16 University of Kansas

wiring, and lighting improvement. The list of such needs enumerated by the
Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds exceeds $100,000.

19. GrapInc AND LaNpscaPING MrineraL Resources Buimwpinac. A special
item of $5,000 is requested for grading, landscaping and constructing sidewalks
around the new Mineral Resources building. These improvements are needed
to give the fine new building .a proper setting and make it readily accessible to
students, faculty, and visitors.

20, 21, 22. New Bumopines. Three special building appropriations are re-
quested to provide an addition to the Watson Library, a new engineering shop,
and the remodeling of Fowler hall for journalism. The amount requested in
each case is the State Architect’s estimate of cost.

 

WATSON LIBRARY WITH STATE ARCHITECT’S SKETCH OF THE PROPOSED
STACK WING

a. Addition to Watson Library, $200,000. An addition to the Watson library
is the most urgent building need of the University. When the building was
opened in 1924 the book stacks were inadequate to accomodate the University
book holdings. In the twenty years since that date nearly 200,000 volumes
have been added to the holdings, and the surplus over stack capacity has been
handled by placing books on temporary stacks in public corridors, by over-
crowding on stack shelves, by storing 50,000 volumes in a sub-basement room
excavated for that purpose, by placing books on extra shelves in reading
rooms, and by storage in and overcrowding of branch libraries. Approximately
85,000 books are either in storage or so out of order as to be unavailable. No
room exists for new or additional books without placing more books in storage.

To remedy this situation and to provide much-needed additional reading and
reference rooms, it is proposed to extend Watson library to the west, in con-
formity with the original building plans of the State Architect.

LT Se