Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, October 24, 2001, Page 13, Image 13

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    October 24,2001_________________________ ^ o r t la n h ® b » e r u e r ____________________________________ Page B7
Class Helps Seniors Tackle Tech
T he non-profit education or­
ganization O A SIS has new pro­
gram to help m ature adults use
technology and the Internet to
enrich their lives.
“O A SIS C onnections” is apro-
gram m aking Internet access and
training available to seniors at the
M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty L ib ra ry -
N orth Portland Branch, the Police
A ctivities L eague in dow ntow n
B eaverton and the Legacy H ealth
System in northw est Portland.
A classed called Introduction
to C om puters gives an overview
o f the com puter, basic use o f the
W indow s operating system , b a­
sic keyboarding and m ouse skills,
term inology, and basic w ord p ro ­
cessing.
Introduction to the In tern et
concentrates on how to use the
Internet and e-mail to connect with
fam ily friends heath inform ation
and oth er resources on-line.
A new course in 2002 w ill in­
clude Internet Im m ersion, explor­
ing the m ore advanced features o f
the Internet, such as chat room s
an d m essage boards.
T he curriculum for each course
is d esigned for m ature adults to
ensure ease o f use and focus on
topics o f interest to this audience.
For m ore inform ation, call 503-
241-3059.
Tentative contract agreem ent
reached with city w orkers
(A P ) — A tentative contract
a g re em e n t w as rea ch ed early
M onday betw een the city and
about 1,800 union em ployees who
w alked o f f the jo b for about 45
m inutes in the early m orning.
“ I d on’t know ifw e ’re vying for
the G uinness Book o f R ecords’
shortest strike in history,” said
Y v o n n e M a rtin e z , a sp o k e s ­
w om an for the D istrict Council o f
T rade U nions.
D etails o f the agreem ent are
still in flux, she said. Both sides,
how ever, agreed to create a jo in t
com m ittee to review health care
changes, a m ain sticking point in
the negotiations.
W orksite m eetings w ould be
held in com ing days and results o f
a ratification vote would be known
in about three w eeks, M artinez
said
N egotiations broke dow n Fri­
day after 13 hours o f debate about
a new health care plan. Y vonne
Deckard, P ortland’s director o f
hum an services, said she asked
for a “ tim eout” to avoid w orking
on delicate contract language late
at night. Deckard said she offered
to resum e talks Saturday, but the
union declined.
“W e w ant to get a deal that w e
think is fair to our em ployees,”
she said. “ But we also w ant a deal
that is not on the backs o f the
taxpayers.”
A strike likely would have taken
parking-m eter attendants o f f the
streets and affected the c ity ’s
ability to clean backed-up sew ers
or pick up leaves.
The threat o f a strike led P ort­
land police to issue an order to
lim it arrests and bookings o f non­
violent suspects at the county
jail, in case fingerprint technicians
w alked o ff theirjobs. Local police
precincts also w ould have shut
dow n, but patrol officers and 911
operators w ould have continued
to w ork.
F acing increased h ealthcare
costs and a shrinking general fund
bu d g et, the city w an ted trade
union w orkers to begin paying a
portion o f their health care prem i­
um s. T he costs w ould be up to
$600 a year for fam ily coverage.
T he city also w anted a 25 per­
cent cut in costs for its m ost popu­
lar health plan, on top o f an 8
percent cut im plem ented July 1.
T hat could m ean w orkers w ould
face deductibles for the first tim e,
perhaps $250 a year, and m any
w ould pay 20 p ercent o f m edical
costs instead o f 10 percent.
A fte r d ecad es o f to p -n o tch
b en e fits, th e c h a n g es are too
m uch to take, u nion leaders said.
“ W hen I cam e to w ork for the
city, they prom ised m e th ey ’d take
care o f m e, and now th e y ’ve
dropped that b all,” said city em ­
ployee John W ilson.
Gresham Police Chief Seeks Sheriff
G resham Police C h ief Bernie
G iusto has entered the race for
election as M ultnom ah County
Sheriff.
G iusto m ade the announce­
m ent last w eek in a new s confer­
ence listing key public safety is­
sues facing the s h e rif f s office
and other police agencies in the
Portland area over the next five
years.
