Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: [v. 96, no. 2470: Articles]: July 17, 1915

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REAL ESTATE AND NEW YORK, JULY 17, 191.5 ■iiiigMiiiiiiiiiiH^^^^^^ I I I COURT HOUSE CONSTRUCTION WILL PROCEED I But the Cost of the BuiWing Will Be Reduced One-Half, and | All the Land Not Needed For the Actual Site Will Be Sold | s "T^ HE various issues that have been ■*• raised -with regard to the wisdom of proceeding -with the court house project cuhninated in a conference this week be¬ tween the city officials and representa¬ tives of real estate and financial inter¬ ests under the leadership of the Advisory Council. The city administration was represented by Mayor Mitchel, Comp¬ troller Prendergast, President McAneny, President Pounds, while Messrs. Will¬ iam L. De Bost, vice president of the Cruikshank Company; Frederick H. Ecker, treasurer of the Metropolitan Life Insprance Company; Alfred E. Marling, president of the corporation of Horace S. Ely & Co.; Clarence H. Kel¬ sey, president of the Title Guarantee and Trust Company; Hon. Cyrus C. Miller, chairman of the Advisory Council of Real Estate Interests, and Charles A. Peabody, president of the Mutual Life Insurance Company, represented real estate and allied interests. Conference With Real Estate Men. After considering the various aspects of the subject, the discussion resolved itself into an endeavor to ascertain just how inexpensively the court house itself could be constructed. Since the city had already been committed to the purchase of the land for the new site and title had vested, it seeined almost impossible to give up the present site without its costing the city much more than build¬ ing the court house upon it. In fact, since 1903, every step taken has been approved by the Court House Board and the Board of Estimate, so that legally the construction of a court house was deemed mandatory. The conference carefully considered every angle of the court house proposition, the discussion itself might briefly be divided into four phases. The first covered the question as to whether or not suitable foundations ex¬ isted upon the present site for the con¬ struction of a court house. Both Daniel E. Moran, consulting engineer on foun¬ dations, and E. P. Goodrich, the chief engineer of the Borough of Manhattan, assured the conferees that comparing the conditions at the site selected with con¬ ditions elsewhere upon Manhattan Island, south of 14th street, they had no hesitation in saying that for econ¬ omical and satisfactory foundations no more advanta.geous site of equal extent could be found. Nature of the Foundations. Mr. Moran submitted a general state¬ ment in peference to the same in which he, states that no rock exists above an elevation of 150 feet below street level, but that overlying the rock there is sand and coarse gravel. In his opinion, sand furnishes an admirable material for foundations, for some of the largest and tallest buildings in New York are founded upon extensive beds of sand. For example, the northern part of the Municipal Building rests entirely upon sand. Although liorings show that por¬ tions of peat underlie the Criminal Courts and the Tombs buildings, there is practically no peat or clay u.nder the MAYOR MITCHEL. Presided at tlie conference on the court house and civic center plans. proposed site for the Court House. The actual cost of the foundation, Mr. Moran estimated to be equivalent to $.0208 per cu. ft. of building above grade, as compared with $.083, the cost per cu. ft. of structure for the Municipal Build¬ ing. Thus it seemed to be reasonably certain that the foundations upon the new site are adequate for the court house. As to Abandoning the Project. The next phase of the subject con¬ sidered was as to the advisability of dis- continuin.g the entire project. When it was understood that the title to the entire site had already vested in the city at a cost, including interest and loss of taxes of $12,500,000, it seemed doubtful whether the land acquired could again be sold without a loss of at least 40 per cent. Considering the depression of the real estate market it was even then ques¬ tionable whether the site could he sold, and if sold in small lots, whether the dumping of such a large real estate plot¬ tage upon the market would not be at¬ tended with further depression. It was said that property owners within the vicinity of the new site had, for the last four years, been developing their property in accordance with the plans of the city. Since they had been assured that such an improvement would take place, the possibility of innumer- a])le law suits, with large damages, would have to be considered, in case the site should be abandoned. It would be necessary also to have the Legisla¬ ture rescind the Court House Act, It was considered doubtful whether public sentiment, supported by the judiciary and the legal fraternity, would approve of any such change. In the mean time interest upon $12,- 500,000 would accumulate at the rate of 4!S per cent. As the remainders after the court house has been built might ])ring back to the city an amount some¬ where between three and five million dollars, it seemed advisable, when all circumstances were analyzed, to utilize the present site. Can Effect No Saving. In other words, it was the opinion at the conference, that the court house pro¬ ject had proceeded so far that it would be as, if not more, expensive to give up the present site as to utilize it for the court house, although in many re¬ spects the steps taken to acquire the site oiftside of City Hall Park did not meet with the approval of real estate interests. The third aspect of the discussion re¬ lated to the possibility of employing a portion of the present City Hall Park for an addition to the old court house, while retaining a part of the proposed site for a public park, selling the remainder of the proposed site to pay for the addition to the court house. This in itself, it was said, would naturally be but a temporary measure until the financial condition of the city would warrant the constructing of a better building. The utilization of City Hall Park for a court house was strongly emphasized. However, when it was recognized that public sentiment recently disapproved of such action by the city, while the sale of any portion of the proposed site at this time could only be made at a great loss, it was decided that the better policy would be to have City Hall Park re¬ tained entirely for park purposes because of the congestion of traffic from the bridges, subways, etc., as well as because of its convenient location. General Conclusion—Economy. The conference concluded with the de¬ cision that real estate interests and the city administration would insist that every possible economy should be effected in the construction of the court house itself. Since title had vested and foundations were adequate, it seemed desirable to proseciite the work to an immediate finish, so as to take advantage of the possible cheapened cost of con¬ struction at this time. It was said that in Iniilding circles during times of business depression it is wise to avail oneself of low prices and bids, for contractors are often willing to do the work at less profit than in pros¬ perous times merely to meet overhead charges. The Advisory Council of Real Estate Interests will shortly confer with repre¬ sentatives of the Court House Board. The opinion prevails in that body that considering the heavy tax rate now im¬ posed upon property owners, as vvell as the city's financial condition, it is un¬ necessary to have a monumental struc¬ ture or an elaborate civic center sur¬ rounding the court house. Why a Civic Center? Said a representative of the council yesterday: "If City Hall Park is to be devoted ex¬ clusively to park purposes it is not es¬ sential that the court house be sur¬ rounded with a civic center. The cost of the court house should be as low as four or five million dollars. To bring the cost of the court house within these