The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 49, Ed. 1 Friday, December 5, 1986 Page: 1 of 4
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Report gives SSISD good grade
jurney
< triegram Staff
The Sulphur Springs Independent School District makes good use of the
money its brings in, according to a report from the Texas Research League.
In a comparison with eight other districts of similar size in East Texas, the
SSISD has one of the lowest tax rates, but is among the middle of the pack in
operating costs per student, the report stated. The figures are from 1985-86
budgets submitted by the districts to the Texas Education Agency.
The eight other schools out of the TEA'S Regions 7 and 8 of comparable
size are Mount Pleasant, liberty-Eylau, Paris, North t^mar, Henderson,
Jacksonville, KUgo>e and Palestine. Regions 7 and 8 make up most of
Northeast Texas.
Of those school districts, only Liberty-Eylau has a lower tax rate than
Sulphur Springs' 71 cents per $100 property evaluation. The average tax for
1-30 traffic jam
■v*t:
Looking east from atop the League Street overpass at 4:45
p.m. Sunday, traffic on Interstate 30 West was backed up
more than 10 miles through Sulphur Springs. This sight
didn't change until around 9 p.m. after law enforcement
officers re-routed traffic which was congested due to the
various construction zones.
Staff Photo by Ann McAdams
Kirkland joins GSC to
be division president
Malcolm Kirkland, for the past six of Grocery Supply Corrjpany, Inc., a
years plant manager of Ocean Spray company I have greatly admired
Cranberries, Inc., here, will become since moving to Sulphur Springs. My
division president of Grocery Supply decision to leave Ocean Spray was a
Company of Sulphur Springs on Dec: very difficult one because it is a fine,
1. The announcement was made fine company But I am pleased to be
Monday-by Michael K. McKenzie, remaining in a town! have<grown to
president of GSC Enterprises, Inc., love."
the corporate parent of Grocery In a non-related matter, McKenzie
Supply Company. announced that GSC Distributing
The position which Kirkland will Companies of Sulphur Springs,
assume has been filled on a tern- another GSC Enterprises subsidiary,
porary basis by Mike Mize, corporate has recently acquired five Texas
executive vice-president and chief warehouse facilities from Ponca
financial officer. Wholesale Mercantile Company,
“We are pleased that Malcolm headquartered in Amarillo. These
agreed to join us last month and have operations are located in Sherman,
been waiting for him to have time to Waco, Austin, Wichita Falls and San
properly notify his employer and Angelo-Del Rio and have combined
staff so that we could make the public sales between $35 and $40 million
announcement," McKenzie said annually.
Monday.
Kirkland is a 1966 graduate of
Texas Tech University and received
a masters degree in business ad-
ministration from St. Mary’s
University in 1971. He and his family
are members of the First United
Methodist Church and he has served
in numerous civic and church
capacities, including chairman of the
Hopkins County United Way,
president of the Hopkins County
Manufacturers Association, and as a
board member of the Chamber of
Commerce and Cnmestoppers.
His wife, Mary Ellen, is a teacher
at Sulphur Springs Middle School.
They have two children, Jana and
Paul.
Kirkland told The News-Telegram,
"I was extremely pleased to accept
the offer of employment as president MalCOlm Kirkland
the nine schools was 86 cents. Two of the schools had a tax rat? in excess of
$1
When it comes to total operating expense, Sulphur Springs’s figure of
$3,058.50 per student was slightly above the nine-school average of $3,027.
The main reason the SSISD has a higher than average operating cost is
because it maintains eight campuses, while other districts have fewer
buildings to keep up, SSISD Superintendent Leonard Merrell said.
“Operating eight different cafeterias and paying the electric bills for eight
different campuses costs more,” Merrell said. “Most districts ojar size have
two fewer campuses than we have. But, we’re spending less money per child
than a lot of districts, even with our extra campuses.”
According to the district’s market value, the SSISD is about $90,000 below
the taxing capability of other districts in the state. Sulphur Springs has a
taxing ability of $162,891 per student, while the state average is $251,512.
