Evening journal., 1911-03-28
FRANCHISE
IS GRANTED
Will Pay City z Per Cent. Of
Their Gross Earnings
Yearly
10 CENTS PER KILOWAT
CHARGE FOR CURRENT

Directors Of the Street and Sewer
Department this morning granted
franchises applied for by the viii
mington City Electric Company,
whose lessees are the Wilmington and
Philadelphia Traction Company. Di-
rector Gray not voting.
President Crosby. Of the Traction
Company. was present at the third
reading Of the resolution. Previous
TO the third reading, type-writton
copy Of the franchise application was
made the subject of a half hours
whispered consultation between the
Directors
After the reading, President Sparks.
Of the Board. made the statement that
application for the franchise had been
made many weeks ago. that the Board
had taken many weeks TO study out
conditions and had mapped out many
things as incorporated in the appiica-
tion, when a halt was called. The
] Wilmington Legislature delegation of
seven members at this point asked
the Street and Sewer Board to with
hold action until they had met with
the Board. The delegation met with
the Street and Sewer Directors and
with President Crosby early in the
| Legislative session. Since then, said
/ President Sparks. the Board had not
heard a word from the delegation, al
though II had iuterceded with the
delegations chairman. secretary, and
an individual member to take some
stops.
Since that meeting, President
/ Sparks said, the Street and Sewer
Department has found, greatly to its
surprise and that Of the Traction Com
pany, that the Wilmington and Phila-
delphia Traction Company already
! possesses unlimited and unrestricted
powers to operate i'm the city The
company's predecessors. whose rights
they possess. were granted consent
Of the Board in 1887, unlimited and
unrestricted. giving them all the
powers asked for IN the present fran
chise, without limit or restriction.
Also, said President Sparks. the old
City Council, before the days of the
Street and Sewer Department. grant
ed to the Fort Wayne Electric Com
pany whose rights the Wilmington
and Philadelphia Traction Company
have succeeded to. an unlimited and
unrestricted franchise. which IS still
valid. The Wilmington and Philadel-
phia Traction Company, he said, can
do business under either or both these
grants with no restrictions except
those imposed by the general law.
President Sparks said that as a
substitute for these earlier grants. he
preferred the present application for
a franchise as better serving the in
terests of the city.
Unfair Treatment, Says Sparks.
President Sparks said emphatically
that he did not think the board had
been fairly or properly treated by the
legislative delegation who had COM
pletely ignored the directors. He
said that he wished all important
matters to be cleaned up before the
meeting of the new board next week.
and incidentally praised Director
Gray for his harmonious relations
with the work OF the board.
Before the passage of the fran
chise. an amendment was made
changing the appointment of the
arbitration committee Of three Origi-
nally one member was to be appoint
ed by the cor aany. one by the de-
partment and tha third by those two,
It was objected that the technical man
appointed by the company and the
business man appointed by the depart
ment would never agree. AS amend
ed. the resident judge is authorized
to appoint an arbitration committee oI
three members as in a condemnation
of streets, but as he cannot be COM
PEELED to do so. I'm event of his re-
fusal, the original arrangement Is
made an alternative.
The adopted franchise restricts the
Traction Company to charge Of II
cents per kilowatt hour. and makes
them pay to the city per cent OF
their gross receipts. The franchises
also give the company the right e
construct and operate their lines
within the city limits.