The Ditch That Would Cut Seattle in Two
Washington's engineers begin staking the route of the government's Lake Washington canal, and condemnation suits are expected to follow on their heels.
Eugene Ricksecker returned yesterday from Portland, where he went to obtain instructions from Capt. Thomas W. Symons, United States engineer, in regard to the survey of the route of the government Lake Washington canal. He will receive instruments for surveying parties today and will have three parties out in the field in active work by Monday. The entire work for definite location of the route will occupy about three months, but Mr. Ricksecker expects that within one month it will have made such progress that the county commissioners can begin condemnation proceedings along the line between Salmon Bay and Lake Union, and from that time the condemnation suits, where necessary, can follow closely on the heels of the engineers.
The work of the government engineers along Salmon Bay will be greatly aided by that of Engineer Stixrud, of the state land commission and county board of tide land appraisers, in locating the harbor lines. In Denny & Hoyt's addition it will be simplified by the work of the city in fixing the boundary lines of the plat, and the most delay is likely to occur in the survey through Ross' addition. Very little delay is anticipated in the survey of the route from Lake Union to Lake Washington.
Mr. Ricksecker expects to open offices in Fremont next Monday and to press the work without interruption from now on.
“Within one month it will have made such progress that the county commissioners can begin condemnation proceedings along the line between Salmon Bay and Lake Union.”
This dry engineering notice marks the birth of the Lake Washington Ship Canal — the cut through Salmon Bay, Lake Union and Lake Washington that would open in 1917 and redraw Seattle's geography. The mention of condemnation proceedings foreshadows the displacements and land fights that any great public works project still triggers. Substitute light rail or a new bridge and the language of surveys, bonds and condemned parcels reads like this morning's council agenda.
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