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Show SHALL THE CITY PURCHASE PLANT , r -i n i Mass Meeting Called for Saturday Satur-day Night, February 24, to Consider Proposition. LIGHT COMPANY OFFERS LI HER A B CONCESSIONS R. A. Thnrlcy and Other Prominent QtlMM are Taking Active Part in Getting the Matter Before People. Shall the Cedar City municipality own the local light and power plant? Do you believe in the public ownership owner-ship of public utilities? These are some of the questions to be threshed over and conridered at n mass meeting to be heid in th Li brary auditorium, Saturday evening, February 24th, the meeting Iirinir called at the suggestion of Mr. R. A. Thorley and other prominent clt'semi who have this matter under corporation, corpor-ation, and who are not financially interested in-terested in the local electrical company. com-pany. At a meeting of the stockholders of the Cedar Electric company held in the Library auditorium last evening for the purpose of taking some action ac-tion looking to the improvement of the standing of the company finan cially. As the people of Cedar City are well aware the local elSctrical company has not, up to the' present time, made uny money or paid any dividends on thf investment. On the other hand, the installation of the system and the control of the unruly waters of Coal Creek have been a very serious and expensive' undertaking. In the face of many obstacles, however, they have held on and with the increased in-creased demand for their service and the corresponding increase in their receipts, re-ceipts, they have reaches a point where they can gradually reduce their outstanding indebetdness and gradually gradu-ally get their heads above water. But at the rate nt interest they are com- Celled to pay on hired capital, this will a long and tiresome struggle even now; but with the showing they are able to make and the concessions they offer, it is bcli- red by a number of prominent citizens outside of the com pany, that it would prove a paving Investment In-vestment for the city, which could sell bonds at a low rate of interest to make the pun has, and when these bonds were discharged could provide service for the citizens at actual cost. It is to decide whether or not this is a proper move on the part of the municipality mu-nicipality that the meeting is called for next week, Saturday evening. For the purpose of getting the mat ter before the people and giving them a chance to think it over prior to the meeting a little data has been compiled from the records of the company, which we hereto append: The present outstanding capital stock of the company at par is $12,- o;;o.oo. The company proposes' to reduce this to 6,000.00, If the city will take over the proposition. The present indebtedness of the company to the Hunk of Southern Utah is $21,000, which bears interest at 8 per cent per annum. The city could sell bonds to the amount of $2.r),000, which could 1 marketed at a rate of interest not ex coeding r per cent per annum. The eon of the plant was $155,017 During the first live years of the operation of the plant it earned $0008 gross. In the year 1919 it earned $1,900. In 1015, it earned $4,700. In 9116, it earned $0,oiD. The present cost of operation per annum is about $2,400. Leaving a net earning of approximately approxi-mately $.',000 for the payment of interest, in-terest, dividend, etc. With the sharp Increase which has taken place in the cost of all materiuls which enter Into the construction of such a plant, it is doubtful if (hi stallation could be made at the pres ent time for less money than it cost the company at the time the plant was erected, after charging up all money thrown away in the building und repair of the expensive canal which has since been abandoned. For instance: 11,.'!70 pounds of copper wire were used in the com pnny's lines, which at the pi price of 47 cents per pound would COS) 6,848.0. The 8,000 feet of Callfor nia Redwood pipe which was in.-tall id as. a pait of the race In 1914, at a cost of $7,500, would doubtleei cost con siderably more than this amount at the present time, ' Machinery and all other materials, pre tically, are hi h er now than than they were when the Electric eompanj purchased. The company, during the tine of its operation, has turned hack into the plant from earnil i, for new constriction, constric-tion, $5,520, which, of course tend? t- strengthen the! tl and make1 the proposition more attractive to the" . iveetor. It is Ix-lievou by those who are t.up porting the move for the tracsfei of the plant to the city, that an liwne diate reduction otui be made in the price of current and that in the course of a few years service can be supplied to the public at perhaps half of the present cost. The price of the entire plant under the company's offer to the city, would be 127,600. $25,000 of this' amount could be raised from the sale of bonds and the remaining $2,000 could lie out .In-'dAir a short time from a lora' bank. The interest on $25,000 at a", would cost the city $1,250 per annum, as against $1,728 which the company is now paying on the $21,000 hired from the bank. This would mean saving of $428 per year in Interest alone, under municipal ownership. Think the matter over for your xeivea and he at Ue meeting UelurtUv ovaalng prepared to voice an intellT gont opinion en the queetiea. |