The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-09-09
Consulting Engineer Alyord
of Chicago Reports on the
Plans for Trunk Sewer
PROVIDE FOR FUTURE GROWTH
Chicago Engineer Recommends the
Building of an Eight and Quarter
Foot Sewer With Plans for Overflow
Sewers to be Erected in the Future

The plans of City Engineer R. H..
Moth for the building Of the proposed
trunk sewer now have the seal Of ap-
prevail Of John w. Alvord, the well
known Chicago engineer, for after con,
sidering the matter for more than four
weeks Engineer Alvord rendered his
report to the City Council on Tues
day evening. The report was most
exhaustive one covering the entire
question Of sewers for the south and
west sides of Kenosha and providing
for the growth of the city for the next
generation The report of Mr.. Alvord
was accepted by the Council and the
city engineer directed to prepare a
plan in keeping with the suggestions
and have this ready for the considera
ton of the Council at it's next regular
meeting.
The plans Of Engineer Alvord pro
vide for the building of main sewer
eight and one fourth feet in diameter
extending from the lake to Pleasant
street and west of this point the size
of the sewer may be slightly diminish
ed The plan provides for the drain
ing of territory of approximately
5000 acres and the engineer holds that
this will take care of the demands of
the south and west portions Of the city
for at least generation. He plans
for e sStfe growth of the city by q sug-
gestion that in time the city dig a
ditch mile long to carry surface
water from the whole territory to the
west Of the city to Barnes Creek and
for the building of another main
sewer to the soush of Selma avenue, at
a time when the demands of that part
of the city shall have made the sewer
now planned too small to carry off all
the water Engineer Alvord in
sisted that the city should not seek
to build a sewer big enough to take
care of all of the 5000 acres of land
which might at some time come into
the district, but that it should provide
for the proper draining of this land
at all times save when there is what
is known as record storms. He de-
clared that these storms come only
twice or three times in a century and
that it would not be advisable for the
city to attempt to provide sewage to
carry off the surface water of such
storms.
His plan provides sewer large
enough to take care of all the property
from Selma avenue on the south to a
point 600 feet north of Grand avenue
on the north and the auxiliary sewers
suggested would be sufficiently large
to take care of The surface water
which comes from the great tract OF
flat land lying to the west of the city
Engineer Alvord was questioned close
ly as to the size of the sewer and he
insisted that he had made it sufficient
ly large He stated that it would be
impossible to leave Jerome Creek just
as it is today and build a sewer along
the side of it using the sewer for car
rying off the sewage and leaving the
creek open to carry the surface watel
to the lake. He gave no report in re
gard to a proposed route for the sewer
declaring that as an engineering prop
osition either of the routes which have
been suggested by the engineer would
be entirely practical. He declared
that change in the route of the sewer
to permit it to follow the line of the
creek rather than running it into the
lake at the direct route to Ohio street
would not in any way affect tho
efficiency of the sewer. The plar
proposes drop of one foot in eacl
800 feet of the sewer and it was hello
that this would be a remarkably goot
sewer with such fall.
The engineer was asked to consider
the old problem Of the possibility o.
the government interfering with tn,
building OF the sewer and he declared
that in his opinion the pollution of tn,
waters Of the lake by any sewer il
Kenosha would never be matter fo1
government action so far as the FEEDER
al government awas concerned. He in
sisted that the time would come wher
it would be necessary to make som,
changes in the disposal Of sewage il
Kenosha, but he insisted that even i
the city should eventually plan t,
enter a drainage canal it would b,
necessary to carry the sewage to tn