The Marietta journal and courier. (Marietta, Ga.) 1909-1918, 1916-05-05
MAYOR BRuMBY WRITES
CARD ON WATER DEAL
To the Citizens and water customers
of the City Water Works:


and Lights leased the Kennesaw Pa
per Company's water plant. |, as
your Mayor, objected to this, but
was overruled. herein give you my
reason for my action.
The leasing of this plant does not
protect the insurance rate, and as
could see no other reason for the
lease, objected to it.
l feel it my duty to inform the
people of the intentions of this
Board, as their meetings are closed
to the public. 1t is the Boards in
tention to discontinue the artensian
wells and to turn the Kennesaw
Paper water into our mains. They
claim it is too expensive to pump our
wells and for that reason. they are
to be abandoned Perhaps this is
economical, but many think it very
unsafe from sanitary point of view,
and | think the people should be Civ
en- voice in the matter, and be left
to choose which water they shall pre-
fer, and not be forced to take the
Kennesaw water against their will.
If our plant shows a loss, | am in
favor of raising the price of that
water, and meeting this deficit in
that way, and using the Kenensaw
water for sprinkling purposes, and
ours fer drinking In the new ar
rangement, this will not be left to
the individual, but is forced on them
and what is worst of all, the lease
contract makes it impossible for our
customers to get KenneSaW water for
ten cents a thousand gallons, but
they will have to pay twenty-five
cents per thousand, when they could
have gotten it, without the lease,
for ten cents. This is evidently un-
fair to those who are now using our
water. l objected to it, and feel JUS
titled in doing 50.
The buying of the Kennesaw light
plant has not made the profit that it
was evidently expected to do. For
some reason, (and the Board has not
Investigated it, power bills from the
Georgia Railway & Power Company
have gone up over seven hundred
it was last year, while the income
has not increased but eight hundred
and twenty-five dollars per month
This only shows about $500 profit
per month by making this ST., 100000
purchase, so as see it, the total pro
fit derived from this purchase does
not even pay the interest on the
SIS, 100000 purchase money. Besides
they agreed to pay 100000 per
year, which is $4,000 per month.
In December the board made some
100000 net profit, while in March
they show a net loss of $4,000. Can
any one explain this? Where is the
advantage. Of buying out competi
ton? Some one evidently figured
wrong for these facts are shown on
their books. People are paying more
for lights now than then. With
twenty-eight thousand dollars in
ucbt, and a loss each month, where
are. our water and light plants going
to end? All these figures show the
city's bill for street lights and fire
protection, and even if the city paws
money into this department, still it
would show a loss
This department is in a critical
condition. and those at the head Of
it should acknowledge that they
have made a failure of it. This saw
ing money on water pumping is the
last desperate effort to protect the
Board from financial disaster The
sentiment of part of this Board seems
to be that the people have no right
to a knowledge of these facts but
think differently, and, therefore,
have submitted this card
Yours respectfully,
J. r. BRUMBY, JR., Mayor.