Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 36, No. 44, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 2, 2006 Page: 1 of 22
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Thursday, November 2, 2006
Pcct Aransas
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ELLIS MEPIORIALLIBRARY
700 W AVENUE A .
PORT ARANSAS IX 78373 4128
750
IEXAS 78373
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Vol. 36 No. 44
Port Aransas, Texas on Mustang Island
946-020
Races to be decided Tuesday; early voting brisk
Island Sports
Set for season
The Lady Marlins, ranked
number two in the state, are
getting ready to open the
2006-07 basketball season.
Page 9A
Early voting was doing a brisk
business at mid-afternoon Tuesday,
Oct. 31.
Veteran election judge Betsy Chur-
gai said the number of voters was
high for an election that did not
include presidential or mayoral can-
didates.
Voters seem to know what they're
doing, too, Churgai said.
"They're not hesitant," she said
about voters who are moving in and
out of the Community Center, 408 N.
Alister, where the balloting is taking
place.
Voters also seem to have reached a
comfort level with the computerized
voting machines, although some agree
to a review of the process before going
into the voting booth, Churgai said.
By 3 p.m. Tuesday, 483 had cast
early ballots, she said.
Early voting ends tomorrow, Friday,
Nov. 3. Voting hours today, Thursday,
Nov. 3, and tomorrow, will be 7 a.m.
to 7 p.m.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 7,
when voting will be at the Community
Center from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voters registered in Nueces County
may cast early ballots at any of the
early voting locations in the county.
If voting outside of Port Aransas,
voters must specifically request the
Port Aransas ballot that includes three
local propositions.
In addition to voting on three pro-
posals to sell bonds for street, drain-
age and facilities improvements, Port
Aransas voters will have a say in some
key county and statewide races.
Statewide races attracting attention
of Port Aransas voters are those for
U.S. Senator between Republican
incumbent Kay Bailey Hutchison and
Democratic challenger Barbara Ann
Radnosfky, as well as the race for
governor between Republican incum-
bent Rick Perry, Democrat Chris Bell
and Independent candidates Richard
"Kinky" Friedman and Carole Keeton
Strayhorn.
Also of interest is the hotly con-
tested race for state representative
for District 32. Incumbent Repub-
lican Gene Seaman is in the race
with Democratic challenger Juan M.
Garcia.
The race for Nueces County judge
is to replace incumbent Terry Sham-
sie who is not seeking re-election. On
the ballot are former Corpus Christi
mayor and Republican candidate
Loyd Neal, and former Nueces
County sheriff and the Democratic
candidate Larry Olivarez.
Another fast-paced race is for
Nueces County sheriff between Re-
publican Jim Kaelin and Democrat
Jimmy Rodriguez.
The Port Aransas ballot will in-
clude three propositions. Proposition
1 is for issuance of $1,305,000 of
general obligation bonds for street,
curb and sidewalk improvements
along with attendant drainage im-
provements. Proposition 2 is for the
issuance of $ 1,380,000 of general ob-
ligation bonds to construct drainage
improvements. Proposition 3 is for
the issuance of $3,775,000 of general
obligation bonds for construction of
improvements at city hall.
Election results will be posted on
the South Jetty Web site, www.porta-
southjetty.com Tuesday evening or
Wednesday morning, Nov. 8, depend-
ing on when they are complete.
Opinion
No new noise law
A proposal to revise the
noise ordinance would curtail
the ability of outdoor live
music venues to continue.
. . . I understand that if this
proposal passes, it would
mean the loss of seven jobs
at one venue, and force
another out of business....
Scott Lagedrost
Port Aransas
Right course
... We have set our course to
save the old Mercer home, our
greatest example of a house I Got fun?
of historical significance. .
. . If the house can't be left
where it is, someone is smart
enough to move it!...
Marcy Mathews Ward
Thomas
Port Aransas
Voters asked to ok
bonds to pay for
infrastructure repair
Staff photo by Murray Judson
This group of North Padre Island residents brought their enthusiasm to the Fall Back Festival on Saturday,
Oct. 28. Dressed as the St. Pauli Beer Girls with support from the 'Got Beer' guys and Julius Caesar,
they are in front, from left, Adra Campbell, Marie Norkunas, Elle Morais, and Wendy Gold (of Portland,
Ore.). With them are the 'Got Beer' guys in back, from left, Ray Morais, Bob Nash (Caesar, hidden by
beer mugs), Bob Campbell and Jack Gold, also of Portland.
Letters to the editor
Page 3A
Island Focus
Dressed the part
This Halloween parade
participant dressed as a hot
dog. Learn more about the
PTO parade and carnival
inside this edition.
Page 1B
Low oxygen levels in dead zone
may do harm to popular bait fish
Pastor's pen
Obituary .........
•Ernie Lowe
Island Life
Columnists
•Tony Amos
•Rachel Pearson
•Joy Morrow
•Kate Williams....
Law enforcement .
Island agenda
Dave McNeely
3A
Steve Martaindale
3A
Mary Henkel Judson..
3A
Letters to the editor
3A
Fishing report
10A
Tides & Weather
10A
Sports
9A
Youth
Education notes
8A
School menus
8A
Classified
Classified Ads
. 5-1 OB
south jetty newspaper plu#
Research conducted
by UTMSI team
aboard Longhorn
By Dan Parker
South Jetty reporter
The study results are only partial
and preliminary, but they are tantaliz-
ing nonetheless.
