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REALTY VALUES BOUND WHEN HIGH-SPEED LINE ENTERS WEST PHILADELPHIA
MARKET ST. "L"
PROVESWHAT
TRANSIT DOES
Best Argument for Improved
Service Found in West
Phila., Where Land Val-
nies Trebled in Nine Years.
Ratio of Increase in Population
of Thriving Section Sinco Con
struction of Speed Line Mora
Than Twofold.
Property has virtually tripled In value
in tho vicinity of fOth nnd Market streets
IncfJ.the building' Of tho West Philadel
phia elevated line. An Investigation In
that section -proved that many dwelling!
and stores had greatly Increased tn value.
As mi Illustration of the trend of
progress in this direction, a number of
speclilc cases are given.
Tho plot of ground at the southwest
corner of Goth and Market streets, now
occupied by a. store of tho Rumscy-Borell
Drug Company, was valued nt $30,000 In
IOCS. It la now worth 137,000, an Increase of
$37,000 'n six years tjpr tho ground alone.
In 1902 tho site was occupied by the
dwelling or William Chadwlck. His
residence' was a three-story brick struc
ture .built alone substantial lines, but
of old-fashioned design. It was surround
ed by a large plot of ground. The lot had
A frontage' of CO feet on Market street
and a depth of 115 feet on COth street.
With the Improvements now upon It
real estate ' men say the site Is worth
between $113,000 and $110,000.
Directly across the street at the south
cast corner of COth and Market streets
real, estate values had a similar. Increase.
This slto Is now occupied by tho pro
vision storo of Walter A. Borton. The
lot, on which Borton's establishment
stands was originally CO by 100 feet.
This cntlro lot was bought by Leroy
A. Worrall. p. real estate agent, GCOI
Market street, In IMS for $1S,G00. Borton's
place occupies a portion of this lot, 40
feet on Market street and 73 feet on
tOth street, nnd for this part of the lot
Borton. It Is sold, has been offered $63,000,
Which he' refused.
r
' HQW LAND VALUES INCREASED.
In other words, 1920 square feet of
ground at th.o southeast corner of COth
and Market streets Is now worth nearly
three times as much as 000 square feet
of .ground at the same place nine years
ftSP. . ,
T,hla boom In real, estate values spread
throughout the neighborhood, especially
south of Market street. The southwest
comer of Market and Sal ford streets,
about 5? yards east of COth, was bought
by .J. Rlngelsteln ten years ago for $1200.
This was sold recently by J. Grevlrson
Gladlng, a. real estate agent, for JH.&00.
The lot at tho northwest corner of COth
and -Ludlow streets, formerly owned by
tho Graham estate, was bought seven
years ago by tho Berman Brothers, real
estate agents, C019 Market street, for $GE,
000. They sold It a year ago for $75,000.
A attll greater percentage of profit was
realized by tho same Arm In the sale of
tho lot at southeast corner of 60th and
Ludlow streets. About ten years ago this
site" was 'bought by John Cooney for $1000.
Berman -Brothers bought It for Albert
Hunch four years ago fop $0000, and as
the boom In this neighborhood was then
Just beginning, they sold It the same year
for J12,WXr. earning a profit of more than
10 per cent. In a few months.
A similar Increase In value came to the
property at the southwest corner of COth
and' Ludlow streets. By way of a little
history concerning this piece of ground
It Is interesting td know that back In
1SSS it was bought from A. O. Elliott for
$391.68. It Increased by short Jumps in
value at the rate of $100 or so a year,
until the elevated road was built, when It
jumped n value to 910,000.
The value continued to climb, and now
this piece' of ground, SVA feet by 100, Is
assessed at $20,000. The only Improvement
tin-It., a one-jtory real estate office, oc
cupied by J. Grevlrson Gladlns.
Other 'Illustrations of increased prop
arty values In this neighborhood as a
it,,. into .,.ii.g .c-ru,pu.fc
ul ,n 11 1 HI r 11 I . ,rT.-ir.mim.iM-jinn. i , y ,. . .--,.n , M . IllumJ " TTT J ? !- . mriyi ' I -, I II, hi. '"?
EVENING
HOW SUDWAY -
result of tho Market street "IV to West
Philadelphia will bo given In Saturday s
Issue.
BIO INCREASE IN POPULATION.
