The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 156, No. 8, Ed. 1 Saturday, March 28, 2009 Page: 1 of 12
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SATURDAY, MARCH 28, 2009
50$
JBastrop 2ldo eraser
Texas' Oldest Weekly Newspaper Since March 1, 1853 Semi-Weekly Since Sept. 5, 1977
Volume 156, Number 8
Bastrop, Texas
14 pages n two sections
iddlin at the center
The Bastrop Advertiser photo/Terry Hagerty
Phillip Procell plays with the Kitchen Pickers.
See page 8A for the Bastrop Living story.
Airport gets flak
Proposed project gets some nods, no's
By Jacqueline Davis
Staff Writer
Ail airport project planned west of
FM 969 is drawing the ire of several
residents of the River Crossing subdi-
vision in Cedar Creek who believe the
project will ruin their quality of life
and present a potential safety hazard to
their children.
Five residents spoke up during pub-
lic comment at Tuesday's meeting of
the Bastrop City Council, where City
Manager Mike Talbot gave the council
an informational report on the project.
"We totally, absolutely oppose this
development," said Sonja Eagle, River
Crossing resident.
Another woman, Darlene Pendell,
said she believed the airport would
serve such a small portion of the area's
population that she did not believe it
was worth the effort. She cited the air-
port's proximity to Austin-Bergstrom
International Airport and the Bird's
Nest Airport in Manor.
"It just doesn't make sense to me,"
Pendell said. "I'm not understanding
why in the world we are even thinking
about putting another airport in."
Shelley Cartier said she felt like the
See AIRPORT, Page 5A
Elgin police practice perfection
A day at fir ng range hones Tfe or death' skill for law enforcement
By Terry Hagerty
Assistant Editor
It is a skill that can mean
life or death in an instant on
the street — the ability of
police officers to hit their
intended target with a bullet,
especially if the officer is
being fired upon.
On Wednesday, mem-
bers of the Elgin Police
Department were undergo-
ing pistol qualification to
hone those skills.
And for Elgin officers it
is a particularly challeng-
ing qualification because all
of them, including recently
hired Police Chief Chris
Bratton, are required to have
all 50 shots that are fired
hit a target of a cardboard
human outline on the range.
Some police departments
have less stringent require-
ments on weapons qualifi-
cation, ranging from 70-80
percent on target hits. The
state requirement for hitting
range targets is 70 percent.
"The 100 percent quali-
fication was discussed and
decided upon with all of
the (EPD) firearms instruc-
tors and Assistant Chief
Phil Taylor, prior to Chief
Bratton's appointment," said
Sgt. Frank Delgado, one of
the instructors.
Elgin officers fire at
distances from three to 25
yards. While most officers
have little trouble hitting all
shots at the closer distances,
25 yards is not as close as
one might think when trying
to land 100 percent of shots
— especially within a timed
shooting period.
Officers are allowed two
attempts to qualify on any
given day, said Delgado, a
crack shot who also serves
with the Bastrop County
Special Operations Unit.
Officers who fail to meet
the 100 percent standard, but
do meet the state's 70 per-
cent mark, are allowed to
remain on duty but receive
remedial firearms training.
Know your weapon
Surprisingly, veteran offi-
cers say they run into some
officers who don't spend
enough time with their
weapons.
"They don't completely
familiarize themselves with
their guns," said Reserve
m
The Bastrop Advertiser photo/Terry Hagerty
Sgt. Frank Delgado with the Elgin Police Department practices shooting at the
See RANGE, Page 5A Elgin range.
esterfest seeks vendors
By Cyndi Wright
Editor
The Bastrop Advertiser file photo/Terry Hagerty
There is much to see and watch at Yesterfest. Pictured
above, Tricia Strauss and Jody Haselbarth have a
'tussle' in the street moments before a mock gunfight
broke out at last year's event.
The traditions and customs of many
different cultures have played a part
in the face of Bastrop today and the
event that celebrates some of those
cultural origins of Bastrop is scheduled
for Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. - 5
p.m. in downtown.
Yesterfest was started more than
20 years ago and continues to honor
many different backgrounds, including
African American, American Indian,
Mexican, German, Scottish, Czech and,
of course, the cowboy.
" We believe that it is so important to
honor and celebrate all of the different
types of people who have made Bastrop
the wonderful place it is today," said
Debbie Denny, co-chair. "Anyone who
comes to Yesterfest is not only going to
experience a lot of fun and good food,
they will also learn about our history."
The tribute is expressed through
music, dance, food, exhibits, demon-
stration, arts and crafts and children's
activities.
Festivities are spread out over six
blocks from the courthouse where the
children's activities will be to Spring
Street.
There will be dancing in the Bastrop
Opera House, cowboys and Indians on
Spring Street, the Texas Rangers on
Main Street, and two stages: one on N.
Main and Chestnut and the other on S.
Main in front of city hall. There will
be roots music, jazz, bluegrass, Texas
swing, Americana, Latina, Gospel and
more.
Organizers of this year's celebration
are asking for more cultural involve-
ment. Cultural vendors or booths
(lO'xlO') are only $20 for those mak-
ing a profit and free for those who are
not.
For more information on vendor
space at Yesterfest, contact Peggy Van
Blaricom at (512) 321-6600 or go to
the Downtown Business Alliance Web
site to download the application at
www. bastropdba. com.
For more information on the event,
call Denny at (512) 844-3930 or
Drusilla Rogers at (512) 321-3777.
INSIDE
WEATHER
Baxters 'Lock Up' event 2A
Life after high school event 4A
BHS girls soccer wrap-up 4B
■ Saturday's forecast: Community 2A
Mostly Cloudy Uvj 8A
High: 81°
Low: 58° Classified ads 1B
Rain: 10% ^
Sports 4B
■ Last week: '
High Low Prec. Obits 4A
Sunday 83° 62° 20%
Monday 78° 63° 30%
Tuesday 76° 58° 40%
Wednesday 75° 54° 40%
Thursday 79° 56° 30% This newspaper
is recyclable
7 65668 78602 3
Wildfire ca ed
national mode
By Cyndi Wright
Editor
The way Bastrop County
fought the Wilderness Ridge
fire is being held up as a
national model, according
to Rich Gray of the Texas
Forest Service.
"This fire was recognized
nationally as a significant
interface fire due to the tre-
mendous number of saves,"
he told the Bastrop County
Commissioners Court on
Monday. "I've been on many
fires that were less complex
and more chaotic."
In an interface fire, struc-
tures and vegetation are suf-
ficiently close that a wildfire
may spread to structures.
Gray said the reason the
county's response was rec-
ognized is because the fire
posed a significant threat to
property and lives, and even
though about 28 homes were
lost, hundreds were saved
and there was no loss of life.
"There's a lot of kudos on
that," he said.
He gave much of the
credit to support and coor-
dination from the county,
the fire departments and
the emergency management
office and how well every-
one worked with responders
from other counties.
"It was all very well coor-
dinated," he said.
A large part of the success
See FIRE, Page 5A
Storm damctge
! -ffex
IKI
'--."jX • V. I X'XV •<*><
The Bastrop Advertiser photo/Cyndi Wright
A wild and wooly storm moved through parts of
Bastrop County Wednesday night. High winds,
rain and hail were reported. Above, this tree on
Texas 71 between Bastrop and Smithville was
uprooted and crushed two trucks.
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Wright, Cyndi. The Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), Vol. 156, No. 8, Ed. 1 Saturday, March 28, 2009, newspaper, March 28, 2009; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth252568/m1/1/: accessed July 3, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Bastrop Public Library.