The Bold Bet on C Street
A local businessman purchases historic market property with eyes toward a massive redevelopment, signaling growing confidence in Tacoma's business corridor.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Dave Gross, one of Tacoma's successful business men, has given evidence of his implicit confidence in the future of the city by investing $20,000 in C street property. The deal, which has been pending for some time, was made through Morrison & Balkwill. The property is described as lots 13 and 14, block 1101, and is occupied by the Commercial market and Ocean fish market. These buildings are among the oldest in Tacoma and at one time were the finest in the city. Mr. Gross informed The Times this morning that he had not purchased the property as a speculation entirely. He believes that C street is going to be one of the principal business streets of the city. It is his intention in the not distant future to erect a massive brick structure in the place of the buildings now standing on the property. Mr. Gross finds that his business is outgrowing the quarters he now occupies on Pacific avenue, and the new building will be for his own use.
“He is simply taking time by the forelock and buying the property when he can get it at a reasonable figure.”
This story captures the perpetual cycle of 'urban renewal' in Tacoma, where historic markets are cleared to make room for 'modern' brick structures. C Street (now largely subsumed by the city's shifting industrial and commercial landscape) served as an early indicator of the shift toward higher-density commercial investment.
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