Wright Avenue (Racine, Wisconsin): Difference between revisions

'''Wright Avenue''' is a west-east residential street on the west side of the city of [[Racine, Wisconsin|Racine]], [[Wisconsin]]. The street extends {{convert|1.88|mi|km}} from [[Washington Avenue (Racine, Wisconsin)|Washington Avenue]] in the east to [[Green Bay Road (Racine, Wisconsin)|South Green Bay Road]] in the west. Wright Avenue is equivalent to '''1400''' in [[Addressing system of Racine, Wisconsin|Racine's addressing system]]; that is, buildings along cross streets immediately south of Wright have street addresses beginning with 1400, while buildings immediately north of it have addresses beginning with 1300. It is aligned with [[Fairview Terrace (Racine, Wisconsin)|Fairview Terrace]], [[Maiden Lane (Racine, Wisconsin)|Maiden Lane]], and [[Fourteenth14th Street (Racine, Wisconsin)|Fourteenth14th Street]], which follow a similar route to the east.

In the 1910s, Wright Avenue was unpaved. By March 1916, mud had become a serious issue on the street and residents complained to the city council, arguing that the paving of their street should be prioritized above the paving of [[Seventeenth17th Street (Racine, Wisconsin)|Seventeenth17th Street]], which the council had just agreed to authorize and fund.<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48854356/the-journal-times/ "Wright Avenue Home Owners Ask for Paving"], [[Racine Journal-News]], March 3, 1916.</ref> The Twelfth Ward Booster Club further argued that water and sewer infrastructure should be installed on the street, noting in July that "the twelve to fifteen families residing in that vicinity are obliged to depend upon one well for their water supply."<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48854632/the-journal-times/ "Want Sewer and Water for People of Wright Avenue"], [[Racine Journal-News]], July 14, 1916, page twelve.</ref> By August, the paving was underway, done by the Western Improvement Company, but local residents complained that the "concrete, which had been laid and upon which the inspector had placed his O.K., would crumble under the pressure of the fingers",<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48855241/the-journal-times/ "Boosters Say Paving Inspectors are Too Easy on Contractors"], [[Racine Journal-News]], August 11, 1916, front page.</ref> and that the curbs and gutters were defective. By September, Wright Avenue residents had convinced the city to investigate the quality of the construction, promising that it would not accept any street construction that did not meet the city's standards.<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/48856147/the-journal-times/ "Wright Avenue Home Owners Register New Kick on Contractor"], [[Racine Journal-News]], September 8, 1916, front page.</ref>