A Port Aransas scientist has found
evidence that low oxygen levels in an
area off Louisiana known as the dead
zone could be hurting reproduction
in croaker - an important baitfish in
recreational fisheries in the Gulf of
Mexico.
Peter Thomas, a professor at the
University of Texas at Austin Marine
Science Institute, emphasized that
his findings are only preliminary and
still need to be confirmed with further
study he plans to do next year.
UTMSI scientists aboard the Long-
horn research vessel conducted re-
search in the dead zone in August and
October. The dead zone is an area
of the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana
where low oxygen levels for years
have flushed away and even destroyed
marine life. The dead zone seasonally
waxes and wanes in size, growing
some summers to an area about the
size of New Jersey.
Scientists say the root cause of the
dead zone lies with nutrients, espe-
cially nitrogen, that come from sew-
age and fertilizer that constantly are
washing down the Mississippi River
and then out into the Gulf. Algae,
which feeds on nitrogen, then grows
at a stepped-up pace.
Dead algae is eaten by massively
multiplying bacteria, consuming huge
amounts of oxygen. Lack of oxygen
kills shellfish, and fish move to waters
with more oxygen.
UTMSI scientists are studying
whether the parts of the dead zone
with moderately low oxygen lev-
els have long-term effects on repro-
duction in various kinds of sea life.
That includes croaker and copepods
- tiny crustaceans that exist in the
billions throughout the world's oceans
and play vital roles in the marine food
chain.
The scientists took samples at vari-
ous sites in the dead zone in August
and October.
Thomas, a professor who special-
izes in marine toxicology and repro-
ductive physiology, said he found
evidence there were about half as
many females as males at one site. If
further research confirms that ratio,
it would be an important finding,
Thomas said.
"It would suggest that (low oxygen
in the water) might skew the sex ratio,
Please see 'LOW', Page 9A
By Phil Reynolds
South Jetty reporter
State law may prohibit the city from
taking a position on the upcom-
ing bond election, but city council
members have made no secret about
where they stand.
Mayor Claude Brown tells a
stream of people who come before
the council to complain about streets
and flooding that the council is mov-
ing forward with programs designed
to help as fast as it can.
Council members Bubba Jensen
and Rick Pratt, in particular, have
been critics of the city's lack of
maintenance in the past and the need
to repair and replace facilities that
are crumbling.
The three items on the Tuesday,
Nov. 7, ballot wouldn't solve those
problems, but they'd take a large first
step in that direction.
Proposition 1 on the ballot ad-
dresses streets and drainage in areas
that include East Cotter Avenue,
Leslie Lane, South Station Street
and La Ronda Street.
Proposition 2 concentrates on
drainage on Station and Alister
streets, storm water outfalls 14 and
19, the city's concrete drainage
structure that leads to the flats south
of town and Avenue A.
Proposition 3 would repair a
leaky roof in city hall and expand
the building to give city staff more
working space as well as moving
the Parks and Recreation Depart-
ment from a second-hand portable
building that has holes in the roof
and floor.
All three propositions have been
detailed in the first three parts of
this series, beginning Thursday, Oct.
12. Together, they would total $6.46
million in general obligation bonds,
or loans, that the city would repay
over a period of years. Streets and
drainage bonds are generally 15-year
bonds; other municipal bonds are
normally for 20 years.
Voters rejected a pair of bond is-
sues two years ago that would have
done much of the same work on
streets and drainage that the first two
propositions propose. However, the
consensus among council members
is that residents didn't have enough
information about the bond issues
to vote intelligently on the matter.
They're hoping to remedy that this
time around.
City Manager Michael Kovacs
has been making presentations to
civic groups over the past month,
explaining the ballot and how it will
affect the city. Those groups have
included Rotary, Kiwanis and the
Port Aransas Garden Club. Kovacs
said if all three items are passed,
it would raise property taxes on a
home valued at $275,000 this year
from $673.01 to $819.75 a year in
2007, an increase of $146.74.
In response to suggestions that the
city take the money from its regular,
annual budget, Judy Lyle, assistant
city manager and finance director,
said to pay for the projects in a lump
sum would require doubling city
property taxes.
Early voting runs through tomor-
row, Friday, Nov. 3.
Election day, Tuesday, Nov. 7,
polls will be open at the Community
Center 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
The South Jetty Web site, www.
portasouthjetty.com, will be updated
with election results as they become
available Tuesday evening and/or
Wednesday morning, Nov. 8.
Golf course shaping up
Staff photo by Murray Judson
Workers were expected to begin planting seashore paspalum grass
today, Nov. 1, along nine holes of the golf course under construction
at the Newport development. The planting, which is taking place east
of State Hwy. 361, will continue for the next four to five weeks, said
Jim Brown, the golf course superintendent. Workers have finished
installing an irrigation system along nine holes on the east side of
the highway and are in the process of installing irrigation on the rest
of the course.
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Judson, Mary Henkel. Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 36, No. 44, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 2, 2006, newspaper, November 2, 2006; Port Aransas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth409944/m1/1/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Ellis Memorial Library.