The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1921-12-10
PROTEST AGAINST
OVERHEAD WIRES
Chamber of Commerce Is
Asking City to Pass
Needed Ordinance
REDUCE FIRE HAZARD
Unless Immediate Steps Are
Taken Alleys VIII BE
Blocked

A recommendation chat the cham
Der OF Commerce immediately pass 10
resolution making the mayor and city
commissioner Co take som" action
toward the elimination Ul overhead
electric wires and uunIghtlH poles iu
the business district was accepted by
directors az their meeting at Hotel
Tulsa Friday noon lt. g. Alder,
fire chief. is chairman ~ tho Cham
bcr Of Commerce insurance ana iirc
protection committee. and the roc
omfnonoutiOu was contained iu
resolution paaaed by hiF committee.
According 90 Alder. local public
service corporations are now prcpar-
Ing 20 place power and lighting wires
ON new poles approximately twice aH
high as existing poles, utug iron
cross arms about 20 fcet from tho
ground ON which tu hang transform
crs. II they are allowed 20 carry
out this plan alleys will Doc blocked
IN so far as the use NJ aerial trucks
and long ladders used ns fire fight
ing equipment iH concerned.
There is no sense whatever In
permitting "a condition now existing
to be made worse and thereby add
to the natural hazard of coufla-
grafton which the Chamber OF Com
mercc Of the city OF Tulsa, N no one
else. should be only too glad 10 pre-
Won't It is stated In the resolution,
II is also pointed out that Tulsa
is penalizod I'm its basic fire insur-
anCe rate because OF the prc6ont con
ditiun Of streets and alleys, which
are filled with overhead wires
Whereas. iu a committee called
TO order by Il G. Alder chairman
~ the committee on Insurance and
fire protection, among other sub
jects takou up was the subject con.
Ceruiug the installation OF overhead
couHtructiou by the public service
corporations. contemplating the
stringing Of power and light wires
on a doublcpolo limo. The poles be-
ing approximately twice the height
of the present poles through the al
leys OF the downtown business dis
trict and uslng iron cross arms about
20 feet from the ground To hang all
transformers on,
"Ic this installation Is completed
ns planned. II will mean the com
pletc blocking OF the alleys insofar
as using aerial trucks ami long lad
ders is concerned in reaching the up
per stories OF buildings In fighting
fires, There is no sense whatever
IN permitting n condition existing 10
be made worse and thereby add to
the natural hazard Of conflagra-
ton which the Chamber OF Com
mere OF the city Of Tulsa, N no
one else, should bo only too glad to
prevent
This matter was presented TO
your body on Fire Prevention day
by "A fire insurance man OF Tulsa
who stated at that time the fact OF
the intention of the power compan-
les OF doing this work. and that
some action should be taken i'm
diately Ia atop Il before It Is too
late. y suggestion was made at
that time that a definite period be
determined for putting all wires un-
derground, This proposition ~ a
whole has been passed before the
city officials more than once SO far
without anything being done, An
other phase OF the matter is that
Tulsa is penalized In It's basic fire
insurance rate for the present condl-
tions of the streets and alleys which
are filled with overhead wires.
"a city beautiful would neccssar-
lily be one without overhead wire
construction, This committee Ia look
ing to the safety first eide first
Therefore, the committee on In
surance and fire protection rccom-
mends that the Chamber of Com
merce of tho city OF Tulsa pass a
resolution to the end that this con-
tcmplated installation of a new
overhead wiring plan be stopped and
that the commissioner OF the city
OF Tulsa be requested 10 Immediately
pass an ordinance compelling that
the wires be placed underground In
side OF the fire limits. within three
years and that January /, 1895, viii
be the limit allowed
"Further, We recommend that the
preparation of this ordinance be rc-
fcrred TO the proper legal commit
tee Of the Chamber OF Commerce 10
draw Immediately as we understand
that the present conditions IN th'
city attorneys office are such that
II left To him II would not be don,
before the poles and wires are in.
stalled" D."