St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 3

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH ST. LOUISWEDNESDAY WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 1988 3A City Sues To Get Property! For Convention Center Cervantes Convention Center Expansion Area Cole Vs I v.c aW- I f.X.f 1. 1 11 I I (t ft CONVENTION St Louis CENTER Hotel kir Jl If 1 al 11 1 i 11 "I Robert LaRouchePost-Dispatch St. Louis Zoo Director Charlie Hoessle hold- ty Executive Gene McNary (right).

At left is ing a Chinese salamander at a news confer- Austin Tao, a leader of local Chinese-Ameri-ence Tuesday in the office of St. Louis Coun- can groups. 1 Convention Plaza Parking i no efe i 1 IF? EagerTo Share Heritage Lucas Avenue 8 3 By Charlene Prost Of the Post-Dispatch Staff A city agency has filed suit to take control of seven privately owned pieces of property within the area needed for expansion of the Cervantes Convention Center. The property, two blocks south of the Convention Center, are occupied by parking lots and by a five-story building owned for about 50 years by the Lessard Printing and Stationery Co. Most of the parking lots are operated by Starr Service and Parking Co.

The suit was filed In St. Louis Circuit Court last week by the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority. It seeks to acquire the property by eminent domain. "We would prefer a negotiated settlement, and the staff will continue to talk with the owners even though a suit has been filed," said Michelle Duffe, manager of the real estate division for the city's Economic Development Corp. The redevelopment authority and several other city agencies were merged earlier this year to form the Economic Development Corp.

Gary Bentrup, operations manager at Lessard Printing, said that the company would close its doors permanently on Friday. It has sold office supplies at the building for about 50 years, but it stopped its printing operations there about 30 years ago, Bentrup said. Bentrup said that the suit played a minor role in the decision by owner Ernest Lessard to close. "Our business has been getting smaller and smaller over the years, and we Just couldn't compete with the big guys anymore. The building also is a bit too big for us, and very inefficient "The filing of the suit just made him decide to close sooner than he would have otherwise," Bentrup said.

Michael Starr, an owner of the parking lot company, could not be reached Monday for comment The seven pieces of property are situated on two of the three blocks the city plans to use to nearly double the size of the Convention Center at a cost of $80 million. The center now has 500,000 square feet of floor area. When the expansion is completed in early 1992, it will have 416,000 more square feet of exhibit and meeting area. The Lessard building, at 704 North Ninth Street, and one of the Stan-parking lots occupy the entire block bounded by Convention Plaza, Lucas Avenue, Eighth and Ninth Streets. The city also is seeking to acquire a large parking area covering more than half of a block bounded by Lucas and Washington Avenues, Eighth Properties to be acquired through suits filed for condemnation Washington Avenue St Charles Maylair Plaza 1 American! Theafe and Ninth streets.

The parking area, part of which is operated by Starr, is just east of the renovated Lennox apartment building, which will remain. A third block the city intends to MISSOURI Festival Chinese Here By Margaret Gillerman Of the Post-Dispatch Staff For St Louisans Xiaolian Liu and Lan Liao, the Chinese Cultural Festival will be a reminder of growing up in Shanghai and Beijing. It also will be an opportunity for the two students to share with their, new American friends the traditions of their homeland. Austin Tao, a local landscape architect, says the upcoming festival will be "a great opportunity for the Chinese community here to display and show to St. Louis some of our heritage and history and culture." "We're very proud," Tao said.

Tao is a leader of Chinese-American organizations in the St. Louis area. More than 5,000 Chinese-Americans live in St. Louis and have their own Chinese language school, he said. And for all residents of the metropolitan area, the Chinese Cultural Festival will offer a close look at a culture halfway across the world, organizers of the festival say.

The festival will run from Jan. 13 through Jan. 25. It will feature an array of theater, art, crafts, workshops, lectures and special exhibits. Area cultural institutions, from the Missouri Botanical Garden to Lau-meier Sculpture Park to the St.

