Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1908-12-19
AFTER THE NEW
FIXTURE FACTORY
Committee Will Take Up
Matter at Once.

az the meeting of the Americus
Board of Trade on Thursday night
Mr.. A. N. Walker, Sect Crockett and
Mr. Thomas Gamble, were appointed
a special committee to take up the
matter of locating factory here for
j the manufacturing of gas and electric
fixtures.
The matter was brought to the at
tention of the Board by Mr.. Walker
president of the Americus Railway
ana Light Company, who stated that
after some correspondence with him
Mr. Sterling, representative of
Philadelphia concern engaged in the
manufacture of such fixtures, had
come to Americus, gone over the
| city expressed himself as well
pleased with it, and desired to know
what Americus would do for him if
he arranged to establish such an in
dustry here.
Mr.. Walker stated that it was his
understanding that Mr. Sterling did
not ask the local people to subscribe
for the stock of the concern What
was wanted was a site and exemp-
tion from taxation for a period of say
lVe years. The plant would cost
about $4,000, would give employ
ment at the beginning to between go
and 70 men, and could be expanded
TO employ $50. The labor engaged
in the industry is skilled, earning
good wages, and white, and the pay
roll for Is white hands would be
about 81 800 week.
The feeling of those present was
that the people of Americus would
probably be willing to donate a site
for the industry and that a fund
could easily be raised sufficient to
pay all taxes on the plant for a
period of five years; so that a guar
antee of both site and exemption
from taxation for that period could
be given to Mr.. Sterling and his as
sociates by the committee. 1t was
felt that there would be no trouble
in doing this if it was assured that
the plant would come here. The
committee will take the matter up at
once with Mr. Sterling.
Attention was directed by this
matter to the fact that if Americus
is to secure industries it must be
in position to offer sites and practi-
cal exemption from taxation. Some
cities have secured the latter end by
drawing in their city limits, so as to
leave a certain factory district out
side where new industries could be
located and be free from city tax
. alton. Such a thing could probably
be readily done for Americas by the
amendment of it's charter by the
Legislature changing the city limits,
if it could be decided where factories
could best be located to advantage
At the present time, though, the
most available way to meet this re-
quirement would be for citizens to
raise a fund adequate to pay the
taxes on the proposed new plant,
deposit it in bank for that purpose,
and every year for the first five
years pay the taxes, leaving the in
dustry entirely free of that expense.
There is no factory for the making
of gas and electric fixtures in the
South except one small one in New
Orleans. 1t is believed one could be
successfully operated here. The
cost of the raw materials is a minor
part of the expense of the manufac
tured article, the main item of cost
in such fixtures being the skilled
work that has been put upon them.
For that reason such factory could
be operated just as successfully
here as in any other city, and would
enjoy some advantages here that
would probably be lacking in a large
city.