Refugio County Press (Refugio, Tex.), Vol. 54, No. 16, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 21, 2013 Page: 1 of 20
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Volume 54, No. 16
www.mysoutex.com
Nov. 21, 2013 - 75C
Council tightens game room regulations
The Woodsboro City Council chambers at City
Hall on the square in Woodsboro.
By Tim Delaney
County Press Editor
WOODSBORO - The
Woodsboro City Council
approved amending the
town’s ordinance regulating
amusement and game rooms
on Tuesday, Nov. 12.
The changes include a new
requirement that game rooms
be at least 1,500 feet from
each other. Currently, game
rooms abut each other in
some cases, and those game
rooms are grandfathered.
In other words, if game
room businesses currently
are adjacent to each other,
they will not be required to
adhere to the new law.
However, if a game room
closes then wants to reopen,
it will have to follow the new
requirement.
The new regulations also
include a measure requiring
game rooms to be at least 500
feet from schools, an increase
from the previous require-
ment of 300 feet.
A visible sign with the
name of the business and its
address displayed prominent-
ly for 911 purposes is now a
requirement of every game
room.
In addition, when game
room machines are being
replaced, the owner must
peel off the permit sticker
and bring it to City Hall for a
replacement sticker.
If the sticker is not pre-
sented, then a new permit fee
of $1,000 will be levied.
Game rooms are now
required to close down for
town scheduled events, such
as Christmas on the Square
on Nov. 30.
To even things out, the time
the game rooms are closed
will be given back to the busi-
nesses with the ability to add
the same number of hours on
other days.
“We will make up the hours
we take away from them,”
(See Council, 3A)
Woodsboro native returns for a visit
By Tim Delaney
County Press Editor
WOODBORO - Nineteen-
year-old Kevyn Kennedy
was different than his fel-
low students after finishing
Woodsboro High School in
1979.
While others had no idea
what they were going to pur-
sue as a career in life, he
knew what he wanted to do.
“I wanted to be an Old
China Hand,” he said.
Kennedy, now 53, was
recently back in Refugio
County, reminiscing and vis-
iting his dad, who now lives
in Portland.
History shows that an “Old
China Hand” referred to trad-
ers in the 1800s and also to
those who had a great knowl-
edge of China, including its
diverse people, culture and
language.
For Kevyn, the influence to
be a China Hand may have
come from his father, Bill,
and late mother, Tomiko
Kawamura Kennedy, a well-
liked teacher who died in
April 2010.
After high school, Kevyn
joined the U.S. Navy.
Afterward, he found himself
enrolled at the University of
Texas-Austin.
He earned his bachelor’s
degree in Chinese studies in
1986, and he promptly turned
his eyes to the Orient.
“Although I studied the
language, I went straight to
Taiwan to study Chinese,” he
said.
Even after all these years,
Kevyn said he considers his
Chinese passable, but not flu-
ent.
“I can go anywhere in China
and get by,” he said.
Kevyn is now the manager
of CBI Consulting in Shanghi,
China.
He said he conducts private
investigations for the firm.
His background is in due dili-
gence, brand protection and
counterfeiting.
He’s been doing similar
work for 22 years, starting
off with the liquor industry in
Taiwan.
He said his office was
“crammed with alcohol right
now.”
Unfortunately, some of that
alcohol is counterfeit brands,
and Kevyn has to test the con-
tents of the 406 bottles.
“The fact is I’m still work-
ing with the liquor industry.
The last project included all
the bars and restaurants—
any place that sells liquor,”
he said.
The Great Wall of China, a military architectural feat for its time, amazes visitors, including 'Old China Hand'
Kevyn Kennedy, with its magnitude.
He said he travels back and
forth from China to Taiwan
about four times a year, but he
has managed to keep ties with
his alma mater—UT-Austin.
In 2008, he and his six sib-
lings, who all attended college
thanks to their parents, cre-
ated a William H. and Tomiko
Kennedy Memorial Endowed
Presidential Scholarship, a
gift to their parents who sac-
rificed a lot to see them all
through.
