The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-05-17
THINGS PILING up
City Engineer Sees Much Work
Before Him.
Shudders as He ContempIates
Three New Sewer Districts.
WOULD COST S225,OOO.
Largest One Proposed Is in
Second Ward.
Suggestion for Solution of Sixth
Ward Controversy.
WOULD COST S225,OOO.

Il
Before the summer is over, the city
of Topeka will probably have to double
the size of its surveying, engineering
and drafting force in order to rush
through the preliminary work for the
construction of three of the biggest
sewers ever built in the city, the aggre-
gate cost of which will be between
| 5000, 900 and $500, 900.
1t is the talk now that all of this
sewer work must be prepared in time
so that it can go on the tax rolls this
fall, and the contracts be let before
snow flies. Winter is considered the
best time to build sewers in this part
The three big sewer projects, and
their approximate minimum cost, are as
| follows
Second ward, east OF Santa Fe
tracks .......-.... .........-... 100000
Lowman Hin and Tennessee
town -....-.... ................. 10000
Walnut Grove and Orchard Place $4,000
Total .... .......s zz5, 900
Under the terms of resolution pass
ed by the city council last night. the
| city engineer will make a detailed re-
port to the city council on the best plan
for sewer system in Lowman Hill and
| Tennesseetown. This is intended to
meet the objections of those living in
| this district who do not like Council
man Swendson's scheme for the con-
| struction of small sized, temporary
sewer for this part of town, inadequate
for storm water
Complying with this resolution, City
Engineer McCabe will suggest that a
30-inch sewer be built through the Low
man Hill hill district, instead of the Is
inch sewer as proposed by Councilman
| Swendson. The 30-inch sewer will be
built large enough to handle storm wa
| ter, but for the present, no catch basins
will be connected with 1t, because the
3O-inch sewer will open into the old 49,
! inch Potwin main. The plan is at some
future time to build a big 50-inch main
down through Potwin and put in catch
| basins on the LoWnan Hill laterals,
thus transforming the sewer without
much expense into a regular storm Wa
ter sewer.
IF the city should build a small
sewer out there in Lowman Hill, for
sanitary drainage only, and not for
storm water said City Engineer Nc
Cabe today, ''it would be necessary
before long to put in a new and sep
arate sewer system for storm water.
While they are building a sewer, they
ought to build 1t big enough for both
storm water and sanitary purposes.
But if we have to connect it with the
| 5-inch Potwin sewer for the pres
ent, of course the only thing to do is
to put in the necessary functions and
let the catch basins be built when THE
15-inch Potwin main is replaced.
This would not involve much addi-
would give the Lowman Hill people
the immediate use of the sewer sys-
tenn
1t is probable that this new turn in
affairs will satisfy a good many peo-
pie living in the proposed district,
who were opposed to Councilman
Swendson's plan. But there are many
others VINO are opposed to any sewer
system at all for the present, and hey
will make a vigorous fight against it
before the council.
1t means a tremendous lot of work
for the city engineers office to get
ready for even one new sewer district.
Three at once is an overwhelming
task. In the first place plats have to
be prepared from the county records
showing the owner of every foot of
land in the sewer district The sur
veys must be made of the whole route
of the proposed sewer. levels must be
taken and profIes drawn, so that the
engineer can tell exactly how much
dirt must be moved in making the
excavations, and how deep every ditch
must be. The engineers force must
then make scores of borings along the
route of the proposed sewer to find
out whether it Will be necessary to
blast out any rock to reach the re-
quired depth. After this is done the
out exactly how much the sewer
ought to cost, at fair market prices
for labor and material. The apprafs-
ers have meantime been at work ap-
praiSing property in the district and
the council let's the contract for the
work of building the sewer according
to the engineers estimates, plans and
specifications All this preliminary
work must be gone through with for
each district.
If the city council decides to rush all
this work through without any DELAY.
it will doubtless be necessary to en-
ploy an additional instrument man.
several additional rodrnen and an ex-
l ira draughtsman. The engineering de-
partment has IA new blocks Of new
|, paving to look after in addition to the
sewer projects.
There is likely to be a protest against
the construction of the sewer in the
Second ward, covering all that part of
the city east of the Santa Fe tracks.
But the city council has decided that
the sewer should be built in order to
carry off the storm water which floods
that part of town at regular intervals
, and it is doubtful whether a protest
would do mucn good.
The sewer for Walnut Grove and
Orchard Place is the only one of the
three which is absolutely sure to be
built at this time There is no fight
on that project, and it viii probably
be plated and ready for the appraise-
ment within a few weeks.
Chicago to Sell Bonds.
Chicago, May 1.-THE Chicago city