The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1919-11-20
Let Us Try Business Administration!

AT called meeting of the city commissioners of Ard
more held in the council chamber at the city hall yester
day afternoon stated that drastic action would be
taken IN the matter of the completion of the waterwoks
pipe line that the Ardmore Construction Company had
tailed neglected and refused to enghen the city commits
sion and the mayor to its intentions the matter that
although the pipe line had not been completed, after
months lad expired following the awarding Of the con-
tract the company, representative of the company
had drawn from the city treasury excess of the
contract price to be charged for the construction this
pipe line from point of intake on Hickory creek where
dam supposed to be constructed to the city lake O.
Ardmore that the construction company does not intend
to complete the work of construction upon this pipe line
and the city of Ardmore has to do So of raising
the funds necessary to defay the expenses of this action
must be devised.
The Ardmoreie does not hold brief for the Ardmore
CONSTRUCTION Company 1t is not therefore, for to say
whether or not that company has complied with the pro-
visions of its contract.
But, if the statements made by the mayor and the
board of commissioners at the called meeting Tuesday
afternoon are true, and neither affirming nor
denying hem then has become more patent than ever
that Ardmore, city, and the taXpayng public of Ard
more need and should demand business administration
of the citys affairs.
grossly derect in the dschage of their duties that any
representative no matter whom of the Ardmore Construc
tion Company Of any other concern permitted
to oVerdraw the amount of his contract price and that this
was done before the beginning of the end of the
petlon work was in sight then becomes selfevdcnt,
aMomatlc that Ardmore and Ardmore taxpayers should
put Ardmores affairs in the hands of competent
executive.
The city council form of government has been tried in
different cities and found failure the commission form
had been tried and found to be far under 100 per eff
clent Under both forms of government the money of the
taxpayers has been reckleSsy expended without SEEM
ing thought of results.
In the city of Ardmore eliminating the matter now at
issue between the city administration and the Ardmore
Construction Company tens of thousands of dollars
been expended in the name of water and better
water and sure water and water for fire projections and
what have the people the taxpayers the fellows who nav
the freight got to show for it?
According to the statement bearing the signature of
the present of Ardmore the same appears in an
other column of this issue of The Acknowledgements
We ask then, in the name of common sense in the
name Of ordinary intelligence, how much longer will the
man Mr. Jones, the who pays the freight" be con-
tent to sit supnely by and the money which he pays in
as taxes to defay the cs expenses scattered to the four
winds of the heavens?
We ask if it is the mark of plain business acumen
upon the part of Mr. Jones' to permit his money to be
buried month after month"; year after year in the oozy
DOGGY bottom OF the City Lake. sent there in search of
water and bringing forth nothing succeeding state
ments We are nearly out of water. "Ardmore's
supply is fast approaching the danger line" "Give us
wipes Ardmore off the face of the earth
We ask, Is this good business?
Ardmore has tried the council and the commission
forms of government.
The council form proved to be a frost: the commission
form seems to be several degrees below zero
So and we ask the question all candor is it not high
time that the people of Ardmore the taxpayers of Ard
more the numerous Mr. Joneses" of Ardmore Mr Jones
who pays the freight get away from systems of govern
men which spell wifu waste before the stage of woefu
want shall be reached?
If the City Manager Plan will solve the problem is it
not about time for Ardmore to give it a tryout?