The annual scholarship is
awarded to a UT student who
is studying Chinese as a sec-
ond language.
Taiwan, and one was in Hong
Kong as an intern,” Kevyn
said.
He said he is looking to hire
one or both of the students for
his company.
Kevyn came back to the
United States with the pri-
mary reason to attend a con-
ference in Washington, D.C.
on FCPA (Foreign Corrupt
Practices Act) regulations and
compliance.
On China, Kevyn said, “It’s
the most capitalistic place in
the world. Politically, not that
advanced,” he said.
“But we’re seeing something
that’s unique in history—an
abject number of people going
from poverty to a middle class
lifestyle,” he added.
Kevyn said he loves being a
China Hand—it was his call-
ing in life.
“I woke up one morning
when I was 40 years old and
thought, T can’t do anything
else. This is all I know how to
do,”’ he said.
In Shanghai, he lives with
his wife, Chien-Yi, and their
14-year-old son, Matt.
He said he does have some
time to see the sights in China.
“The most incredible vistas
I’ve seen in my life are the
Grand Canyon in the United
States and the Great Wall of
China,” he said.
Anyone who wants to know
more about China needs only
to ask Kevyn—the old China
Hand.
The trip to Refugio and San
“We had six recipients (this Patricio counties was second-
year). One is currently in ary.
Wilkinson’s Chevrolet renovation nears completion
By Tim Delaney
County Press Editor
REFUGIO - The
old saying “Best laid
plans of mice and men”
(looked good on paper)
Deaths
Gerald Friedrichs
Maria Garza
Mary Howell
Michael Selzer
Ima Thomas
Index
Classifieds
Community
Church
Obits
Sports
Page 7 A
Page 5 A
Page 13A
Page 2A
Page 18 A
could apply to Wilkinson
Chevrolet’s plant in
Refugio.
Back in May, Robbie
Blaschke, general sales
manager of the dealer-
ship, said the project to
remodel and renovate
the dealership at 308 N.
Alamo Street, would be
finished around the first
of September and cost
about $660,000.
The amount of re-
investment in Refugio
qualified for a five-year
tax abatement.
But unexpected prob-
Tim Delaney photo
Wilkinson's Chevrolet showroom shows the new dropped ceiling and recessed lighting. The grand
opening for the Refugio car dealership, which has been under remodeling since late May, is 10 a.m.
Friday, Nov. 22. After all was said and done, the reinvestment in the Refugio dealership totaled
more than $900,000.
lems with the flooring
and a punch list of other
things changed those
plans. And the project
cost soared upwards to
$900,000-plus.
“The floor was not level
and caused some issues.
We busted up tiles twice,”
Blaschke said.
He said the ceiling was
dropped in the show-
room.
“We have recessed
lighting that covers up
that old 1970s insula-
tion,” he said.
Blaschke said the old
insulation looked like
asbestos, but it wasn’t.
“We have proof it was
not asbestos from tests
we took,” he said.
One of the positive
things about the reno-
vation project was that
the contractor—IAM
Construction of Plano—
used local subcontrac-
tors.
Harvey Dierschke’s
Service Junction, Charles
Cromwell’s Hard Core
Supply and Glen Boenig,
who helped with data
cabling, all benefitted
from the project.
“Thank goodness he
had some locally. It saved
some money,” Blaschke
said.
The project now finally
is coming to an end.
Blashke said a grand
opening is scheduled at
10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 22.
The public is welcome.
Visitors on Friday will
see a 60-inch flat screen
TV, coffee bar, snacks and
soda machines, as well as
comfortable chairs in the
customer waiting lounge.
The magnificent show-
room, front facade and
new signage outside all
make the dealership a
welcoming oasis along
Alamo Street.
“We are still waiting
on some signs - customer
service, auto parts and
(See Wilkinson, 3A)
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Delaney, Tim. Refugio County Press (Refugio, Tex.), Vol. 54, No. 16, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 21, 2013, newspaper, November 21, 2013; Refugio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth741162/m1/1/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dennis M. O’Connor Public Library.