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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 2, 1979)
crane takes a rest This crane, one of two being used in construction of the Academic & Agency Building on campus, stands at rest at the end of a long day of Work. Battalion photo by Lee Roy Leschper Jr. Proposed Bryan budget to increase taxes 13 cents noi. Btls. amotion icate pri» 5 sl ! 11 ,feway Store H IZES 1979 C ODDS , « rs VISI !5 , 'VjlMteJ 1 1,390toj , , ^'jTOtoJ 1 \ 3.210* : sTtw* By LOUIE ARTHUR Battalion Staff I If the proposed 1979-80 budget for the lity of Bryan becomes a reality, it could mean a 13 cent increase in the ad valorem iroperty tax. In a special meeting of the city council Wednesday, City Manager Ernest Clark iresented the proposed city budget for Jreliminary review by the members of the :ouncil. The proposed budget, which Clark de- cribed as “conservative”, will be dis- :ussed in several meetings for revision be- ore it is finalized in September. Clark outlined the budget which con- ained total funds available of $7,606,059 md total expenditures of $7,440,136, leav ing the city of Bryan $165,923 unappropri- ited for the year. The new tax rate would be 75 cents per MOO worth of property based on 80 per- ent of the assessed value. Thus, if you )wned property assessed at a value of MO,000, the taxes would be $60. The same property would have been taxed $49.60 ast year. The tax increase will result in $396,604 additional revenue for the city. Requests from outside agencies use $224,000 of this evenue in the proposed budget. Clark said that some of this money could ome from the hotel-motel tax (a four per cent tax on hotels and motels charged in iddition to the sales tax) and might cut out ome of the proposed property tax in crease. The proposed budget also includes a alary increase for city employees. Salary ncreases would vary from eight percent to nore than 20 percent for some employees. Clark said that they are interested in a neritpay program, but there are no funds ivailable. The salary hikes and the possi bility of merit pay are an attempt to cut down on the high turnover rate of city workers. The current turnover rate for city em ployees is currently about 30 percent and s expected to rise to 50 percent later in he year. One of the largest expense increases was ittributed to the cost of fuel for operating I'ehicles — an increase of $100,000 due to soaring gasoline prices. “We are trying to drastically reduce the use of city vehicles,” Clark said. “We want b use smaller cars and get rid of the se dans. We’re starting a conservation pro gram but were not sure of its impact yet.” Also included in the new budget is a request for two more police cars so that nore maintenance work can be done on chicles without seriously impairing police nobility. Clark said he feels this would give the police cars a longer work life. The proposed budget also provides for a pay increase for the fire department, Clark said, because the firemen’s present salary is too low compared to other cities. Councilman Henry Seale said that he and Mayor Richard Smith will meet “to try to raise the revenue side of the budget” in an attempt to lessen the proposed tax in crease. The council will meet again Aug. 13, Smith said, and urged council members to use this time to study the proposed budget. Senator claims Texas needed another primary United Press International AUSTIN — A small group of liberal Democrats blocked efforts to conduct a Democratic presidential primary in Texas in 1980 in an effort to enhance the chances of Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., winning the party’s presidential nomination, a Houston senator said Wednesday. Sen. Jack Ogg, D-Houston, said the failure of the State Democratic Executive Committee to schedule a primary will hurt the party. Ogg sponsored unsuccessful legislation that would have established a Texas presidential primary in March of next year, separate from the May primary races for state and local offices. “It’s unbelievable that hot on the heels of Governor Clements’ election, the SDEC has chosen to let the Republicans stand alone in the limelight next spring,” Ogg said. GOP leaders have said they plan to con duct a presidential primary next year even if Democrats do not. SDEC leaders opposed a Democratic primary, but left open the possibility that a non-binding primary could be held if vi able challengers to President Carter emerge. Ogg said the SDEC was duped by the liberal faction he referred to as “Ken- nedyites.” “President Carter’s supporters in the SDEC fell into their Venus’ flytrap, afraid Windshield cleaning to cost more United Press International WASHINGTON — New government regulations took effect Wednesday that require gasoline stations to charge sepa rately for such services as checking tires and cleaning windshields. Until Wednesday, stations could count