HOUSE .... No. 1228

Bill accompanying the petition of Daniel A. Griffin and others for legislation to authorize the construction of a foot passage or tunnel between the station of the Tremont subway and the Boylston and Essex stations of the Washington street tun- nel in the city of . Metropolitan Affairs. January 17.

Cl)c Commonlwcnld) of epassacinisetts.

In the Year One Thousand Nine Hundred and Twelve.

AN ACT To provide for the Construction of a Foot Passageway or Tunnel under Boylston Street and Other Streets and Pub- lic and Private Property between Boylston Street Station in the existing Tremont Subway to the Boylston Station and Essex Station of the Washington Street Tunnel.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General. Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

1 SECTION 1. The Boston transit commission, herein- 2 after called the u commission", shall construct in the 3 city of Boston, hereinafter called the "city", a foot 4 passage or tunnel way hereinafter called the " passage- 5 way ", so designed as to be of sufficient size to allow the 6 public to pass from the present Boylston street station 7 in the existing subway to the Boylston 8 and Essex stations of the Washington street tunnel, said 9 foot passage or subway to start at the present platform 10 at the Boylston street station in the Tremont street snb- 11 way, or from a new platform on the easterly side of the 12 Boylston street station, so called, of the Tremont street 13 subway, and connect with the present station by a foot 14 passage to 1he said new platform when constructed, if 15 said new platform shall be necessary, and thence to pro- 10 ceed southerly across Tremont street, and thence easterly 17 following the line of Boylston street from the corner of 18 Boylston and Tremont streets, and continuing to a point 19 in the present Boylston station of the Washington street 20 tunnel, and to be connected with the present Essex street 21 station of the Washington street tunnel by means of the 22 sub-passage already existing. 23 The commission is hereby authorized and required to 24 construct in connection with the subways and connec- 25 tions herein provided for all suitable approaches, en- 26 trances, elevators, inclines, escalators, connections and 27 other structures, including the connection which shall 28 be necessary to fully carry out the intent of this act, any 29 foot passageway or tunnel constructed under or within 30 one hundred feet of shall be made so far 31 as practicable water tight, and the work shall be so done 32 as to avoid the draining of moisture from the surround- 33 ing soil or other injury to the trees, and the commission 34 may construct a suitable system of sub-soil irrigation 35 above or near the line of said foot passage or tunnel 36 within the common, or may take any other measures that 37 it may deem necessary or expedient for the preservation 38 of the trees, to be paid for as part of the cost of the 39 foot passage or tunnel. 40 The commission is hereby authorized to enlarge the 41 present subway station at Boylston street and the en- 42 trances to and exits from the same, to such extent as may 43 in its judgment be necessary for safety and convenience 44 in the use of the proposed foot passage or tunnel. 45 The commission is hereby authorized to make such pro- 4(i vision as may be necessary to connect the proposed foot 47 passage or tunnel with any new subway already author- 48 ized to be built which shall have its terminus at or near 49 the Boylston street station of the present Tremont street 50 subway or shall be connected with in any manner the 51 present subways at said point.

1 SECTION 2. The commission shall immediately after 2 the passage of this act make such preliminary investiga- ,3 tions, surveys and plans as may be necessary or desirable 4 to carry out the purposes of this act, and to that end may 5 enter upon any lands or place and maintain marks 6 therein, and may make excavations, borings and do all 7 other acts necessary for such investigations and surveys, 8 and may expend such sums as it deems necessary there- 9 for. The expenses incurred in making such preliminary 10 investigations, surveys and plans shall be deemed a part 11 of the cost of the work.

1 SECTION 3. The commission shall not begin the work 2 of construction until it lias filed in the office of the city 3 engineer of the city of Boston a plan signed by the com- 4 mission, showing the proposed route or location of the 5 foot passage or tunnel, and the general form and method

1 SECTION 4. The commission may make contracts in 2 the name of the city for the work herein authorized, but 4 FOOT PASSAGEWAY OR TUNNEL. [Jan.

