here
with statement showing the prop
critics which favor the widening of