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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 6, 1999)
JAN. 6, 1999 Page A5 (Ehr JJortlanò (ßhseruer Feat O f Oregon Presents Autism Treatment Conference Fam ilies for Early A utism T reat m ent (FEA T) o f O regon is proud to present the Innovative and E ffec tive Interventions for A utism con ference, January 28-30, 1999. T o b e h e ld a t th e P o rtla n d M arriott, the conference features leading autism researchers includ ing Dr. Patricia K rantz, executive director o f the P rinceton C hild D e velopm ent Institute; Dr. T ristram S m ith, research d ire c to r o f th e U C L A M u lti-S ite R e p lic a tio n stu d y , an d D r. M a rie B risto l- Pow er, o f the N ational Institute o f Health, w ho coordinates the new ly form ed International A utism C o l laborative N etw ork o n neurobiol ogy and genetics. A t this conference, parents and education and m edical com m unity w ill be able to learn m ore about practical interventions for autism from expert researchers and prac titioners. These interventions tar get sp ecific prob lem s and skill deficits experienced by alm ost all children w ith autism. A fundraising evening. “D ining w ith the D octors,” w ill take place on Friday, Jan. 29, 1999 at 7 PM. H e ld d u rin g N a tio n a l A u tism A w areness M onth, this event will raise m oney for the C hild D evel opm ent School o f Oregon. The con ference will also raise m oney for Level II therapists for the N orth w est Y oung A utism P ro ject in V ancouver, W ash. T he C hild D evelopm ent School o f O regon is the first intensive A pplied B ehavior A nalysis (ABA ) based school for children w ith au tism in O regon. A B A is the only treatm ent that has been scientifi cally proven effective, and is the on ly autism intervention recog nized by the N ational Institute o f H ealth. T he school’s m ission is to optim ize th e p o ten tial for each student’s participation in all as pects o f com m unity life, from di agnosis throughout their lifespan. Services include center-based in struction, outreach to hom e-based program s and schools, and univer sity-affiliated graduate program s for s ta ff w hich w ill include on-site practicum s. FEA T o f O regon is a nonprofit organization established by a sm all group o f parents dedicated to pro m oting intensive early intervention services for children w ith autism and to providing a supportive net w ork for their families. Albina Branch Library To Close For Construction M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty L ib r a r y ’s A lb in a B ra n c h L i b r a r y , l o c a t e d a t 3 6 0 5 N E 15 ,h S t. w ill c l o s e f o r c o n s t r u c t i o n a t 5 P M o n S u n d a y , J a n . 10. T h e b r a n c h li b r a r y c u r r e n t l y o c c u p i e s r e n t e d s p a c e in a b u i l d i n g a t 1 5 th a n d F r e m o n t s tr e e ts th a t h a s b e e n p u r c h a s e d b y N a t u r e ’s N o r t h w e s t, w h ic h is r e n o v a t i n g th e s i t e fo r a n e w s to re a n d s h o p p in g c e n t e r . B o th th e o p e n i n g o f th e s h o p p in g c e n t e r a n d th e r e o p e n in g o f th e A lb in a B ra n c h L i b r a r y a r e s c h e d u l e d f o r l a te M ay . W h e n th e 3 ,5 0 0 s q u a r e - fo o t A lb in a B ra n c h L ib ra ry r e o p e n s , lib r a r y p a tr o n s w ill fin d u p d a te d s h e lv in g th a t m e e ts n e w s e is m ic s ta n d a rd s , u p g ra d e d re s tro o m s th a t m e e t c o d e s s e t b y th e A m e r i c a n s W i th D i s a b i l i t i e s A c t , 12 n e w c o m p u t e r s t a tio n s w ith I n te r n e t c o n n e c tiv ity , n ew fu rn itu re and re c o n fig u re d in f o rm a tio n / c irc u la tio n d e s k s fo r b e tte r V o te r s a p p r o v e d g e n e r a l o b l i g a t i o n b o n d f u n d i n g to f i n a n c e M u tn o m a h C o u n ty L ib r a r y ’s b ra n c h re n o v a tio n p r o j e c t i n 1 9 9 6 , r e s p o n d i n g to p r jb le m s c a u se d b y lo n g -d e fe rre d m a in te n a n c e , n e w s e is m ic c o d e s , n e w A m e r i c a n s W ith D i s a b i l i t i e s A c t ( A D A ) s t a n d a r d s a n d th e n e e d f o r e l e c t r o n i c i n f r a s t r u c t u r e to s u p p o rt n ew te c h n o lo g y . T h e m u lti-y e a r p ro je c t, e x p e c te d to b e c o m p l e t e d in 2 0 0 2 , i n c l u d e s i m p r o v e m e n t s to n in e lib r a r ie s . C e n tra l lib r a ry , w h ic h o p e n e d in A p r i l 1 9 9 7 a fte r an e x te n s iv e re n o v a tio n , a n d th e M i d l a n d R e g io n a l L i b r a r y , w h i c h o p e n e d in S e p te m b e r 1 9 9 6 , a re n o t p a rt o f th e p r o j e c t . A lb in a B r a n c h L i b r a r y p a t r o n s a n d o t h e r s w h o w o u ld l i k e to r e c e i v e o n g o i n g i n f o r m a t i o n a l m a i l i n g s a b o u t th e p ro je c t m a y re g is te r at an y b r a n c h o f th e M u ltn o m a h c o u n ty L ib ra ry o r b y c a llin g t r a f f ic flo w . W h i l e th e b r a n c h l i b r a r y is c lo s e d , lib r a r y u s e rs w ill b e u r g e d to u s e th e H o l l y w o o d B ra n c h L ib ra ry a t 3 9 3 u N E . 