March 18, 1916





RECORD  AND  GUIDE





447





CURRENT    BUILDING    OPERATIONS,   f
MATERIALS    AND    SUPPLIES           I





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THE last ten days have spanned a re¬
markable change in the building
outlook. A fortnight ago business was
in a state of suspense. There was a lull
caused by indecision on the part of
builders and investors as to what should
be done in the face of the rising prices
of materials and the international prob¬
lems. Since then they have decided to
go forward, not waiting for any im¬
probable general slump in prices, but
taking advantage of the splendid public
optimism, the quickening in general
business, and the strengthening realty
market—whatever the added cost of con¬
struction may be.

More bie movements have been start¬
ed in Manhattan than at any time since
the spring of 1912. more apartments in
Brooklyn, more individual homes in
Queens and the suburbs, more altera¬
tion work in the business sections of
the city—this is the sum of the reports
coming this week to the Record and
Guide.

Alterations work bulks large. Old
New York has been built over once or
twice with new buildings, now it is be¬
ing to a considerable e.xtent made over
in its older parts to meet the require¬
ments of the new era. Notablv true is
this in the sections south of 14th street,
where the first results of the returning
movement from uptown are beine re¬
ported. At the same time several large
operations have been started for new
commercial buildings north of 34th
street.

The proposed reffulations restricting
the height of buildings and districting
the citv are having some efifect in forcing
out the new work. Hearin.gs are about
to be he'd on the tentative renort of the
Commission on Building Districts and
Restrictions, with the probabilitv that
it will not be long before a series of
regulations are prornuI.gated. No doubt
many nlans for buildings will be started
to anticipate them.

The extent of the demand for resi¬
dential housing in Manhattan can be
estimated from the marked .success of
the interestine: series of building opera¬
tions on the lands once covered by the





estate of Loyal L. Smith in the Audu¬
bon section, between Fort Washington
avenue and Riverside Drive, where sev¬
enteen or more six-story apartment
houses with exceptionally lar,ge front¬
ages have been undertaken and mostly
completed within a brief period. The
houses have frontages of 125 to ISO feet,
for the most part; one has a width of
232 feet, and another extends through
from street to street. The suites, com¬
prising four to eight rooms each, with
rentals rated at $11 to $15, have been
rented as soon as completed. A surpris¬
ingly large proportion of the tenants
come from other cities.

Among building operators it is still
the prevailing opinion that there will be
less construction of apartment houses
this year than the improved times will
demand, on account of tlie higher cost
of labor and material; and because there
are_ cornparatively few vacancies tliis
spring, in either new or old apartments in
the sections subject to improvement,
therewill be, in Manhattan at least, an
unsatisfied demand for apartments be¬
fore the snow comes again.

Advances in wages have recently been
granted to structural steel erectors
metallic lathers, machinists, slate and
tile roofers, plasterers, rockmen and ex¬
cavators, and the carpenters have made
a demand for an increase on May 1.
About 75 per cent, of the union men in
the building trades of the metropolitan
district are working when weather per¬
mits, according to the reports of the
business agents to their Central Board.
The announcement of the awarding of
general building contracts for two new
great hotels was the sensational news
of the week. The George A. Fuller
Company has taken the contract for the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company's hotel
to be erected on Seventh avenue, and
announcement is made of the awarding
of a contract for a hotel to cost $15,000,-
000 altogether, but with no location yet
announced. The expectation is that the
second hotel for the New York Central
Railroad, to be erected at Lexington
avenue and 42d street, will be put under
contract this spring. The Vincent Astor
Iiotcl project is being held in abeyance.





Brick.—The one springlike day of the
week saw considerable activity in the
brick market, with considerable riding of
tnaterial from reserve stacks. Since then,
little has been done because of Wednes¬
day's storm and subsequent low ternpera-
tures. Onlv two barges are left in the
market, with navigation still tightly
closed. The annua! inventory of the
available supply at the Hudson River
yards is in progress. The result will be
made known the latter part of the month.

Official transactions for North River brick
covering the week ending Thursday, March 2,
in   the   wholesale  market.

Open  Barges,  left over,  Friday,  A.  M.,
March   10—3.

Arrived.    Sold.

Friday.    March   10...............    0           0

Saturday,  March   11..............    0           0

Monday.    March    13..............    0           0

Tupsdiy.    March   14..............     0           0

Wodnc^day,   Marcb   15............    0           1

Thursday,    March    16............    0           0

Total..........................    0           1

Reported   en   route.   Friday,   March   17—0.

Condition of market, firm : demand light.
Prices, .?S 50 to .$0 (wholesale, dock. N. Y.).
Cargoes left over Friday A. M.. March 17—2.
Left over covered barges, 1. Open barges left
over.  1,

CFor plan fllines of the week see table of
Real   Estate   Statistics   on   preceding   page.)

