Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-02-07
v. "A. LEASED To
n. {. & st. |.
FOR FIFTY
YEARS

ATLANTA, Ca, Feb. THE West
ern & Atlantic railroad. which Is the
property of the state of Georgia, has
been leased to the Nashville, Chatta-
rooga and st. Louis railroad, which is
the present lessee, for term of fifty
years, at an annual rental of $500
or $4,000 month.
The lease was agreed on late yester-
day afternoon by the Western G At
lantic leasing commission and officials
Oh the Nashville, Chattanooga and St.
Louis railroad. The lease will be for
mally signed and executed in a few
days.
The plaza clause, which the city OF
Atlanta requested the leasing commits
sion to incorporate in the lease, was
omitted. The commission explains
that 1t wanted to incorporate the
clause, but the Nashville, Chattanooga
&, st. Louis, which was the only bid
Ger, strenuously objected and threat
ened to withdraw its bid If the COM
mission insisted on the clause.
The first bid submitted by the Nash
Vile, Chattanooga & st. Louis. which
is subsidiary of the Louisville C
Nashville, of which Milton H. Smith Is
president, was $4S0,000 a year, fat.
with no taxes to be paid by the lessee
and no improvements to be made. The
leasing commission succeeded in fore
ing the bidder to raise its price to
the above stated sum of $4,000
year, and also to include in the lease
the following requirements.
Improvements and Taxes.
The lessee must expend not less
than 100000 year in permanent Inn
provements and betterments. While
the nature Of these is not specified, 1t
is contemplated that they will proba-
bly, consist in double tracking certain
portions of the road, Strengthening
curves, cutting down grades, building
better bridges, etc. No improvements
are required in the present lease.
The state Of Georgia rserves tn
us of two pieces of property in Chat
tanooga, Tenn, now used unuer the
old lease by the lessee. One is occu-
pied by the Eastern Hotel and the
other by the Southern Express Com
pany. Their estimated rental value is
from $4,000 to $4,000 a year.
The lessee must pav ad yalorem
taxes on rolling stock to the estimated
state, and must pay ad valorem taxes
amount of $1,000 year direct to the
on rolling stock to counties, munich
palities and school districts to the es-
t;mated amount OF $4,000 year
The present lease requires that the
lessee only pay income taxes amount
ing to $1,42O year to the state.
The lessee must pay all taxes due
the state of Tennessee on the portion
of the road situated in that state
amounting to an estimated total of
$4,000 a year. The amount of these
taxes under the present lease is about
SIS 900 a year, and are now paid by
the lessee.
All of these payments added togeth-
er, bring the total cost of the road to
the lessee to $653,O0O a year, as
ag gainst a total cost under the present
lease of $55,4S2 year.
when Lease Begins.
The present lease of the Western &
expires on December %, 1919.
The new lease will begin on that date
and will run for fifty years to Decem-
Der 81, 1869. The total amount of
money to be expended for permanent
and betterments in the
term of the lease is $4,000, 900. The to-
tai rental to be paid is $27.OOO,O 900. The
total taxes to be paid during the term
of the lease, on the above conservative
are 100000. The total taxes
to be paid the state of Tennessee dur
ing the term of the lease on the above
a n