He outlined a leadership initia­
tive to engage citizens in setting
p o licy direction and priorities
w ithin the M ultnom ah County
C orrections System . H e also pro­
posed a set o f new priorities for
the law enforcem ent operations
for the s h e rif f s office.
G iusto has led the G resham
Police D epartm ent since A ugust
Bernie Giusto
1996. Prior experience included a
22-year career w ith the O regon
State Police w here he attained the
rank o f lieutenant, serving in such
roles as Special O perations, Se­
n ior Policy A dvisor to the S uper­
intendent o f State Police and P u­
bic Inform ation Officer.
G iusto has a strong civic in­
volvem ent record. H e served three
separate term s (1989-1995) as a
m em ber o f the Gresham City Coun­
cil tw ice being elected Council
President. H e is a past m em ber o f
the M etropolitan H um an R ela­
tions (R ights) C om m ission and a
charter m em ber o f the M ultnom ah
C ounty C om m ission on C hildren
and Families.
G ov. John K itzhaber has tw ice
appointed G iusto to the T ri-M et
B oard o f D irectors. H e currently
serves as the D irector for Tri-
M et’s D istrict #6.
Food Stam p Users Increase
as Oregon Econom y Declines
(A P ) - T he num ber o f O rego­
nians on food stamps jum ped more
than 77,000 in S eptem ber com ­
pared w ith S eptem ber o f last year
a n o t h e r s ig n th a t th e s ta te
econom y is in rough shape.
T h e 32 p e r c e n t in c r e a s e
pushed the num ber ofO regon food
stam p users to 315,691, roughly 9
percent o f the population.
S ta te
e c o n o m is t
Tom
Potiow sky said th e re’s no q u es­
tion the rise is related to O reg o n ’s
unem ploym ent rate, now at 6.4
percent. M any o f the recipients
likely are minimum-wage workers,
w ho are often the first to lose their
jo b s in a recession and w ho d o n ’t
have savings to tide them over, he
said.
Jim Neely, state food stam p
coordinator, said it w as the big-
gest y ear-to-year increase he has
seen since 1974, w hen he started
working in the assistance program.
P eo p le o u t o f w o rk o r w hose
h o u rs h av e b een c u t a c co u n t
for m uch o f the increase, he said.
B ut th e food stam p p ro g ra m has
also strea m lin ed th e ap p lica tio n
p ro ce ss an d is re a c h in g m o re
O re g o n ia n s elig ib le fo r h elp ,
N ee ly said.
Oregon to Become Breeding Site for Condors
B iologists are hoping to breed
endangered condors at P ortland’s
O regon Zoo.
The zoo will be the fourth breed­
ing site for the C alifornia condor,
a bird w ith a 9 -foot w ingspan that
once lived in the Pacific N orth­
w est but nearly vanished from the
Earth 20 years ago.
Federal biologists considered
proposals from zoos in San Fran­
cisco and O klahom a but chose the
Oregon Zoo because o f its dedica­
tion to w ildlife conservation.
“ W hat the O regon Z oo did
right is they really found out the
details first," said Bruce Palm er,
condor recovery coordinator for
theU .S. Fish and W ildlife Service.
“T hey visited the existing condor
facilities and asked them selves
the hard questions about w hat it
w ould take to do it and how com ­
m itted they w ere.”
About lOOcaptivecondors live
in breeding centers in Los A nge­
les, San D iego and Boise, Idaho.
A dding the O regon Zoo to the list
will boost the captive population
and will produce m ore condor
chicks for release into the wild,
Palm er said.
D epending on how soon the
zoo builds structures such as vast
flight pens, young condors that
have not reached breeding age
m ay arrive in Portland next s u m ­
mer. Three or four breeding pairs
o f condors would then follow and
could produce eggs the follow ing
year. Palm er said.
B lair C suti, the O regon Z o o ’s
conservation program director,
said the zoo will house up to 16
condors. Officials immediately will
begin raising funds for the co n ­
struction, w hich they expect w ill
boost the zo o ’s national role in
w ildlife conservation.
“ W e m ight be able to build the
flight pen for next year for a h alf­
m illion dollars, b ut w e 'd need
about $2 m illion to $3 m illion fora
com plete facility," he said.
C alifornia condors w ere once
com m on in O regon. T hey w ere
m entioned in the jo u rn als o f the
Lew is and C lark expedition 200
years ago. B ut settlers hunted and
poisoned them to near extinction.