2 4 8 -5 4 0 2 . O n g o in g in f o rm a tio n a b o u t th e p r o j e c t is a l s o a v a i l a b l e v ia h o m e , o f f i c e o r i n - l i b r a r y c o m p u t e r o n th e l i b r a r y ’ s w e b s ite (httfllZ Z .W W Jk . H ancock. Multnomah.lib.or.us/lib/). Children’s Museum Celebrates 50 Years of Making Learning Fun! Birthday Bash Set for February 27 You m ight spot Elvis and other ‘stars” o f 1949 at the C hildren’s M useum ’ s big 50Ih birthday bash, on Saturday, February 27, 1999. The free com m unity party, from 11 AM- 3 PM, will be held at the future hom e o f the M useum, the old OM SI building at W ashington Park. Children can bring their bikes and trikes to decorate and “test drive” on an indoor raceway. Paint a giant mural or design a sculpture out o f blocks. Plunge back into the “good old days” with a visit to out time capsule w here youngsters can play with toys that delighted their par ents and grandparents. T h ere’ll also be free refresh ments, m usical entertainm ent, pup peteers and lots o f surprises - plus a chance to see w hat w e’re planning for our new, $9.9 m illion hom e when we m ove to W ashington Park in late 2000/early 2001. The anniversary celebration is presented by Volvo Cars o f N orth A m erica, Jim Fisher Volvo and H erzog-M eier Volvo, as well as m ajor spsonsor The O rego nian, and m edia sponsors Portland P aren t, K IN K fm l0 2 an d TC I Cablevision. T he C h ild re n ’s M useum w as founded as a “dow ntow n west side play area” b y legendary Portland Parks D irector D orothea Lensch. O riginally located in the stately Jacob Kamm H ouse - w here Lin coln High School now stands - it offered everything from a pet lend- A “pet lending library' was one of the features of the Children's Museum when it opened in 1949. The Museum will celebrate its 5(yh party at a free community party on Saturday, February 27, from 11 AM till 3 PM at the future home of the Children's Museum (the old OMSI building at Washington Park). ing library to classes in w oodw ork ing and rowing. Called the Junior Museum and Adventure House, it was one o f only seven children’s museums in the country; today, there are more than 150! O ver the years, the Portland Children ’ s Museum has delighted millions o f children who now bring their children and grand children here to play, cook up a make-believe lunch in the Bistro or experiment with pumps in H2Oh! Some of the treasures w e’ve col lected over the last 50 years will be the focus o f a new exhibit - “ W acky, W ild and W oolly” opening January 30, at our current facility in SW Portland’s Lair Hill neighborhood. Kids can marvel at a real dinosaur egg, shudder at a shark’s jaw , and explore a giant birthday cake unlike any they’ve seen before! The exhibit is sponsored by K ey Bank. To help us celebrate our birthday, w e’re inviting everyone to send us copies (non-returnable) o f their best birthday photos. W e’ll display them all at our February 27tl'birthday bash and w e’ll pick our favorites for spe cial prizes! Send your photos, with name, address and phone num ber to the attention o f R honda, at the Children’s Museum, 3037 SW Sec ond Ave., Portland, OR 97201. The Museum, located just off SW BarburBlvd.,isopensevendaysaweek from 9 AM-5 PM. Admission is $4 for everyone age one and older. For more information, call 503/823-2227. Half of the Pacific Northwest’s Job Openings Don’t Pay A Living Wage The Northwest Policy Center and Oregon Action just released the North west Job Gap Study that confirms specu lation that the majority o f job openings in the Pacific Northwest don’t pay enough to support a family. Forty to fifty percent o f job open ings pay less than what a single adult must earn to meet basic needs and plan ahead. About 70 to 80 percent o f job openings don’t meet the needs o f a single parent with two children. “This study shows what working people have known for awhile, that a job is not necessarily a living today,” said Brian Hoop, political director o f Oregon Action. “W e need jobs that support our families and our commu nities." Each o f the Northwest states showed strong economic growth in the 1990s, mostly due to population increases and development o f high tech industries. Despite the growth, there were indica tions that the benefits were not reach ing all communities. The Northwest Job Gap Study, con ducted by the Northwest Policy Center at the University o f W ashington’s Graduate School o f Public Affairs and the Northwest Federation o f Commu nity Organizations, is the first to docu ment the job gap for families in Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. “The Job Gap project is the first to thoroughly and systematically docu ment the