The SSISD market value is about $8,000 above the average of the eight
other area districts of similar size.
“When you consider the wealth of the district and the local tax effort, we
look pretty favorable,” Merrell said “We are not one of the richer districts.
“In our case, we try to keep up with what our maintenance and operations
needs are from year to year,” he explained. “Right now, we’re working on
needs and space requirements for the next several years.”
Those needs will have to be taken care of without any foreseeable ad-
ditional revenue, Merrell sl&d. “Property values aren’t probably going to
rise, because of the plant closings that will bring the values down. I don’t see
any immediate help from rising property values and I don’t anticipate any
new money from the state.”
The SSISD total of state and local taxes is $2,950 per student, which is $350
below the state average. That includes the portion of state taxes to provide
state foundation aid plus local property taxes that the district receives,
according to the report.
The Sulphur Springs total is about $40 above the average of the nine area
schools of similar size.
Hospital beefsup collections
By BOBBY BURNEY
News Telegram Staff
The Hopkins County Hospital
Board of Directors has tightened up
the hospital’s policy on collecting bad
debts — and the board members are
liking the results.
In Thursday's regular board
meeting, the directors were filled in
on the legal activity taken by Frank
Bauer, the hospital's attorney, to
collect on more than a dozen out-
standing debts.
According t§ the hospital’s
Assistant Administrator Dan
Noteware, 13 different accounts were
notified of impending legal action if
the debts were not paid. Two of those
started payment immediately after
Building
permits top
$300,000
Building permits in November
reached the second lowest level in
1986, city building inspector Joe
Cerretani's report showed recently.
The total value of permits issued
last month was $326,900, which is
slightly above the low mark of
$308,905 set in June of this year and
well below the $1,099,650 in November
last year.
"I really don’t understand it,”
Cerretani said "Interest rates are
real low, but I guess people are just
trying to savq money."
Community Developmerft Director
Andrew Mack attributed the slump to
the overall economy and the time of
year
It's November and people were
probably saving money for the
holidays," Mack said.
In addition, according to Cerretani,
There are just too many homes
already for sale out there.”
Only four permits for residential
construction were issued in
November, which was the same
number issued in June Also, housing
construction made up the lion’s share
of the total dollar amount — $230,600
of $326,900.
The November sum brings the
year-to-date value for construction in
Sulphur Springs to $11,782,728, down
from the total of $11,981,045 at this
time last year.
The following is a list of building
permits issued last month according
to location, owner or contractor and
estimated value:
1801 Woodbndge Drive, Bill Mc-
Cool, $65,000.
1407 Hickorvwood, B.B. Beers,
$65,000.
100 Hollie Circle, Kel-Mac Con-
struction, $50,600.
200 Hollie Circle, Kel-Mac Con-
struction, $50,000.
1231 College St., Chuck Osborn,
$50,000.
High School grounds, Carson &
Barnes Circus, no value listed.
1117 Church St., Audlev Moore,
$20,000.
413 Jefferson St., R.K. Garrard,
$15,000.
1509 Brandy Circle, Chris
Schlemm, $9,500.
1711 S. Broadway St., Fashion
Shoes, $1,000
720 Houston St., Faye Johnston,
$500.
221 Locust St., Davis Wood,
Products. $300
the first letter.
Four of the remaining 11 accounts
' have also started making payments
since then, Noteware said.
In all, $4,200 has been paid, with
legal costs adding up to $1,700 —
meaning the hospital has realized
about a $2,500 profit.
The effectiveness is not
necessarily the cost over expense at
this point.” Noteware said. “This lets
people know we expect to get paid,
and rightly so.”
Bauer pointed out that the accounts
that were selected had two things in
common — they were large amounts
and the family had a demonstrated
ability to pay the bill.
Board President Charles Gilreath
said the hospital’s collection efforts
are "on the right track now" and
board member G V. Hughes added
-the payment process looks "100
percent better” than it did several
months ago.