T he O reg o n Z o o ’s success in
other anim al-conservation efforts
helped it get the co n d o r project.
The Multnomah County Health
Department is currently recruit­
ing for the following position:
PHARMACY TECHNICIAN
COMMUNITY HEALTH NURSE
Application m aterials and for­
mal jo b announcem ents are
available at:
w w w .C Q .m u ltn o m ah .Q r.u s/
jo b s /, in person or by mailing
a self-addressed stam ped en­
velope requesting application
form s to: M ultnom ah County
Hum an R esources D ivision,
1 1 2 0 SW 5m Avenue, First Floor
Lobby, PO Box 14700. Portland
OR, 9 7 2 9 3 -0 7 0 0 . A s s is te d
access to M ultnom ah County
job inform ation and web site is
available at Multnomah County
Libraries.
Multnomah County Health De­
partment is actively recruiting
persons from various ethnic
and cultural backgrounds to
enhance service to our diverse
communities. Bilingual/bicul-
tural candidates are encour­
aged to apply. An Equal Oppor­
tunity Employer
Notice To Contractors
WWTP Digester Gas Moisture Removal System,
CIP No. 309700
Sealed bids for the WWTP Digester Gas Moisture Removal
System, CIP No. 3 0 9 7 0 0 will be received by the Office o f the
D irector o f the D epartm ent o f Environm ental Services at
Gresham City Hall, 1 3 3 3 N.W. Eastman Parkway, Gresham,
Oregon 9 7 0 3 0 , until Friday, November 9, 2 0 0 1 , 9 :0 0 a.m.
local time. The bids will be publicly opened at 1 :0 0 pm on
November 9, 2 0 0 1 in the Springwater Trail Room, City Hail.
The character o f the work is the installation o f a filtration sys­
tem to remove moisture from methane gas produced by anerobic
digesters at the C ity's w astew ater treatm ent plant, which is
used as fuel for the p la nt's Waukesha CoGeneration Engine.
The m ajor q uantities involved are:
Centrifugal Blower, Max 5 hp, 9 0 0 sefh
Particulate Filter, 5 m icron, 9 0 0 sefh
D igester Gas Chiller
Piping
Concrete Slab, approx. 8 ' x 3 2 ’
Questions concerning this project should be addressed to Clint
M oshofsky, Project Manager, (50 3) 618 -2 63 7.
Plans and specifications may be reviewed at the o ffice o f the
Departm ent of Environmental Services at the Gresham City Hall.
Copies may be obtained from the D epartm ent o f Environmen­
tal Services by paying a non-refundable fee o f $ 25 for each set
o f plans and specifications requested. If ordered by mail, add a
$5 processing and mailing charge. Prior to obtaining plans and
specifications, contractors m ust have purchased the current
City o f Gresham Public Works Standards 2 0 0 1 , as shown by
the records o f the Departm ent o f Environmental Services.
This project is fo r a public work and is subject to ORS 2 7 9 .3 4 8
to 2 7 9 .3 8 0 , the Oregon Prevailing Wage Law.
CITY OF WEST LINN
Job Opportunity
Accounting Supervisor
$ 3 4 0 2 -$ 4 3 4 1 /m o DOQ. Un­
der the direction o f the Finance
Director, plans, organizes and
directs the accounting function
o f the City o f W est Linn. De­
signs, recommends and imple­
ments new accounting systems
and internal control policies and
procedures. Coordinates, trains
and reviews the work o f the
accounting s ta ff. Provides ad­
m inistrative and technical as­
sistance to the Finance Direc­
tor. Requires Bachelor's Degree
in accounting; a m inimum of
four years experience in audit,
g e n e ra l a c c o u n tin g , re p o rt
preparation and computerized
s y s te m s e x p e rie n c e (IB M
AS 400/H T E ); and tw o years
experience in supervision. Gov­
ernmental accounting, work pro­
cessing and com puter spread­
sh e e t experience desira b le .
S u c c e s s fu l c a n d id a te m u st
p a s s p re -e m p lo y m e n t drug
screen. Application packets are
available at West Linn City Hall,
2 2 5 0 0 Salam o Road, W est
Linn, OR 9 7 0 6 8 , or by calling
(503) 722-3427 (voice mail) or
(5 0 3 ) 6 5 6 -4 5 1 8 TDD. Com­
pleted inform ation m ust be re­
ceived by November 16, 2 00 1,
4 :0 0 p.m. EEO
Clark County, Washington
Job Opportunities
We are seeking qualified
candidates to
be part o f our dynamic public
service organization.