Aside front tho practical results which
came to West Philadelphia In a tlnaiiclal
way, through the elevated, the population
In that part of the city Increased more
than that of any other section from 1900
to 1910.
In the districts tributary to tho Mar
ket street elevated line the increase In
population during tho period stated was
76.993. Previous to that Investigation
showed the average Increase every ten
years In that section to be K.00O.
In other districts the Increase In popu
lation during the last decade has been
much smaller. Tho northwestern section
was nearest to that of West Philadelphia
In growth.
No part of the city his had a greater
building boom than West Philadelphia,
and It Is still In progress. In 1900 there
were 17,691 dwellings In West Philadelphia
for HS.GiS persons nnd In 1910. 50.993 dwell
ings for a population of 217,923, or an In
crease of 23,301 dwellings In ten years.
Since 1910 fully 10,000 more have been
erected.
GROUND SOON TO BE
BROKEN TO HASTEN
CITY TRANSIT WORK
First Step Toward High '
Speed Service Taken by
Citizens Who Voted for
Loan Bill.
The citizens of Philadelphia have de
creed that they shall have an adequate
transit system. The tlrst definite stn
was taken when they voted on election
day for tho $11,300,000 loan which carried
with It a $300,000 provision for' tho re
location of sewers, thus setting the
wheels In motion for the high-speed lines
which will bind the business and resi
dential sections of Philadelphia Into' one
compact community.
The next step will bo taken by the
courts when they announce the official
count of tho vote. This Is now In
progress and soon will be completed.
Councils will then pass an ordinance au
thorizing the city to float the loan. It
must then be advertised for SO days be
fore Councils can make the necessary
appropriations.
Thus ground Bhould be broken soon
aftor the Jlrst of the year for Philadel
phia's transit project.
The sewers to bo removed are within the
boundaries Ol this loop, which will ex
tend from Eighth street to Broad and
from Locust to Arch street.
It has been estimated that the comple
tion of tho loop will require a year
longer than any other section of the
system, and In view of this Councils are
expected to act without delay. When
afked today what action would bo taken
by the Department of City Transit, In
view of the people's action, Director
Taylor said:
TliANS COMPLETE, SAYS TAYLOR.
"The $500,000 Item, which was inserted
tn the loan bill at the request of the De
partment of City Transit for the relo
cation ct sewers in the business district,
preliminary to the building of the sub
way delivery loop, will enable the de
partment to proceed with the work.
"The plans and specifications for this
work have all been prepared by the De-
i''r : mMit WMu-
WAR'S HORRORS FAIL TO
agj w sfcaui eoetr you, nan St
LEPGEB-PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1914.
ELEVATED LINE HAS DEVELOPED WEST PHILADELPHIA BLOCK
MARKET STREET, 60TH TO
MARKET STREET, 60TH TO 61ST STREET, TODAY
r. Thjs transformation of one Market street block shows better than words what the elevated line has done for this neighborhood generally.
East of 60th street it is the same story. The three buildings, shown in the upper picture, were Tagwell's Hotel, Bee's blacksmith shop and the
home of 7illiam Smith, a florist. The Smith home, which stood at the southeast corner of 61st and Market streets, was in the course of demo
lition when the picture was taken.
partment of City Transit. These plans
and specifications, which are complete In
every detail, are now In printed form
nnd ready to hand to tho bidders.
"On the day the money Is made avail
able by Councils, bids will be advertised
for and tho contracts will bo let without
a moment's delay. The public support
given tho loan bill In very gratifying."
The vote for the loan, which paves the
way for tho city's high-speed systems, ex
rlalna the sentiment of the people In most
emphatic terms. In the outlying sections
especially there Is much rnthuslasm for
the project. So emphatic were tho voters
of the cuy In their approval of tho loan
that a majority of 137.17C was given.
BUSINESS MEN'S CAMPAIGN.
More than two score business men's as
sociations and other organizations Inter
ested In civic Improvements have ar
ranged to enter a general campaign to
make sure of an early start upon . the
whole program of rapid transit. Meet
ings have been arranged in all partB of
the city, and It Is expected that Director
Taylor will be nsked to make many ad
dresses, outlining the transit plans, during
the winter.
A movement has been started for bet
ter transit by the employes of a large
number of manufacturing plants who lose
much time going to nnd from their work
on the congested car lines. Employes of
the League Island Navy Yard aro uniting
others who demand better service, a. II.
