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Walla Walla Union-Bulletin Tuesdav. Aoril 19.1977
County moves to free funds for housing By DICK COCKLE OfttwUroorvBultetin
More than 300 low-income Walla Walla County residents may have a chance at better housing this year. The Walla Walla County commissioners Monday adopted an assistance plan to provide housing for 343 area residents. If approved by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the proposal would make money available to help 50 low-income elderly County residents pa> for new rental housing. It would similarly assist 82 small families and 18 large th'.e persons or r.iore) families acquire new rental housing, according to Bob Beckman, who is administering the housing rehabilitation program for the Jefferis Agency. No cost estimate was made. That will be up to HUD if it decides to approve the plan, according to Beckman. A similar plan last year did not result in a
federal grant to the county. But Beckman said the housing assistance plan's submission is necessary for the county to qualify for $385,000 in HUD funds for the Neighborhood Home Improvement Program. The county received $350,000 for that program last year. According to Sen. Henry M. Jackson's office, this year's Neighborhood Home Improvement Program proposal has been rated high enough for selection. It will be financed if a satisfactory performance report and full application are submitted. Beckman said the housing assistance plan also seeks money to help eight residents upgrade their rental units. Also sought by the HUD proposal are 105 grants to permit low-income homeowners to fix up their homes and federal loans to permit 30 others to make repairs. It also contains a recommendation that
county commission rents be subsidized for W) existing housing units around the county to make it possible for low-income individuals to move in, Beckman said. Last week, the Neighborhood Home Improvement Program reported that more than 2,100 homes in Walla Walla County are substandard or the occupants cannot afford them. Of the owner-occupied dwellings, more than half belong to senior citizens, Beckman said. In other business, commissioners: — Scheduled a hearing for 7:30 p.m. May 2 at the Walla Walla High School Commons to consider forming a noxious weed control board. Howard Willson, county extension agent,
The program provides young people with said the hearing will be held to enable the commissioners to gauge the desire for con- opportunities to work in social service, education and environmetnal jobs "either trols on noxious weeds. The state law for activating weed boards after they have graduated or during their education to help them determine if that is also will be discussed, he said. Forming the board would probably entail their work choice," she said. levying a tax against landowners. But the . Last year PLS volunteers earned $50 a money would be used to administer the board week, of which $10 was paid by agencies for and check for noxious weeds, rather than which they worked and $40 was paid by the spraying, Willson said. state. . . The program's value to agencies in the In counties where weed boards have been formed, noxious plants are controlled for the county amounted to $179,000, although their most part by voluntary compliance rather cost was $19,700. PLS is due to expire in early June, she said than enforcing a county ordinance, Willson The program also fills a gap in the jobs said. — Agreed to consider asking the market, according to Ms. Pulfer. "The unemployment rate for youth under Washington Legislature to revive the Program for Local Services (PLS) jobs age 24 is like two or three times what it is for adults. It may be as high as 30 per cent for program for youth. Phyllis Pulfer, director of the Blue youth," she said. A Senate bill to finance the program is now Mountain Action Council, said 38 teens and young adults were employed under PLS last being studied by the House Appropriations Committee, she said. year.
Prisoners leave cells to shower
Building move will cost $27,500 in damages By DICK COCKLE Of the Union Bullet in
There's going to be a $27,500 repair bill on top of the $188,000 it will cost to move the Walla Walla City-County Health Department building. That's the estimate of damage to the two-story brick structure after its 100-yard move to a new location at Poplar Street and Fifth Avenue. The news, accompanied by a report by architect Vern McFall that the building is structurally sound, drew quiet sijhs of relief Monday from the Walla Walla County commissioners, who had worried that more damage had occurred. The county is insured up to $200,000 for the relocation project. Its insurance policy carries a $10,000 deductible clause. The damage estimate was by O.D. Keen Construction Service of Walla Walla, low bidder last month for renovatiions to the structure with a base bid of $375,000. The commissioners still have not awarded a contract for those renovations, which are expected to boost the total project cost to more than $570,000. The building itself was given to the county by St. Mary Community Hospital. Assurances must be received by the county's insurance carrier that damages will be covered before they will award a contract, the commissioners said. But they probably will be able to let the contract next week, they said. According to Keen's damage estimate, repairing cracks in the structure's masonry will cost $10,000; plastering, $2,900; roofing, $980; plumbing, $4,000; glass, $590; and carpentry, $5,100. The remaining costs will pay for building permits, overhead and aperformance bond, according to Keen's estimate. Glass breakage may not be covered under the policy, Commissioner Harmon Johnson said. Whether damage resulting from the move of the 21,691-square foot structure was excessive is difficult to say, according to McFall. "This is the first move for the (county) with a brick structure. I have nothing to judge it by. I couldn't
By DICK COCKLE Of the Union Bulletin
U-B photos by Ron Carlson
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say if it was an outrageous amount . . .or an average amount," he said. But he does not expect additional damage to come to light, the architect said.