Louis Zoo, will be participating. In addition to re-creating ancient: traditions, festival events are designed to showcase modern China, in art, politics and literature. who practices the ancient art of pa-, per cutting, brought with him a col-: lection of rice-paper cuttings of such legendary figures as Lord Guan and golden dragons. He also had a cutting that he had made of a newer Chinese favorite Mickey Mouse. Other pieces on display Tuesday were a bronze turtle used for an incense burner and a cloisonne snuff box in the shape of a Chinese pug dog.

The piece has been traced, to 17th-century France. Walter Dunn, with the Dog Museum of America, also brought with him a portrait of a Shih Tzu dog, a Chinese breed that is a favorite in western European capitals, he said. Cristina Pippa, McNary's stepdaughter, modeled a bright green dragon headdress as a reminder that The Magic House, in Kirk-wood, will teach children how to make the headdresses as part of the festival. McNary, who is studying Chinese history, said the festival would offer "every form of cultural exchange." For the public, "It will be a way to learn about Chinese culture and people and get a full flavor of McNary and the St. Louis Counts visited Beijing last summer to set up a Friendship Alliance to foster cultural exchanges.

Property to be acquired Post-Dlapaich MapAm Itofqonaon acquire is bounded by Washington, Lucas, Seventh and Eighth That block contains five buildings that house a number of small businesses including clcthta3 stores, a wig -shop, a book store avi ury-cleaner. Monday's Cash-S prize winners: Players matching five numbers 3 200,889 jackpot, $66,963 for each winner.) Second Prize winners! Four numbers matched 368 (Each will get $181.50) Third Prize winners: Three numbers matched 10,503 (Each will get $6) The Missouri Lotto game Jackpot is estimated at $4.8 million. i The Illinois Lotto game grand prize is estimated at $20 million. The Lotto America Jackpot is estimated at $5 million. 1wM Men.

Women Pilous Dillards iiiu I ft I I StLouls 1 -L. a Centre nimiiiiii 2 5 luf Daily Pick-3 game Tuesday's winning number 775 ILLINOIS Daily game Tuesday's winning number 121 Pick-Four game Tuesday's winning number 1266 Monday's Cash-S game Winning numbers 03-05-11-28-30 Two Slates File For City's School Board Election furnishings for for a limited time The grand Peking Opera will bring acrobats, dancers and storytellers of old tales In its three-day appearance at the Edison Theatre on the Washington University campus. Organizers of the festival publicized the events Tuesday. Lan Liao, Austin Tao and Xiaolian Liu were among those on hand for a news conference in the office of County Executive Gene McNary, who-helped plan the festival. At the "sneak preview" news conference, Charlie Hoessle, director of the Zoo, carefully lifted an 18-inch Chinese Giant Salamander from a tank of water.

He said the baby salamander native to the fast-flowing streams of the Yangtze River could one day grow to become 3 feet to 5 feet long. In honor of the festival week, the salamander, along with two rare Chinese alligators and three lesser pandas, will be on display at the Zoo. The lesser pandas are rusty-colored and have a ringed tail and white face with dark eye patches. At home in China, where they are an endangered species, the lesser pandas live in the bamboo thickets in the mountain forests and feed on bamboo, grass, roots, fruit, insects, eggs, birds and small rodents. Also at the news conference, Liu, public accountant and a vice president of an architecture firm; and Roberta Smith, a housewife and an unsuccessful school board candidate in 1985.

Tuesday was the first day of filing for the school board seats. Four full six-year terms and one unexpired two-year term are at stake. The board has 1 2 members. Thomas Bugel, a board member and a spokesman for the anti-busing slate, said the slate's election would give anti-busing backers a majority on the board. If that happened, he said, the new board would immediately direct its attorneys to ask the federal courts to return the school system to local control.

Bugel said he believed the courts could be convinced that the city board had achieved as much desegregation as possible in the city schools and that busing should be ended. In contrast, Judith Arnold, a spokesman for the All-City slate, said that her group represented a divergence of views on busing and whether it should be continued. That slate agrees that it would take at least the next six years to persuade the courts to return the district to local control, she said. The slate an Watkins said the board was satisfied with D'Adamo's performance although the commissioners had some requests for improvement. "The biggest thing is providing on-time, clean and reliable service," said Watkins, who is from Caseyville.

