Minutes 08/22/1933 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Au~us t 2~um. lqMB. At a regular meeting of the City Council held August 22nd, 1933, at 8:00 P.M., there were present: Vernon A. Brooks, Leslie T. Archibald Ogg. City Manager. Fox, W.R. Hutchins, S.B, Moore, J.Alden Oast, Minutes of regular meeting held August 8th, and ~pecial meeting of August 15th, were read and approved. The following communications from the City Manager were read: tst - "In view of the anticipated action by the State Legislature which is now in session with respect to the regulation and control of beer,~ale, wine, etc., I am submit- ting an ordinance to be placed on first reading, entitled: 'AN ORDINANCE TO REGULATE AND CONTROL THE MANUFACTB~E, BOTTLING, SALE AND DISPOSITION OF BEER, LAGER BEER, ALE, PORTER, WINE, SIMILAR FERMENTED MALT OR VINOUS LIQUOR, AND FRUIT JUIOE, CONTAINING ONE-HALF OF O~E PER CENT OR MORE 0F ALOOHOL BY VOLUME, AND NOT MORE THAN THREE AND TWO-TEnTHS PER CENTUM OF ALOOHOL BY WEIGHT; TO PROVIDE FOR LICENSING AND TAXING MANUFACTURERS, BOTTLERS, WHOLESALERS A~ RETAILERS OF SUOH BEVER- AGES BY THE CiTY OF PORTSMOUTH; AND TO IMPOSE PENALTIES FOR THE VIOLA- TION OF THIS ORDINANCE'. This is done in order that there may be no delay in regulating and taxing the wholesaler, manufacturer, etc., of beer and similar products when so authorized by the State Legislature., On motion of Mr. 'Moore, the recommended ordinance was placed on its first reading. 2nd - The Manager stated that $7,500.00 had been allocate-d to the City from the Emergency Relief Fund for relief work. 3rd - "On J~ne 13tH, 1933, you approved my request for authority to continue ne- gotiations, together with the City Attorney, which I had been conducting with the Virginia Electric & Power Company and the Ohesapeake& Potomac .Telephone Company for a reduction in electric and telephone rates in Portsmouth. Under date of June 19th, I had a conference with Mr. R.J. Thr6ckmorton of th? ~.~ & P. Company ~nd M~. T.Rf Harrell of the ~. & P. TeIephone Co~pany, at which time I as~e~ ~nese gent£emen mo reduce taeir charges in Portsmouth atleaet 15~ and also requested the V.E. & P. C~any to allow the City 5% of the gross receipts from buses and ~treet cars instead of the 3~ which is now being allowed. I confirmed this request in writmng on June 19th, as requested by Mr. Throckmorton and Mr. Hat, eli, and asked for an operatim~g statement and balance sheet .for the past five years in order that we could consider the matter further. On August 2nd, Mr. Throckmorton and Mr. Fairlamb came to my office to dis- cuss my request, at which time Mr. Throckmorton furnished a ;statement of certain earnings and expenses for the bus and street car division, which statement was not in the fo~m I had re- quested or in sufficient detail to permit an intelligent study of this matter. I advised M~. Throckmorton that the information was not in sufficien~ detail and asked him to furnish the information requested in my letter of June 19th at an ea=ly date. At this conference, Mr. Throckmorton indicated that in view of the contract they had with the City of Richmond whereby Richmond is allowed 5% of the gross receipts on bus and street car earnings, Portsmouth would probably be given the same consideration; also that a revised street lighting rate had been worked out which would net the City a reduction of 10% in street lighting costs; however, this revised rate could not be placed in e fleet until approved by the State 0orporation Com- mission, which he thought would be done at an early date, I received a letter from Mr. Throckmorton dated August 16th to whi'ch he attached certain information regarding the railway and bus operations in Portsmouth for the years 1928 th_rough 1932. However, the informatio~ i~rnished is no~ in the form requested and is. not sufficient to permit an intelligent and thorough study of this matter~ Mr. Throckmorton advised in his letter of August 16th, with respect to the information requested relative to the operations of the Electrical Department for the City of Portsmouth, that their electric rates are the same for all communities in the State; there- fore it would be necessary ~hat they consider the entire operations of the Electrical Depart- ment in arriving at universal rates and that the State Cc~poration Commission had employed au engineering staff to invest,igate electric utilities in the State, in view of which he sug- gests that in order that ~e might Ret th~ information desired first-hand, we should ~qoly to the State Corporation Commlission of Virginia. I am making reques~ upon the State Corporation Commission for the data reg~rdingthe Eleetrica~ Department of the V.E. & P. Company in the City of Port~mouth. I wish to call your attentmon ~o the fact, however, that Mr. Throckmorton took approximately sixty days in order to reply to my letter and then he refers me to the State Corporation Co~ission for the information requested. It would appear that this delay in replying to my communication was for the purpose of delaying as long as possible any cOm- pliance with our request for reduced rates. This matter could have been advanced some six or seven weeks if Mr. Throckmorton had replied to my letter promptly, and referred me to the Corporatioh ~ommission for the information requested. I do not think the V.E. & p. Company has approached this question fairly or in the proper spirit. Section S of ordinance adopted July 2Sth, 1926, to regulate motor bus pas- senger transportation in Portsmouth, provides as follows: 'A standard form of accounts and system of book-keeping, to be approved by the City Council, shall be kept and ob- served by the Company or individual operatinE under the