PLANNING A NEW SKYSCRAPER.
Business Building May Be Erected
West of Shubert Theater.
On Baltimore avenue between Tenth and Eleventh streets, just south of the Dwight building, Leo N. Leslie and others will erect a ten-story fireproof building. Work will be started by the last of December. The building will be constructed at a cost of $150,000 and will be of cut stone for the first two floors and the remainder will be brick. It is contemplated to have completed the building by July 1, 1909.
It is the plan of the builders to so construct the building as to rent entire floors. The frontage will be thirty-seven, with a depth of 175 feet.
Nonresident capitalists are seeking to bargain with W. A. Rule on his own behalf and Mr. Leslie's for the erection of a large business building just west of the Shubert theater. Mr. Rule said yesterday that it was almost a certainty that the building would be erected, though as to exact nature he was not sure. It had been circulated among real estate and architectural circles that the building would be a hotel. This Mr. Rule positively denied. All of the capital, about $150,000, invested would be foreign and would bring in more revenue to Kansas City.
Martin Lehman stated yesterday that he had not settled upon any plans submitted for the new theater which the Orpheum Company will erect on the lot recently purchased at Eleventh and Central streets. It was given out that a theater to cost $350,000 would be erected there and work would be started upon it as soon as the plans were finally selected. At the present it is not the plan of the Orpheum to have any office space in the theater, but devote the whole building to the operation of the stage and seating of the audience.
"Taking it all in all," said Mr. Leslie yesterday afternoon, "it begins to look like the West Side is far from dead. Within the past three weeks movements have been started which tend to improve the site wonderfully. That district will remain important as long as Kansas City exists. It is just at the edge of the wholesale district and at the edge of the retail district. We consider it a very profitable holding and will do our best to keep its value up."
