Kenosha Water Utility

Kenosha Water Utility Municipal Water Report Info

This was the headline featured in the January 5, 1912 edition of the Kaukauna Times. Below is an excerpt from the council meeting held on Tuesday, January 2, 1912.

"A resolution was introduced and unanimously passed authorizing the mayor to take possession of the Kaukauna Gas, Electric Light and Power Company plant as of January 1912, aligning all operational reports and records with the calendar year. Mayor Coppes was authorized to operate the facility on behalf of the City until further arrangements could be made and a commission appointed to oversee the City's new acquisition. William D. Montgomery, the current plant manager, and existing staff were retained under an agreement between company representatives and the City to maintain operations until changes became necessary, as the City was now obligated to provide current to consumers and manage the Electric Light plant business under public utility regulations."

Another resolution unanimously directed the finance committee to prepare an ordinance for the bond issue required to raise $50,000, as ordered by the Railroad Commission, to pay the former owners of the Kaukauna Electric Light Plant. The mayor, city attorney, finance committee, and local bank representatives were scheduled to meet for this purpose and present the ordinance at the council's adjourned meeting the following Monday evening.

Mayor Coppes won re-election in April 1912, and in his inaugural address stated: "Our most significant achievement was acquiring the Electric Light plant. On December 28, 1911, the Railroad Commission valued the plant at $50,000, and we took ownership on January 3, just one day short of a year after filing with the commission—establishing what I believe is a record for the swift acquisition of a public utility. The entire process cost only $798.45, with $573.58 for city engineer services and expenses, $75.00 for witness fees and incidentals, and $149.87 for city attorney services. We secured plant possession without friction, delay, or obstacles that might have hindered the City's successful operation."