the cost of such “courtesy” services in set ting their pump prices for gasoline. Although the new regulations require separate charges, many service station operators do not plan to charge extra for the services that have traditionally been free. The rules state, “Retailers are no longer required to continue to provide custom ers, at no extra charge, with the same goods, services, premiums and credit terms. “Retailers may offer separately and charge separately for goods and services previously included in their (gasoline) price.” The regulations are the target of a suit filed Friday in the District of Columbia by the Center for Auto Safety, a consumers group. The Center for Auto Safety claims the Energy Department violated a require ment for 60 days’ public notice, plus a 30-day grace period, before the rules took effect. Ditlow said the change also discrimi nates against full-service stations because they will be reluctant to charge for serv ices customers have come to expect, while “the high-volume, self-service stations will charge and get a higher profit margin. ” The old regulations compensated full- service stations for such courtesy services as windshield cleaning and tire, battery, oil and radiator checks by granting them a higher profit margin than self-service out lets. The new regulations also give the na tion’s governors authority to increase the 15.4-cent profit per gallon by as much as 10 cents in big cities and other locations where overhead is unusually high. that the president’s declining popularity would make a Texas primary embarrassing for him,” Ogg said. “But the Kennedyites’ real motive was not to save the president from embarrass ment, but to insure that the early primaries would be held on Ted Ken nedy’s home turf — New England. He said the same faction worked during the 1979 Legislature to defeat his presi dential primary bill, and applauded the tactics of the “killer bees,’’ a dozen senators who hid out for five days to block a vote on the Ogg bill. “If and when Senator Kennedy an nounces his candidacy, the voters of Texas should watch as the killer bees swarm to his cause. Already an aide to one of the killer bee senators who worked to defeat the primary bill has announced his switch in allegiance from President Carter to Sen. Kennedy. He is organizing Kennedy sup port in Texas,” Ogg said. He said the SDEC’s promise to hold a “beauty contest”-type primary if challen gers to Carter emerge is meaningless and an effort to pacify the party’s majority. “The SDEC says it won’t hold a primary unless candidates emerge. Who are they kidding? Don’t they read the newspapers or listen to news reports? Before they met last week reports of Jerry Brown’s immi nent announcement were circulating. Anyone who doesn’t think Senator Ken nedy is a candidate is politically naive. There’s a leak every day about his impend ing candidacy or a statement of support from one politician or another,” Ogg said. Ogg said polls show Texans favor a pres idential primary, and the SDEC’s reluc tance to have one will hurt the party. “We have always maintained a strong, traditional coalition of labor, farmers, sub urbanites, minorities and young white col lar workers,” he said. “This small, liberal group now in control wants to narrow the party s focus. It is the same group which supported the fractious Mcgovern candi dacy. And it is the same group which called for more party openness, only to abandon that cause once they gained con trol. “This Kennedyite faction is taking the Democratic party of Texas back into the smokefilled rooms of yesterday and leav ing the voters outside where the Republi cans are waiting with open arms. Weather The temperature. -Battalion Partly cloudy with a chance of thunder showers. Continued warm with a high of 93 and a low of 75. Winds will be southerly at 10-15 m.p.h. 30% chance of rain today. Outlook for Friday through Sunday will be partly cloudy with a chance of thunder showers, but no significant changes in Vol. 72 No. 179 8 Pages Thursday, August 2, 1979 College Station, Texas USPS 045 360 Phone 845-2611 $20 million apartment fire Arson investigation ordered United Press International HOUSTON — Arson investigators Wednesday tried to reconstruct the cause of a seven-alarm, $20 million apartment fire and at least 600 residents left homeless by the recordTsetting blaze started to re build their households. The fire started about 3 p.m. Tuesday and 14 mph winds on the 90-degree day rapidly whipped it through one-third of 1,100-unit, wood-shingle-roofed Wood way Square before being controlled about 7 p.m. There were few injuries because most residents were at work. But Frank W. Tyler, 20, suffered second-degree burns over 50 percent of his body trying to save his belongings. He remained hospitalized in serious condition. Chief arson investigator Leonard Mikeska said several persons were ques tioned, including two