Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1915-07-22
VETO Of THE ORDINANCE
.Navor Returns Measure Granting
! Franchise to Chesapeake And
!: Potomac Telephone Co.

session of the City Council granting
To the Chesapeake and Potomac Co.
o franchise to operate telephone
svsten1 in the city Of Alexandria for
term. of 25 years. The franchise was
granted after it had been advertised
Tho Chesapeake and Potomac Com
nanv was the only bidder and they
agreed to maintain the present fire
|. alarm system and to, give the city the
nse of twelve free telephones for It's
various departments. They also
agreed to lay 1900 feet of un-
derground conduit during the Ire OF
| the franchise.
Mavor Fisher in a communication
| to D. R. Stansbury, Clerk Of Council
1returns the ordinance without, his
| approval in which he says:
1 81 am returning to the City Coun-
ell without my approval an ordinance
granting the Chesapeake. and Poto-
| mac Telephone Company franchise
4 for twenty five years.
at is claimed by those who ask
/ this concession of the rights OF i
citv that the benefits accorded US are
so liberal that we should not doubt
the outome, so far. as it effects the
future. and it is the future that L
affected by the legislation. l am no.
Il unmindful that the matter has beer
before committees who have consld-
cred the grants from its various as
meets. and given it intelligent anG
careful study, yet, have not been
able to understand why in this age
of Improvement and intervention the
city should chain itself in perpetulty
to the Chesapeake and Potomac TEL
ephone Company. 1t must be re-
membered that it is this company
which has been asking for the grant:
and if the city is for all time to have
it's streets subjected to the danger
Gus and unsightly poles and wires
used by railroad, electric company
telegraph and telephone companle:,
and private alleys used for overhead
construction by these companies, the
promise of the Chesapeake and Poto'
mac Telephone Company of a limltea
conduit system might be postpone
Euntir some efforts are made to ria
Yourselves of the wires and poles c.
the principal streets, costly as it may
Iappear.
"In summarizing what is claimed
1--WE will receive as the result of this
franchise l quote from letter of
Mr.. Gardner L.. Boothe to me, ard
do so in order that the public as well
as Council appraise the price paid
for the concession. Mr.. Boothe writes
First: That the rates for the twelva
| free telephones offered by the COM
pany to the City Council of Alexan~
dria would be forty eight dollars
| (S4S)) for each phone, so that the
| free phone service offered will amount
to at least five hundred and seventy
six dollars (S576) per annum. Sec
ond: AS to the service which will
be given the city under contract, to be
used by it for fire alarm purposes, it
lis estimated that similar fire alarm
system would cost the city in the
neighborhood of one thousand dol
lars S1,OOO,0O) per annum, making
total bid, if figured in dollars anG
cents. of at least fifteen hundred and
seventy six dollars (s1,576.O0) per
annum. In addition to this, the
company is liable to license tax,
which las t year amounted to two
hundred and thirty two dollars and
forty nine cents 1882 49), and to a
property tax, which last year amount
/ ed to three hundred and nineteen dol
lars and twenty four cents, (s319-34)
II will not comment on the forty
eight dollars (S4S00) for each tele-
phone, nor the estimated cost of one
thousand dollars (s1,00000) for fire
alarmy system; this is something that
perchance all would not be of one
mind. As to the matter Of licenses
and taxes it requires no stretch Of
the imagination to reach the con.
T clusion that the telephone company
K pay only as do others in the way Of
taxes-viz., what is imposed by law.
In conclusion you will remember I
attached a memorandum dated May
\ 18th, 1915, to this ordinance author
i izing the advertising of the fran
chise, and allowed it (the ordinance)
to become effective without my ap.
4 proval.
II