The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-16
FOR A NEW PEST HOUSE.
Estimated Cost of Stone Structure Is
Only $1,000.

Assistant City Engineer Will King is
fixing up plans for a new pest house.
The city council has instructed the
engineering department to furnish
plans and specifications for the build
ing, and the indications are that the
pest house win be built
There are some unique ideas en-
bodied in Will Kings plans. Here are
few of them:
Taking advantage of the steep side
of the ravine on which the pest house
site is located, the hospital as planned
would be a two-story building on it's
west front, and one story building
on its east front. The east side of the
building would be set down into the
hill.
All of the first story will be, built of
limestone, quarried within so feet of
where the building is erected. 1t is
likely that while excavating in the side
of the hill for the building, enough
rock will be taken out to construct
the walls, for the whole pest house
tract of 10 acres is nothing but a stone
quarry.
The second story of the building
will be the ward rooms for patients,
and it will be constructed of wood 1t
will be SO arranged that the main en-
trance to the ward rooms Will be on
the east side of the building, on level
with the ground. Patients would
therefore be taken direct from the
ambulance into the ward rooms with
out any climbing of stairs.
On the first floor of the building,
below the ward rooms. would be the
kitchen, living rooms for attendants,
dispensary and furnace room. The
furnace room would be connected with
the east side of the building with
chute SO that coal could be dumped
into the chute and thus directly into
the coal bins.
According to the plans, there will
be four large ward rooms on the sec
end floor. Two wide halls at right
angles will divide the floor into four
quarters, and each quarter will be
ward room, separated from all the
others by the wide, well ventilated
hall. If desired, different forms of
contagious diseases could be isolated
in the different rooms
The plans provide for separate lava
tories and closets in each ward room,
and for a dumb waiter by which food
is sent I'D from the kitchen into the
hallway, so that the dishes are not
one for which they are intended.
On the roof of the building. it is
proposed to locate a large tank, which
would be filled from the good well east
pumped into the tank by a windmill,
and it would give the hospital its own
waterworks system. The water would
be used for sanitary flushing, washing
cording to Mr.. Kings plan, would be
conducted out of the building and
some distance down the ravine into
cesspool or some form of septic
tank. The sanitary disposition of the
pest house sewage is something which
of course would have to be carefully
attended to.
The natural slant of the land would
afford an unusually good opportunity
for natural water pressure and sewage
system.
No estimates have yet been made on
the cost of such building as proposed
by Mr.. King, but it is believed it could
be built for $4,000. The city is GER
tainly in need of a good place to send
its contagious patients who are finan-
ciaHy unable to take care :. of them
selves, at their own homes. BY using
the natural stone on the pest house
grounds the cost of the building
would be materially reduced. 1t would
not take a great deal of grading and
attention to enable the city to trans
form the present barren pest house
site into a very handsome place, or at
least into a place which is not so dis
tinctly unattractive and repulsive as
the present barn-hke structure.