The call of the North. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1923-1924, 1924-01-02
Bv "TWIIIGHT"

By TWILIGHT"
LISTEN, ST. PAULITES, AND
YOU SHALL HEAR AN INTER.
ESTING STORY INVOLVING DEN
E. LANE, THE COMMUNITY
BUILDER, IN THE ROLE OF A
BLACKBERRY PLANTER" CD
The Groveland Park Folks Fight.
ing for Justice-The Ramsey County
Attorneys Office q la Kinkead-Ro-
man Catholic O'Brsen on the Bench
A Shooting Affair with Negro
Stark on the Trigger End, and a
Colored Barber Shop.
The Story is 4 Long One, but
Merits the Telling. For Some Un-
known Reason Dailies of St. Paul
Have Evaded the Story, Leaving it to
us to Present the Facts.
Mr.. w. H. Hackett purchased lots
8 and 9 of Robert L. Wares Addition
in August, 1920, believing the lots
to be located in an exclusive resi-
Dental district. The lots were pur-
chased from one j. W.. C. Cunning
ham. At the time of the purchase
there was no street car line extend
ing beyond Fairview. The Groveland
Park Public School was then under
construction, finally completed in the
fall of 1921.
The permit to build a dwelling
house on Lot 6, No. 2026, was taken
out in January, 1922. At the time,
specific instructions were given by
the Department of Parks and Play
grounds, calling attention to an ordi-
nance, stating that the building line
must be no closer than 80 feet from
the sidewalk line. In our interview
with Mr.. Hackett, he maintained this
to be a property right.
Mr.. Hackett built fve-room house
on Lot No. 8, No. 2026, and sold it
in May, 1922, to H. E. Fredrickson,
who now resides in the house. At
the time that Mr.. Fredrickson pur-
chased Lot 8 and the house erected
on it, from Mr.. Hackett, there was
no building on-Lot z, but it was gen.
orally known to be owned by Den E..
Lane, the so-called Community
Builder" The records in the Office
of the register of deeds show trans
fer of Lo. z to Den e. Lane and
later transfer of this lot from Lane
to Turner J. and Ernest Starks (col-
ored). A permit was taken out by
both Starks for the erection of q
Is feet by so feet frame building, to
be used as barber shop. When you
consider that this lot is located very
nearly in the center of a residential
block and directly across the street
from a 100000 public school build
ing, it is strange indeed that the per-
NIT was granted. Just as strange,
also, is the selling of the lot by Den
E. Lane to the Starks. Mr.. Lane
poses as a community builder. But
in this instance doesn't he act the
role of a blackberry planter?" The
people of the Groveland Park district
are not going to forget the transfer
of Lot z from Lane to Starks.
Partially Appears at Beginning
On Monday, May IA, 1923, the ex-
cavations for the barber shop were
started. Mr.. Hackett and others
learned of the proposed barber shop
and went among the residents, call
ing attention to what was taking
place. They learned that the Grove
land Park Improvement Association
was in session at the Groveland
school. Mr.. Fredrickson and Mr..
Hackett went before the meeting and
laid the matter before the people as
sembled. The chairman, A. v.
Fabian, asked for a discussion on
the matter. Mr.. Hackett then called
attention to the fact that when he
built the dwellings, Nos. 2026 and
2032, the building department of the
city administration laid great stress
on an ordinance which requires that
buildings should be back thirty feet
from the sidewalk line in residential
districts. He maintained that the
building department could not re-
strict him without protecting him,
and various attorneys approached on
this agreed that this point was well
taken, but with the permit granted
o Negro Stark, there appears par