Houses May Get Own Self-Service Laundries

A successful self-service laundry arrangement at Kirkland has awakened interest among other House committees in the possibility of setting up an inter-House laundry system with centers at Kirkland and Leverett.

The Kirkland set-up, which has been in operation since January 11, consists of two Maytag washers and two dryers. Each machine costs 25 cents for 40 minutes, of which 5 cents goes to the House committee and the remainder is collected by the Maytag Company.

The charge of installation of the washing machines is footed by Maytag, but the House committee must pay the continuing expenses of water and electricity out of its 20 percent cut of the profits. The Kirkland House Committee can't say yet whether the plan will net them any profit, since the bills have not yet come in.

After the installation at Kirkland, all other Houses except Lowell expressed interest in getting their own laundry machines, but some problems have so far stymied their plans. The Department of Buildings and Grounds was able to install the Kirkland machines for only $389, but costs at the other Houses will be considerably higher.

Since Maytag has temporarily refused to foot so large a bill, the House Committees are working on a plan to set up two central laundry centers. The proposed Kirkland center would serve Eliot and Winthrop, and the one at Leverett would cover Lowell, Adams, and Dunster. A Maytag representative last night agreed that this may be a way to solve the problem.

Arthur D. Trottenberg '48, Operating Manager of Houses and College Dormitories, last night emphasized that the negotiations are solely between the House committees and Maytag. He stressed that the University has nothing at all to do with the agreement.