Pow Wow For Medical Office Space
Visalia - The Tulare County Medical Society, Kaweah Delta and the City of Visalia are looking for more large medical office complexes in town and will meet with developers and physicians Tuesday, August 24 to highlight this effort.
“We’ve been actively recruiting physicians to Tulare County and as we tour the community they all ask about office space in Visalia. But what we’ve found is that space is hard to find,” says medical society executive director Steve Beargeon.
The meeting at the Convention Center is expected to focus on sites near the Kaweah Delta campus in Downtown “looking at options that may not seem obvious,” says city manager Steve Salomon.
Those sites could include some of the two blocks of the land the city owns west of City Hall that “could be developed very soon,” says Salomon. Already there is one project being built by John Barbis that is close to beginning construction. The options also include the City Hall block itself in the 5 to 7 year term, since the city plans to relocate to the eastern Downtown area.
“The key idea is that development of the medical offices proximate to the hospital will help us recruit more physicians - particularly specialists,” says hospital CEO Lindsay Mann. Time pressed specialists have to bounce back and forth during the day and evening to handle private patients and hospital procedures.
Developer Bill Wittlatch has been pushing a plan at the corner of Locust and Noble where the old Shell station was as a site for a multi story medical building. Kaweah Delta may use the land for interim parking during construction of their new tower.
“What we are looking for is not single story office but big multi story buildings like the Willow Plaza complex across from the hospital,” says Salomon. That office east of the hospital is tied in directly to the parking garage.
Kaweah Delta plans to build a 6 story tower on Acequia in the next two years that has sped up a plan for a new 700 car parking garage across the street that will start construction next year. That city parking structure could draw a development nearby.
That’s what Buckman Mitchell owner Stan Simpson is thinking whose single story building spans a full block on Main St. Kaweah Delta and Simpson have had some discussions recently.
Orthopedic Associates who have an office complex Downtown plan to relocate their office to Plaza and 198 east of Jostens on a 13 acre piece. The medical group has filed plans for a campus-like medical cluster of several buildings on land currently zoned Office Research Park. That designation does not include medical use. The matter will come to the city planning commission in September.
While Kaweah Delta would love to have more medical offices close in to the expanding downtown medical area, CEO Lindsay Mann has given Orthopedic Associates a letter suggesting the hospital had no problem with the location of their planned relocation. That could help grease the skids for city approval for the Orthopedic plan. Kaweah Delta must maintain a balancing act of working with the physicians that provide the services there every day and have agreed to buy the current Orthopedic block for hospital use in the near future.
Visalia Box Printing Firm Could Downsize
Visalia - The City of Visalia has received a letter from the owners of Color Box - the Georgia Pacific packaging and printing firm - that the Visalia site would be sold in the next 60 days and the jobs of 112 workers may be in question. But a spokesperson for the Visalia plant sais while she couldn’t be quoted, but that the new buyer plans a job fair and would continue to operate the plant near the Visalia Industrial Park.
City Economic Development specialist Traci Myers told the Voice this week that the city has been informed the buyer is Pacific Southwest Container who plan to take over the facility in October, but employ about half the present workforce.
Color Box has leased their current plant site since 1995.
“The Workforce Investment Board and Tulare County EDC are working with the company to make sure they know about all the incentives and see if they can keep more of the workers,” says Meyers. The plant is not in the city limits just west of Plaza.
Color Box is the leading litho laminated container manufacturer in North America. The company recently closed a San Francisco and New York plant and said the subsidiary’s profit had declined for the same quarter last year.
At deadline Georgia Pacific spokesman Greg Guess confirmed a letter of intent with Pacific Southwest has been signed. The company is based in Northern California.
Tulare - The City of Tulare may want to consolidate the Tulare Airport suggests city manager Kevin Northcraft, allowing the few fixed base aircraft stationed there to relocate to one of several nearby airports.
Northcraft told the council this week that the airport's flight zone pattern and rules governing that zone has a negative effect on the city's large industrial and retail commercial potential growth in the south part of the city.
The city is undergoing a general plan update and needs to identify a long range plan "to consolidate (close) the facility as an option," he suggested. "There are ten airports within a 30 mile radius" of Tulare. "If area towns were planning an airport we would plan on just one in the general area," he suggests.