Structural Steel.—.'V. number of struc¬
tural steel jobs have been postponed
and some are being changed into rein¬
forced concrete, but big work continues
to come out. in snite of the advanced
price of steel. This is the best answer
to   the   question,   What   of   the   future?





Some predictions are for a break about
the first of July, but the majority
opinion is that_ there will be no reces¬
sion in nuotations until the cessation
of hostilities is promulgated, and that
even tlien the great demand for steel
will continue. Enough work is surely
going ahead to give the building trades,
the  best outlook in  years.

Bids went in this week on the Cathe¬
dral Exchange of the New York Tele¬
phone Comnany at the northwest corner
of lOSth street and Manhattan avenue.
This building requires 800 tons of steel.
Also on 700 tons for an addition to the
works of the Habirshaw Electric Cable
Company at Yonkers. The Kelly Con¬
struction Company was the lowest bid¬
der on the armorv at Yonkers, reoniring
200 tons of steel. Frvmier & Hanna
have the e-eneral contract for the hos¬
pital buildings at Kings Park. L. I., re¬
quiring 300 tons of steel. The .State
Architect takes bids on March 20 for
the Long Island State Hospital im¬
provement, requiring 200 tons.

The Edison Illuminating Company
has postponed for the time bein" its
plans for an oflice building in Pearl
street. Brooklyn. The garage at 64th
street and Tenth avenue will be done in
leinforced concrete instead of steel, and
a big regrip-erator building that is pro¬
jected for Tenth avenue, 16th and 17th
streets, will also be built of concrete in-
stcnd of steel.

The Hay Foundry and Iron Works
have booked the steel contracts for the





Frederick Ayer building at Broadway and
West Houston street, 2,000 tons, 250 tons
for the apartment house for the George
Backer Construction Co. in West 60th
street, and 200 tons for an addition to the
Otis Elevator Company's plant at Har¬
rison, N. J. Post & McCord were low
bidders on the West 46th street pier shed
requiring 4,200 tons.

It is difficult to describe the demand
for steel except as a "runaway market."
The Iron Age says the last vestige of
doubt as to its runaway character has
been swept out of the way. The problem
IS to get material within a reasonable
time at any price. In the past year or
less the cost of structural steel for build¬
ing work (including erection) has ad¬
vanced from-$50 to $85 a ton or more.
The Carnegie Steel Company has ad¬
vanced the base price of bars and shapes
$2 and ?5 a ton, respectively.

Stone.—Secretary Fertig, of the Mar¬
ble Industry Emplovers' Association,
estimates that about 60 per cent, of the
union men ordinarily engaged in the
marble industry have" work at the pres¬
ent time. This is the best indication of
the state of trade this spring that could
be given. It tells the storv for both
dealers and contractors. Alterations,
private house and apartment house jobs
make up the bulk of the current work,
with but little doing so far for large
business  and   institutional   buildings.

In the eranite trade the many inquiries
coniing in have not begun to develop
rapidly as yet. No large granite jobs
are in prospect. Only the smaller class
of contracts is ofifering. Contractors are
saving that the high cost of steel is
holding back a great deal of construc¬
tion, and that they cannot hope for
normal conditions until the war is over.

According to the renort of the New
York State Industrial Commission, em¬
ployment in the stone trades was mark-
edlv less during January than in De¬
cember. Desnite this loss, however,
there was more doing than a year ago.

Electrical Goods.—General Electric
has made a horizontal advance in elec¬
trical goods of 10 per cent. The com¬
panv uses on an average 1 .500.000 lbs.
of copper weekly, and the ICO ner cent
advance in the metal over prices pre-
vailinff a year and a half a™ is reason
enough for the new schedule. Another
reason is that the comnanv is having
the_ greatest rush of sustained buving
in its history. In some lines canacitv
of plants to produce is booked six and
even  eight months ahead.

Window Glass.—Discounts to the
trade have been lowered. The cause for
what amounts to higher prices to con¬
sumers is ascribed to the shortage
of raw materials, esnecially potash.
Factories are also declining orders on
account of their inabllitv to get enouo-h
cars for sbipments. The Eastern demand
on manufacturers for spring and summer
deln-eries is large.

Linseed Oil.—Leading interests ad¬
vance their card schedule to 80 cents a
gallon for single barrel orders. The in¬
side quotation for carlots was raised 1
cent a .gallon, to 78 cents.

Sand and Gravel.—Sand is five cents a
cubic yard lower than it was in February,
Init the price of naving gravel bas been
advanced from 75 cents to $1 25, bv the
Goodwin-Gallagher Sand and Gravel Co
Subwav gravel is unchanged at 95 cents

Coal.—Renorts are that the wage ad¬
vance to bituminous coal miners will
add 7 to 10 cents a ton at the mine.
Operators will pass the advance nion? to
the wholesalers, who in turn will shift
It to tbe retailers and steam coal users.
It IS probable that consumers will pay
10 cents more for steam and 12 cents
more for domestic coal.