The Park Governments of Chicago 139 



Repair Shops. 



1. The South and West Park Boards, especially the 

 former, are equipped with shops fully adequate to meet 

 the demands for such work for many years. Although 

 there is undoubtedly a loss of efficiency in the Lincoln 

 Park shops by reason of inadequate and scattered floor 

 space, the Board is, nevertheless, to be commended for 

 utilizing available facilities instead of incurring a large 

 expenditure for the construction of new shops; and until 

 the question of park consolidation in Chicago is settled, it 

 is suggested that no new shops be erected. 



2. It is suggested that if all mechanical and general 

 repair work of the South Park Board were placed under 

 a central head, a better co-ordination of work and greater 

 efficiency would result. 



3. At what point it ceases to be economy to do new 

 work or make repairs in park shops and becomes cheaper 

 to let it out to commercial shops cannot be determined un- 

 less adequate production costs are recorded on a unit basis 

 from year to year on the output of the park shops. In 

 none of the shops of the three Boards have such costs 

 been kept. 



4. If the several park governments were united with the 

 city government, as suggested in this report, both park and 

 city shops might then be consolidated under a central 

 management and a large annual saving effected in the cost 

 of shop operation and maintenance. 



Laundries. 



1. The South Park Board has saved a large sum of 

 money by the establishment and operation of laundries 

 for doing all its own work. Whether all five of the laun- 

 dries are on a paying basis, or whether the work should 

 be more centralized, as is done in winter, cannot be deter- 

 mined from the accounts and a separate accounting with 

 each plant is therefore suggested henceforth. 



