Although the campaign to rid the parkway lands of billboard blight was very successful, the BPC was disappointed that it took years to convince the New York Central Railroad to remove signs from its land. These billboards, the BPC claimed, "caused much surprise and considerable unfavorable comment." The signs were placed so that they obstructed the view of the parkway from passing trains. According to the commissioners, the "paltry" sums received as revenue could not justify "nuisances so obnoxious and so aggravating to the traveling public."(132)

Efforts to rid the railroad right-of-way from the billboard nuisance involved considerable negotiations. Downer met with New York Central Railroad officials as early as December 1914 and requested that they remove billboards from the parkway vicinity. In early 1916, the BPC notified the company that it would soon possess most of the BRPR lands within New York City limits and again asked that billboards be removed from railroad property destined for inclusion in the parkway reservation or located nearby. Seventeen months later, Downer repeated the BPC’s plea that the railroad company cancel its billboard leases. The company replied that it preferred to assign the leases to the BPC and let the commission deal with the problem after it acquired the property. Downer telephoned a railroad representative, reminding him of the promise to remove the signs. The representative replied that company officials were still considering the request. The matter was finally resolved one month later when New York Central Vice-President Ira A. Place directed that all billboard leases affecting railroad lands to be acquired by BPC be cancelled so that the signs could be removed on or before Oct 1, 1917.(133) The parkway was completely free of billboards in October 1917. Signs were still visible in adjacent areas, however, and planting plans were formulated to remedy that situation.(134)

Buildings

Removing buildings from land acquired for the parkway was an essential component in reclaiming the land. In most cases, the BPC arranged to sell and remove buildings as soon as possible after obtaining title to the property. Some buildings were dismantled for lumber or demolished. In a few cases, the commission retained better buildings for its own use.

Buildings were advertised for sale in published notices and on posters attached to the structures. Notices were also sent to a mailing list of interested parties. The advertisements provided property addresses and a list of the various structures for sale, which included stores, dwellings, factories, dog houses, and poultry houses. The BPC solicited sealed bids because it wanted to obtain the highest possible prices. The commission maintained that live auctions invited price collusion among bidders.(135) The BPC required those who purchased buildings to deposit 50 percent of the bid amount into a security account to ensure that the buildings were removed and premises cleaned in accordance with BPC regulations and local ordinances. If a building was considered to be objectionable in appearance, the BPC stipulated that it could not be rebuilt within 300’ of the parkway. The buildings were surrendered to the successful bidder thirty days after the BPC took title to the property. After the building was removed, the property was inspected and the security deposit was refunded.(136)

Buildings sold for removal were jacked up onto log rollers and then pulled away by teams of horses. Photographs in the Bronx Parkway Commission collection show entire neighborhoods being removed in an assembly-line manner. After structures were removed, BPC crews filled and graded the foundations and leveled the building sites. The land was then prepared for future planting. Great quantities of stone were salvaged from building foundations and stored for use in future road and path development.(137)


 

(132)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1916, 52.
(133)Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, December 1, 1914, 396-399; February 1, 1916, 92-95; June 19, 1917, 181-182; July 31, 1917, 205-208.
(134)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1917, 32.
(135)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1916, 42-43; Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, May 11, 1915, 217-20.
(136)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1914, 67; Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, June 15, 1914, 207-208; May 11, 1915, 217-220.
(137)Bronx Parkway Commission, Photograph Collection, Photographs #643, 1046, 1899; Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1914, 44-46.

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