The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-07-03
LAST CONTRACT
ISAWARDED0N
CITY'S PLANT
City Commission Purchases
Full Diesel Engine for Fur
nishing Power in New Plant
BIG MAIN IS CHANGED
Will be Brought in on Avenue
G Instead of Broadway, it
Is Decided

last night, purchased the full Diesel
Mcintosh and Seymour engine to
furnish power for the new city wa
ter plant, and in doing so completed
all the major contracts that will he
entered into in connection with the
new plant.
The contracts include first the
purchase of the old plant, contract
for cast iron for main extensions,
contract for installing them, con-
tract for filtration plant building
construction, for heating plant con-
struction, for installation of ma
chinery in the filtration plant, con-
tract for pumps and for the Diesel
engine. The total cost of the plant
is not yet known, because some
changes have been made in the
mains and others may be made,
which affect two contracts. 1t will
be between 100000 and $65O,OOO, it
is expected.
Under the contracts as let the city
plant will be entirely city-owned,
from producing power'to pumping
water, to putting it at the consum-
er's tap. 1t is expected that appro-
val of attorneys to the bond and
warrant issues will soon be receiv-
ed, the money paid over and the
city enter into possession of the
plant probably by August I. The
business organization of the city
liant yet is to be perfected.
Consider Engines, Chiefly
The meeting last night was devot-
cd in large part to hearing final
arguments of representatives of the
engine companies. The price of the
J Mcintosh and Seymour Diesel en-
gine as purchased is s24,9s5.: In ad-
dition to this the plans for the
plant call for gasoline engines on
each motor as emergency, this hav-
ing been provided in the original
specifications as an emergency rea-
sure regardless Of what kind of
main power plant is used. The oil
engine will furnish ample power.
There were three engines given
major consideration, the Fairbanks
Morse semi-Diesel at about $4,000;
the Worthington Diesel at about
$4,000 and the Mcintosh and Sey-
mour at $24,985. 1t was said by
Mayor Lenhart that the commission
felt that they should buy good.
heavy piece Of machinery and en-
zine, and they were guided largely
by the recommendation of Mr..
Wolff, consulting engineer.
A previous price on the Mcintosh
and Seymour engine was about ST.
500 higher. Mr.. Sykes, factory rep
resentative, said that they under
stood it was necessary to bid
&rough jobber and they bid
through a St. Paul jobber, and that
the price fixed was greater than it
should have been on his engine, the
jobber bidding on three or four
types. He said he got the impress
sion that manufacturers had to bid
through jobbers to get any contracts
on the water plant from general
talk and was surprised when it was
found that the Fairbanks Morse
company had bid direct and its bid
had not been questioned.
Put Main On Avenue C.
The commission also decided an.
other important question-to bring
the big 16-inch main from the wa
ter plant to the city in on Avenue
c instead of on Broadway, as pro-
posed in the original plans. Pro-
perty owners on Broadway had COM
planned of having the entire length
of the pavement torn up to bring
the main in. 1t was estimated that
it would be $4,000 cheaper to
bring the main in on Avenue C al
though Mr.. Wolff declared Broad
way was the best street to bring ii
in on.
The commission, working over
plans with the engineers with view
= of saving all money possible, also
decided to cut out about "a blocks
of the original plans for main ex-
tensions, and believe instead they
can be installed as the demand in.
creases.
j, Thorne Dickinson has assumed
work as assistant to City Engineer
Atkinson and will be in charge Of
the construction of the plant most
of the time. Mr.. Dickinson, who is
graduate of the Massachusetts,
Institute of Technology, has been
engaged on previous occasions by
fMr. Atkinson and did work on the
original plans for the water plant
He came here from q construction