Ogden Daily Standard | 1917-10-20 | Page 7 | Ogden as a City of Importance

I OGDEN AS A CITY OF IMPORTANCE ! With Ogden assuming all the air3 ' of a city of size, with an army of city 1 j employes, with an increasing area of asphalt paving to be cared for and cleaned, with city automobiles burning oil by the wagon load, with street lighting extending and running up to close to 52500 a month, where Is Og-" Og-" den to obtain Its revenue to meet these ' ' growing expenses? j Property values are increasing, but not In the same ratio as expenditures, and, if dependence Is to be placed on dragging extra dollars from the homes in tho form of direct taxation, how is the burden to be borne except by thoso who arc very well to do? Would it not be wisa to do as other cities have done In appropriating public pub-lic utilities to help reduce the direct cost of city government? Frank Francis, who is a candidate for mayor, urges tho feasibility of repeating re-peating what was dono with the waterworks, wat-erworks, by going after tho electric light distributing Bystem in Ogden, and bringing that service under, city control as a revenue producer. This can bo dono without building a power plant, as the Utah Power & Light company com-pany would be compelled by tho state public utilities commission to supply Ogden's municipally owned distributing distribut-ing system -with power at tho same prlco charged largo consumers of electric elec-tric power in this stale. An individual with ample credit, who found his expenses exceeding his income, would look around for an opportunity op-portunity to apply his credit In a manner man-ner to bring him more revonuo, that his Incomo and outgo might balance, and why should a city not act as wlso-ly, wlso-ly, and with tho same prudence? Ogden Is privileged to annex tho light system, and should do so. There are many prominent men in tho community who havo promised to perform their full part in bringing about this improvement in city affaire, and, with tho right kind of co-operation, the city can be obtaining revenue from this source within a very short time. Then taxes can be held within reasonable bounds, and city improvements improve-ments generally can proceed on an extensive scale Without Inflicting an Injustice on any one.