New-York tribune., 1921-09-16

leases nor the tcn.ycar period FOR rails
| ing rents. although the practice had
been established by his predecessor
and frequently rcsortcd to by himself
He referred particularly to ten out of
| eleven piers on Staten Island having
this form of lease. He adm itted. how
ever, that an increase Of 10 per cent in
rental at the end OF ten years was in
adequate.
The Commissioner added that he
Kept five or six piers free to permit
tramp steamers to get accommodations
without having to pay the exorbitant
rates revealed in General Blacks re-
port Mr. Hubert then declared that
he had inserted clause in the lease of
the Quebec Steamship Company re-
stricting the amount of charges 1t
could make for wharfage, and probably
in the leases of one or two others, but
that he was prohibited from making
this general practice by the action of
the Corporation Counsel and the sink
ing fund commissioners.
II think the city ought to acquire
the waterfront" said the commits
sioner. land improve it and operate
it on the sams theory that the United
service, without any thought of profit
whatever"
Losses to City Revealed
In connection with the lease held by
the Maritime Shipping Company,
which paid rental of $4,000 for a
pier and collected profit of 5000 in
a years time by subletting, the com
missioner said that this pier had lost
$4,000 the four previous years, and
that he thought it good business to
rent it for $4,000 for one year.
He said he had the subject investi-
gated by Commissioner of Accounts
Hirshfleld, who reported later that the
concern was oneman affair and was
not honahde shipping concern operat-
ing SHIPS IN the commercial sense and
recommended the cancellation of the
lease, il possible. He nevertheless re
newed their contract, he said, because
there was no one else to lease the pier
to at the time
Mr. Brown summed up the evidence
on the dock situation as follows:
You have to consider the attitude
or the commissioner in relation to long
leases. Ho thinks that long leases
should be abolished and the city should
take charge of its own wharfage.
THAT is impractical at the present
time, because under our laws contracts
are binding, and there has been a LONG
continued practice Of issuing long-term
leases, and the possibility Of achieving
tnat result at the present time is ex-
tremely remote. among other things,
because the practice of issuing long
leases lease has conEn nucd down to this day.
The commissioner comedies that this
difficulty exists, and certainly for anv
relief within a reasonable time we
must look to some other resort.
Need of Standard Leases
"lt has appeared before the commit
tee that there is no standard. there
has been no standard in the practice
OF making leases heretofore based upon
a reasonable return to the city for the
use of the property and improvements
made IN wharves and piers, and that it
is extremely uneven unequal. and as
between the users of these piers who
are lessees often oppressive, because
many pay twice or three times as
much as others for similar service.
1t also appears that down to the
present time the custom has prevailed
of issuing long term leases with
proviso that they may be renewed at
crease Of 10 per cent, and that such
increase, according to the experience
Of the past, has been wholly made
quate to meet rs a return the in
creased value in the mean time Of the
property leased. This practice, how
ever, has been followed, and it is for
the committee to consider whether or
not the practice should be abated by
law or what change should be made in
that particular.
"ft is highly important that lesisla-
tion should be cted for the purpose
of creating 40 great an equality of
charges as possible, and that the action
looking, to that equality of charges
should begin at once.
Zone of the considerations which have