Williams, chairman of the League Island
Committee of Employment, Is now work
ing for adequate facilities at the yard.
The general benefit to West Philadel
- !,OB4ua ..- . ft
you. kut
iHh.
61ST STREET, TEN YEARS AGO
phia as a result of tho Market street
subway-elevated has been pointed out and
the experience of other cities lino always
shown that property value Increase fol
lows rapid transit.
That vhls wan realized long ago by
other municipalities Is shown by their
Investment In elevated nnd subway lines.
A glance nt the following comparisons
shows that this city will have to mike
rapid strides If It desires to keep pace
with Boston, Chicago and New York In
high speed lines.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER CITIES.
Philadelphia has an area of 767 square
miles and In 1910 had a population of
1,910.633. The total Investment for a
subway-elevated system up to date Is
$17,000,000.
Boston covers an area of Cu3 square
miles nnd has a population of 1,373,313. Its
investment In subway and elevated lines
tr 3912 was $11,000,000, or more than two
and one-hnlf times the amount Invested
In this city. Of this nmount $35,000,000
was paid by the company and $9,000,000
by the city.
Chicago has nn area of 432 square mites
a population of 2,340.027. Its Investment
for subway-elevated lines up to 1912 was
$yS,000.O00, which was made entirely by
the company.
Greater New York covers an area of 55fl
square miles and In 1911 had a population
of 0,313,207. The Investment up to 1913
was $331,000,000, of which the company In
vested $270,000,000 and the city $.'i5,000,000.
DULL JOHN BULL'S SENSE OF HUMOR
SEARCHLIGHT OH THE WATERWORKS
(Mirtrsj of I.crn It. Worrell
Philadelphia has only H.7 miles of high
speed service, of which only i.l miles aro
subway. The remaining 10.C miles of
Philadelphia's rapid transit service are
elevated.
HOW, BOSTON SOLVED PROBLEM.
The city of Boston is slightly smaller than
Philadelphia, yet the far-famed "Hub"
has 26.5 miles of high speed service of
which &8 nro underground. Besides tho
subway service Boston has 17.7 miles of
elovated service. The elevated runs
somewhat in the form of a circle and
connects the city itself with Charles
town. The Boston elevated is said by many
to bo antiquated, yet Its eftlclency la well
known to transit experts of the country.
The Boston subway which connects with
East Boston and especially tho service
from Park street to Harvard square Is
said to be one of the best systems In the
country.
The efficiency of a service cannot bo
Judged perhaps from the earnings of that
service. In fact In some cases the fig
ures are misleading.
The Boston Elevated Railroad Com
pany, which takes In all branches of tho
cervlce, Is well known ns a good, live,
money making concern. From 1902 to 19U
Inclusive It has paid nn annual dividend
of 6 per cent. The annual gross earnings
have Increased In nine years more than
$1,000,000.
. The necessity for high-speed lines In
Boston arose principally from the extreme
tffl t S,iia4i.
contrition in the narrow street of the
principal business district. In 1893 n par
tial solution of tills problem was under
taken by tho construction of n subway
for surface cars under Boylston and
iremont streets, xvlilcli was completed m
liOS.
This was followed by tho construction
of a high-speed system, consisting of an
elevated Hue extending two miles to the
najth nnd nn elevated line extending
three miles to the southwest, both ron
ncetlnB with a loop, which Inclosed the
principal district and connected the two
large rnlltond terminals,
The cast side of this loop Is on an
elevated structure running along tho
water front, and two of the Tremont
street tracks of the original subway
were used temporarily for the west side.
A subway nbout one mile long wns then
constructed under tho principal business
street, and this Is now used permanently
for thiougli operation of tho elevated
lines to the north nnd south.
The elevated line to the south has been
extended to a distance of live miles from
the centre, and It Is proposed to extend
the northern
distance.
arm to about tho same
TUNNELED UNDER HARBOR.
A tunnel has also been dilvcn under
the harbor to East Boston, extending In
to tho heart of tho business district,
here connection Is made with tho north
nnd south line. Special type cars nro
operated singly In this tunnel and run
out on to the surface lines In East Boa
ton. Within the past year n subway line
running nbout three miles westward to
Cambridge has been put tn operation.