The airport covers 180 acres near the Farm Show and has been a dampener on development activity in the greater Farm Show area and on the other side of the freeway.
Recently a pilot's association sued the city over approval of the new truck stop now under construction. The business is bringing 100 jobs to the city. "We are in litigation," says Northcraft over the airport issue.
Chamber board member Mike Lane agrees the airport is "an impediment to growth in the area" and the addition of "activists" that act like "the Tulare airport is LAX" has held up pending plans "on or near the Faria property on both sides of the freeway." Those plans "are dead in the water" until the airport issue is resolved, he maintains.
With just 13 pilots keeping planes at the Tulare airport, Northcraft suggests the maintenance of the facility is not cost effective. "If this were a private business it would have closed long ago," says Lane.
Plans to expand the Farm Show, add a new freeway offramp and bring new hotel, restaurant and other commercial development have heated up in recent years. Adding the airport land to the inventory available for other uses right along the freeway could change the development pattern here. Talks of a new industrial park for distribution and light manufacturing between the Farm Show and the UC Veterinary Center may be easier to lay out without regulations about air flight paths.
Doyle Jones who is one of the owners of Tulare based Moore Aviation says he would have to move his business to Porterville if the decision were made. "It will impact the cost of service to farmers," says Jones. Besides that, he suggests plenty of other local businesses would be affected. "Helicopters come here for patients who need surgery all the time," for example. Maintenance businesses at the airport would shut down, he says.
Tulare - A committee of prominent Tulare business leaders are advising the city on the update in its general plan, looking at the option of a new 300 acre industrial park west of K St. at the railroad tracks and north and south of Paige.
The group is suggesting several industrial areas depending on the type of uses to accommodate industrial growth in town long term.
The new West Paige option on mostly farm land takes advantage of railroad access and vacant land to offer particularly food processing companies the large acreage, available sewer capacity and the rail they need, says Chamber leader Mike Lane, a civil engineer. The large sewer lines in the area are perfect for a food company, he says.
Just how a new industrial park would be financed and built is up for grabs with some residents favoring the approach the city took in the past with the private industrial foundation carrying the ball. Others suggest the city’s master plan identify the site and be ready to act quickly to accommodate a company who might want to come to town with infrastructure ready to go.
Tulare has two successful industrial parks along 99 with rail access but south of Paige there is no rail.
The group is suggesting another industrial park in the southeast part of town from the airport area down to the UC Veterinary Center for distribution and light manufacturing companies that don’t need a major sewer capacity, says Lane.
Major food companies are the backbone of the city’s job strategy and a decision of what kind of companies the city should seek in the future was part of the meeting held earlier this week. Tulare is home of Dairymen, Land O’Lakes, Haagen-Dazs, Stella Cheese and Kraft Cheese among others.
Case of Bioterrorism
By Aaron Collins
Tulare County - Is an act of terrorism in Tulare County likely? It may not seem that way to many area residents. However, after 9-11, complacency has become an unaffordable luxury, even in largely rural areas like ours with little apparent imminent threat.
Moreover, the Bay Area and L.A. are potential targets less than 200 miles away. Possible attacks there could bring residual effects to Tulare County, so county officials here are preparing a federally-mandated terrorism preparedness plan.
The response plan will be generated by the County's Bioterrorism Preparedness Advisory Committee. The project has an annual budget of around $500,000.
In the works for nearly two years, the preparedness plan involves various emergency resources such as police, all county hospitals, the American Red Cross, and ambulance services … even area Rotary Clubs may eventually be enlisted as eventual so-called “first responders” in the event smallpox vaccinations are required.
Mary Ontiveros, Division Manager for Public Health Services with the Tulare County Department of Health and Human Services, is spearheading the effort for the category of infectious diseases.
About the risk level for any local terrorists act, Ontiveros says, “It's hard to say. Terrorists could attack anywhere, and smallpox can happen anywhere and spread. Since people have not been vaccinated for the disease since the 70s I wouldn't say it's a high risk, but infectious diseases are opportunistic because our society is so mobile… if something happens it can find its way here.”
The plan will be completed in different phases and involves types of threats other than just bioterrorism (into whose category Ontiveros's effort falls). Other categories include agriterrorism and radiation threats, among others.