SENIOR COMMUNICATIONS
SYSTEM SPECIALIST
$ 3 ,8 0 2 -$ 5 ,3 7 4 /m o . DOQ
SHERIFF'S SUPPORT
SPECIALIST II
$ 1 1 .4 7 -$ 1 4 .6 5 /h r. DOQ
Job inform ation, applications,
and benefits inform ation are
available from:
Clark County Human Re­
sources
1 0 1 3 Franklin St, Vancouver
WA
Job Hotline: (36 0 ) 3 9 7 -6 0 1 8
TDD: (36 0) 3 9 7 -6 0 3 2
www.co.clark.wa.us
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
EMPLOYER
All proposals m ust be subm itted on the form s furnished by the
City o f Gresham, mailed or delivered to the Departm ent o f En­
vironm ental Services, City o f Gresham, in a sealed envelope
plainly marked, “SEALED BID for the WWTP Digester Gas Mois­
ture Removal System, CIP No. 3 0 9 7 0 0 " , bearing the name
and address o f the bidder. Each m ust be accompanied by a
c e rtifie d check, ca shier's check or bid bond in an am ount not
less than ten percent (10%) o f the total bid.
BY ORDER OF CITY COUNCIL
1 3 3 3 N.W. Eastman parkway
Gresham , Oregon 9 7 0 3 0
Request For Proposals
MERC, a com m ission o f Metro Regional Government, Located
at 7 77 M artin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Portland, OR 9 7 2 3 2 -
2 7 3 6 , is requesting proposals fo r Special In spection/T hird
Party Testing and Inspection Services fo r Steel C onstruction
fo r the Oregon Convention Center (OCC) Expansion Project.
MERC requests a Testing Agency to provide se rvices neces­
sary to evaluate, Inspect, and provide te stin g fo r steel con­
struction fo r th e Expansion o f the Oregon Convention Center
in accordance w ith Specification Section 0 1 4 0 0 prepared by
Zim m er Gunsul Frasca Partnership (ZGF), project architect.
P roposals w ill be due no la te r th an O ctober 3Q. 2 0 0 1 .
11:00A M in the Oregon Convention Center Expansion Project
O ffice a t 8 3 4 NE M artin Luther King Jr., Blvd, Portland, OR
9 7 2 3 2 , located across the stree t from the Convention Cen­
ter. Postm ark dates w ill not be considered.
A copy o f the com plete RFP may be obtained by contacting in
w riting th e Oregon Convention Center Expansion O ffice via
fax (5 0 3 -2 3 8 -0 6 4 7 ) or e-m ail (vickibaker@Qregoncc.QEg).
Please provide in w riting the contact name, company name,
phone num ber and fax num ber to which to send th e docu­
m ents. Copies will not be mailed. All requests will be answered
w ithin one business day o f receipt. It is th e responsibility o f
th e requesting party to verify receipt o f the RFP docum ents;
please provide in w riting th e contact nam e, company nam e,
phone num ber and fax num ber to which to send th e docu­
m ents. Copies will not be m ailed. All request will be answered
w ithin one business day o f receipt. It is the responsibility o f
th e requesting party to verify receipt o f the RFP docum ents;
please contact the OCC Expansion O ffice at 5 03 -2 3 8 -0 6 0 7 if
there is any problem or delay in receiving a requested copy.
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
W orksystem s inc. (WSI) is issuing an RFP for a design center
developm ent plan in N /N E Portland.
The RFP is available at h ttp ://w w w .w orksystems.org/CQrttEac-
All funding o p p ortu nities are listed at www.worksystem s.o rg .
under Contractor Inform ation. If you wish to be notified about
fu tu r e
fu n d in g
o p p o r tu n itie s ,
p le a s e
e m a il:
lilianm ick@ worksystem s.org and ask to be added to the pro­
curem ent notification list. All notifications are done by em ail
only. If you have additional questions regarding procurem ent,
please call 5 03 -2 41 -4 6 00 .
fr
Come visit us on the web at
www.portlandobserver.com
yj