Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Vol. 24, No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, March 16, 1989 Page: 1 of 28
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24 PAGES IN 2 SECTIONS
THURSDAY
EDITION
Vol. 24 No. 46
March 16, 1989
BURLESOIUAST
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Scoots Perform Fiesta Dance At Play Day
Pigtails and ponytails were flying to the tune of Mexican folk music
as this group of Mansfield Girl Scouts entertained at Saturday’s
Play Day in Chisenhall Park Other activities of the four-city gai
ing of Scouts, Brownies, and Daisies included making bint fee
r ither-
eeders
from pine cones, peanut butter, and bird seed. Outdoor games,
crafts, and a scavenger hunt helped fill the day’s agenda; Mother
Nature cooperated with a sun-filled day at the city park. Scouts
came from Burleson, Mansfield, Rendon, and Kennedale.
Board votes no on SOS recommendation
The burning question of wheth-
er there will or will not be a school
tax rollback election in Burleson
still flickers following the Monday
night meeting of the BISD Board of
Trustees.
The board fell somewhat short
of following the advice of a citizens
group formed for the purpose of
defeating a rollback at the polls.
That organization, known as
SOS (Save Our Schools) recommen-
ded at the meeting that the board
enter into an agreed judgement with
another group, COURT, to have
the election legally called by a dis-
trict judge.
Instead, the board voted 5-2 to
seek the judge's opinion on the
board action nullifying the petition
for the rollback election. If the
judge should determine the board's
action to have been inappropriate,
then the board has, asked the judge
to call the election. ’
If the election is called—and
that now seems likely based on a
case handled previously by Judge C.
C. Cooke—it could very well be on
May 6, the date of the school board
election.
That could make for a crowded
ballot since the board did certify a
new petition Monday and officially
call an election that would, if
approved by voters, increase by
$25,000 the homestead exemption
for senior citizens and for the hari-
dicapped.
The revenue loss to the school
district if that proposition passes
would be about $262,000.
--------The tax rollback would cost the
BI$D another $1.1 million if such
an election is called and if it is then
OK'd by voters. A petition calling
for such an election had earlier been
declared invalid by the board.
Members of SOS have been
diverse in their opinions regarding
actions of the school board and ad-
ministration, but are virtually unan-
imous in their conviction that a tax
rollback would be detrimental to the
community and the school district.
The group also felt strongly
that the board should take whatever
steps were necessary to see that Bur-
leson citizens were afforded the op-
portunity to make a decision at the
ballot box.
"The citizens of this district are
intelligent people and should be al-
lowed to decide this issue," Dr. Rob-
ert Abies told the board in conclud-
ing his presentation for SOS.
Abies, former mayor of Burle-
son, is chairman of SOS.
The first recommendation he .
made on behalf of the group was
that the board ask the judge to call
the election. Since the board had
previously rejected the petition call-
ing for an election, this was the on-
SOS recommendation in open ses-
sion, but voted 5-2 (Byron Black
and Bernard Erickson opposed) to
leave it up to the judge following
an executive session.
Prior to going into that closed
session,, the board looked at a
"laundry list" of all the possible
agreed after talking with the offices
of the attorney general and the
secretary of state.
The second recommendation
made by Abies was that the board
send a positive message to the com-
munity that would help eliminate
the divisiveness that has become so
prevalent here.
"There is definitely a difference
of opinion within the community
as to budgeted expenditures in the
88-89 budget year," he said. "A pos-
itive message is needed as to the
Board’s goals in the 89-90 school
budget"
Some SOS members believed
the group should go a step farther
and make definite suggestions and
requests regarding budget matters.
One prominent member of the
group, former mayor Jerry Boone,
left the group when the majority of
members did not take this stance.
Elsewhere in his presentation,
Abies stated: "SOS does not take a
position on previous actions of the
school board. Supporters of SOS
cover a wide range of feelings con-
cerning some decisions of the
school board. We are, however, una-
nimous in the belief that a tax
rollback is too drastic a measure to
take simply to contain taxation.
Supporters of SOS do not support
higher taxes. SOS wants quality ed-
ucation and we want the best use of
our tax dollars."
The board did not discuss the
successful.