3 all contracts involving two thousand dollars or more in 4 amount shall be in writing, and shall be signed by the 5 contractor and a majority of the commission, and no 6 such contract shall be altered except by an instrument in 7 writing signed by the contractor and a majority of the 8 commission, and also by the sureties, if any, on the bond 9 given by the contractor for the completion of the original 10 contract. No such contract or alteration of any such 11 contract shall be valid or binding on the city unless exe- 12 cuted in the manner aforesaid.

1 SECTION 5. All work done under this act under or 2 near public streets and places shall be conducted, so far 3 as may be practicable, in such manner as to leave such 4 streets and places, or a reasonable part thereof, open for 5 traffic between the hours of eight in the forenoon and six 6 in the afternoon of each secular day except public holi- 7 days.

1 SECTION 6. Subject to the approval of the mayor 2 and the city council of the city of Boston, the commis- 3 sion may locate suitable exits and approaches to and from 4 the street if the same shall be deemed necessary.

1 SECTION 7. The commission may, for the purposes of 2 this act, use public ways and lands without compensation 3 therefor, and the commission may, for such purposes, 4 acquire for the city by purchase or otherwise or may take 5 lands in fee, and easements, estates and rights in land, C including the right to go under the surface thereof, or 7 through or under buildings or parts of buildings thereon, 8 and such takings in fee or otherwise may be made, 9 whether the lands taken or otherwise affected are held 10 under title derived under eminent domain or otherwise. 11 A taking or purchase under this section of an easement 12 or other estate or right in a given parcel of real estate, 13 whether such parcel consists of unimproved land or of 14 land and buildings, may be confined to a portion or sec- 15 tion of sucb parcel fixed by planes of division, or other- 1G wise, below or above or at the surface of the soil, and in 17 such case no taking need be made of upper or lower por- 18 tions, or other parts or sections thereof, except of such 19 easements therein, if any. as the commission may deem 20 necessary. The commission, to make any taking by right 21 of eminent domain, shall cause to be recorded in the reg- 22 istry of deeds for the county of Suffolk a description of 23 the lands, easements, estates or rights to be taken as cer- 2-1- tain as is required ih a common conveyance of land, with 25 the statement that the same are taken under authority 2G of this act, which description and statement shall be 27 signed by the commission, and the lands, easements, es- 28 tate or rights therein described, shall, upon such record- 29 ing, be taken for and shall vest in the city. The 30 commission shall so far as may be practicable notify all 31 known owners of such takings, but the validity thereof 32 shall not be affected by want of such notice.

1 SECTION 8. The commission may sell the buildings 2 and other structures upon any lands taken by it or may 3 remove the same, and shall sell, if a sale be practicable, 4 or if not shall lease, any lands or rights or interests in 5 lands or other property so taken or purchased for the pur- 6 poses of this act, whenever the same shall in the opinion 7 of the commission cease to be needed for such purposes, 8 and shall apply the same towards the reduction of the 9 cost of the said foot passage or tunnel or shall cover the 10 same into the treasury of the city of Boston to be used 11 by the city of Boston in like undertakings. 1 SECTIOK 9. The commission shall determine and 2 award the damages sustained by any person by reason of •3 property taken or injured by the commission under au- 4 thority of this act, except public ways or lands, and may 5 agree with any person as to the amount to be paid as 6 damages sustained by him for any property so taken or 7 injured, which damages the city shall be liable to pay. If 8 such person is dissatisfied with such award, or cannot 9 agree with the commission upon his damages, the same 10 may be determined by a jury in the superior court for 11 the county of Suffolk, on petition therefor of such person 12 or of the commission, in which case such person shall be 13 joined as a petitioner against the city, filed in the clerk's 14 office within one year after such property is so taken or 15 injured; and judgment shall he entered upon the deter- 16 mination of the jury, and costs shall be taxed and execu- 17 tion issue in favor of the prevailing party, as in other 18 civil eases. The members of the commission shall not 19 be liable personally for any such damage.

