The Galveston Daily News from Galveston, Texas • Page 6

DAILY NEWS A6 Tuesday March 23,1999 FEEDBACK: Call City Editor Michael A. Smith at (409) 683-5312 or (800) 561-3611 State Rep. Gray signs on to hate-crime bill State Rep. Patricia Gray, D-Galveston, signed on to House Bill 938 the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act in Austin on Monday.

The bill allows investigation and prosecution for an offense that occurred because of bias or prejudice. The bill also allows for the protection against certain hateful acts. State hearing on future of 1-45 set for tonight WEBSTER Representatives from The Texas Department of Transportation will conduct a meeting to discuss the Interstate 45 and state Highway 3 Corridor from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. today at the city of Webster Civic Center, 311 Pennsylvania St.

An alternate meeting will be held from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at Galveston's Ball High School at 41st Street and Avenue 0. Cohen Award nomination deadline approaching GALVESTON Thursday is the deadline for nominations for the Rabbi Henry Cohen Humanitarian Award. The award honors the memory of noted humanitarian Rabbi Cohen while also recognizing the efforts of a contemporary person whose actions have led to the betterment of life for others.

Any individual or organization may submit the name of a deserving nominee. Submit a letter of nomination to the Cohen Award Committee, Temple B'Nai Israel at 3008 Ave. 0, Galveston 77550. Letters should relate specific deeds that depict the nominee's concern for others and include the nominee's address and telephone number. For information, call Armin Cantini at (409) 740-4827.

Gaiveston youth program receives state grant GALVESTON The Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services will provide $500,000 in funding for the Gaiveston Community Youth Development Program. These funds will be used to fund various programs in the 77550 ZIP code relating to employment, education, parenting, mentoring, substance abuse and recreation. The programs will begin Sept. 1 and continue through Aug. 31, 2000.

Project description forms can be obtained from the Community Youth Development Program housed at Gaiveston Independent School District at 3904 Ave. T. Applications will be available May 7. For information, call Carol Chairez at (409) 766-5164. Development north of Broadway subject of talk GALVESTON An ongoing discussion about the economic development on the north side of Broadway will continue at 6 p.m.

today at Public 80137th St. "Consistent Exposure to Education Summit IV" will be the theme presented by Tim Day. For information, call (409) 762-5498 or (409) 6921131. Historic commission to have public meeting LEAGUE CITY The city council and the historic commission will hear today from residents in the historic district on changes to the current boundaries. Toby Hall, chairman of the historic commission, said she had received requests from some property owners seeking to be excluded from the district and from others seeking to be included.

The historic commission held a public meeting last month, but no one showed up. The commission has been working on a preservation plan for the 192 properties in the heart of the city. The plan consists of guidelines and requirements for homes and businesses in the city's historic district. The public hearing will be at 6 p.m. today in the city council chambers in city hall at 200 W.

Walker St. School district receives bids to collect delinquent taxes GALVESTON Bids could be rendered moot on Wednesday when the school board votes on whether to turn the responsibility for collection over to the county tax assessor- collector. By MARTY SCHLADEN The Daily News GALVESTON For the first time, the Gaiveston Independent School District received proposals Monday for the lucrative contract to collect delinquent taxes for it and the other agencies whose taxes it handles. But the exercise could be rendered moot on Wednesday when the school board votes on whether to turn the responsibility for tax collections over to the county tax assessor-collector. Under state law, professional services such as delinquent tax collections don't have to be put Sound'off by calling The Daily News'hot line: (409) 6835274 or (800) 561-3611.

Ext. 5274. Be sure to ieave your name, the town or city where you live and a daytime phone number with your short message. out for bids, but the school district has adopted a policy of doing so anyway. The school district collects taxes for the city of Gaiveston, Gaive- ston College, Jamaica Beach and Navigation District 1.

According to district figures, the combined levy in 1998 for all those entities was $45 million, and $5.9 million in taxes were delinquent. The law firm Yarbrough, Jameson and Gray, longtime collector of delinquent taxes for GISD, collected $504,000 in fees from the 1997-98 fiscal year. In addition to that firm, the Houston firm of Perdue, Brandon, Fielder, Collins and Mott and the Austin firm of Linebarger, Heard, Goggan, Blair, Graham, Pena and Sampson, submitted proposals for the work. Even though the Texas City firm of Lyons and Plackerneier had expressed an interest in the contract, it did not submit a proposal. As the firm that collects delinquent taxes for the county, it presumably would get the business if the county takes over tax collections for GISD.

