The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1903-09-10
A MUNICIPAL PROBLEM
How Can a City's Indebtedness
Be Controlled
IT IS Up TO CLEVELAND NOW.

a Special Election Called TO Issue
$1,000, 900 Bonds, with $11 ,OoO,-
600 Additional In Sight--A Propo"
s,tion That ls Not Good Busiress.
Cleveland, o.. Aug. 21.-(Special.)--
An agitation has started in this city
that can not fail to attract interest
throughout the state. The citizens are
realizing the necessity OF controlling
the amount of public indebtedness for
which their property can be mort
gagged and the purposes for which 1t
shall be mortgaged
The city's debt Is now more than
$40, ,000, 900, In addition to which there
is county debt which must be paid
almost entirely by the city.
The city council has passed ordi-
nances and called a special election
for the purpose of voting bonds to the
amount Of S1,900.000, to be used as
follows: Municipal lighting plant,
100000; high level bridge, 100000;
street openings, 100000; Clark ave-
nue. bridge, 100000; parks, 100000;
West Side boulevard, 100000.
1t will be seen at once that this list
includes many purposes that must be
very popular with the people anc
which can not be supplied in any way
other than as q public undertaking,
and that 1t also includes purposes that
can not be of service to more than a
very limited portion of the city, and
that can be supplied without recourse
to revenues derived from taxpayers.
Another feature which is the cause OF
much anxiety to the citizens is the
| fact that the amount called for in this
bond issue are only sufficient to make
beginning in the development of the
undertakings. 1t is already estimated
that the final cost will run up to S11,-
100000, but there is no assurance that
1t can be stopped at that point. and
the impression is gaining ground daily
that the only line of safety for the
citizens is not to begin.
The force of this conclusion will be
admitted when the proposal to install
municipal electric lighting plant for
the purposes of serving private users
as we'll as street lighting, Is consider.
ed either as question Of public policy
or as business proposition.
On the question Of public policy a
special committee of the Cleveland
Chamber of Commerce, having had
the subject under consideration, has
reported as follows: "A proposition
to levy tax that Is not for the COM
mon interest of all, but which has
reference to the special benefits to be
conferred on a comparatively few,
namely, the users Of the city's COM
mercial lighting service, involves an
improper use Of the taxing power"
When considered as a business
proposition it is difficult for well in
formed citizens to understand what
| VA SlLSlCiSJ Sdh SOll'
manded by the city administration
that will enable 1t to render lighting
service at less than it costs the exist
ing private corporation to produce it
Common observation does not show
that the city pays its employees less
employs them for longer hours and
gets more service for the wages paid
than private corporations do. The
people of Cleveland will be aided In
their investigation of this subject by
the experience of Columbus, Hamil
ton, Xenia and other cities in the
state which have undertaken to work
out this industrial miracle.
Columbus started to operate n mu
nicipal lighting plant, for street light
ing only, in 1899, which cost $68, 1000
The plant was operated 16 months
and then closed down because 1t was
proven that the city could not furnish
Its own light at price as low as that
contracted for by a private corpora
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