But last month, William R. Haine, the departing chairman of the Madison County Transit District, had called on Bi-State to fire D'Adamo. Haine, who now is Madison County state's attorney, called the management of Bi-State "incompetent, irresponsible and arrogant" and has had repeated disagreements with D'Adamo and other Bi-State officials. Madison County contracts with Bi-State to provide bus service to the county. Haine also has complained about the size of D'Adamo's salary.

Meanwhile, Jill T. Roach, transportation adviser to St. Louis Mayor Vincent Schoemehl on Tuesday denied a report that Schoemehl wanted D'Adamo replaced by former Alderman Milton Svetanics, now the city's director of development Roach, who also is a member of the Bi-State board, said Schoemehl had said nothing to her about any such idea. The Bi-State board is made up of 10 appointees, five named by the gover SPECIAL SALE By Mark Schlinkmann Regional Political Correspondent Two rival slates registered Tuesday to run for five seats on the St. Louis School Board in the municipal elec-tion April 4.

One slate, including four incum- bents on the board, calls itself the All- City Public School Team. The group pledges to "represent all segments" j-of the city and to return local control to the city schools by carrying out federal court mandates. That group includes John P. Dorothy C. Springer, Eddie G.

Davis and the Rev. Earl Nance all incumbents, and Gwendolyn A. Moore. The other group bills itself as the Tanti-busing slate and promises to work to end busing for desegregation purposes in the city schools as soon as possible. I The anti-busing slate is made up of Earl P.

Holt III, Frances M. Hutchins, W. Ruth Stone, Nancy L. Hagan and 'Alex F. Barlows.

In addition, three other candidates Lwho filed Tuesday say they have no ties to any slate. They are Betty Fin-neran, a retired teacher and former president of the St Louis Teachers Union; Lyda Krewson, a certified SELECTED OWN MAKE SUITS, TOPCOATS, SPORTWEAR, FURNISHINGS pastor of Greater Mount Carmel Baptist Church; Mahoney, 46, is a personnel director for St Louis University Medical Center; and Davis, 41, is community services supervisor for Union Electric Co. The only non-incumbent on the slate is Moore, 41, an associate vice chancellor at the University of Missouri at St. Louis. Of the anti-busing slate, Holt 36, owns a real estate redevelopment firm; Hutchins, 65, is a housewife who has been active in anti-abortion efforts; Hagan, 44, is a parochial school teacher, Barlows, 72, is a retired owner of an employment agency and the 13th Ward Republican committeeman; and Stone, 55, is a housewife.

All of the 13 candidates except Moore and Stone are running for full six-year terms. Moore and Stone are seeking election to the two-year seat now held by Davis. He was appointed last year by Mayor Vincent C. Schoe-mehl Jr. to temporarily fill a vacancy.

One incumbent whose term is expiring, Richard Gaines, is not seeking re-election. ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH Founded by JOSEPH PULITZER, Dec. 12, 1878 900 N. Tucker Blvd.

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BY MAIL (Payable in advance) MISSOURI, ILLINOIS and ARKANSAS (where dealer service is not available) Dally and Sunday, one year $160.00 Dairy only, one year $96.00 Sunday only, one year $64.00 ALL OTHER STATES APO AND FPO ADDRESSES Daily and Sunday, one year $224.00 Daily only, one year $144.00 Sunday only, one year $80.00 Please remit by check or money order. TO START HOME DELIVERY OR FOR CIRCULATION CUSTOMER SERVICE 622-7111 TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD 621-6666 TOLL FREE FROM ANY STATE EXCEPT ALASKA 1-800-231-1991 TO REACH OUR OPERATOR (314) 622-7000 nounced its formation in June. Bugel said that unlike the anti-busing slate that ran in the 1987 elections, not all of this year's slate are' members of the Metro-South Citizens Council. Holt Hutchins and Barlows are members, Bugel said, but Hagan and Stone are not. Three Citizens Council members were elected to the board last year.

