The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 142, No. 43, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 27, 1995 Page: 1 of 36
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Father, son
come to coach
(Hire JUitasirap JVMierttser
Vol. 142, No. 43
Texas' Oldest Weekly Newspaper
Since March x, 1853
500
Bastrop, Texas
Thursday, July 27,1995
Protester locks himself to tractor to halt park clearing
By Julie Kaye
Staff Writer
A member of a radical envi-
ronmental group was arrested
Monday for criminal trespass
three hours alter locking himself
to a tractor-loader in Bastrop
State Park while other protesters
stood along the park road hold-
ing signs.
Daniel Dolinger of Austin,
member of Earth First!, was
found at 7 am. by workers
coming to use the loader. He
had a kryptonite bicycle lock
clasped around his neck and
around a bar on the loader.
The county-owned loader
was brought out Friday to clear
trees and brush on the Bastrop
State Park nine-hole golf course
expansion, said County Com-
missioner Johnny Sanders.
“I think that nine holes of
golf is a reasonable compro-
mise,” said Dolinger sitting on
theground Fn the middle of the
loader. “Don't you think nine
holes is a reasonable compro-
mise?” he asked.
“There are only so many
pines,” said Dolinger. “We don't
want to lose the last of the Lost
Fines,” he said.
Officers from the Bastrop
Police Department, Department
of Public Safety and Bastrop
County Sheriffs Office were on
hand as members from Earth
First!, Bastrop County Envi-
ronmental Network, Bastrop
County Concerned Taxpayers,
the Sierra Club, and the
Audubon Society stood along
the park road opposite the
loader area with signs of protest.
“Relatively speaking, I be-
lieve they were a real orderly
group of people,” said Bastrop
County • Sheriff Patrol Sgt.
Lance Van Horn.
Dolinger was released from
the Bastrop County Jail at 2:30
p.m after posting $1,000 bond to
the charge of criminal trespass,
a Class B misdemeanor, punish-
able by up to 180 days in the
Texas Department of Correc-
tions and up to a $2,000 fine.
“I felt like I made my point,”
said Dolinger after his release
Tim Jones (Left), member of Earth First!, videotapes mediations Monday between officials and1
Daniel Dolinger (Right) of Austin who locked himself by the neck to a county-owned tractor-
loader in Bastrop State Park to protest the golf course expansion. Park Superintendent Brant
Leisure (Center) looks on. After negotiations for the key, Dolinger was arrested for criminal
trespass and taken to the county jail Where he later was released after posting $1,000 bond.
about his reason for turning over,
the key to authorities.
Dolinger said he has ho re-
grets about his arrest “I feel it
was certainly well worth it to try
to bring attention and focus to
what was happening out there,”
he said.
‘To be spending tax dollars
on this when we're rolling back
money for school lunches is a
lot crazier than locking yourself
to a piece of equipment,” said
Dolinger.
A yellow fire tape was put
along the road and protesters
and media were restricted from
the area as law enforcement of-
ficers negotiated the key from
Dolinger, which was finally
supplied by Robert Singleton,
an Earth First! member.
One protester's sign read:
“YOU have never seen the col-
ors of the wind,” referring to the
movie Pocahontas. “I don’t see
why they cant let the press in,”
said Nancee Rush, member of
the Bastrop County Environ-
mental Network.
San TRESPASS, Pag* 2
High court won’t
"micromanage"
hair controversy
A recent Texas Supreme
Court decision in the case of a
disputed West Texas school hair
length rule may influence the
outcome in a Bastrop case
pending before the Third Court
of Appeals in Austin.
Last month the state's high
court ruled that school district
hair rules which apply only to
male students are not covered
by an anti sex-discrimination
amendment to the Texas Con-
stitution.
“We refuse to use the Texas
Constitution to micromanage
Texas high schools,” said
Supreme Court Justice Raul
Gonzalez for the 7-2 court ma-
jority. The case involved an 18-
year-old high school student
from Colorado City in West
Texas who argued in 1992 dial
Sm TOUNGATE, Page 21
' - ' * -
4&J| :
La Vista boosted
Council set to act on bond plan
■m*
Tuesday the Bastrop City
Council indicated readiness to
create a city housing finance
corporation to aid construction
of a major retirement commu-
nity for the deaf and hearing
impaired.