Standard rapid transit service is main
tained In this subway. An extension of
this line eastward through the business
district, and thenco southward for a dis
tance of nbout two miles, has been au
thorized and is In process of construc
tion. An elevated lino for surfaco cars ex
tends about a mllo to the northwest, and
an extension of the subway for surface
cars on Boylston street Is In courso of
construction to a point two miles from
City Hall.
All underground construction was un
dertaken by the city, while all of the
elevated construction belongs to the
operating company, which also owns nnd
operates practically all of the surface
system. All of the high-speed lines have
elaborate terminals for the transfer of
passengers to and from surfaco cars. This
method of transfer Is the most Important
feature of Boston's rapid transit Bystem.
Transit Program in Brief
The transit program provides for the
operation of all high-speed lines In
conjunction with the surface system,
which will serve as the agent for the
gathering and distributing of Pn
gers using the high-speed lines with
out txtra charge.
Thus the advantages of rapid tran
sit will be extended as equally as
practicable to every front door In
Philadelphia.
Passengors will be enabled to travel
In a forward direction between every
Important section of the city and
every other Important section of the
city quickly, conveniently and com
fortably by way of the combined sur
face and high-speed lines, regardless
of the number of transfers required
In so doing, for one 5-cent fare.
Eight-cent exchange tickets are to
be abolished.
CITY FULLY ASSURED
AGAINST HIGHER TAX
UNDER TRANSIT PLAN
Director Taylor Shows Max
imum Liability Would be
Counterbalanced by Avail
able Offsets.
False Impressions are frequently creat
ed by thoso attempting to block the
city's progress for selfish reasons, and
there Is a possibility that these obstruc-
tlonlsts may again raise the unwarranted
I cry that the tax rate may bo Increased
should tho high 3pecd transit lines be
built.
To show that there Is no ground for
such predictions it is relevant to publish
tho following statement made by Director
Taylor, of tho Department of City Tran
sit, In one of his recent reports:
"t wish to warn the people of Phlladol-
phla against some rather loose state
ments which have been made recently
regarding tho probable effect of the tran
sit program on tho tax rate of the city
of Philadelphia. I havo endeavored to "
show clearly that tho maximum annual -liability
which the city would assume by x
reason of issuing all of the bonds neces-
sary to complete the entire program as .
outlined would amount to only $2,019,137 .
por annum In the early yeara of operation
nnd that the offsets which the city
would have avnltablo to meet this an
nual liability .would be moro than suffi
cient to fully counterbalance It.
"Wo aro constantly hearing that the '
transit program may increase the present
$1.30 tax rate In the city to $2 or $2.23.
As the assessed valutlon of taxablo real
cstato In Philadelphia amounts to up-
wards of $1,011,000,000 at the present time,
an Increase of 10 cents on $100 In the
tax rate would yield upwards of $1,011,000 ,
per annum, which amcunt, added to the
one-mill tax on personal property ($369,000
per annum) granted to tho city by the
State as a subsidy In aid of transit de
velopment, .would mako a total of up
wards of $2,210,000 'per annum, an amount
In excess of tho city's maximum annual '
liability under any possible conditions re- ,
suiting from the carrying out of the
entire program as outlined. An Increase
of 10 cents on $100 In the tax rate would
be the very maximum amount of liability
which could be Imposed upon the city In
the carrying out of the entire program
as outlined, if the new lines earned noth
ing whatever above the payments allowed
the operator and If the city had not the
other offsets specified, including any
profits resulting to the city from the ,
operation of the municipal lines.
"As the trnmlt program will br srlr-mip- "
porting and the only rontlnsmt liability
tl'tllrh th rltr ITOIllfl lUlimii amnnnla
1m than 10 rents on 8100 of valu
ation 01 imauir rrni rtiiaie, itmy anil com-
ftletrly offtet a above stated, It will not
nrreane the tax rutr, &
"There Is a great world-wide awaken
ing to tho view that communities must
collectively, for the good of all, under
take wider spheres of services and that "
the community Itself should retain, to
a srcalcr degree, tho Unearned Increment
In values which Is created by the con- "
centratlon of Its own population and '
by its own activities. Here now within
our own city we have an undoubted '
urgent need for better means of trans
portation. Private Interests cannot
handle this proposition without municipal
aid. No one can reasonably doubt that
the comprehensive transportation system 1
proposed will in time develop ample direct
capacity, not only to carry Itself, but
to actually relieve taxation for other
purposes."
1
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