in size probably would have cost the county $759,000, according to McFall. Despite the potential savings, the move has been a continuing headache for the commissioners.
"I know the contractors have looked at it with a critical eye and have tried to cover all the bases." Building a new structure identical
Part of the problem was a failure by moving contractor LeBsck and Sons Inc. of Portland to provide a performance bond to guarantee com-
calendar Tonight's events Dayton School Board, 7:30 p.m.. Dayton School superintendent's office Narcissa Rebekah Lodge No. 2, IOOF. 8 p.m.. Odd Fellows Temple. 12 W. Alder St.: initiation. PEG, DX Chapter, 7:45 p.m. with Bertha W. Yenney, Route 4, Russell Creek Road: program: "India." FT Chapter, 8 p.m. with Mabel McGaffee; Beth Nelson assisting; program by Donna Jane Smith. Prescott Lions Club, 7 p.m., Prescott Community Hall. Pinochle Card Party, 8 p.m.. Prospect Point Grange Hall. S. Howard Street and Prospect Road: open to the public. Royal Neighbors, 8 p.m . Knights of Columbus Hall. 124 S Seventh Ave.: social: Barbara Crump and Georgia Hulberttohost St. Man- Community Hospital Advisory' Board. 7:30 p.m., hospital board room. Sunshine Rebekah Lodge No. 56. IOOF, 8 p m , Dixie Ixxlge Hall Waitsburg Commercial Club. 7 p.m.. Waitsburg American Legion Hal] Walla Walla SchooJ District, 7:30 p m . School District board room, 364 S ParkSt Delta Kappa Gamma Society International, 7 30 p.m , Young Women's Christian Association. 213S First Ave . speaker. Sherjl Warren from Planned Parenthood Center of Walla Walla Overeaters Anonymous, 7 p m.. Former Fire Station, SE Ninth St behind library. Milton-Freewater
Wednesday's events American Business Women's Association. Walla Walla Charter Chapter, 6 30 p m dinner. St Mary Communitj Hospital dinine room. officer election. Dr W V Roberts, euest speaker. Eva R i c h a r d s vocational speaker Central Christian Church Circles, Beulah Pickett, 2 •'•'> P m with Lulu Nelson. 527 E Oak St , devotions b> Emma Corkrum, Kiyn Kamikawa,
NEWSPAPER!
Moving stress
Moving the Walla Walla City-County Health Department building left some cracks and holes that will take an extra $27,500 to repair, the Walla Walla County commissioners learned Monday. At left, a crack in the outside
1:30 p.m., church fellowship hall; devotions by Evelyn Kralman; Mable Ross, 9:30 a.m. with Merle Olsen, 1550 Ruth St.; program by Maita Hagedorn; devotions by Dorothy Sutherland. First Presbyterian Church, Rebekah Circle. 9:30 a.m. with Helen Whitenack, 1428 Pleasant St.: Mary Yates, assisting; program on Corinthians. Salvation Army Home League, 1:30 p.m., Salvation Army Hall, 827 W. Alder St. Legislative Hotline. 7 a.m.. Walla Walla Area Chamber of Commerce Bldg., Sumach and Colville streets: citizens may discuss legislative issues with" three Walla Walla legislators in Olympia by telephone Small Business Administration representative, 9 a.m. to noon. Walla Walla Area Chamber of Commerce Bldg, Sumach and Colulle streets, will discuss possible SBA assistance with area businessmen and persons interested in starting businesses
walls reveals some of the stress on the building involved in the move. Above, looking up into one of the rooms,beams used to move the building left large holes in the walls.
