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V Las Vegas Review Jeurnal-July 31, 1950 Board May Put Vegas in Water Business Th e city commissioners this morning started machinery m oving which ultim ately m ay place Las Vegas in the. water business through the outright purchase of the- Las Vegas Land and Water company and local water interests of the ' Union' Pacific railroad. On motion of Commissioner Robert Moore/ at a s p e c i a l meeting called to discuss- the j current acute water shortage, . the board voted unanimously ! to call in its advisory com­mittee to i n v e s t i g a t e the i “ possibility and feaseability” . of entering into purchase; nego­tiations.- The city’s, indirect bid to buy out the-local water concern in the interest of im proving ser­vice to Las Vegas consumers is the second in recent weeks. The Las Vegas valley water district also has expressed in­terest in the purchase. . Commissioner Moore’s mo­tion was coupled with another by Commissioner Wendell Bun­ker which provided that the city attorney be instructed to make formal demands on the Nevada public s'ervice com­mission requiring, the Las Ve­gas Land and Water company and the Union Pacific “ to pro­ceed immediately to augment the present supply of Water to the city.” Both motions were seconded by Commissioner William Peccole. It was agreed generally at today’s special meeting that complete resources of the Las Vegas water basin have not been fully tapped, despite con­tentions by representatives of the water company and Union Pacific that the underground supply is ebbing swiftly and additional Water is unavailable unless piped from Lake Mead. I t was estimated that to bring water from the lake would cost approximately $5,- 000,000 and spokesmen for the water; company and railroad said they were not prepared at this time to undertake the ex­pense. E . E . Bennett, general soli­citor for the Union Pacific of Los Angeles, assailed the city i fathers’ action of lifting, the j. f law n watering! restrictions aRPj added that while the ban wSBp I in effect a total of 50,000,00(1 gallons -of water a month were , saved-. M ayor E . W. Cragin pointed ; out that unless local citizens | agree to cooperate to. a greater degree in • water conservation, | the restrictions w ill be restored. A. M . Folger,. general, m an-j ager of the Las Vegas^feamd I and Water company,, said a | total of R ,000:,000 gallons of I water a d a y are presently be- I ing pumped from U wells. 1 I t also was proposed tetet the $ | United States government, as j a defense measure due to. cur- I rent w ar conditions, be ap- ! preached w ith proposals to aid. j m financing importation of j water from Lake Mead. In addition te repeesehtatev.es of the water company -and rail­road, Charles V . William s, member of the NevadarpuMic service commission?, was also present at toe meeting. He ! was called in by tofe com- ! missionensv to conduct an ex- , i haustive inquiry into present | conditions and! report Ms find- : intgsi hack to- toe hoard at toe J earliest possible moment. Told os Yet The' balance; of: this week wiMi the tale”1 as to how locall water consumers are cooperat­ing w ith official! plteas for voluni-tary conservation.' since lifting ®ff| law n watering* restrictions, aes cording- to A . ML Folger,' genera® manager of the Las Vegas Laird and Water company. He pointed out that an accur­ate- check on normal water con­sumption- gowjM not fee -made irnt-mediately due to last, week’s heavy rains which considerably curtailed the- use of Water for sprinWing* purposes. , “We-, lifted ths>. restrictions: andt prayed for-raiab and got, it,” saap M ayor H. . W. gfcsgiin, .at the-sahto tim e w arning that' lack: of ’public- cooperation w ill result in restoration! of th® - ban.