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REAL ESTATE
AND
NEW YORK, AUGUST 15, 1914
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MUNICIPAL UNION FREIGHT TERMINAL
Project Provides for Connecting Ward and Randall Islands and
the Elimination of Existing Yards Along Hudson River Frontage
By J. BLEEKER MILLER AND REGINALD P. BOLTON
IN city-planning, it is axi¬
omatic that land which
can be used for house area,
is too valuable to be occu¬
pied by a freight yard, par¬
ticularly in consideration of
the depressing effect on
adjacent property-values, of
the nuisances which are al-
v/ays connected with the
freight-yard and with its at¬
tendant freight-railroad. As
the water-front of a harbor
city is its most characteris¬
tic and valuable part, it fol¬
lows that this principle ap¬
plies most strongly to the
water-front of a port. If
the attendant freight rail¬
road is also extended along
the w^ater-front, it may be
said to deprive the port of
the main, peculiar advan¬
tage of a harbor, i. e.. free
access of the inhabitants,
with their goods, to and
from the water-front, and
to reduce the port to the
disadvantageous position of
an inland city.
Subject, how^ever. to this
objection, it is of the first
importance that the freight-
depot should be located as
near the center of the city
as possible: the locality
where_ freight is broken-up,
after its transshipment by
rail, offers great attractions
Newark
to manufacturers, on ac¬
count of the short haul to
their warehouses.
Another disadvantage of
placing a freight yard with¬
in the house area is that,
when the city expands it
is difficult to accoininodate
the increased amount of
freight which then requires
to be handled.
Applying these princi¬
ples to the City of New
York, the reasons for the
long dissatisfaction with
the present system of
freight terminals, particu¬
larly those of the New
York Central and Hudson
River Railroad Company,
are apparent. The yards
are within the house-area,
on the water-front, and,
with the attendant freight-
railroad, occupy a large
part of that water-front
and threaten, if the de¬
mands of the railroad are
complied with, to reduce
the port almost to the
condition of an inland
town. Moreover, the yards
are not near to the center
of the present City of
Greater New York; they
were laid out when the
Borough of Manhattan was
alone to be considered, and,
even as to that Borough, no
Borough of
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