pletion of the project. Until last week the commissioners withheld payment of $12,C30 to LeBeck, the final amount owed on the project as a substitute for the bond. But they finally bowed to the contractor's insistence that he needed the money, and paid the bill. That was done with LeBeck's word that he would return later to finish any work
needed. Johnson said a performance bond had been required in the contract, but was overlooked. He appeared pleased with Monday's developments. "I'd no sooner bid on that building than go to the moon. But if they can fix it up for $27,000, it'd be pretty good," he said.
Inmates in the Washington State Penitentiary saw the outside of their cells today for the first time since Easter Sunday. The 1,372 maximum security prisoners were taken out briefly in shifts this morning to shower, according to A.J. Murphy, prison information officer. But deadlock conditions, or confinement of the prisoners to their cells, was continuing, Murphy said. Meanwhile, a shakedown of the prison for contraband was still under way. Murphy said prison guards have finished searching all but two of the prison dormitories. "If they (inmates) had been taking showers during the search, they could have moved contraband around," Murphy said. "They'll just take a few out at a time, maybe two or three cells, let them shower and then take them back in." The deadlock began April 10 after prisoners set fire to the institution's chapel and looted an inmate store. Murphy said guards have removed about two barrels of prohibited items from each cell. Some of the material was allowed in the cells before, but is now classified as contraband because of the Easter disturbance. He did not know how long the prisoners would remain locked up. Normal routine continues in the minimum security building outside the maximum custody walls, Murphy said. The resident council, the inmates' government, continued its demand to talk to a governor's select committee and its refusal to meet with prison officials, Murphy said. But the majority of inmates are now blaming the resident council for the lengthy deadlock, he said. The search for contraband began in the institution's segregation section where unruly inmates are housed after an April 5 explosion in the Walla Walla County Courthouse that mangled the hand of a prison guard.
Judge rules bomb no basis for trial ByJOMORELAND Of the Union-Bulletin
A Walla Walla judge has ruled that a bombing incident during the trial of two Washington State Penitentiary inmates doesn't warrant a new trial. Judge John C. Tuttle, Walla Walla County Superior Court, made the decision Monday. The defendants in the case — Kenneth Agtuca, 24, and Alvin Gilcrest, 21 — were found guilty April 5 of first-degree assault in a Nov. 10 prison stabbing. Defense lawyers James Hayner and Stephen Llewellyn of Walla Walla said that after their clients are sentenced, appeals will be filed. A sentencing date hasn't been set The victim in the stabbing incident in the prison's maximum-security section was Curtis Lee Johnson, 32. He survived multiple wounds.
YMCA offers 2
kinds of camping
Walla Walla youth can take advantage of two types of camping experiences offered by the Young First Presbyterian Church, Men's Christian Association this Priscilla Circle. 9:30 a.m., church summer. fireside room: Ruth Hughes and A camp for youngsters ages eight to Bessie Shelton to host 12 is planned at Camp Kiwanis on Mill League of Women Voters of Walla Creek July 16 to 22. Walla Comity, 9-30 a.m. and 7-30 Camp Halton, located on Aneroid p.m.. First Congregational Church Lake, is for young people ages 13 fireside room, Palouse and Alder through 18. This camp offers a more streets; study: annexation; Dan "rugged" experience for which VanHemert. Walla Walla regional special orientation sessions are planning director, will speak at both required, according to Zeke sessions Blocklmger. Y-MCA program WaOa W*Ua Symphony Women's director Committee coffee, 10 a.m with Edwin Camp Halton is located apand Elsie Ratajak, Route 3; con- proximately six miles from the south ductor John LoPiccolo will review the shore of Wallowa Lake, Ore , and can April 27 concert. be reached only by backpacking in, Alcoholics Anonymous and AMnon Blocklinger said. groups, 8 p.m., Femdale Road, Route The camps will offer a variety of 3, Box 168, Milton-Freewater. activities, including fishing, crafts, Gotten Agers, 8 p m card party, canoeing, hiking, swimming and Washington Community Bldg . 334 N environmental study. Ninth Ave. Early registration for the camps is Veteran of Foreign Wars, Grant urged, particularly for those desinng Farmer Post 992, 8 p m , VFW Post to attend Camp Halton, Blocklinger Home, Rose and Colville streets said Waitsbnrg City Council, 7-30 p m , Forms are available at the YMCA, Waitsburg City 1*1] 28 S Spokane St
