New-York tribune., 1907-11-03
SOME DISGRACEFUL STATIONS.

Before this report was acted upon by the
Board of Estimate and Apportionment Con-
troler Metz instructed his chief engineer. Chand-
Ter Wilmington. to investigate the condition of
the station houses used by the police force
throughout the city. He found thirteen of them
in rented buildings that We're wholly unsuited
for the purposes for which they were used
Thirteen more We're in city buildings through
the courtesy of other departments. OF the total
number thirteen were found in excellent cOndi-
uOn, twenty-five in good condition, tWentv-fOur
In fair condition. twenty-seTen in poor condition
ana seven IN DAD CONDITION No borough had
adequate headquarters, tkough the Borough OF
Manhattan VIII be provided for in q new build
ing now under construction. He recommended
that headquarters buildings should be erected
as soon possible in the boroughs of Brook
lyn Queens and Richmond. and that they should
be so designed as each TO have precinct sta
tion within its walls. He also advised that the
tWenty-siX stations in rented quarters and In
buildings belonging 10 other city departments
should be Immediately provided with regular
station house buildings
In examining the station houses the cellars.
easements, cells and dOrUitOry floors he found
many instances where the conditions could only
be described as intOerable. and such that no set
Of police officers could long live in contact with
them without loss of morale and self-respect
The cells IN many of the stations We're of such
design arrangement and condition that no per-
son. however humble. innocent or guilty should
be locked up in them for single hour. These
conditions he reported, should be at once nnitf-
gated for the good of the force. as we'll as
duty 10 the public. Repairs were Immediately
necessary and better janirCr service was urgently
required
Coming 10 the proposed new station buildings
planned by the Commissioner, the Controllers
engineer reported that he feared the esti-
mate of $l3OOUO each for such buildings as
the Commissioner had in mind was much too
low. But desire to say with fun emphasis he
continued, that these new houses should be so
designed, and all that goes TO make them so
selected. that there shall be no extravaganza
of ornamentatiOn of material. I would elm
mate from the exterior all fine cut or carved
stonewOrk and all copper and bronze An ex-
terror of rock faced granite below the water
table, with brickWOrk above. would be good and
suitable. IN the interior I would have trim
without much detail or ornamentatiOu but
heavy a2d durable: terraZZa or tile floors slate
or bluestone stair treadS and platforms. plain
white tile wainscOting in the toilet rooms and
all partitions of slate albereue stone. with
an entire absence of white marble. II ln1prOv-
ing the conditions of ten precincts a year for
1--WE years the cost may run 10 S2OtDOO0
year FOR the first two years on account of the
the first years programme. and because the sec
opd years buildings should replace those IN
downtown Manhattan. where the sites viii run
up the cost In the third. fourth and fifth years
l should say that S1.0UOcOO a year would prove
sufficient. The total fer the next five years.
viii require considerable expedition in acquir
ing sites. planning and erecting buildings to
pend that amount within the time l see no rea-
son why the city should now concern itself with
proposed expenditures more than five years
ahead. Therefore, if the financial condition Of
the city warrants the expenditure. | recommend
that the sum of S2,N0,O00 he voted for the pur-
pose of acquiring sites and erecting police
aeiOns for the of the force, requested
by the Commissioner"
In spite OF the definite conditions on which
the $2OOQO0O was, according TO Mr. Metz, voted