The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1921-02-18
SEWERAGE COMPANY
CAN'T BLUFF GATHER
Mayor Gather and Aldermen Not Scared bv CrV
of Bankruptcy From Sewerage Co.-Mu- :
nicipal Ownership Issue Suddenly
Revived

Elizabeth City does not admit
the right of the Elizabeth City
Sewerage Co. to suddenly aban-
don its service and leave the city
without sewerage facilities. Eliz-
abeth City will not be forced in
to the purchase of the sewerage
system and this administration
will, if necessary, appropriate the
property of the Elizabeth City
Sewerage. Co. and operate the
system for the people. Such
briefly is the attitude of the city
administration in regard to the
recent move of the Elizabeth City
Sewerage Co., as expressed in an
interview granted this newspap-
er by Mayor Gather this week.
After playing with the Elizabeth City
public for. years and making many pro-
misses which were never fulfilled and pro
badly we're not intended to be fuleiiin J.
the Elizabeth City Sewerage Co. an
nounced last Saturday that it would dis
continue its service after March 1, 1921
and expressed the hope that the city
would take the sewerage system off the
company's hands on some fair and rea-
sonable basis The announcement was
made over the name of the president of
the company. His name is Crook.
The company admits that it is insol-
vent and can not undertake the neces-
sary improvements to put its business
on paying basis and render the service
called for by it's franchise from the city.
The company claims to have done bus
mess of only about 5000 last year. on
an operating expense of about $4,000.
And there is very little operating ex-
pense attached to the sewerage system
as it is. Only two small pumping sta
tons operated by electric motors are
required to keep the system going, and
these stations require no other atten-
ton than occasional inspection. Ex-
cept for infrequent periods of extreme
Iv dry weather no other water is requir=
ed for flushing these sewers than the
water that is flushed into the sewers
bv water consumers. The sewers are
in bad shape and utterly inadequate for
the citys requirements.
The admission of insolvency by the
company will enable the city to call for
a recevership for the company and ope-
rate the system under recelvershlp un-
til some other arrangement for sewer
age can be made. The city has en-
ployed Hon. J. G.. B. Ehringhaus to as
sist City Attorney W. L.. Cohoon in deal
ing with the situation.
The action of the Sewerage Co. has
aroused the Elizabeth City publiczto the
question of municipal ownership of it's
public utilities and the Board of Alder
men are about convinced that the city S
only way out is to build its own electric
light. water and sewerage systems. Such
a venture in municipal ownership will
cost the city a half million dollars,
which looks like a big undertaking on
top of a bond issue of 100000 for
schools. But Mayor Gather, himself
a banker and financier of no mean abll-
ity. has been doing some tall figuring
and it is his confident opinion that
half million dollar bond issue for light,
power water and sewerage would make
no increase in the city's tax rate, since
the very money now paid by the city
for electric light and water would pay
the interest on the bonds. Instead of
calling for more revenue, these utilities
properly conducted would net the city
revenue and pay for themselves in a
comparatively few years.
1t is the opinion of Mayor Gather
and his legal advisers that authority for
the issuance of such bonds is found in
the Municipal Finance Act of the 1917
General Assembly and no special legis-
lative act is required to enable the city
to proceed to acquire it's own public util-
tiles. The city already has preliminary
plans in hand covering its light, water
and sewerage problems.