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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (March 25, 1982)
The Srfndy Post Editorial & Opinion City’s help for business timely I t ’s tim ely the way 30 business leaders approached Sandy City Council last week for help in ad dressing business deficiencies here. Business now is slow, of course. The eve of a critical municipal operating levy also provides a dram atic stage. City officials need business support to pass this n o -frills m aintenance budget squeezed into a basic A levy. The business community needs sup port of city hall, too, to showcase their shops boldly enough to stay competitive on a fast one-way road out of town. Von Broschler Publisher Corolme Duff. Office Monoger SANDY, O REG O N , THURSDAY AAARCH 25 Just keep P ushin, Mac/ .there's a station Somewhere up ahead... The city warrants support to get its dollars to operate Tuesday. Of ficials ask only what it costs to keep city government and its ser vices alive. The business district warrants support from city hall for cash flow, too. They ask only m inimal cooperation to help keep shops and their services alive. As C o u n c ilm a n Deane Wesselink said, city government “ may have to do some flexing to help some of these businesses ” Relaxing the c ity ’s stringent sign ordinance when reviewed soon would be a cooperative step in the right direction. Don Dillon Editor Scott Newton. News Editor 1982 H I M O YOUR DRIVER IS I- LOST ' County levy profits city taxpayer Sandy taxpayers would profit twice by passage of a county levy to fund operation of city-run senior citizen centers. First, they’d spread financial support of the local senior center on shoulders of all potential users in the county, realistic to the broad service boundaries of such community centers as that in San dy or Hoodland. Also, Sandy taxpayers would profit by a happy $54,000 surplus in the c ity ’s tight budget before voters Tuesday, i* the county levy replaces city funding. Most happy, however, would be area senior citizens who utilize such local centers. Funding under the county levy would be more generous and constant than under present municipal financing. (The cities would continue to manage their local centers.) In this age of declining federal support and sparce local funds, survival may be more on minds of local senior center supporters than program growth. And when you consider 60 percent of county seniors older than 70 subsist below poverty level, survival may be the best word to describe center sup port services Local services include keeping seniors active, fed, housed and functioning with legal and finan cial help, health care and rides The new funding level would allow one two new staff members, since more hands are needed to help with rides and organization of activities. The three-year serial levy asks 22 cents per thousand ($11 on a $50,000 home). That would give Sandy’s center $67,585 to $82,603 annually over three years to operate its center. A “ Yes’’ vote is urged at the polls Tuesday. Salem_ scene: Party f wer swing likely by JACK Z IM M E R M A N Associated Oregon Industrie* Although its membership won't be deter mined for another eight months, many observers believe the next Oregon legislature will differ significantly from the body currently struggling with affairs of this state Numbers of would be candidates seek ing nomination in May have added fuel to the s p e c u la tio n f ir e A fte r fin a l withdrawals and disqualifications, a total of 226 candidates emerged from both par ties An even hundred Democrats and tw Republicans wish to become candidates for the (Hi seats in the House (tí Represen tatives On the Senate side, 22 Democrats and IX Republicans will vie for 15 posi tions Although far from a record number of p r im a r y c a n d id a te s , the to ta l la significantly greater than the 211 filing two years ago Another factor boding change is the fact «2 incumbents sought re-election in nwo and only 56 wish to succeed themselves this year Further, 46 candidates had no primary election competition two years ago This year only eight primary races are uncontented Another ingredient for spec ulation about change was the uncommon criticism heaped on the 61st Assembly from without and within Seldom has a legislature suf fered ns many barbs from press, public and Its own members House Speaker Hardy Myers declared early last year he would not seek a third term in the lower chamber Given the fact at least seven new member* will be sitting in the next Senate, a long rumored challenge to Senate Pres Fred Heard s leadership could succeed Resignations by chairmen of both Senate and House Revenue (ommittees will have an impact on the next Assembly par ticularly with forecasts the economy won't recover sufficiently to provide adequate state and local government financing without overhauling the tax structure Then there's the question of party supremacy Senate Democrats have en joyed numerical superiority since I »56 and House D em ocrats since l»72, both representing record long tenure* The only previous period in Oregon history when f>emorrata outnumber ed Republicans was during 19.15 17 Republicans are making no hone* atmut a prMsilality of overhauling the House ma Joeity this year and making serious in roads in Senate number* Fhey pm their hope* on number* of GOP candidate* this yaar There are «7, compared Io only «2 in IW ) They ai«o point (a the narrowing margin between partisan volar