"These are not recommenda-
tions by any means," Superinten-
dent of Schools Gordon Cockerham
told the board. He said he was asked
for specifics and he thought the
board would want a complete list
"Just keep in mind that we
have to remain an accredited dis-
trict," he said. He reminded the
board that Gainesville went onto a
probationary period as a result of its
rollback election and that loss of
accreditation meant a loss of state
funds. Losing state funds would be
the same as losing the school
district, he said.
Erickson wanted the board to
assure voters that the board would
not eliminate bus service, but the
concensus of the board seemed to be
that a special meeting should be
called to go over the list and assign
priorities.
"We're not talking about
cutting a few thousand dollars," said
Bob Ray. "We'd have to cut over a
million (if a rollback passes)."
Other members agreed that.trus-
tees needed to set priorities before
making any rash promises about
what would or wouldn't be cut. A
decision on just •when to do this
wasn't as easy to do, however.
When Erickson nixed several
potential dates, Maurice Shepherd
said "There's nothing more impor-
See HOMESTEAD, pg. 14
No action taken
on ‘living wage’
issue for JCSO
Banff’s salary an ‘Injustice’
Bmrtnon Sfr/DOJTIF. WILSON
BY LUCIENDA DENSON
The Johnson County Sheriffs
Department and Commissioners
Court reached an impasse during the
regularly scheduled meeting of the
court Monday, March 13, over
salary needs of the department and
what was available in the budget to
bring some S.D. officers' salaries to
whatSheriff Eddy Boggs described
as a ''living wage".
Boggs told the commissioners
that several salaries were out of
line, and described the salary for one
classification, court baliff, as an
injustice.
• Baliffs' salaries were quoted at
$4.60 hour for a $40 hour week.
Changes Boggs recommended
were an increase in the chief jailer's
salary from $15,513 annually to
$20,654 to be on the same level as
a field lieutenant; increase in jail
baliffs salaries from $9,548 an-
nually to $16,822, to be on the
accompany increased responsibility.
All members of the court
expressed concern over the budget,
strained by the addition of 40
additional law enforcement em-
ployees when the Jolinson County
Law EnforcementCenfer is opened
and fully operational.
An ongoing area of concern
remains the fee per prisoner per day
the county wilF charge to house
outside prisoners. At press time, no
decision had been made. Prices have
been quoted ranging from $45 to
$55.
An appeal was also made by
the Johnson County Sheriff Associ-
ation. Three proposals were present-
ed by Chief Deputy D. J. Moulder,
president of the association.
Proposal #1 asked the
commissioners court to grant each
level of supervision the same pay
scale. "Parity between jail and
patrol is essential, and is a logical
same level as a deputy sheriff; and- progression due to the parallel
an increase of $3,637 each for five
court baliffs.
The total amount of the re-
quested salary increases from April
1 to Sept. 30, 1989 would be
$20,775. With the added costs to
the county for FICA matching
funds and retirement, the total ex-
penditure would be $23,866.62, he
told members of the court
■"Boggs said the cotin baliffs
job was to protect the judge and to
keep order in the court. In some
cases, including civil court he said,
situations could become "real
testy”.
Boggs said he understood
money problems, either personally
or in business.
"But if you have good people
doing a good job, you pay them
accordingly," he said. "You have to
give them some light at the end of
the tunnel. I'm sure it will be our
(the S. D.'s) fault if we go in the
hole, if it's our fault or not."
He said he had at least one
baliff about to lose his house, and
he knew of others who had bought
Christmas gifts for their children at
Salvation Army, and their clothes
at Goodwill.
Pet. 4 Commissioner Bud
Miller said he had understood that
the court and the sheriffs depart-
ment were in agreement on salaries.
Pet. 2 Commissioner Ron Harmon
added that the figures the court had
worked with had been provided by
the sheriff.
Salaries presently paid by the
sheriffs department were agreed
upon prior to final approval of the
budget last year, Boggs said.
He told the court that some of
the salaries were on the low side,
but seemed at that time to be in
line. Some of the duties, especially
for the jailers and baliffs, had
changed. Increased salaries should
levels of responsibility," Moulder
told the court.
Proposal #2 requested the court
to grant each employee of the S.D.
$300 per month across the board
increase, after parity, to become
effective April 1, 1989, plus
another $300 per month across the
board increase effective Oct. 1,
1989.