In the case of the bioterrorism effort, smallpox vaccination was deemed “the highest priority in that category both because of its likelihood to affect our area and for the scope of the difficulties associated with smallpox, because the most resources would be required in the event of an outbreak,” says Ontiveros. “Everything else falls behind that disease in terms of response difficulty.”
According to Dr. Dan Bokin, Medical Director of Infectious Disease at Kaweah Delta Hospital in Visalia, “A smallpox scenario seems to be the most likely type of bioterrorism situation that we may have to deal with.” For instance, Bokin agrees that the County's smallpox vaccination plan might be triggered by a terrorist act elsewhere, as residents there become mobile in order to evade catastrophy.
Although Tulare County now has nearly 400,000 residents, Bokin says that the vaccination process alone is not the problematic aspect of the response plan. More difficult, he says, is the need for tracking in order to avoid double vaccinations, avoiding language barrier issues, and educating the public about the vaccination's risks.
Dr. Bokin, a member of one of three Visalia Rotary Clubs, has proposed that fellow club members around the county become first responders in the event the actual vaccination plans ever require implementation. The county is considering the possibility of utilizing this, or other such existing networks.
But given the serious health risks of receiving the smallpox vaccine, will Tulare County residents actually participate if the call goes out for vaccination? Ontiveros says, “Currently there is more risk to the vaccine than the disease, but once actual disease exposure occurs, people know that the risk for the disease goes way up, and in that event they may feel differently about getting vaccinated.”
The committee will prepare a variety of multi-lingual material with which to educate the public about the response plan, including a video and other printed materials.
The response plan is expected to be completed sometime after August 2005. The project is overseen by Tulare County Emergency Services Coordinator Bret Waters
But in addition to the Bioterrorism Preparedness Plan, there are other peripheral antiterrorism efforts underway in the county. For example, Bill Yoshimoto, Supervising Attorney and Project Director of the Action Project, focuses on rural and agricultural crime.
Typical farm chemicals are ingredients for explosives if put to use by terrorists, so the Action Group monitors areas and has developed expertise in this area, while other county agencies may focus on responses more suited to the county's urbanized areas.
According to Yoshimoto, “The greatest thing is that we have developed an inter-agency multidisciplinary network to fight ag-related crime. This allows us to work up and down the Valley, and allows us to address crime and terrorism at the same time. We gather monthly and daily communicate via the internet, dedicated cell phone system and other channels.”
Started in 1999, the Action Group is federally funded with advocacy from Congressman Nunes (R-Visalia), whose own farming interests provide background for understanding the issues related to rural crime. After 9-11 events, the agency's mission broadened.
According to Yoshimoto, “Our original mission was to protect agriculture from any threat, and since crooks operate the way terrorists do, we are applying much of the same thinking to this [terrorism] problem.” He added, “Terrorists will go where there is the best opportunity ---not just Tulare County --- so we're working with agencies around the country.” Yoshimoto's project is currently helping implement a similar effort for the State of Florida.
Can our county --- or any other, for that matter --- ever sufficiently prepare for such a potentially devastating contingency? “Everyday we're closer to preparedness, but we do still have a lot of work to do,” said Ontiveros, who added wistfully that the real work may never really be done as long as terrorism is a threat.
Aaron Collins serves on the Board of Arts Council of Tulare County. Carole Firstman contributed to this article.
Pro Hoop Dreams May Become Visalia Reality
By Miles Shuper
Visalia - Although there still are details to be worked out, it looks like Visalia will have a professional basketball team on the court by early April.
Mark Avedian says he plans on being one of the owners of the International Basketball League, which put a strong emphasis on fast-paced, high scoring basketball. Avedian, who coaches the COS women's team, was scheduled to meet later this week with IBL officials. The IBL already has a commitment with Stockton and is dealing with prospective owners in Merced and Yuba City as well as several others.
Avedian is enthusiastic about bringing another professional sports team to Visalia and the surrounding area. The Visalia Oaks baseball team is the only other pro team in the city.
Most IBL rosters are made up of former college players and, in some cases, local talent. Mike Cully, president and CEO of the Visalia Chamber of Commerce, who mee last month with IBL owners in detailing the program, said he would expect Visalia, with just over 100,.000 population, to be able to support a second professional team.
Tony Alvarez, the IBL's director of League Operations, told The Voice this week that the season will start in the first week or April and include 20 regular season games, at least 10 homes games. There are four clusters of IBL tams, the Central and Northern California, the Ohio and Michigan, the Illinois and Iowa and the Northwest Divisions.
