New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1916-04-05
COMMITTEES BUSY
ON HEATING II PLANS
SEVERAL PLANS SUBMITTED
SEEM TO GIVE SOLUTION
OF PROBLEM
CONSULTING ENGINEER ASKED
TO SUBMIT REPORT ON
PROPOSITION


Club are working in perfect harmony on
the municipal heating plant proposition
and at the meeting of the two bodies held
last Monday evening all it's phases were
thoroughly discussed. The Commercial
Club committee explained what investi-
cations have been made in other cities
which have installed heating plants, show
ing not only the feasibility of the pro-
position, but also the approximate cost of
the installation and the cost of deliver
ing the heat to buildings.
The council committee was informed
that the business men of the city are ready
for heating plant and that several plans
are ready for presentation. The first
one to be considered was the erection of
the plant by the city itself, but this seemed
out of the question because the city funds
are not in a condition to stand an out
lay OF such an amount of money. The
second proposition is that the business
men in the blocks on either side of First
North street advance the money to the
city, pay the city for the heating furnished
and be recompensed out of the funds de-
rived from this source. The city, of
course to have the privilege of paying up
the entire amount at any time.
The members of both committees
seemed to be in favor of assuring a
municipally-owned plant and will work
towards that end, but should this plan
fail, the business men of the two blocks
mentioned are ready with third pro-
position, which the council cannot very
well ignore if the other plans are rejected.
This plan is corporation formed by the
business men for the purpose of installing
and operating the heating plant and
system, paying the city certain stipu-
lated amount for the steam which is now
going to waste at the waterworks. This,
OF course, will only be resorted to when
efforts along other lines have failed. The
corporation would have to apply for a
franchise and enter into a contract with
the city for the exhaust steam.
According to the plans submitted by
the Commercial Club Committee only
two blocks, one on either side of First
North street are considered at the present
time, but there is nothing to hinder
the business men of the two blocks i'm
mediately north and south of this section
from getting into line and sharing pro
rata in the expenditures and benefits.
An estimate of the approximate cost
of installing plant of this character in
New Ulm has been made by the COM
mittee and it is believed that the original
cost will not exceed $4,000 for the two
blocks mentioned. AS there are between
thirty and forty business houses within
this area the investment for each one
would not be very great, in fact it is
estimated that the amount of the original
investment would be returned to each
one within five years in the way of
savings in fuel and labor, not taking
into consideration the accommodation
and convenience of having heat at any
time of the day or night by the simple
turning of valve.
The council committee yesterday
morning was in communication with the
Charles Pillsbury Co., engineers, of
Minneapolis and asked for the services
of competent consulting engineer to
come to New Ulm and submit complete
and detailed report on the proposition,
including cost of installation, price to
be charged for heat and extent of the
system under present conditions and cost
of extending the same to other parts of
the city. The engineer is expected to
be in the city within week or ten days
to begin his investigations.