Omaha daily bee., 1899-03-09
PURCHASE OF WATER PLANT
Southwest Improvement Club Listens to
John Jeffooat.
MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP IS DISCUSSED
Value of the system and Cost to the
City Arc Explained, the Fig
urcs BcinE Pro-
duccu.
MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP IS DISCUSSED

The Southwest Improvement club held its
customary weekly meeting last night and
after the transaction of the usual business
requiring attention listened to an address
on the Municipal Ownership of the Water
works. by John Jeffcoat.
The secretary read an invitation from H.
Z. Moores of the Kansas City, Pittsburg *
Gulf road to visit Port Arthur on March o.
when an excursion will be run. Transpor-
taton will be furnished as far as Kansas
City, the round trip from there to be SIS.
The chairman was authorized to appoint
a committee Of five to visit Lincoln Friday
to meet the Douglas county delegation and
protest against the passage Of the Omaha
charter. The committee will be appointed
today.
Mr.. Jeffcoat in commencing his address
reviewed the establishment of the Omaha
waterworks system and its cost under the
original contract. He stated that the con-
tract was dated July 20. $780, and provided
for $50 hgdrants at $S4 each annually. They
were to be placed 400 feet apart and in
termediate hydrants were to cost $40 each.
Any additional hydrants put in as an eX-
tension of the original system were to cost
$50 each. He said at the present time the
city has 1,149 hydrants, which cost $50 each
annually and ffty-eight which cost $40 each,
600. He said the right to make or order ex-
the cause of constant war, as the water
works company does not like to make eX-
tensions which will not pay.
Regarding: the Franchises.
The original franchise was for twenty five
years, with clause providing that the city
could purchase the system at the end of
w tn bn NJ tpI
to appraise the value of the system He
said if this were done it might be found
difficult to reaCh a correct valuation, as it is
generally understood that the capital stock
would represent the valuation placed upon
the plant by its owner. This, he argued,
was not true, as the real value would be
the bonded indebtedness with perhaps a
liberal allowance for it's earning power. 1t
bad been estimated, he said, that the value
of the plant at present time is about $500,
600. Mayor Broatch placed 1t at S3000,0OO
If the city purchased the plant, he said, it
would cost very little to operate 1t, as he
believed the income would run the city gov
ernment. He quoted San Francisco and
New Orleans as the only other cities of any
size which do not own their waterworks
systems.
Mr.. Jeffcoat read the ordinances approv-
had been made. In closing he said the
system can be purchased by the city at the
expiration of the year ending July 90, 1900,
according to the ordinance of approval He
read the clause from the present charter
which provides that no ordinance extending
the present franchise shall be passed until
after it has been advertised for two weeks
and then it may not be adopted without an
annuity being provided for the city, This
clause specifies further, he stated, that it
must be submitted TO the electors and
majority must be found to favor an eX-
tension before the council may act.
Speeches fayoring the purchase of the
system by the city were made by II. T.
Clarke, John Redman, John Butler and
others They insisted upon the election or
men who would represent the best interests
of the city when the question of new
franchise was brought before them.