Closing arguments were being heard in the trial of Agtuca and Gilcrest April 5 when a booby-trapped cigarette lighter exploded in a law library near the courtroom. Penitentiary Correctional Officer James L. Hartford, 23, lost three fingers when the device went off in his hand. Hartford had testified against Agtuca and Gilcrest and had also been assigned to guard the prison inmates. The courthouse was evacuated after the explosion. The trial was moved to the Walla Walla District Court Annex. Hayner and Llewellyn cited the bombing, courtroom misconduct and errors of law among the reasons for a newtrial"We do not see how that could not have affected the jury," Hayner said
of the bombing during Monday's newtrial hearing. "The whole atmosphere was something other than normal . . . Who could have anticipated that (bombing)?" "I could guess who could have anticipated it, but I won't," Tuttle said. Llewellyn immediately asked that the judge's remark be stricken from the record. Hayner also cited the misconduct of an inmate defense witness, who threw a glass of water on a juror while court was in session. The prisoner started blaspheming the jury and had to be subdued by guards, the lawyer said. Errors in law cited included the court's denial of various defense requests. Hayner referred to denials in-
volving evidence, sequestering the jury, viewing the stabbing scene and separate trials for the two defendants. "We think the entire trial . . . turned into almost a carnival atmosphere," Llewellyn said. He said an accumulation of errors, including the court's repeated refusal to allow separate trials, resulted in the convictions. In denying the lawyers' requests, Tuttle said the jury was aware at the time there had been an explosion. But the jury didn't know the details, he said. The judge said that if the jury's deliberations were affected by the blast, he thought they would have voted against the prosecution. Tuttle said he believed the bomb's effect would have been to intimidate jurors against voting for a conviction.
Blaze damages goods stored in house Fire engulfed a house used for storage two miles up Blue Creek Road Monday evening. There was no estimate of damage to the house, owned by Audrey M. Bates, Route 4, Blue Creek Road, but damage to the contents was estimated at $6,000. "The house was fully involved by the time we got there," said a fire department spokesman. As many as four District Four Fire Department units responded to the alarm, with 25 men and four officers. They stayed more than three hours
Vandals damage restroom COLLEGE PLACE — Vandals destroyed the contents of a restroom in the College Place Lions Park Monday night. Damaged were water pipes, toilets and sinks in the men's restroom. "There's no way of estimating the damage until they get a plumber in there," said a College Place Police spokesman. The vandalism took place sometime before 9 p.m , said the spokesman
Workshop to gat cooking Wear a mumu and bring your appetite Those are the suggested preparations to make for a workshop on making Hawaiian hors d'oeuvrcs Wednesday from 1 1 a m to 1 p.m at the Young Women's Christian Association, 213 S First Ave Dorothy Baker will be the workshop leader Workshop fees are $2.50 for YWCA members, $7 50 for
blue mountoin briefing nonmembers. Child care will be available.
Christian businessmen to meat Members of the Full Gospel Christian Businessmen's Association and their wives will share a dinner meeting Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Roy's Chuckwagon at the Big Y shopping center.
Coffee to preview concert Music to be performed at a Walla Walla Symphony concert April 26 will be previewed at a coffee hour Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the home of Elsie Ratajak, Route 3 Guest conductor John LoPiccolo of Cheney will be the speaker
WW to host bridge tourney A chanty bridge tournament sponsored by the Walla Walla Unit of the American Contract Bndge League is scheduled Sunday The game will be played at 6 30 p.m at the First Federal Savings and Loan Association, First Avenue and Alder Street The public is invited to participate. Partnerships may be arranged with Shirley Glen, 134 Stone St, or Nonne Anderson, 378 S. Park St
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