Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-07-11
PUBLIC OWNERSHIP IN WlNNI.
aff PEG ae
Towns Remarkable Success in Man
aging Ventures.


Before the close OF 1911 Winnipeg will
be looked upon as the greatest exponent
of public ownership on the American
continent. 1t Will have by that time an
investment of over $300OO0oo.
1t is nearly quarter of a century ago
since the city council laid the fouGda-
tions of this program by buying out the
Winnipeg waterwerks company, and !
from that day the, citizens of this city |
have been supplied with civic water and !
civic rates. So successful did the venture
prove that when the city decided to lay
asphalt pavements some years later it
was decided to install a municipal as
phalt plant, and the many miles of pave
ment in this city have been laid from
the products of this plant
Whenever new street is to be paved
with asphalt the city calls for bids for
the work At first several firms rendered.
but their figures could not compare with
the estimates of the city engineer, so the
city did the work by day labor. Once,
however. a private firm secured the con-
tract for asphalting a street, but tho
work was so poorly done that 1t had to
be pulled up and reaid by the city a
year later. despite the fact that it had
been little used.
Today all the streets In the business
districts and many of those i'm outlying
sections are paved with asphalt which
has proved eminently satisfactory, des-
pite the excessive cold during the winter
months and the summer heat.
From the small steam pumping plant
which supplied Winnipeg with water
from the Assiniboin river the waterworks
system has grown into seven artesian
wells and 10 pumping engines. The aver
age daily consumption is approximately
100000 gallons. against the daily capaci-
~ of 100000 gallons. In 10 years the
population of Winnipeg has grown from
| so sos 10 i7Ao00. and tue city fathers look
ing for a corresponding if not greater
increase during the next 10 years are
now arranging for sinking two more ar
tesian wells
For fire purposes the city has hgn-
pressure plant which pumps water from
| the Red river in specially constructed
mains 1t has a capacity of 1900 gallons
minute and cost slightly more than
| 81, 600 eco. including mains. hydrants. ma
chinery, etc In all, Winnipeg's water
] works system has stood the city barely
IS. 600
Troubles with the Winnipeg electric
company. which controls the street rail-
way. gas. electric light and power fran
chises here resulted in the city voting
s.. 0o0 900 for a municipal power plant to
be erected on the Winnipeg river 50 miles
| from here. The plant has taken two
years to build and will be ready for
operation by July / of this year.
With the near completion of this plant
and the prospects of the city building its
own street railway system, Sir William
| Mackenzie. president of the Winnipeg
electric. who with Sir Donald Mann Is
owner of the Canadian Northern railroad
system. made an offer to the city. Both
parties to the negotiations were very
reticent for some days over the terms of
the offer. but it has been announced that
the company offered to turn over all the
bonds of the company at 251 making the
purchase price some Sls0oOG0o
At the last meeting of the city council.
W Sanford Evans. mayor, announced
that application will be made at once to
the Manitoba Parliament. permitting the
city to buy out the Winnipeg electric
company. with all it's plants. works,
| holdings and franchises. Last year the
company made a net profit of over $1,000
600. after paying the city per cent. of its
gross earnings and taxes. so by buying
the holdings of the company at s1S.eoo-
900 the city will make a profit of more
than II per cent. under present condi-
tions
Winnipegs telephone system is also
conducted under public ownership. for 1t
| is portion of the system extending all
over the province and owned by the
Manitoba government. In this city there
are more than 1900 telephones, the rates
being S24 a year for residences and AS
for office telephones.
Winnipeg owns its stone quarries in
the vicinity of the city, and there under
staff of civic employees mines the pro-
ducts for paving the macadam streets
and crushed stone Tor many purposes.
A force of city employees also collect
the garbage and refuse and take it to the
civic incnerators for destruction and
when a Winnipegger dies he can be
| buried if he so wills in the municipal
cemetery.
The success of municipal ownership in
Winnipeg. for every utility has shown
profit under civic management, has urged
other western cities to action along the
same lines and many of the public utili-
ties in Edmonton, Calgary. Regina, Sas-
katoon. Medicine Hat and dozen small
err places are owned by the people.
There is now but little more for Winni-
peg to own in the way of public conven-
fences 1t already has several large
parks and some two dozen smaller ones
but now that the opening of st. Andrews
Rapids has made navigation on the Red
river possible the city has let a contract
fora large wharf within the city limits.
and several of the city fathers have
been inquirng the cost of barges with a
view to bringing down wood from the
far North for the municipal wood yards.
Winnipeg Manitoba correspondence of
the New York Herald