In all, the board reviewed $130,583
in bad debts for the month.
Board members also considered
some way to educate insurance policy
holders that insurance does not pay
the full amount of hospital costs and
that the- patient is liable for the
remaining amount.
Noteware said the hospital will
continue to tighten up its collection
procedures. "Next month, we’ll bring
you some more accounts and keep
you updated,” he told the board.
In other action, the board passed a
policy that will allow the fibspital to
guarantee a specialist's income.
Bauer told the board that the At-
torney General has not handed down
a ruling on whether guaranteeing a
physician's income was acceptable,
but also has not ruled that it could not
be done.
“There is no specific provision
either way," Bauer said.
However, he recommended that
before the hospital guarantee a
physician's income, that three
criteria be- met First, there must be a
demonstrated need for the physician.
. Second, that the physician be
providing a service that otherwise
would not be provided; and third, that
the financial guarantee will be more
than made up for.
The motion passed with board
member Harold Arnold adding that if
qualified specialists can be enticed to
the hospital it will be “an asset to the
medical community as a whole.”
This week, the hospital also an-
nounced a series of “staff ad-
justments," according taMagee, who
said that “some nine full time
positions” were eliminated.
An increase in day surgery has
decreased the number of patients
admitted to the hospital, he said,
while the cutting some federal funds
has made the hospital administration
“tighten the belts.”
Magee explained that the oc-
cupancy rate for the last quarter of
the year (September through
December) traditionally is the
lowest, forcing the hospital to make
personnel changes.
Outpatient or day surgeries are up,
according to Magee, but the oc-
cupancy rate for October 1986 was
down 101 bed days from the same
month last year.
“We have had to take a look at all
departments,’’ Magee said. “We
have to be sure that anything we do
doesn’t hurt the quality of care the
patients receive.”
Magee also stated that should
conditions at the hospital improve,
those positions may be restored.
Promotional film
gets rave reviews
By ANN McADAMS
News Telegram Staff
Though the cowboy in this movie
didn’t ride off into the sunset, viewers
did get a full view of Hopkins County
from sunrise to sunset from almost
every angle.
Some 75 members of the Hopkins
County Chamber of Commerce sat
back after a buffet meal Monday at
the Woman's Building to witness the
premiere showing of the “Sulphur
Springs Economic Development
Film."
Produced by the chamber with
assistance from Texas Power & Light
and other local firms, the film will be
used by the chamber’s Economic
Development Division as a
marketing tool. The 14-minute film
features virtually every aspect of
Hopkins County from its major in-
dustries to schools, shopping centers,
restaurants and city government.
The film will be used in presen-
tations to prospective businesses and
industry, according to Ike Harper,
Chamber of Commerce Board of
Directors president:
“The film won’t do us any good if it
sits on the shelf." Harper told the
chamber members. “It’s only as good
as you, the members, make it. We
had a lot of fun making the film so
let’s use it.”
Local businessmen and women
applauded the film which was
designed to replace the former slide
show available for prospective in-
dustry.
"It was very professionally done
and professionally presented,” Miller
Steinsiek, president of First
American Mortgage Co., said.
And / want.....
The Christmas season is here and Santa
Claus made one of his first appearances in
Sulphur Springs. After singing a selection of
Christmas tunes, Santa brought candy to the
youngsters attending Monday night in-
cluding Dionna Burchfield, the 3-year-old
daughter ot Ronny end Joyce Burchfield of
Sulphur Springs. The children climbed into
Santa's lap to tell him what they wanted for
Christmas. The Pilot Club sponsored the
annual Christmas tree lighting on the square
with music presented by Psalms 100.
>-SUtf Photo by Ann McAdams
l
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Keys, Clarke & Hillsamer, Dave. The Hopkins County Echo (Sulphur Springs, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 49, Ed. 1 Friday, December 5, 1986, newspaper, December 5, 1986; Sulphur Springs, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth775175/m1/1/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Hopkins County Genealogical Society.