Mcallen Daily Press

Fifteenth Street To Be Opened To Highway

Long Battle On Highway Is Finally Ended

Property Owners Agree To Pay For Cost Of Moving Warehouse; Eighth And Second Opened.

Definite assurance that North Fifteenth street will be opened across the Missouri Pacific right-of-way to Highway avenue was voiced by Mayor H. E. Etchison today as work neared completion on crossings North Eighth and Second streets.

Mayor Etchison said that property owners on North Fifteenth street had agreed to finance the moving of the large sheet metal warehouse on the MP right-of-way which will permit the street to be opened across the railroad tracks Highway avenue. The city and the railway company, Mayor Etchison said, have worked out a deal to pave the cut across the tracks, while Ben Lomax, owner of the Casa de Palmas and property on both sides Fifteenth at the rear of the hotel has agreed to pave this portion of the street.

Missouri Pacific officials have agreed to move a switch and connect loading platform which now in the path of the street, the mayor stated.

Etchison stated that the warehouse would probably be moved to a spot on the railroad right-of-way in the western part of the city in a week and that work on paving the street would begin immediately.

Meanwhile, fill-in work on crossings at North Eighth and Second is nearing completion by workmen, which will enhance thousands of dollars worth of real estate property in the eastern part of the city.

Eighth street property owners [for] the unpaved portion of the [street] near the railroad tracks have agreed to come in under the city's present WPA paving project. This will pave the crossings. Etchison said.

In addition to increasing property values immeasurably, the opening of Fifteenth street is expected to relieve traffic congestion in the downtown area the past four or five years officials have been negotiating with MP officials over opening three streets.

Several months ago, MP officials agreed to open Second and Eighth, and assured the city they would not contest the opening of Fifteenth if the city would pay for moving the large warehouse connecting the utilities.

Due to a lack of finances, Mayor Etchison and commissioners appealed property owners along Fifteenth street to raise the necessary funds among themselves to move the warehouse.

The commission pointed out that property along the [street] would increase in value materially.