unidentified carpen ters who supposedly had a dispute with management and were on a roof where witnesses said the fire started. “We have two carpenters who were un happy with working conditions and pay,” Mikeska said. “We have a witness who said they were in the area when the fire started. We don’t know if that has any thing to do with the fire.” Mikeska said investigators also were checking the possibility an electrical short related to replacement of air-conditioning units — which residents said failed fre quently — on the roofs. Rep. Bill Archer, R-Texas, asked Gov. Bill Clements to seek federal disaster aid for the displaced residents of the apart ments, estimated by owner Paul Schuler & Associates of Seattle, Wash., to number at least 600. The Red Cross, Salvation Army, two churches and numerous private citizens of fered aid to the mostly young, middle class singles and couples, many of whom lacked insurance. One who asked not to be quoted by name was philosophical. “I’ve always said I wanted to start a new life,” she said. “Here’s my chance.” Firefighters, who continued to watch the rubble as investigators and ex residents sifted, doused spot fires that con tinued to smoulder in the ruins that one observer said were reminiscent of a World War II bombing scene. “They’ve still got a few spot fires out there around the apartments,” Fire Chief V.E. Rogers said. “I have been here 24 years and it’s the worst structural fire Tve ever seen.” Rogers, who said “if it had happened at 3 a.m. we probably would have lost sev eral lives, said the quick-burning wood shingles complicated the firefighting. He said it was the first seven-alarm fire in Houston history. City Council, which Tuesday had tabled an ordinance tightening fire-proofing re quirements for wood-shingle roofs, Wed nesday unanimously approved the tighter rules for new multi-family dwellings with little debate. Fifteen firefighters were overcome by smoke or heat exhaustion, but they were recovering Wednesday, Rogers said. Sev eral residents suffered minor injuries try ing to save their belongings. Aggies help at fire Seven Emergency Medical Technicians from the Texas A&M University Emergency Care Team helped the Hous ton Fire Department during the fire that destroyed the Woodway Square apart ment complex Tuesday in Houston. Houston fire officials said the fire was the largest in Houston since 1912. Steve Barron, squad leader with the team, said the group called the ambulance division of the Houston Fire Department Wednesday and they said they needed as sistance. When the squad arrived in Hous ton they were the only EMT’s on the scene, he said. Later EMT’s from the Houston department arrived and the Texas A&M team assisted them, he said. The squad carried trauma equipment, oxygen, and other emergency supplies to the fire. The team treated about 20 injured people, he said. Kyle Field completion rescheduled In the spirit of the show business slogan, “the show must go on,” Texas A&M University officials said the Oct. 13 football game with the University of Houston scheduled to be played in Kyle Field will “go on” even if the stadium is not finished. Several Texas A&M officials met Wednesday afternoon with H.B. Zac- hry, contractor of the project, in a closed-door session to review the progress on Kyle Field. Although a final decision has not been made, Howard Vestal, vice presi dent for business affairs at Texas A&M, said after the session: “Based on what I know right now, we ll play.” The stadium will definitely not be completed by Oct. 13, Vestal said. The first home game of the season with Brigham Young University was scheduled to be played at Kyle Field Sept. 8, but had to be moved to Rice Stadium in Houston because of construction. Some of the access ramps to the third deck will not be complete, and consequently about 5000 seats will be missing, he said. Construction equipment on the site will be fenced to keep people out of danger, he said. There will also be corridors built to guide people to their seats and keep them out of uncompleted areas of the stadium. Vestal said he anticipates that basic work, such as the stands, ramps and consession stands, will be finished by the Arkansas game November 17, but all construction on the stadium will not be finished completely until the first of 1980. Construction on the addition to G. Rollie White Coliseum will not be finished until July 1980. Vestal blamed bad weather and unusually heavy rains for the delay in completion of the stadium. “Mr. Zachry did the best job he could possibly do under the conditions,” he said. “We are very pleased with him.” They say they will go Battalion photo by Clay Cockrill This is a view of the Kyle Field stadium under construction taken from the 50-yard line Wednesday afternoon. Officials speculate the game Oct. 13 with the University Houston will be played here even though the stadium will not be completed.