Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-09-12
OBJECTIONS TO new
PINE STREET BRIDGE
DEVELOP At HEARING
Park Board Claims Il Mould be
Useless Expenditure Of Pub
lie Money at This Time.
500 RESIDENTS FAVOR IT

Colonel Earl l. Brown. government
engineer In charge of the local dis
trict, held a public hearing this morn
| ing In the Levy Court room In the
Public Building, 10 hear any objec-
tions that may exist from a naviga-
| ton standpoint against the construc-
ton OF the proposed bridge across the
Brandywine creek at Pine street. The
Iroject was opposed by Joseph l.
Carpenter, in a letter. on behalf OF
the Board OF Park Commissioners. on
the ground that II would be n useless
expenditure of public funds at this
time. and by Holmes Jones. who OBJ
jected TO the type of bridge to be con-
| structed and to the proposed location,
Mr.. Jones. however. favored some kind
| of bridge for that section.
The undertaking was approved by
| the Wilmington & Philadelphia Trac-
tion Co, Andrew j. Cross. who was a
member of the Legislature which
passed the bin authorizing the Levy
| Court to borrow the money to pay for
the bridge. and by John c. Eichholz.
resident of the lower end OF the
Ninth ward. The plans and specifiea-
tions will now be forwarded TO the
War Department at Washington. to-
gether with such recommendations as
Colonel Brown may decide TO make.
These, of course. will not be made pub
lie prior to their submission to the
Washington authorities. The Secre-
tary of War is the official who VIII
pass upon the project on behalf of
the government County Engineer
Gruhb later will be advised OF the
action of the War Department Of
ficials on the undertaking.
Colonel Brown called the meeting
TO order promptly at 1890 o'clock and
explained the purpose OF II. Andrew
c. GRAY. as counsel for the traction
company, submitted a written state
ment. which favored the project but
set forth the restrictions which the
company desired be adhered to In she
building of the bridge. He said they
had their main power house along the
creek above the bridge and they had
to have an open waterway Tor a
tredge which has to be brought up
the creek to keep the channel clear
and To keep the creek deep enough 10
enable them to get the proper amount
of water for steam. He also said they
have to bring coal barges up the creek
for their power house. He asked that
the bridge piers be so located that they
would not tend to block the creek In
any way or to cause the sand and
silt to accumulate and cause the water
To back up and overflow their power
house for by so doing the city would
be deprived of light.
Park Boards objection.
In his letter Mr.. Carpenter set forth
that to build the bridge now would be
waste of public moneys and he con-
| tended the county cannot afford at this
time to make such an expenditure for
/ the accommodation Of only a few peo-
pie.
| Colonel Brown called attention to
the fact that the meeting was not
called to determine whether or not a
bridge should be built. but to decide
/ If there would be any interference to
navigation as the government has
complete control over all navigable
streams and the Brandywfne Is navi-
gable up to a point just below the
| Market street bridge.
Mr.. Cross presented a petition
SlkIleO bS etN ItSidttAS th tAt tt1t III
side .avoring the building of the
structure. The petition set forth that
such a structure was necessary TO af-
ford shorter passage from that sec
ton of the city to the part of town on
the south side OF the creek.
Mr.. Jones argued for a wider bridge
end claimed ii should he in a different
location. Colonel Brown had TO call
him TO order during the course of his
remarks because he had wandered
from she subject before the meeting
for consideration.
Mr.. Eichholx caused mild sensa-
ton in the room when he declared
that he had been advised that Eleventh
street bridge had been condemned and
he said he also understood that
the Traction Company was supposed
TO warn all passengers in cars cross
ing that bridge that it was unsafe and
that they should leave the cars and
walk on foot across the bridge instead
of crossing in the cars and then be
picked up again on the other side.
He said. however. that he had never
Seen advised of the corrections of this.
He said he had never seen a dredge
In the Brandywine creek at the Trac-
ton Company's plant, but he had seen
oarges there. He S9vored a bridge,
he said, because now the people OF that
section have TO wait from 20 minutes
to half an hour for trolley cars and
when they do como they are crowded
and the passengers are jostled. He
said some OF the crews are very in
sulting. He also declared that because
OF poor trolley tracks the plaster is
shaken from the wells of his home.
Mr.. Cross said he could see no OBJ
jections to the bridge and he had
heard OF none except few individuals
who wanted to have their own private
interests advanced. Mr.. Gray told the
colonel the Traction Company had d
dredge there last year and 1t removed
5000 cubic yards of material.
Thomas w. Wilson, ce-president
and general manager Of the Traction
Company, when asked about a notice
to passengers to leave the cars cross
ing the Eleventh street bridge and to
walk across on foot, declared that
this was not true. County Engineer
Grubb said Ii the county considered
Eleventh street bridge unsafe for pub
lie travel ii would be condemned and
closed and this has not been done.
The plans for the proposed structure
call for bridge of the bascule type.
The span from abutment to abutment
will h. OFF faaf ftn x4siatb xxvsfl he