Is a Public Street Being Sold as Gravel?
Neighbors watched with growing concern as contractors allegedly dug away the public street to sell the dirt for profit.
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.
It has been reported that Contractors Elmore and Aldrich, who are taking gravel from the pit near the corner of Tacoma avenue and Hell street, were removing part of the street. This pit has been worked for a long time and the excavation appears to be several feet below the level of the street. Residents in that vicinity have watched the removal of the gravel with increasing anxiety, as it looked as if the street was being removed without the city receiving any compensation. The gravel in this pit is of the very best quality and the amount that appears to have been taken from the street would be worth several thousand dollars. Commissioner Welsh, when asked about the matter, said that the contractors were not taking away the street. To make assurance doubly sure, however, he says that in a few days the city engineer will investigate the matter and see that the contractors keep on their side of the line.
“Residents in that vicinity have watched the removal of the gravel with increasing anxiety.”
The tension between private contractors and public land rights is a perennial urban issue. In early Tacoma, as the city was being physically reshaped, the line between municipal property and developer 'oversight' was often blurred.
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