Tennessee American Water Is A Great Partner For Signal Mountain

  • Wednesday, November 11, 2015

In most communities, we like to see and know the people that provide our essential services. Bankers, lawyers, educators and those who provide and service our water, electricity, phones and gas. 

With time, some of the corporate offices for these businesses may have relocated to other states but the face, feel and support remain in the local community where the customers are. Tennessee American Water’s parent company headquarters are in Voorhees, N.J., and our parent company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, but our people live and work in the Greater Chattanooga area. 

That is why we are Tennessee American Water; the Tennessee word is extremely important to us and to those we provide quality water and service, including the town of Signal Mountain for more than 20 years. Our level of service over the years is consistently reflective in our annual customer satisfaction ratings that measure above 90 percent.

We are interested in building on our Signal Mountain relationship and having a broader role in operating the water system for the community. First, we have been providing quality water that touches most families and businesses in the community for over 20 years.  

Second, as with most water systems, time is not a friend. The infrastructure that carries the water to homes, businesses and fire hydrants will require replacement and the costs are expensive. The town of Signal Mountain is looking at infrastructure improvements in the years ahead. At Tennessee American Water, we bring a significant advantage to being able to use our national buying power to obtain better pricing for these improvements. Funds that are being set aside by the town of Signal Mountain for these future improvements could be used for other purposes. 

Third, Tennessee American Water becomes a taxpayer for the town of Signal Mountain. These are new revenues that would flow into the community. Tennessee American Water is among the top 10 taxpayers in Hamilton County now and with an expanded water management arrangement with Tennessee American Water, there are new funds to be applied for our Signal Mountain priorities.  

We have experience in the greater Chattanooga area. The water system in Chattanooga, for example, has always been owned and operated by a private company. Since 1887, it has been Tennessee American Water and prior to that, two private businesses managed the local system. We are vested in our community for over 125 years. 

In a recent opinion piece there was a reference to a Washington-based special interest group, Food & Water Watch, as a credible source on public and private water systems. A few facts may be useful in deciding who you trust. 

Food & Water Watch is a spin-off from Ralph Nader’s activist group Public Citizen and is a lobbying group based in Washington, D.C. You can make the choice: Do you trust a locally-operated company or a Washington-based activist lobbying group? It’s important to point out the F&WW has zero experience, nor expertise in running a community water system, nor providing solutions to a community’s water issues. I believe you will decide that people who live and work where you live and work and have been in our community since 1887 are the better choice. That is Tennessee American Water. 

Private water companies like Tennessee American Water have met the water needs of American communities for hundreds of years and currently provide service to 73 million Americans. Without a doubt, these companies must be and are accountable to their customers and the communities they serve. 

We are proud to call Chattanooga home and to know every day, all day, that our customers expect great service and a quality product. We deliver. 

Daphne Kirksey
External Affairs Manager 
Tennessee American Water 
Chattanooga

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