1 SECTION 10. The commission may order the tempo- 2 rary removal or relocation of any surface tracks and the 3 temporary or permanent removal or relocation of any 4 conduits, pipes, wires, poles, or other property of any 5 person or corporation which it deems to interfere with the 6 construction or operation of the foot passage or tunnel 7 and connections, and shall grant new locations for any 8 such structures so removed or relocated. Such orders, to 9 the extent specified therein, shall be deemed a revocation 10 of the right or license to maintain such tracks, conduits, 11 pipes, wires, poles or other property, and the owner of 12 any such structures in public ways or lands shall comply 13 with such orders without expense to the city. If such 14 owner shall fail to comply with the order of the commis- 15 sion within a reasonable time, to be fixed in the order, 1G the commission may discontinue and remove such tracks, 17 conduits, pipes, wires, poles or other property, and may 18 relocate the same, and the cost of such discontinuance, 1!) removal or relocation shall be repaid to the city by the 20 owner. Xo such discontinuance, removal, or relocation 21 shall entitle the owner of the property thus affected to 22 any damages on account thereof. Any such structures 23 in or upon private lands may be removed and relocated 24 by the commission, or if removed and relocated by the 25 owner thereof, the reasonable expense shall be repaid to 20 him by the commission. Any gas or electric lighting com- 27 pany may shut off the gas or current from any pipes 28 or wires affected by any acts done hereunder, when and 29 so far as may be necessary to avoid danger of escape or 30 explosion of gas or other public danger.

1 SECTION 11. The treasurer of the city shall from time 2 to time, on request of the commission, issue and sell at 3 public or private sale the bonds of the city, registered or 4 with interest coupons attached, as he may deem best, to 5 an amount not exceeding the cost of the foot passage or fi tunnel herein provided for. Such bonds shall be desig- 7 nated as the Bovlston Street Foot Passage Loan, shall 8 be for such terms not exceeding fifty years as the mayor 9 and treasurer of the city may determine, and shall bear 10 interest payable semi-annually at such rate not exceeding 11 four per cent per annum, as the treasurer shall determine. 12 The debts incurred by the city from time to time under 13 the provisions of this act shall not be included in deter- 14 mining the limit of indebtedness of the city as established 15 by law, and the proceeds of such bonds shall be used to 16 meet all damages, costs and expenses incurred by the 17 commission or by the city in carrying out the provisions 8 FOOT PASSAGEWAY OR TUNNEL. [Jan. 1912.

18 of this act. The board of commissioners of sinking funds 19 shall establish a sinking fund for the payment of the 20 bonds issued under this act. All premiums received from 21 the sale thereof shall be paid into the sinking fund. The 22 proceeds from any sale or lease of lands or rights taken 23 by purchase or otherwise under authority of this act shall 24 be paid into the sinking fund, or shall be used for con- 25 struction, as the commission may determine, and the city 26 of Boston shall pay from its regular tax levy any balance 27 that may be required for the construction as aforesaid, 2S and from such tax levy shall pay into the sinking fund 29 an amount each year during the full term of the said 30 bonds, which shall he such an amount as shall be suffi- 31 cient when all the payments shall be made to retire the 32 said bonds. Said bonds shall not be reckoned in deter- 33 mining the statutory limit indebtedness of the city.

1 SECTION 12. If the term of the commission expires 2 before the completion of the work herein provided for, 3 the city shall have all the rights, powers and privileges, 4 and be subject to all the duties, restrictions and liabili- 5 ties hereby conferred or imposed upon the commission in 6 respect thereto, and such powers and duties shall be exer- 7 cised and performed by the mayor, city engineer and city 8 treasurer in place of the commission.

1 SECTION 13. The construction of the foot passage 2 or tunnel herein authorized shall be begun as soon after 3 the passage of this act as possible and the board shall 4 determine that the public interests require.

1 SECTION 14. This act shall take effect upon its pas- 2 sage.