Newton J. Tharp in the News

The San Francisco Call
September 29, 1907

Newton Tharp Slated for City Architect: Ordinance is Prepared to Encompass Removal of W.D. Shea

Salary to be $4,000: Those Chosen to Prepare Plans for Schools Will Lose Places

The ordinance designed to encompass the removal of William D. Shea, at present employed by the board of public works as "supervising architect of buildings to be constructed under the bond issue," was prepared yesterday and will be passed to print at tomorrow's meeting of the board of supervisors. Newton Tharp has been recommended for the place by the supervisors and will probably be selected.

Ordinance No. 1767, under which Shea was appointed, will be repealed and the new ordinance will provide for the appointment of a city architect at a salary of $4,000 per annum. The city architect is to perform such architectural services as the board of public works may requrie of him, and he is to devote his entire time to the service of the city.

The city architect will prepare plans of such municipal buildings as the board of works may direct, but the ordinance further provides that competitive plans may be invited for the construction of any municipal buildings, including schools, as the board may deem expendient.

The repeal of ordinance 1767 will also cancel the appointment of a dozen or more architects who were named to the last board of supervisors to prepare plans for new school buildings. The new ordinance will require competition, and the best plans will be accepted by the board of works.

 

The San Francisco Call
October 23, 1907

Board of Works Will Name City Architect: Newton Tharp Slated for Plum and Shea is to be Retired

The board of public works is preparing to appoint Newton Tharp as city architect. The appointment will be made either at today's or next Wednesday's meeting.

Tharp will be named under the provisions of an ordinance recently passed by the board of supervisors which indorsed Tharp for the position. The salary of the city architect is $4,000 a year.

While the ordinance providing for the appointment also abolished the position of supervising architect of buildings held by William D. Shea. It is likely that Shea will not retire from his position until five schoolhouses now building have been completed. Shea will draw 5 percent of the cost of the buildings, but he will not draw any more money for the supervision of the buildings to be constructed under the bond issue and his income from the city, which promised to amout to $100,000, will be stopped.

Shea's claims will have to be settled by the city and he said yesterday that he did not know how much they would amount to. He added that he had gone to considerable expense in the work of supervising architect, including the sending of an expert to the east at an expense of $1,000 to collect data on school construction. The city will have to pay Shea a large sum before his formal retirement from the city's service can be effected.

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