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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1907)
u pjsj It k ' V 44 js.x . - - v , Sill Ik- I li.tAl---- fe- Trrv:; - fAWl I THANKS to J mtceptlonally 1fhUy ! location and iun fundings, Portland ha been able tn set aside a ayatem of public parka which vary in charaotar from open lawns, bi athlng- plafcea, near the bualness center, to beautiful wood land retreats farthiv- out. which have been preserved In al! tliolr primeval beau ty. Although the !i::rk system la not largre, compared with that of many other cities,, it comprise:!, several tracts that re nowhere curpu.'fed in beauty, and which call forth t:, a admiration of all beholders. In addit vft to the land already reserved for the r reatlon of the public, there are many aces near the city which adapt themselves readily to park pur poses. There is row a strong sentiment in favor of addinp a large portion of this ground to the j'.irk, system, and It Is quite possible thrt before the end of tha present year bon.is will be voted for its purchase. In the very c nter of the West Bid business and residence district there Is a long chain of park blocks, each 100x200 feet. As a relief to the eye from the monotony of long vistas of brick, stone and asphalt as resting-places and as Playgrounds for children, they have proved their value for many yeara. and their usefulness will Increase with the ex pansion of the business district. Apart from this chain of parks axe two blocks bounded by Third, Fourth, Salmon and Clay . streets, even nearer the business center. They are known as the Plaza blocks, and are welcome breathing-places ior thousands of weary men and women ach day during the Spring and Summer. Between the blocks is a handsome drink ing fountain, given to the citv bv the late D. P. Thompson. On the north block was rected during the past year, by popular aubscription, an artistic monument in honor of the Second Oregon Volunteers. The City Park Is the best-known pleas ure exouud of Portland. Embracing an area of more than 40 acres, it lies on the tipland at the western edge of the city, with its entrance on TVashlnston street! the main business thoroufthfare. Original ly this land was so rugged that there was much opposition when it was purchased In 1S71 for $32, C. Toly. however, it has ben so Improved that its beauty offers new charms at every visit. By grading. laying out of walks and driveways and GROWTH OF CITY Over $200,000 Spent in 1906 for Build ing Completed and Nearing Completion SCHOOti buildings, recently finish ed or now nearing completion In Portland represent an expenditure of more than J 1)00,000. The East Side High School alone will . have cost, when furnished, not less than U0,00n, and It may be as much as JM0.O00. It stands on' the block bounded by East Washington, East 6tark. Bast Thirteenth and East Fourteenth streets, the focal point of the residence district east of the Wil lamette. The substantial character and architectural attractiveness of this building make it an ornament to the city, and it offers accommodations "which for some time have been urgent ly needed. Until a few months ago it was thought that it would be necessary to finish only the rooms on the lower floor, 12, for recitation purposes, and an auditorium, 30x54. In this, however, the Board of Education decided with out an adequate conception of the rapid growth of the school population. It has now been decided that the entire structure must be completed for use as soon as possible. There will be 21 1 , -w-V 3- planting flowers, trees and shrub, tba sightliness of the park has been greatly Increased, while care has been taken not to Impair Its wonderful natural beauty. Macleay Park, of more- than 100 acres, 1s the largest single holding of the city. It lies in a deep gulch, known as Batch Canyon, through which winds a clear stream. Above it rise wooded hill. Its charm is In Its wild beauty, and every SCHOOL SYSTEM recitation rooms in the building, be sides halls for literary societies, labora tory work and manual training. Super intendent Rigler Is authority for the statement that every room will be re quired as soon as completed. It Is probable that soon a thlrcl High School will be erected In the vicinity of Albina or Irvlngton to accommodate' the northeastern part of the city, which has been showing greater gains than any other section. The directors, who have been considering the matter, contemplate a four or six-room build ing designed in such a way that it can be added to as time goes on. An ap propriation of perhaps (30,000 will have to ba made to defray the cost. For the new East Side High School $100,000 was voted, but the cost has so far ex ceeded the original plana that more than $30,000 additional must be paid out of the general fund. The demand for Increased High. School facilities has been paralleled In the grammar grades. The registra tion In public schools for the present school year will pass the 20,000 mark, a notable increase over the total at tendance for 1905-6. which was 17,031. As a still more rapid Increase In popu lation Is probable from this time on, the demand for new schools will be 3 1 THE MORXIXG OREGOXIAX, TUESDAY, JANUARY 1, v. VliiiiT eara has been taken to preserve this fea ture. Holladay Park and Hawthorne Park are the most Important parks on the East Side. The latter Is leased by the city, but tli Park Board has for some heavy, and several will have to biT built this year. Besides the. East Side school, only one new school building was erected In Portland during the past year. This was. a four-room structure at Midway, which is already filled 'almost to ca pacity. But large additions were made to the Sunnyside. East Twenty-eighth and Holman schools. The improve ments cost about 130,000 each, and will meet their respective needs for some time to come, although three districts, especially in the case of the Sunnyside and East Twenty-eighth Street schools, are growing rapidly. The greatest demand of the present year will be for the improvement and enlargement of the schools in the dis trict recently annexed to the city. A typical case is the Highland school, which, with an attendance of 1000. is the largest Institution In the city. Four years ago a four-room school was opened at this place, with an attend ance of 127. Now 22 teachers are em ployed, and at the opening of the term lust closed It was found necessary to transfer 125 pupils to the Woodlawn and " Irvlngton 'schools. A new four or six-room building Is scheduled for this locality this year. It will prob ably be located at Vernon. The largest building of which there is immediate need will be erected at Arleta. The pupils there are now ac commodated in a number of two and three-room structures, which are poor ly equipped and insufficient for the needs of the community. The board is now considering the advisability of building a modern lt-room school house. Portsmouth at present has a four- i j t v U Some of the Advantages of Portland as a Resi dence City. SSV J3Z.OCK V..