extent to which there is a gap within the Northwest region,’’ said Bob Watrus. policy analyst for the North- westPolicyCenter. “The Job Gap Study provides a valuable tool for those work ing to create and sustain living wage jobs for the region’s families.” A living wage allows families to budget for basic necessities such as housing, child care and savings while paying their feir share o f local, state and federal taxes. For a single parent with two children, living wages range from $ 14.42 an hour in Idaho to $ 16.86 an hour in Washington. Using 1996 statistics on job open ings. wages and employment, research ers found that despite strong growth in the regional economy, the Northwest is not keeping pace with the need for living wage jobs. In Oregon, for example, there are approximately 253.000 more working age households than there are jobs pay ing a living wage for a single adult. For each job opening in Idaho that pays at least the living wage for a single adult with two children, there are on average 14 job seekers. "The job gap is real and policy mak eis must dedicate themselves to clos ing it,” Hoop said. “Living wage jobs provide underpinnings for a strong com munity.” The N orthw est Job G ap Study brought together individual state steer ing committees drawn from business, community groups, labor, state and local government to help shape the research and the outreach efforts. Water Supply Status The C ity o f Portland Bureau o f W ater W orks com pleted shutting dow n the Bull Run conduits at 3:40 AM on Tuesday due to high turbid ity in the C ity ’s prim ary reser voirs. “ Essentially, everything is w ork ing as it should," according to W ater B u rea u C h ie f E n g in e e r, M o rt A noushiravani. “T he w ellfield ex ists to provide a back-up supply o f clean drinking w ater during p eri ods ofhigh seasonal dem and, em er gencies, o r situations such as this. W e have plenty o f w ater but the recent heavy rains follow ing the freeze have created perfect condi m illio n g allo n s a d ay from the Clackam as R iver system to supple m ent the wells. We expect to have enough w ater to m eet dem and, but w e w ould also appreciate our cus to m e rs’ atten tio n to u sin g w ater w is e ly th r o u g h th is p e r io d ." The W ater Bureau started adding well w ater to the system M onday a fte r e n tir e ly “The City experienced a similar noon. o n w e ll The w ater for situation during the 1996flooding" W a te r se v e ra l _________ B u r e au d a y s routinely notifies large custom ers w hile the turbid w ater m oved through and users know n to be sensitive to the Bull Run system. D uring this changes in w ater chem istry (photo event, w e will also blend about 4.5 tions for high turbidity in the reser voirs. W e need to let that pass through the reservoirs before turn ing the conduits back on. O ur cur rent estim ate is three to five days.” “ W e are fortunate to have the w ells," noted Anoushiravani. “The C ity experienced a sim ilar situation during the 1996 flooding , relying processing labs, dialysis centers, etc.). Because in-tow n reservoirs are full, m ost custom ers will not notice any change in the w ater for at least a day. At that tim e, custom ers m ay note a difference in tem perature (Bull Run is colder) and hardness. Bull Run is particularly soft and custom ers m ay notice that soaps aren ’t as sudsy w ith well water. T h e B u r e a u c o n t in u e s to m o n ito r all w ate r q u a lity p a ra m e te rs to a ssu re th a t w a te r in th e sy stem m e ets o r s u rp a ss e s sta te an d fe d e ra l d rin k in g w a te r sta n d ard s. Low-Cost-Electricity Goes To Market The Bonneville Power Ad m inistration unveiled its strategy for selling whole sale electricity in the 21st century. It is designed to hold electricity bills down for millions o f Northwest ratepayers. BPA aims to maintain its primary wholesale rate at or about the 1996 level through 2 0 0 6 . T h e a g e n c y w ill p u t m o r e th a n 6 , 0 0 0 a v e r a g e m e g a w a t t s o n th e b lo c k - e n o u g h p o w e r to s e r v e s ix c i t i e s t h e s i z e o f S e a t t le . B P A ’s c u s to m e r s m e ld th is p o w e r w ith s u p p lie s th e y p u r c h a s e o n th e m a rk et, th e r e b y r e d u c in g th e c o s t to t h e ir c u sto m e rs. B P A ’s s a le s strategy'spreads t h e eco* n o m ic b e n e f it a m o n g s m a ll c o n s u m e r s r e g io n w id e . “ W e w ill s e ll p o w e r at c o s t and s u b s t a n t ia lly b e lo w m ar k e t, p r e s e r v in g th e lo w ra tes h is to r ic a lly e n jo y ed by N o r t h w e s t r e s id e n ts a n d b u s i n e s s e s , ” s a id B P A a d m in is tra to r J u d i J o h n a n s e n . B P A w i l l b e g in a r a t e - s e t t in g p ro - cess early next year, tb completed next October, The sales w ill coajmence in 2001. T h e !— strategy is an 18-moht initiated by 1 Washington^, and Montana comprehensi the Norths % tam.