Palisadian., 1925-07-17

time and he was going to help
The meeting room of the
Board was crowded by per-
sons anticipating a fight over
the appointment of an archi-
tect for the addition to the
High School and the new Hud-
son Heights school and they
listened patiently for an hour
or two to routine business be-
fore the matter came up.
Goemann Favors Sibley
President Goemann introduced the
subject late in the evening stating
that it was important to appoint an
architect at once so the work could
proceed. Mr.. Goemann stated en-
phatically that it was his personal
opinion that Mr.. Sibley should receive
the high school addition work at
least because he was the architect
for the present building and it was
not only good business but fair that
he should be permitted to complete
it.
Hattemer Wants Competition
Trustee Hattemer said that in his
opinion the board should ask the
three leading architects to submit
pencil sketches at their own expense
to be judged at subsequent meet
ing. He said it was too bad if there
was only one good architect and that
if he happened to die there would
never be any more good school build
ings erected. Trustee Kenney agreed
with Mr.. Hattemer and said it was
only fair that each of the architects
be given an opportunity to submit
sketches. He offered a motion to the
effect that Ralph Hacer, Ernest Sib-
ley and Meyer & Monahan offer pen
Gil sketches of the proposed addition
and the new Hudson Heights school
at special meeting of the board on
Friday evening, August Z.
John FridIington Speaks
At this point John Fridlington
arose and stated that he was going to
say some pretty plain things but he
had come with only the thought of
helping the board in mind. He said
he had written to a number of the
leading school architects in the. Unit
ed States picked at random from a
school journal month or so ago. and
had outlined the present school sit
uation in Cliffside Park. In the let
ters he asked to know two things,
one, the best method of choosing an
architect for a school building, and
second, the ethics in the matter. Each
reply stated that it was by far most
desirable not to choose an architect
through a competition and stated that
it would be the ethical, fair and
proper thing to do to permit the pres
ent architect to go on with the school
work. Many of the letters spoke of
Mr.. Sibley's fine work and of his high
standing in professional circles as a
school architect of national reputa-
ton. Here you have a man of un-
questioned ability as school archi-
tect," continued Mr.. Fridlington, "a
man who has done work in Cliffside
Park that is a credit to himself and
to the borough, man who is a mem
ber of the American Institute of Arch
itects, an architect whose jobs have
always kept within their estimate and
you are taking no chance and are
putting school building in this bor-
ough on high plane by appointing
him."
People Deeply Interested
Mr.. Fridlington said that he and
many citizens were afraid that the
school board was going to make a
blunder. Il will tell you some of the
gossip that is going around town, I"
he said. 1t was then he said that he
had heard Banville had everything
fixed for Meyers appointment and that
he was sure of six votes while Meyer
himself had boasted he had five.
Flags Meyers Record
The speaker said that it was ru-
mored also that Meyer was not an
architect himself in the full sense of
the word and that most of his work
was done by men working in the of
flee with him, men like Mahnken. He
said that it was common knowledge
that Meyer was a political architect
and that he got most of his jobs
through pull or inside work. 1t was
here he said that he had heard of one
member of the board who explained
his contemplated vote for Meyer by
saying that at one time Meyer had
done him a favor. He spoke of a
school Meyer built in Edgewater and