r ::=====::::=~~ The Ohio Architect and Builder ~\ \ pllbltsbe~ .mont bll? bl? '(tbe \\)btIJ arcbitfct an~ .mlltl~er <!ompanl?, at 180 St. I.!latr St., 'ale"elan~, \\)bto. In tbe tnterests of tbe arcbttects an~ .mlltl~ers of \\) bto a n~ tbe .Mt~Ne 'lIUlest. RATES OF SUBSCRIPTION: TELEPHONES, BUSINESS AND EDITORIAL ROOMS, $1.00 A YEAR IN ADVANCE, MA.IN 7. r\o. 180 ST. CLAIR STREET, TEN CENTS A COPY. CUYAHOGA C ~17~. CLEVELAND, 0 THOMAS A. KNIGHT, Editor. 'October EUGENE MARTINEAU, Bus. Man~ger. F. ~. BARNUM. 2 THE OHIO ARCHITECT· AND BUILDER -------------- EDITORIAL Welcome, Architects WeJ.come, architects, fr·om all over Ameri'ca·! Welcome, delegates of the Ameri­ can Institute of Ar~hitects, members' and :visitors, to Clevdand, a city which desires the feebly flickering torch of architecture hitherto kept alive 'by a few, to be rekindled into a glowing and enduring flame by your presence. Cleveland as a city ne'eds the educatioti and inspiration which the flower of the architectural 'profession in our leading cities. win bring, Cleveland architects" the local chapter of this organization, and the larger body outside of its definite organization, but in' sympathy with its aims, ne'eds also the stimu~ Ius, the broadening influence that contact with a wider horizon of thought brings, . The profession will and should be 'advanced by the coming of these men, and the learning, ambition, achievement and influence they will emanate, as well as by the. force and value 0.£ their utteranc,e's and deliberations. If the profession be stimulated, then Cleveland as a whole w.ill benefit from the stronger influence toward better things her archi­ tects will exert. Better than all, the uniting for common ends w.ith the 'stimulus of lo­ cal pride in· the work of entertaining the conve·ntion, on the part of ·the local chapter, will vitalize them as exercise does a StlJ1dow, and giv'e them that unity and harmony which will mean more than can be' roeasured of good. Let it remain for others to dis;, cuss what of architectural pride Cle~eland has to offer, and what o'f future plans of nobility and magnitude it has in ~ctl~.coritempla:tion, It is a city with a broad founda­ tion of industrial prosperity and so},i:P' institutions and wealth, on which fitting architec­ ture for an age of more' assured expression of theeviden~es of· Western civilization shall arise. Cleveland is at a tra~ion .~ime, 'It is about to be rebuilt, and as rebuilt ~t will endure in the essentials of it; visible- characteristics. The rebuildirig is, in fact, going on. At a time when the best architectural thought 'can have the most valuable and productive influence on great things, which must inevitably be done, this convention comes. May it fulfill its oJlportunity of value to Cleveland.. On, the- other hand, may its deliberations be of a value to all gathered that shall in turn radiate back to the centers whence these representative men c,omC', and so shed a flood of architectural. light through America by the kindling current engendered by the meet'ing of· these' highly charged potentiar''1orces. Make All Group Plan Discussion Open Just one criticism maybe offe'red at the aspect of the session of the Chamber of Commerce devoted to the group plan ex.plap.ation by .Messrs; Brunner and Carrere. Excellent as ,this description :w.a::s..., t}1e' invltation was extended by each ,speakerand·by President SulliV'an for question'S to be asked. Discussio,n. wa~ invited, but no one put any questions to the supervising architects..,. Now, everyone ·knows that there 'are many points over which opinion i~ much divided; ~'n:d qluch .tha:t~·ts as yet too little under­ stood, despite drawings 'and explanations. There were>reas,oo S given most briefly, 'as was necessary, that to many in the meeting ~~uld :n~~J: Have been conclusive. There is a considerable sentiment yet ,against the idea· of centr~l1zitig the Vnici'n Depot in the group plan. This sentiment is divided atnbng men of ,. d,ifferent elements and mode'S of thiriking, Some of this we believe to be largely,.:.of pu·re sentiment, the view of the lake being desired from an ideal standpoil1~."