Who Should Own the Harbor?
Local captains are disgusted by the idea of paying government officers to place harbor buoys when the work could be done by local labor.
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Harbor Master Jelich returned yesterday from Tacoma where he made inquiries about harbor buoys. He learned that the five buoys in Tacoma were placed there by a government steamer, and while the government does not officially pay for such work, the officers were given $150 in cash and a banquet. There has been considerable talk along the Seattle water front about the proposition to secure the U.S. steamer Manzanita to place buoys here, and several captains and steamboat owners openly express their disgust at the idea of paying money to United States officers for work that could be done just as well by men right here at home. Capt. L. A. Dyer made an offer yesterday to the Board of Public Works to place the three buoys for $175, and to guarantee a good job.
“Several captains and steamboat owners openly express their disgust at the idea of paying money to United States officers for what could be done just as well by men right here at home.”
This dispute over who gets to perform public infrastructure work—local contractors versus distant federal agencies—is a timeless theme in Seattle's civic governance, reflecting the constant tension between local economic control and bureaucratic convenience.
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