registrations Of the current < January) total 1,446.Mg registered voters 710,141 are Democrat* Legislative Report from the Slate Capital E X C L U S IV E Io Oregon * Weekly Newspa per* from A ssociated O regon In d u s trie* 532,000 are Republicans and 200.207 are in dependent and others A year ago the Democrat total was 766,115 Total GOP registration was 551,763 and all others was 211,01» The disparity, following the September purge and subsequent registrations, dip ped from 214,352 a year ago to 166,141 GOP leaders natural predict greater success for their candidates, as the Democrat edge declines The D e m o c ra t n u m b e rs in the 6b member House were 33, when that par ty assumed control m I »72 The number rose to a high of 36 in l»74 The GOP since ha* steadily whittled at the Democrat m a jority, until the numbers dipped once more in I960 to the 33 27 imbalance posted 10 years ago The current Democrat majority is con s ld e re d e x tre m e ly tenuous, as demonstrated consistently during both regular and special sessions of the 61st Assembly Then, conservative member* of the ruling party teamed with Republicans on many significant issues The GOP even hints about possible coalition control in I »63, if their numbers expand by even one or two members Coalition also is hinted as a possibility in the JOmember Senate after November balloting While the present Democrat ma Jonty is considerable 22 to 6 seven seats will change hands with redistricting and failure of incumbents to seek re election . Sis Democrat Senator* did not file to sue re ed th e m s e lv e s , w h ile only one Republican chose not to run again Six former House members split evenly by party affiliatio n -are seeking Senate status Four are women, with party affilia tiona split evenly Five of the six departing Democrat Senators are part of that chamber’s urban bloc, so election results could produce unparalleled changes. Balloting also could elevate GOP numbers to 12, equal Io the split that pro ducod a coalition leader in 1973 Even with 12 more, the GOP would move perioualy close to the 16-14 split that produced coali tlon leadership in 196» 71 While little is certain at this point in campaigns barely off the ground the greatest certainty appears that voters are in (or an uncommon amount of persuasive activity between now and te time their last ballots are counted next November Letters to the editor: School, candidates and tax draw focus Flex attendance I am a student at Sandy Union High, and I am con cerned about the atten dance policy Parents want the school to crack down on attendance, I don't think it's fair on the teachers, because they have to spend too much tim e w riting notices to parents That's not their job Their job is to teach the students, who go to class to learn. If you force students to go to class, all they will do is make it hard for other students to learn, because the teacher will have to stop class to discipline them That’s not why the teacher is there I think it's the parents who should do something, if their kids are skipping classes not the school Parents should call, if they're concerned This could save the school some money and the teachers ex tra work they're not paid to had served conscientiftus • on the budgqt board, this year as its chairperson. In this capacity she demonstrated a unique ability to openly consider a variety of options and make difficult decisions I have served w ith Dorothy Mills in a variety of civic responsibilities and have been especially im pressed with her skilled ability to question and thereby gather inform a tion She also o ffe rs positive leadership, pep pered with a sense of humor, that truly helps unite a group and effort Dorothy Mills is an ac tive grade school parent, responsible civic worker and fo rm er educators With her candidacy we have the opportunity to place on the board a per son, who understands the full scope of the district’s program and business Joanne Seeger Boring do Tony Cleland Brightwood Support Mills D orothy M ills lx an outstanding candidate for Poaition 5 of the Sandy Elementary School Board For the past four years she For Otto It is imperative that we elect Glenn Otto to the Mt Hood Community College hoard Tuesday. Because of the slump in the economy, all public agencies will he asked to make cuts in programs in cluding Mt Hood We need someone like Glenn Otto to sec that there are not un- duecuts in the vocational or technical areas Vocational or technical programs tend to be more expensive than other pro grams They also are more rewarding in providing im mediate employment to graduates In voting for the Mt Hood hoard, please con sider the valuable insights Glenn Otto can provide during difficult times D G Page Gresham That’s why I urge voters of the Mt. Hood Community College District to elect Glenn Otto to the board. Glenn Otto is a respected veteran of the Oregon House. As a representative of the MHCC board, he can speak even more authority for the community col leges As both a respected v e te ra n and board representative, he can play a key role in setting legislative and financial priorities Elm er Summerfield Gresham Also for Otto Nix sales tax Mt Hood Community College faces a legislative and financial crisis, as the state of Oregon strives to balance its budget When the legislature made it possible in the l»6<)s for local areas to establish community col leges, it promised to pro vide significant operational support State support of operations for community