"These raises would allow the
employees of the S.D. to realize a
standard of pay still slightly below
that of other departments, but
would significantly increase their
standard of living when compared to
the present standard,” it read.
Proposal #3 asked the court to
grant each employee of the S.D. a
40-hour work week, with wages
equal to time and a half of their
hourly salary for all time worked
over 40 hours in a weekly period. It
also asked that the employee be
able to choose between compensa-
tory time or salary supplement,
with the stipulation that no over-
time would be allowed without
prior approval from the sheriff or
his designee.
"These'proposals are brought
before the commissioners court for
its careful consideration and ap-
proval. These are submitted with all
due respect to the court, and are not
sought to bring any undue burden
to the taxpayers of Johnson
County, but are sought to provide a
more suitable standard of living for
the employees of the S.D,"
Moulder told the court.
Moulder noted that the prison
in Venus was nearing completion,
and that he understood salaries paid
would be higher than those paid to
the Johnson County S.D. He told
the court that he did not want the
Johnson County S.D. to become
just a training facility for other
Mease see DEPUTIES, Pg. 14
Reeves’ first car finds its way ~
BY JOHN FLORES
Sad headlights dripping tears of
rust, the old car sulked in the
comer of a crowded automotive
junkyard, waiting for the scrap man
to deliver it from a hollow
existence.
Windows smashed, body bent
and bruised, the old '55 weathered
blast furnace heat and arctic cold,
year after year, in its plot among
the skeletons and scattered bones of
a west Texas wrecking yard.
Miles away, in a small Texas
town, the former driver, high-
schpol hot-rodder Mike Reeves, a
kid 41 going on 17, was secretly
longing for the lonesome old car.
After saving nickels and dimes
from shining shoes in a local barber
shop, and doing other odd-jobs, the
youngster (with dad's O.K.) bought
the old car for the first time in
1963, at the low-low price of $550.
"My dad and I went to lode at
a *57 chevy, but it was a four door,
(definitely un-cool).
"I told my dad I didn't want a
four door. As we were leaving, the
old guy's wife drove up in a coral
and gray colored '55 Chevy 2-door
hardtop "It was pretty much a hot-
rod," he said
"Dad asked, "is that thing for
sale?" And the old guy said,
"everything I've got is for sale."
"I had saved $500, and the guy
wanted $550 for the car, so Dad
loaned me $50," he said.
Pontiac's GTO was a "mean
machine" among high schoolers in
the mid 1960s, but it was also
expensive, so Reeves settled for the
classy '55 Chevy, "so I could have
some 'wheels' to get around town
in," he said.
"In high school we used to
spend all our extra money on our
cars," he said. "I put in a dual
exhaust, chrome air cleaner,
Cqrvette valve covers, and mag
wheels,” he said.
Reeves kept the car dean, and
even in a crowd of shiny new
GTO's, his old '55 held its ground,
he said.
The Beatles were popular,
Vietnam was raging, and the high
school boys were peeling-out of the
parking lot after school, racing on
week-ends in a hot-rod tradition
passed along from father to son
somewhere in the genetic structure.
"That's why I wanted to find
the car again," Reeves said.
"Because it represented freedom to
me. I started longing for an old
Chevy in the early '80s, but I never
thought I'd ever find my old car
again, I really thought it was gone
for good."
The car was sold to a man in
Houston in 1973. A few years later,
it was sold to someone in Dublin,
Texas. But Reeves lost track of it
in 1973 when it went to Houston.
Then, in 1983, Reeves went to
Gene Ford’s Auto Salvage in
Stephenville, Texas, looking for an
old car to restore. Ford remembered
Reeves and his old coral and gray
'55 Chevy from the boy's high
school days in Burleson.
14
From Hot-Rod
To Hot Property
Former BHS hot-rodder Mike Reeves has completely
restored this 1955 Chevy Belair after nearly losing it to
the scrap heap.
• SMlMWnOMB
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Moody, James. Burleson Star (Burleson, Tex.), Vol. 24, No. 46, Ed. 1 Thursday, March 16, 1989, newspaper, March 16, 1989; Burleson, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth760840/m1/1/: accessed June 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Burleson Public Library.