The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1932-12-01
City Electric
Current Rate
Is Reduced
Light and Power Plant Is
- Very Profitable Invest
ment for City
AN UNUSUAL RECORD
$4,000 Turned Into City's
General Fund This Year;
Will Reduce Taxes

Sank Centres Water, Light and
Power distribution plant is the
best investment the city has.
About II years ago the distribut-
ing line was purchased from the
Whitney interests, st. Cloud, now
the Northern States Power Com
pany. The Whitney interests had
shortly before purchased the prop
erty from the Central Minnesota
Power & Milling Co..
With the enactment of the new
city charter the management of the
Water, Light and Power business
was turned over to commission of
three men who were to serve each
for term of three years without
salary. The charter very wisely
provided that the commissioners
should be kept out of petty munic-
ipal politics-they were, and are to
this day, appointed by the Judges
OF the district court of this Judicial
district.
The first three commissioners
named were DR.. H. F. Henneman,
George O'Gara and DR.. A. F. Moy-
Than. In the summer of 1918 DR..
Moynihan resigned his commission
and entered the medical service of
his country. When the Armistice
was signed he had been in France
for many months.
The late F. w. Sprague was nam
ed to succeed DR.. Moynihan. He
was succeeded by Frank Perry. The
late Geo. Bergman succeeded Mr..
Perry. Shortly before his death
Mr.. Borgmann resigned and DR..
Moynihan was reappointed. Mean
while DR.. Hennemann and Geo.
O'Gara were kept on the job.
At all times the commission has
been very ably advised by the sup
erintendent Of the plant, ]. N. Nc
Gibbon.
It is interesting to look back and
see what the commission has &C
complished in the last 16 years:
$4,000 outstanding bonds,
the purchase price of the plant,
has long since been retired.
$4,000 White Way bonds
have been retired.
3ZZ,OOO hdS UCCh CAPShoSo 1oA
the dam, and water rights
and repairs.
$4,000 was expended in re-
building the pole line and re-
moving the poles from the
streets.
$4,000 has been turned into
the general fund of the city.
When the city took over the
plant the consumer paid 10c per
XIV for the first 100 XIV. &c per
XIV for the second 100 XIV; SC per
XIV for all over 200 XIV.
The average householder did not
use 100 KWs per month.
A few years ago the rates to the
consumer was reducedto &c, &c
and 7c for 100, 200 and 300 and over
KWs used in one month.
The Commissic. mas held many
special meetings during the last
months to devise plans to reduce
the rates to the light and power
consumer, and at the same time
turn in a tidy sum into the citys
general fund toreduce taxes. Last
yearthe sum of $4,000 was turned
over to the city. Earlier this year
it was voted to turn an additional
$4,000 to the general fund this
year. At the meeting when the de-
finite amount of reduction to the
light user was decided upon it was
voted to turn an additional $1,000
into the general fund; almost half
of what is. required for city pur-
poses. The balance Of the tax bur-
den is made up of city, county, and
school district levies.
Sank Centres tax levy in 1888
should be among the very lowest in
the state. -,
With the bills being sent out to
the consumers this month the rate
is: First rs KWs Sc; second -25
KWs 7c; next 200 KW's &c. This
reduction gives the small house
holder a reduction in the price OF
the electrical energy used in his
home. The reduction means a saw
ing to the consumers of 18 per cent,
or a net total to the citizens OF at
least 5000 annually.
Prior to a few years ago the
water was paid by a hit and miss
system. Some were paying entire
ly too much. Many were not pay
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