07/05/1951 Board of Public Works Special Meeting Minutes

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The record will show that a request was made to swear the witnesses. Joseph D. I!. Pawlowski, 1710'Western venue was called by the petitioners. Mr. Pawlowski stated.that the,United Cab Company is a corporation. It was incorporated first in the name of Securer: Investment Company and later changed to United C t Company. He further stated that Mrs.; Ruth Brennan is President of the Corporation, Mrs. Jeanette Cramer is Vice -President of !; the Corporation and Joseph Pawlowski is Secretary -Treasurer of the Corporation known as the United Cab Company. The business is presently being operated from the residence of Mrs. Ruth Brennan, 215 West Marion Street, South Bend, Indiana, and their calls are being':.' taken, and dispatched from the Yellow Cab Company office at 320 East Jefferson Blvd, Ii Mr. Pawlowski was questioned as to the areas which were served by the United Cab Company, including Notre Dame University, St. Marys College, Roseland, Mishawaka, Gilmore Park and other surrounding areas outside the city limits. Mr. Beamer cross-examined Mr. j Pawlowski. Mr. Pawlowski was questioned as tothe number and kind of vehicles the Uniteds!: Cab Company was going toluse, and also whether these cabs would be on the street twenty- four hours. He stated, eight cabs were,in use most of the day and night. Mr. Keating questioned Mr. Pawlowski about the drivers for the United Cab Co., and asked if they were all licensed Taxi -cab drivers. Mr. Pawlowski listed their drivers as follows: R.V.`; Rice; Martin Gildea; Mary McNeal; Leanard Geans; J White and Bertha Nespo. IS The following witnesses were presented by the petitioners: Robert Vernon Rice, 216 South Laurel Street,,Mishawa1ca, Indiana; -Martin Joseph Gildea, 426 Fenger Street, South Bend, Indiana; Mary McNeal, 609 Queensboro Street, Mishawaka, Indiana. The foregoing witnesses testified that they served many suburbs of South Bend, that there were few times when they were on duty that they did not have fares, that they picked up passen.gers,by, cruising on the streets and by stLnding at cab stands, that they called at the railroad stations and the bus stations frequently and always got fares, that they sometimes took two or three hours off'during the night when business was slow and went to a movie. Mr. Baer said the Board should know who the stockholders were. The Board was inform;= ed that t here were, 2000 ,shares_ at no, par value of which Mrs. Ruth Brennan was the owner of 1800 shares, Mrs. Jeanette Cramer was the owner of 100 shares and Joseph Pawlowski was the owner of 100 shares. All of the cabs are owned by the company and are paid for, that the company had spent,$5,000.00 for radio equipment and are waiting for a permit fromz� the Federal Communications Commission for radio service in their cabs, and that they had no outstanding flebts. Mr. Pawlowski also stated that they had filed the regular insurance policies with the Controller's Office covering all eight cabs. Mr. Keating then called a witness for the remonstrators, Mr. A. W. Johnson, 1129 Blaine Avenue, who testified that, he ,does, not. own a, car, and is not able to drive a car. That hell' is in poor health and use-staxi-cabs for transportation sometimes five or six timesa day.`'; That he has never had any, trouble_ getting, a cab.. That he calls the Indiana or South Bend Cab Company and rarely has to wait more than three or four minutes for a cab to appear. He further testified that he did not know what was going on but that he had been asked to appear and testify and had done so. The attorneys for the remonstrators then c alled William Heiermann, 116 South 29th Street, President of the Taxi -Cab Drivers Union, Local #141 A.F.L., who testified that he had been driving a taxi cab in South Bend since 19362 that at times he has told Mr, Liss and Mr. Sharp that there were too many taxi cabs on the street and that they Mould take some of them off for a few hours, that there are 1?5 members in Local #141 and that they are not making the same amount of money in 1951 that they did in 1950, although they are working the same amountof time and have had an increase in pay. That last year five men were laid off because there was not enough work to keep them busy. Mr. Sands then cross-examined Mr.Heierman and the meeting was adjourned at 5:30 p.m.y to be continued until July 5, 1951 at 2:00 p.m. 1L, I g, wwamll� July 5, 1951 SPECIAL MEETING I This being the date set for continued hearing on application for a taxi -cab license j by the United Cab Company, said hearing was held. Present at the hearing were the Board of Public Works and Safety, Mr. George Sands and Joseph Pawlowski, representing the United Cab Company; Mr. James Keating, represent- ing Walter Whitacre, a member of the public and Secretary of Courtesy Cab Association, and William Heierman, a member of the public and President of the Taxi Drivers Local Union No. 1.41 (AFL) and Mr. George Beamer, representing the Indiana Cab Company and the South Bend Cab Company. • 0- • • 0