The franchise cost $45,000 and is payable over a six year period.
Homes games will be played on local school courts. Although the league is a professional one, costs are expected to be relatively low. The league said it tries to cater to owners by reducing the amount of team travel. A team from a different state can make one trip during the season and play four games in one visit.
Mikal Dullio, the owner and commissioner of the IBL, once a defunct league, said several weeks ago at least 10 cities across the nation were on board , enough to launch the season next spring. In his early July trip to Visalia Dullio said is goal was to find owners in four Valley cities. Officials said scheduling can be made even if four Valley teams aren't finalized by the April season debut.
Scoring and fast-paced action are the focus of the IBL,, Duillo said. "We want a league e which is enjoyable for the fans and profitable for owners."
He called it "good old-fashioned basketball like was played in the 1980s by such teams as the Lakers and the Celtics."
He also cited a paid crowd of around 2,000 people would be a great crowd in a high school or college gym, as opposed to having that many in a major college or professional venue where that number would such league play would look dead.
Lively play is what IBL is all about, agrees Avedian. IBL rules limit each team to one time out per quarter and allow immediate inbounds so defenses don't have time to regroup. The time to get the ball across the half-court line probably will be trimmed from the standard. Duillo said too often time out are used to "cool off" a hot team. But fans, he said, "want to see players get hot."
High scores should be the norm, not the exception.
Avedian said the league will be an excellent opportunity for Valley players and other former college or high school players who are excellent shooters but don't have all the defensive tools to draw the attention of scouts and coaches who put a premium on defense. The league also could be a steeping stone for layers who need more experience in getting to a higher league.
Electronics Firm Plans Tulare Plant
Tulare - JIT Manufacturing who has a manufacturing plant in Paso Robles is planning on opening a facility in Tulare by October, says the company's general manager Mark Whittaker. The company would start with 50 jobs expanding to 100 thereafter. "We can't get enough job applicants over here" on the coast, says Whittaker who hopes the sizable unemployment level in the Tulare are translates into a good workforce. The company makes electronic devices mostly for the medical instrument business.
JIT is expected to sign a lease on the former Psi Trinix plant on So. K - a plant that could house up to 200 workers, says Whittaker. Whittaker says the company is affiliated with a sister firm in Porterville who suggested they try Tulare. The work at the plant consists of wire and motor assembly for electronic components. The city's Chamber of Commerce, including Bob Reynolds, has been working with the company who expects to open for business by October.
Kaweah Delta Plans Child/Teen Psychiatric Unit
Visalia - Kaweah Delta is in the early stages of planning a child and adolescent psychiatric wing at their mental health hospital on Cypress. CEO Lindsay Mann says the hospital is working on a plan for a Joint Powers Authority with several nearby counties to provide the service that isn't offered in much of the central valley. The 15 beds within the hospital are available without displacing adult psychiatric services available there, he says. The hospital recently hired Dr. Edward Castillo, says Mann, who will be providing outpatient and inpatient psychiatric service. The need for more youth service became clear in the past year as the community was shocked by a rash of teen suicides.
Group Circulates Petition To Rotate Tulare Mayor Position
Tulare - A Tulare group wants the city council to rotate the position of mayor and want that language included in the city charter. So far the city council has refused to do so, says council member Nettie Washington who backs the proposals. Washington wanted the voters to decide but council refused to put the matter on the November ballot. Now it's probably too late to put in on the ballot. But Washington and her supporters are circulating the petition to show council how much support the measure has. Washington is stepping down this year from her council position and has never been seated as mayor despite her long tenure.
What's New
Kings County's plan to build a 350 bed "mini jail" in Hanford suffered a blow last week when bids for the project came in $4 million higher than anticipated. Higher costs for steel and cement to build the superstructure are thought to be the reason. The booming Chinese economy is the reason often cited as global economic rules. The county engineer estimates the cost at $19 million but the bids came back closer to $23 million. But county CAO Larry Spikes says he expects the board to move forward and plans alternative financing options. "We are going to try to find a way to get it done." The jail could open in May 2006.
