OCR Text |
Show THE YEAR IN THE CITY. Salt Lake City for tho year just passing pass-ing has participated in the genoral prosperity pros-perity of the State and Nation to a marked dogroe. Tho trade of tho city hns grown wonderfully, its bank clearances clear-ances show the high mark and thoro have boon great ndditionB to its business busi-ness capacity and field. Tho removal of tho retail district to tho corner of Stato and Third South has mado a marked chango in tho trade of the poople. The building operations of tho season havo been veiy great. Tho "Walker skyscraper sky-scraper has been finished; thero has been a fino annex to tho Utah Hotel; work on tho Newhouse hotel has been resumed; tho gront Keith-O'Brien structure struc-ture has been finished; tho half million high school on tho southeast bench is gotting on well, as is also tho administration admin-istration building for tho Univorsity; the contract for excavating tho basement base-ment for tho capitol has boon let, and work is progressing actlroly upon it. Tho building record of the city for the year has been of the most gratifying character, reaching woll towards tho record, if it has not surpassed all previous pre-vious records. The city has had a year of commission commis-sion government, inrolving many changes, l)ut it is at a disadvantage by reason of tho uncertainty of the legislation revengefully passed at tho sossion of tho Legislature of 1911. Tho difficulties crcatod by that legislation are constantly cropping up, and it is impossible to say whethor tho commission commis-sion form of government in a success or not, for tho legislation croatlng that form forcod it upon tho city without tho will of the rotors, and it haa bound tho commission In man' ways that aro hampering, and that left much for the courts to do by way of straightening out. entnnglcmcnts, which in fnct aro not straighteond out yot. Tho now commission has douo its best under involved in-volved and uncertain conditions, and is entitled to praiso therofor. But much romuins to bo dono to clear the situation, situa-tion, and allow tho public business of the city to be done in a straightforward, businesslike manner. Tho Involved legislation has been very detrimental to the municipal intorosts, aud thoro Is much to do by way of straightening things out. But tho new year will open brightly for the city, in all its business and progressive advancement. There is no discount on tho pro-ominonce of Salt Lako Cify as a groat metropolis. For fiv0 hundred miles to tho cast thcro is no possibility of rivalry for this city as a commercial motropolis; there is no possibility of rivalry to tho north or to tho south, and to th0 west thero is nothing nearer than San Francisco. All this area is a region of immense wealth in minerals, in agriculture, in natural richness of many kinds, and in possibilities of great manufacture. The day is suroly coming when the immense im-mense iron deposits of Utah will bo brought into commercial use, and when that is dono there will bo a manufacturing manufac-turing industry here far surpassing the dreams of the past. With her magnificont contrality of location, with the wonderful richness of the tributary country, and with tho splendid start that the city has obtained, obtain-ed, thoro is no question whatever of the future of Salt Lake. It is bound to bo one of tho fow groat and important im-portant commercial centers in tho United Slatoa. |