-'-' aL WW--"" time been considering Its purchase for JiiiO.ooo. The value of the city's park" system, es timated by th City Auditor on prevailing realty values at the close of 3905, was room building which has been greatly overcrowded d"urins the past year. Residents In the vicinity have been clamoring for better school, facilities, especially as the building is old and in poor repair. The old structure will soon be abandoned for one of six rooms. The 'Williams Avenue Sohool will probably be the first of the old build ings replaced. A new aita is being secured, as the present one Is inade quate, and the building is so old that it is worth little. On the Peninsula there Is also .a demand for a new structure to take the place of the present schoolhouse. In all the cases cited the new build ings will bo on the East Side, as it is there that the greatest demand for new schools is found. In' fact tha Ter wllliger building at Fulton will prob ably be the only West Side structure changed. With the opening of the East Side High School next month, rooms in the Ladd and Atkinson schools, now occupied by classes above the grammar grades, will be available aniKwill re lieve the pressure on that aide of the river. What extensions of "the school sys tem will be made within the next few years can only be surmised. If the suburban district's of the East Side continue, to grow as rapidly in the fu ture as they have during the past year, the expenditure for construction work will reach a very high figure. The en tire movement shows the rapid strides with which the city is forging ahead In population and tells in its own way the story of hundreds of new dwellings springing up in the outlying districts. 5 kU i Wife " - K : iS5:! I kf !. 3c i 1,252,!00. Purlng the post year, realty has advanced at least one-third in all portions of the city, uoon which basis the parks would now have a value, of tI,6S9.60t. Besides the parks already men a. - PURE WATER IS PORTLAND'S PRIDE Abundant Supply Piped to City From Bull Run River, an Ice Cold Mountain Torrent THE fame of Portland's Bull Run water has spread far and wide, and there is perhaps no aBset on whicn the city can more justly pride itself than the ' purity and sufficiency of its water supply. At present there are 22,500,000 gallons of absolutely purs water flowing into tha reservoirs of tha city each day, enough to fully sup ply the needs of the present popula tion. Portland, however, is experienc ing an era of unprecedented growth. Planning, therefore, for the future rather than the present, it is probable that before the year Just begun has closed another treat conduit, which will be double the capacity of the system, will be under construction. The source of Portland's water sup ply 1 the Bull Run River, a rapid mountain stream, heading In a lake of the same name, at an elevation of 3500 feet seven miles northwest of the summit of Mount Hood. The lake is fed by Icy springs. From the lake it flows through a channel in solid basalt, gushing forth 35J feet below to form Bull Run River. The conduit through which the water comes to Portland takes water from ? - "ft- V 4j t 3 tioned, there is land for this purpose aet part In Albina, and Ladd's Addition and Columbia Park, Governor's Park, Terwll ligcr Park and Fulton Park. A. plan fostered by a local organljiaytm contemplates bonding the city for J1.000, 000 to be spent for parks, boulevards and one sightly hridge across the "Willamette River. Th scheme Includes the construc tion of a scenic skylins boulevard along the river at an elevation of 720 feet above the city datum, and 21 miles distant. The carrier Is a riveted steel pipe, varying from 12 to 33 inches In diameter, and emptying in reservoir No. l at Mount Tabor, which has a capacity of 12,000,000 gallons and an elevation of 110 feet. The supply for East Portland and Lower Albina is stored in reservoir No. 2, at the base of Mount Tabor, with a capacity of 20,500,000 gallons. That for West Portland flows through two cast-iron mains, and empties into reservoir No. 3, of 16,003,000 gallons capacity, lo cated in the City Park. The high sur face mains are supplied from this di rect, but those for low ground run from reservoir No. 1, with a capacity of IS, 000.000 gallons, also in the City Park. In passing from reservoir No. 3 to reservoir No. 4 the water furnishes power to pump the supply for Port land Heights and Willamette. Heights. The project of laying another con duit with a capacity of 15,000,003 gal lons dal)y from Bull Run la now re ceiving serious consideration. and bonds for this purpose will probably be voted at the municipal election next June. A report covering this plan was recently prepared by Chief Engineer Clarke, who estimates the cost of he pipe laid and completed at 11.465,00), IB if V o4 jSk ' ? - ortlajid Relgbta, from which a super view of the city, river and snow-capped mountains would be had. Along the routi of this boulevard park sites would be laid out, and others would be located on the! East Side. Among the projects of this character most favorably considered at this time Is the purchase of a large tract for park purposes on the summit of Mount Tabor. with additional reservoir construction bringing the outlay up to $2,530,000. The conduit will vary In diameter from 51 t? 12 inches. For this, as well as the present line, there will be an abundant supply of water, even at the lowest stage of Bull Run River. No municipal problem Is of more im portance than that of pure water. In selecting a home no question is given greater weight. The fact that Port land has an abundance of water, proved absolutely pure by chemical test, and which, In addition, is cool and palatable, even in the warmest weather, gives it an advantage over nearly all other cities of metropolitan size In the United States. That the quality of the water will be main tained Is guaranteed by the fact that the source Is protected by a forest reserve of 222 square miles, including the entire watershed. During the past year the distribut ing system has been greatly extended, the most Important addition being a 21-inch main which supplies the High land district and the Peninsula. This was completed in November at a cost of $225,000, and will provide complete relief from the scarcity of water felt In this district last Summer because of the poor distributing system. Other extensions will be made, the aim be ing to meet every need of a growing city. At present all expenses of the water system are paid by the consumers. A movement is now on foot, however, to amend the city charter so that a por tion of the coat will be borne by property owners. Schemes have been presented, which If adopted, will throw the cot for extensions upon property ownera .