Bugel said Citizens Council membership is an irrelevant issue because the slate is "determined to stick completely to school board issues." Bugel has described the group as an organization devoted to promoting the interests of middle-class whites. He has denied critics' accusations that the group is anti-black. Krewson, 36, one of the unaligned candidates, said that as a CPA, she would bring the board financial expertise it lacks now. Finneran, 68, said that as a former teacher, she can "really represent the teachers and the children" on the board. She said she hopes to get the teachers union's support Smith, 58, said she wants to work to curb the dropout rate and the costs of desegregation, among other things.

Of the All-City slate, Springer, 53, Is a youth employment specialist and a 12-year board member, Nance, 35, is nor of Missouri and five by the governor of Illinois. The five-member Missouri contingent was picked from lists of nominees submitted by Schoemehl and St. Louis County Executive Gene McNary. D'Adamo said Tuesday that he was happy with his new employment arrangement "It's not a contract as such," he said. "There was no need to put a time limit on it anymore." He he would continue to work to improve the efficiency of the Bi-State bus system, noting that federal subsidies are being cut back.

He also said the construction and operation of the area's new Metro Link light-rail system would be a major task for him and the board in the years ahead. D'Adamo came to Bi-State after serving 11 years as commissioner for transportation for Westchester County, a suburban county north of New York City. He previously held positions with New York City's transit system. EDITOR'S NOTE Six people worked Christmas Day in the Webster Groves Animal Hospital. A story Monday implied that only one person was working.

Board Votes To Keep Director A SELECTION OF SELECTED FALL "346" SUITS 35 OFF NOW $276.25 SELECTED BROOKSGATE SUITS 35 OFF leg. $305 NOW $198.25 SELECTED OWN MAKE SHIRTS reg. $39 to $65 NOW $29.25 to 48.75 Solid Pima Cotton Oxford Button-downs (on sab for one week only) reg. $42 NOW $37.80 OWN MAKE, "346" BROOKSGATE SELECTED SPORT COATS 35 to 50 OFF reg. $225 to $355 NOW $1 68.75 to $266.25 SELECTED SWEATERS 35 OFF SELECTED ODD TROUSERS 25 to 50 OFF SELECTED SPORT SHIRTS AND KNITS 35 OFF TOPCOATS AND OVERCOATS 35 OFF SELECTED OUTERWEAR 30 to 40 OFF ALL ACTIVE WEAR BEACHWEAR 35 OFF SELECTED SHOES SLIPPERS 25 or more OFF By Mark Schlinkmann Regional Political Correspondent R.

Raleigh D'Adamo, the executive director of the Bi-State Development Agency since 1986, has been rehired -for an indefinite pe- riod by the agency's Lb a of commissioners. Pat Watkins, the 'Bi-State board chairman, said Tuesday that D'A-damo had accepted board's offer of "an open-ended hir- ino arranppment af- D'Adamo --o rter his present three-year contract 'expires in March. "By informal consensus, we of-'fered him future employment until further notice if he so desired," Wat-kins said. "We think he's trying to 'turn the agency around." The informal decision to retain "D'Adamo was reached by the board 'at a closed executive session in September but was not made public until Tuesday. i Watkins said D'Adamo had agreed to continue indefinitely at his present annual salary of $1 10.000.

D'Adamo Is the highest-paid public official in the St Louis area. 4 Also selected neckwear, hose, luggage, robes, handkerchiefs, gloves, pajamas, toiletries, hats, undershorts, eta Intermediate markdowns may have been taken Limited Quantities Sizes Calendar 622-7044 or 7521 City EdUorNewsroom 622-7096 dr 7097 DotsrsSense 622-7553 Everyday 622-7530 Newspapers Education 622-7378 Personnel Dept. 622-7475 Pubic Relations 622-7238 Reader's Advocate 622-7250 Ratal Advertising 622-7330 Sports Dept 622-7597 Suburban News 622-7013 St Charles Post NewsAdverSsing 646-3903 2 South Broadway, Saint Louis, Missouri 421-3600 Use your Brooks Brothers card, American Express, MasterCard or Visa.