colleges has dwindled in re cent years Legislatures need to be reminded of this historical commitment and receive a first hand understanding of problems that face com munity colleges The Republican Party again has proved their ad miration for sales tax by recent endorsement of this unfair tax at Dorchester Conference This regressive form of taxation repeatedly has been rejected by Oregon Democrats Unlike most political issues in this state, the party lines are drawn clearly on this subject. California has a sales tax, and their citizens carry a heavy tax burden The state of Washington has a sales tax. and their form of taxation is among the most regressive in the mation It has not kept that state from going broke. The main argument for a sales tax is an alleged s ta b ility it b ring s to revenue collection Such stability, however, is il lusory in a declinin g economy. In addition, the sales tax is the cruelest tax, since an unemployed m ill w orker or senior citizen on limited fixed in come pays the same tax rate as a wealthy person We can accomplish the same thing in Oregon with a large “ prudent person reserve fund“ to cushion e ffe c ts of p e rio d ic economic recession We shouldn't be like the state of Washington, which must depend upon a good Christmas shopping season to balance the state budget Those who advocate a sales tax as a replacement for property taxes also should be reminded this scheme won’t lower the total tax bill—only remove local control of local pro p e rty ta x -s u p p o rte d government The sales tax dramatically would shift power to state government in Salem away from the people Dell Isham, Senate majority leader Grattan Kerans, House majority leader Personally speaking: Substitute teachers have rough time I recently overheard an SUHS student talking about a substitute teacher who's “ in her 40» but acts like an old lady .“ As a group, suhatitute teachers do have it rough Everyone, it seems, has a story to tell about a substitute teacher that was tormented I remember Mrs Jeppers When I was a freshman tensions between Mrs Jeppers and the students reached a crescendo. The hand director, we called him Wacky Wendell, was out of town The caste system was still pretty much if effect in 1970, and the freshmen were told to remain seated while the juniors and seniors traded instruments By the time I was a senior the hand had earned 21 consecutive 1 ratings at state music contests ( I played the tuba, by the way Wacky Wendell said I had the lips for it) So when Mrs Jeppers began to direct that day she knew we weren't playing as well as we could And n o th in g , a b s o lu te ly nothing sounds worse than a large, out-of-tune hand She put up with the ad libs and loud blasts for about 10 minutes, and then she exploded It didn't do any good Maybe Straight Arrow Mary in the drum section wore her scowl a little tighter, hut most of us were hav whose class'* Rudiculous ' The other thing he used to say was, “ Oh Steve and Dennis, why don’t you just grow your hair and join a rock band “ Interestingly enough, that's just what they did A n yw ay, a fte r five m ore minutes Mrs Jeppers got mad a second time by SCOTT NEWTON ing a good time. Class with Wacky Wendell, you see. was a pretty disciplined af fair, although it. too. had its moments W acky W en dell had two favorite sayings when I was in school When someone would do something stupid, which was fair ly often. Wacky Wendell would say. “ riudiculous “ That was a favorite saying round Chaparral High School in Anthony, Kan “ You enrolled in After a short lecture, she told us that she was going to turn her hack and allow us to go hack to the sections that we belonged in. If the band didn't sound better after that, she threatened to take down the name of each student and where that student was sit ting We all thought the party was over But no. There was one brave person, a senior, who decided to stay in the drum sec tion Brad was a good trumpet player, and an even better debater He was smooth, and that “ cool under pressure" has served him well more than once Brad was having a good time The band was sounding better, which just accented his creative bass drumming that much more By this time Mrs Jeppers. much to our delight, was really mad It was important to her that she be in control Finally she stopped the hand with a wild swirl of the baton She looked Brad nght in the eye and said, “There are still some people who have not moved back to their respective sections I think the bass drum m er’s music might he different from what I have I'd like to hear just the percussion section play ” Everyone snickered “ Brad's really going to get in trouble now," someone whispered Straight-Arrow M ary really stretched her frown Tim id Tom my, the regular bass drummer, tried to fade into the woodwork The entire hand focused in or Brad as Mrs. Jeppers raised her baton To everyone's amazement he not only played the part perfect ly, he played it with authority, just as Wacky Wendell had been trying to get Tim id Tommy to do for years After a few stanzas Mrs. Jep pers cut the percussion section off The room was silent. “ Now. the entire hand. ' was all that was said as she raised the baton Brad handed the drumstick to Timid Tommy and slipped into his vacant chair in the trumpet section The rest of the rehearsal was pretty well structured And it seems to me, although it may have just been my imagine tion, that Timid Tommy played with Just a little more authority after that.
