The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-12-15
BOILING PLANS TO
IMP ROVE OFF ICE
Submits Outline to Lynch Com
nlittee for Betternent OF
City Service.
SOME CHANGES PROPOSED
Committee Sits Behind Closed
Doors to Begin Work on
Its Report.

City Engineer Charles r. Boiling
presented to tho Lynch Investigating
Committee last night an extended
plan for reorgani2ing the work Of the
Engineers Department.. covering the
organization and outlining the duties
OF each of the men assigned to work
at headquarters. The committee sat
behind closed doors in the office of
tho City Engineer and gave out no
statement when 1t adjourned save
that 1t had received MIR. Bolling's sug-
Scstions for Improvement OF the SER
vice and had begun TO formulate its
report to the Committee on streets
oil the matters 1t was appointed to
investigate
The committee Will probably have
several sessions before It's report Is
completed and Will probably mot pre-
sent 1t to the Committee on Streets
until after the beginning of tha year,
as there are many matters yet to he
considered and a mass of conflicting
evidence to. be gone over.
Cost OF Engineering,
One point with which the report
will deal in some detail in manner
favorable to the Engineers office is
the low cost Of engineering and SUI
pervision Railroad companies and
corporations on ordinary construction
work usually allow . per cent. for
| engineering and supervision. IT Is
proposed to have Special Accountant
Crenshaw so over accounts for some
years past OF actual payments for all
classes Of work through the En-
gineer's Office, whether from annual
appropriation or bond issue, for
streets, sewers, river Improvement,
parks and other items handled by that
Office, and compare it with the cost
of maintaining the Engineers office
and corps of inspectors,
The statement has been made that
for the past year the ratio was about
3 per cent or much less than Is gem
eral
Planning New Enterprises.
Another matter on which the com
mtttec will report is to recommend
some definite policy for the city de-
partments IN the matter of securing
plans for new enterprises. 1t has been
a bone of contention with the ell
gineerng department for years, l'or-
pnerly the engineers Office was also
charged with planning public build
ings, and many of the older school
houses were designed BY assistant en-
gineers. Colonel Cutshaw protested
that his engineers We're not specialists
in architecture, and for years past the
city has employed outside architects
for buildings the engineers office SUI
pervising the work until the office
of Building Inspector was created, In
this way Charles X. Bryant planned
the new High School building; Averill
& Hall the Blues Armory and firm
of Philadelphia experts the City Halt
all on a commission basis.
Some Large Fees Paid.
While superintendent Of the Water
Works, Mn Boiling worked out the
plans for tho settling basins and SUI
pervised their constructions giving his
services merely for the salary paid by
the city to u department. head, At
per cent, the engineering fees on the
Job would have amounted TO $4,000
the city having paid MIR, Bryant about
| $4,000 in fees ON the High School
/ building,
'fhen came tho plan to erect u nlu-
nicipal electric plan,, The city re-
| tanned Consulting Engineer Trailort
Continued on Third page,l /,