But the corporation should be
structured so it can pay its own
way and boost other potential
development projects, said City
Manager Michael Talbot
Developers of the retirement
community, called La Vista,
want the city to establish the
new corporation with a view to
authorizing tax exempt bonds to
finance construction. Current
plans call for construction of
288 garden style apartment units
on a site on the city's southern
boundary as soon as financing is
available.
Previously developers have
sought other financing, includ-
ing loan guarantees from the
U.S. Department of Housing
and Urban Development They
also unsuccessfully sought city
aid in the form of tax abate-
ments or utility concessions but
insist they are committed to
building the nation's largest deaf
retirement development in Bas-
trop.
Attorney Susan Voss said
project backers will cover all
costs associated with creating
Sm CITY, Page 2
A parade down Elgin's Main Street Saturday was just the beginning of a full day of
Western Days activities. Sm story on Page 3.
Elgin school, trustees consider
$10.5 million budget for 1995
EISD to wait a year for 3'year^old program
The Elgin school superinten-
dent told trustees Monday that
although he is in favor of im-
plementing a pre-kindergarten
program for 3-year-olds, the
district should wait until next
year.
“One of the reasons why I'm
for starting a pre-kindergarten
program is that I believe foe
performance gap is there when
they get there,” said Dr. Ron
Bradford, referring to foe per-
formance gap between eco-
nomically disadvantaged stu-
dents and noneconomically dis-
advantaged students and be-
tween Anglo students and mi-
nority students.
T still believe it's hugely
economic,” said Bradford.
“When most all of foe funds
are going to pay rent and pay for
groceries, there's not much left
over for enrichment type things-
-books,” he said.
The district has some stu-
dents who enter school who
cant read and other students
who have been playing on com-
puters for two or three years
when they start, he said.
The sooner the district can
work with the child, the more
likely they will be to close that
gap, he said.
The district is required by
law to have a pre-kindergarten
program for 4-year-olds if there
are at least IS students in the
district who meet certain crite-
ria. These criteria are: 1. eco-
nomically disadvantaged. 2.
limited english proficient. 3.
homeless.
EISD has had a pre-kinder-
garten program for 4-year-olds
for six years, serving 80 stu-
dents last year, said Bradford. If
all students had been identified
and served that were eligible,
we would serve between 90 and
100,” said Bradford. “It all
stands to reason that we have
comparable numbers of 3-year-
old students out in the district”
Under House Bill 72, school
districts may, but are not re-
quired to, provide a program for
3-year-olds if there are at least
IS students in the district who
meet the same criteria as the 4-
year-olds.
Administrative considera-
tions included housing the stu-
dents, transportation, feeding,
hiring personnel, equipment and
supplies, and identifying stu-
dents who meet the criteria.
The school board had bud-
geted a portable building in the
1995-96 budget in case the
board decided to implement the
program this year, but Bradford
recommended waiting a year
since school begins in less than
a month.
Estimated cost of hiring a
teacher and an aide which could
serve up to 30 students was
$40,000, and another $40,000
Sm ELGIN, Pago 2
The Elgin school board
Monday discussed an estimated
budget of $10,553,370 for the
1995-96 school year.
Staff pay raises totaled
$328,832, which included an
approximately $1,500 across-
the-board teacher pay raise, and
a five percent raise above the
mid-point range for other em-
ployees, said Business Manager
Tony Juarez.
Juarez was asked to present
different teacher salary scenar-
ios that would conform to Sen-
ate Bill 1 so die board could
examine the impact of foe raises
on certain teachers and foe im-
pact on the total budget
Additional technology re-
quirements totals) $87,590 for
the 1995-96 school year.
In other business, the board
voted 4-1 to continue with foe
current payroll schedule and
hire an additional office persoo-
The EISD business manage
estimated a cost of $25,000 to
hire a degreed person to help
with payroll and bank
reconciliations. The $25,000
was included in the first budget
drafts, said Juarez.
Board member Jo Frazier
made a motion to table tte is-
sue, but the motion died
of a lack of a second. Frazier
cast the dissenting vote.
The board passed a motion to
amend the budget to purchase
120 football helmets for foe
middle school.
The current helmets are out
of date and can act be recerti-
fied, said Bradford, who made
foe recommendation for foe
safety reasons.
tion 4-1 to conduct a fixed
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McAuley, Davis. The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 142, No. 43, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 27, 1995, newspaper, July 27, 1995; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth737651/m1/1/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 9, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bastrop Public Library.