The return of El Nino? The federal Climate Prediction Center on August 5 announced a sudden warming of south Pacific waters may auger an El Nino condition within three months with hope of breaking a long drought period in California this coming winter. El Ninos tend to be associated with increased precipitation on the West Coast. The scientists say they would watch the trend closely to see if it appears to be a mild or moderate El Nino. Before this the center was predicting a dry winter again. But now California could get at least a little bit wetter. On the dry Tule where the range got only 19% of normal water runoff, a wildfire has closed Highway 190 and forced evacuation this past week.
What happened to Oldies radio - 92.9? As of August 11th the owners, Clear Channel, yanked the popular format and replaced it with Spanish language programing. The station - KFSO - is licensed in Visalia.
A new bill by Congressman Devin Nunes would allow the privately owned special permit cabins in Mineral King to remain that way permanently. The bill is popular in Visalia where many of the families who own the cabins live. But opponents have surfaced like National Parks Conservation Association, are knocking the idea suggesting that the measure would benefit the few at the expense of the public. Instead they favor a plan that gives public access to the cabins but grants property use to current permit holders during a multi-week time frame each summer while being owned by the Park Service.
The other side of the real estate boom in California and rising home prices. Today only 19% of Californians can afford an average home in the Golden State according to the California Association of Realtors as the median price reaches about $470,000. Last year at this time 27% could afford the median priced home. The national rate in May 2004 stands at 55%. "This is how the US will repopulate the Midwest," says Visalian Craig Lindaman.
Finally a UC Merced after over 20 years of talks about a UC college in the valley. The college is on track with state funds to open in the fall of 2005 with its first class of about 1000 students. Our own Fred Ruiz was recently named as a board member for the UC system. South valley leaders are glad the college will blossom, but want a four year college of our own in Tulare County in coming years. Merced remains a 2 hour commute from Visalia.
Record energy demand in the state during the early August heat wave but no black or brownouts. SCE reported its largest demand by some 400 mega watts. While there are 50 new power plants licensed since the deregulation began in 1996 - only 24 are on line adding 8311 MW to the state's supply. That is partly offset by the retirement of 48 older power plants decreasing the supply by 3520 MW. "It's a thin margin" of available power, says local manager Glen Cardaronella suggesting the state needs more power plants.
Big Jump In Crime In 2004
Visalia - The Visalia Police Department has recorded a major jump in total crimes during the first seven months of 2004 compared to last year. Total crimes against both persons and property are averaging 371 per month in 2004 compared to 287 during the first seven months of 2003 - about a 23% increase.
For the first seven months of 2004 total crimes numbered nearly 2600 compared to 3453 for all of last year.
Increases are seen in property crimes particularly where some 286 crimes per month average have been seen - up from an average of 222 per month in 2003. Burglaries and theft have increased in the city.
Crimes against persons are also up but less sharply. On average the city has seen 84 crimes against persons in 2004 compared to 65 per month in 2003.
The police department is being pressed on service calls as well with calls for service in July up 22% from a 1999 base year comparison and over 7% compared to July of last year.
Violent crimes like homicide are 4 this year so far compared to 8 for all last year. Rape is also slightly down at 18 for the year compared to 47 incidents in 2003. Robbery and aggravated assault appear to be trending higher however.
In 2003 the department recorded a 4% decrease in total crime reported - a trend that has reversed with a vengeance in 2004.
Visalia gang activity continues strong as police officials with gang graffiti showing a dramatic increase around town in late 2003. There are 950 known gang members in Visalia.
Police sources say the increased construction activity has caused the volume of burglary and theft to rise.
Just last March voters in the city approved an increase in the sales tax in the city to help bolster the police department including the hiring of an additional 28 officers in the next few years.
From the latest crime report it appears the town needs them.
TCAG Says Ave. 416 Will Have To Wait Till 2020 For Upgrade
Tulare County - Officials from Dinuba pleaded their case to the board of the Tulare County Association of Governments (TCAG) earlier this month to improve Ave. 416 - the main road that connects northern Tulare County to Highway 99. TCAG has given the Ave. 416 project a relatively low priority in the county's latest long range Regional Transportation Plan. The city council of Dinuba protested the low ranking at TCAG's August 9th meeting, but to no avail.
TCAG staffer Ted Smalley says the board agreed to study the ranking procedure for next year, but for now the priority remains largely due to the high cost of other Tulare County road projects.