·'~To . this class, who think in the same manner that the architects wish to dotl1emselves, heautyand idealism being a gr~at factor -in the group plan, no opportunity £.01' die 'fullest. explanatiori ,should hav,e .been allowe'd to slip. Another class, repres'enting the politicians, who always want t:o pose as "against :l:'he corporations" for public effect, should not be permitted to say th~t the public got no chance to ask questions. ' The element easily swayed by such 'as these politidans ·and those who from standpoints of logic· not supplied by the politicians, nor THE .OHIO ARCHITECT AND BUILDER 3 swayed entirely by sentiment, to whom the Union Depot idea still comes as a surpris'e, should have asked questions, and they' would have been well answered. An Irishman once sa·id that he was' open to conviction, but s'how him the man who. could. e,onvince him. Question 'and ,answer does not change deep-seated views 'at once. But, on the' other 'hand, discussion of vexed problems should be the fullest and freest. This journal believes. that the. supervising architects have made out a good case for locating the Union Depot at the' lake end of the group plan, 'artd that the reas'ons advanc:ed are justifiable. It believes that many may.honestly differ with so novel a conception: one almost revolutionizing the' original' idea of the group plan, and it wants to see the ,most convincing explanations made. and the most sear.ching ques­ tions asked. Mr. Carrere, in particula.r, paus·ed for questions, but none were' asked. Yet men were heard putting- questions afterward, when the speaker was not there to answer. This is not fair to anyone. There is going to be a great de'al of feeling, much wire­ pulling,. the bad blood incident to great interests at stake, bef,ore' the group plan is well under way. The storm -center will be the Union Depot. It is going to be loosdy said that the railroad corporations have manipulated the group pi-an to get millions of value for themselves and sacrificed the city. Corrup­ tion has not been so ·abs·ent from Cleveland but -what it is a word too lightly and easily used. Municipal and county officil(lls hav·e·· not 'been here· any more than in oth,er .American cities above suspicion. A recent,:rco.1ut 'house episode -concerning the very group platt' itself is fresh in the public mind. 'q:\1ttthermore, it is an easy habit· among those who know how the game goes 'and ha~: perhaps pl/ayed it before reform­ ing (as all men do on taking ·o·ffice in Cleveland) to cry "Wolf" in' some other direc­ tion. We are bound to hear unsavory talk; it is a con~tion of every municipal undertak­ ing that some. one has been "approached," some one "influenced" or "fixed." If this is said about all sor,ts of men, if the mQst irreproachable are mixed with the most venal in this democratic time, if planning a municipal undertaking is volun­ tarily sailing .a, craft in notoriously dirty wate'r, how shall we expect anyone to escape calumny or vague accusation. Loose talk that ought to be indictable' for libel will spare no one. The railroads, then, because their rei-a tion to the group plan was considered by men of international fame, seeking the best local ideas they could gain from tho'se who represented the city's welfare' and .knew its conditions, a,re going to be ~mirched with the accusation ·that they "influenced" ·somebody to persuade the architects, through the many men from whom their ideas were evolved to locate the new union station where it stands on the: plan. Well, the railroad corpor'ations can stand such talk. They have had to bear much abuse when politicians wanted to make grand stand plays with the people. They have been approached, "held up" (of course, in other ~itie's), by rapacious .men in office before they could get needed -concessions far more valuable to the cities they bene'fited than' to themselve~. It would ~ot be human nature if they did not profit by their jnstruction,' become a littlf: gra'sping,and learned if they want anything to· go and get it. If the people and the architects trying to work for the whole people do not place the Union Depot somewhere, the p'olitidans of some future tadministration will have to be approached by these corporations to I. be allowed to do the' inevitable. Instead of coming out in the 'open, making terms with the people', they will have to make terms with the politidans;. and the people will have' to pay for it. That is if the experience of other cities is worth anything. As it is, the politi-eians_ can 'afford to watch the railroad end of the group plan. It looks as. if they would be unable' 1'0 do otherwise. It will now be incumbent upon them to show their solicitude for .the public welfar·e by playing watchdog of the treas­ ury and' getting the mo·st for the public and: 'the group plan expense', for giving up the valuable but expedient site in front of Lak~ View ·P~rk. 4 THE. OHIO ARCHITECT AND BUILDER Broad, far.reaching reasons only are going to· convmce the whole people that the Union depot will.