Omaha daily bee., 1919-12-24
START WORK ON
new TELEPHONE
CO. WAREHOUSE
Three Story Structure on
Forty-Third Avenue Expect
ed to Be Completed
About May l.

Construction Of a 100000 ware
house and garage for the Nebraska
Telephone Co. on the northwest
corner of Cunning street and Forty
third avenue has been commenced.
Telephone officials anifounce that
the building will be completed on
or about May |.
The warehouse will be a three
story structure, facing east on For
ty-third avenue. 1t will cover
ground 1872 feet by 100 feet and will
contain approximately 10000 square
feet of floor space.
The garage will adioin the ware
house on the north. 1t will be
one-story building, los feet by $50
feet and will provide storage facili-
ties for the fleet of % repair trucks
and cars in use in the Omaha dis
trict.
Steel Reinforced Concrete.
George Prince was the architect
who designed the new building.
Construction will be of steel REIN
forced concrete and brick.
A concrete loading platform, 81
feet by $50 feet, will be constructed
at the west end of the warehouse.
A switch track from the Missouri
Pacific Belt line will run to the
platform.
Offices OF the construction crews
in charge of the repair and expan-
sion work in the Omaha district will
be located in the new building. Sup
plies for this work will be stored
there.
The Omaha district embraces six
counties in eastern Nebraska, Doug
las, Dodge, Sarpy, Thurston, Burt
and Washington.
Expansion Program Outlined.
The new warehouse is the prin.
cipal feature of the construction and
expansion program outlined by the
telephone company for this district
fot the coming year.
With the exception of plans for
consistent extension of cables and
aerial lines, the training of additions
al employees, the probable instala-
ton of the Douglas and Tyler ex-
changes in the new l5-story build
ing at Nineteenth and Douglas
streets and the general placing of
facilities upon normal postwar
basis, no other notable projects are
contemplated in this district, Off
Gals say.
War demands created a shortage
of materials which precluded any
marked expansion of the telephone
system in this district during the
last year. This condition, in fact,
was general throughout the country.
Notwithstanding this handicap, the
removal of all of the Omaha ex-
| changes with the exception of the
Douglas and Tyler units to the new
Douglas street building, was COM
pleted this year and 5000 additional
phones were installed in Greater
Omaha, making a total of $3.50
phones in this city.
To Install Switchboards.
Approximately 100000 calls a day
are made in Omaha, telephone Of
| ficials estimate.
The 15-story telephone building
at Nineteenth and Douglas streets
was completed a year ago this
month, but occupation of the new
offices was not accomplished until
January. District and division head
quarters, as we'll as the general Of
fices and headquarters for the
Northwestern group of the Bell sys-
TEN, are located in this structure.
During the last year the new toll
board, of which the officials are
proud, was installed and "cut in
for service. Mechanical switch
boards of the newest type will be.
installed during the coming year, it
is expected. when the Douglas and
| Tyler exchanges are moved from
their present locations.