The top priorities include widening Mooney at about $17 million, widening Highway 65 at a cost of $50 million, widening Demaree south to Tulare at a cost of $18 million. Adding the Rd. 80, the expressway that connects Visalia to Dinuba, and you need to budget another $50 million. "You have to decide who goes first," says Smalley.
The cost to upgrade 416 from the county line to Dinuba is set at $60 million. "It's an awfully expensive project" and based on the cost per mile and traffic count it ranked lower than other projects, he says.
City manager Ed Todd of Dinuba says the community is upset over the latest TCAG decision not to move the Ave. 416 project forward sooner. "We're going to mount a full court press" on the project. "There is no way this infrastructure can last until 2020." He says about half a dozen people have lost their life on this stretch of Ave. 416.
The city needs an upgrade to handle traffic associated with the city's new industries along 416 and now a new Walmart and auto mall that are coming the next year.
Disagreement Over Proposed WWII Mural
by Carole Firstman
Visalia - The Visalia Mural Panel met with members of Visalia Veterans Day Committee Friday, August 13th to discuss a proposed WWII mural that has thus far been rejected by the City Council.
Twenty people showed up to participate in an intense one-and-a-half hour long roundtable discussion at the Convention Center.
According to mural panel member Dan Veyna, who did much of the speaking on behalf of the panel, the mural has been denied so far on two major points:
1) The current design does not adequately reflect specific local history, heritage or culture of Visalia and Tulare County.
2) The rendering submitted to the panel was not complete, and the panel says it could not make a final decision without a complete, color rendering.
Veteran committee chair Dan Kelley responded that the mural design does indeed reflect local culture in that Visalia citizens were a part of the historical event, whether they fought over seas or stayed home to keep the day-to-day infrastructure of American life going.
Veteran George Maness said, "WWII was an era in itself. WWII means the difference between what we are now and what we would have been. This [design] is relevant to Visalia, as it is to every person in the United States."
Kelley also stated that according to the mural guidelines, a sketch is called for at this time in the adoption process, rather than a full color rendering.
Members of the public voiced concerns about the mural's content and what type of feeling a 72 by 20 foot war-scene depiction would create for downtown Visalia. "Honoring our vets is a number one priority," said Dorothy Osak. "But I fail to see the connection of honoring our vets and this war-like picture. I look at a war picture and I don't think of our veterans. I think of killing and maiming." She went on to say that she and others recognize "...the extreme sacrifice our men and women made," but that perhaps a non-battle scene could be adopted instead.
The proposed WWII mural would cover the west wall of the Buckman-Mitchell Insurance building on Main Street, standing 20 feet high and 72 feet wide. The proposal consists of a montage of images, representing the onset of the war with the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the end of the war with the bombing of Japan, with numerous significant events pictured in-between the two. A row of uniformed soldiers lines the top, with a tank, planes, and battleships mixed among the other images.
"War is hell," stated one of the attending veterans. "I don't know how else you depict WWII without showing what happened."
"Our goal is that any vet could look at that [mural] and say, ‘Yes, I was there,' that they would be able to relate to the scenes," said veteran Mike Chamberlain.
Artist Glen Hill, who has been commissioned by the Veterans Day Committee to execute the mural, said that he is already at work to incorporate local elements into the montage. "Visalian Alejandro Ruiz is a medal of honor recipient," Hill said, and is planning to include an image of Ruiz in the final design. Hill is also conducting research to include a scene of Sequoia Field, located north of Visalia.
Members of the mural panel and city staff expressed that adding a few local elements to the existing design may not change the mural enough to meet the guidelines, however. It was suggested by members of the public that rather than a montage of battle scenes, the artist come up with something with more of a positive feel to it.
An existing Lindsay mural was cited as one example, where the scene depicts a homecoming parade. City Assistant Manager Leslie Caviglia brought in a rendering of a farewell scene, where a soldier and his girlfriend or wife embrace in a touching goodbye as another possible example of a more fitting design. Mural panelist and Convention Center Manager Jim Thompson suggested looking into local photographic images cataloged by late Visalia historian Annie Mitchell.
Hill said he is open to modifications or changes, and welcomes input from the panel, the Veterans committee, and members of the public.
Kelly stated that the design will be resubmitted early next month with changes and additions to the original montage rather than a whole new concept.
The above stories are the property of The Valley Voice Newspaper and may not be reprinted without explicit permission in writing from the publisher.
August 18, 2004