Two committees composed'of school district officials and members of the entities for which the district collects taxes will screen the proposals, rank them and interview representatives of the firms. The school board is slated to vote on the contract April 28. Connecticut-bound A Stormy takes a look outside his tank Monday at the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network in Gaiveston. Stormy was found stranded after Tropical Storm Frances in September. After recovering for the past six months in Gaiveston, he soon will be headed for Mystic, Conn.

(Photo by Kevin Bartram) dolphin headed north The young dolphin, who was separated from his mother and hunger, fell victim to sharks who bit off half his dorsal fin and tore a gaping 5-inch hole in his left side. His wounds have closed and Stormy is swimming, eating and poking his head out of the water to look at visitors. By MARK MUNICH Correspondent GALVESTON Stormy, a bottle- nosed dolphin who washed ashore on Mustang Island during September's Tropical Storm Prances, has recovered enough to be moved to his new home, the Mystic Marine Life Aquarium in Mystic, Conn. The young dolphin, who was separated from his mother and weakened by hunger, fell victim to sharks who bit oft 7 half his dorsal fin and tore a gaping 5-inch hole in his left side. Stormy was rescued by the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network and transported to Gaiveston, where six months of nursing by more than 400 volunteers and medical treatment funded by $10,000 from Conoco employees, returned him to health.

"He was so ill and weak that he couldn't even swim at first," said volunteer Stephanie Kain. "We had to hold him in our laps." His wounds have closed and Stormy is swimming, eating and poking his head out of the water to look at visitors. But because he never learned hunting or social skills needed to live in the open Gulf, the National Marine Fisheries Service deemed the 2-year-old dolphin "unre- leasable." The Mystic Aquarium, a research and educational foundation specializing in study of marine mammals, found out about Stormy on the Internet. Officials there decided he would make a good companion for the two female bottle-nosed dolphins, Nina and Misty, who have lived there or more than a decade. Stormy will be transported to Connecticut in a custom-designed sling, with holes cut for his pectoral fins.

The stretcher will be suspended in a 500- gallon fiberglass tank. He'll go to Austin in a climate-controlled semi-truck first, then board an air freighter to Philadelphia, where hell be loaded onto another truck and driven the final hours of his journey. The freight company Eagle USA donated all the trucking and airline services for the trip. "He is a sweet animal," said Lance Clark, the network's state operations coordinator. "It will be both a good and sad day to see Stonny leave.

He will definitely be missed." Man testifies he conspired to kill LC man From staff reports GALVESTON An 18-year-old Alvin man finished testifying Monday morning against the two people with whom he says he conspired to kill a man in 1997. Johnny Manuel Lopez has testified that Barbara Holder waited in her League City home and distracted her husband before the attack on May 30,1997. Holder, 40, is charged with capital murder in the slaying of her husband, Curtis. Prosecutors charge that Barbara Holder schemed with her boyfriend, 35-year-old Mark Dixon, and Lopez to kill her husband so she could collect about $700,000 in life-insurance benefits. They say she offered Dixon and Lopez $50,000 each.

Under questioning by Gaiveston County District Attorney Mike Guarino, Lopez detailed the events leading to the slaying. The teen said Holder paged her husband at work and urged him to come home to discuss something important before their two children got home. Before her husband arrived, Holder told Lopez and Dixon to "mess up" the house to make it appear that a burglary had occurred. Lopez testified Holder loaded telephones, VCRs, video games and jewelry into her van to further the appearance. When Curtis Holder, a 47-year-old Xerox employee, arrived home, his wife stood in the kitchen to draw his attention, the teen testified.

Dixon stood on a chair and struck him on the head with a wrench and a struggle ensued, Lopez told jurors. He said he joined in the melee after hiding behind a kitchen counter. Lopez said he stabbed the victim in the lower back, chest, foot and arms. "He didn't do nothing," he said, adding that the knife "stopped like it hit something hard. Mark said to push on it hard." Defense attorney Brian Abbington noted the differing statements Lopez had given about the events leading to the stabbing.

"I lied a little about everything," Lopez acknowledged. Guarino said the prosecution expected to call one more witness, a medical examiner, before resting its case today. LEAGUE OTY Johnny Manuel Lopez has testified that Barbara Holder waited in her League City home and distracted her husband before the attack on May 30,1997. Holder, 40, is charged with capital murder in the slaying other husband, Curtis. Prosecutors charge that Barbara Holder schemed with her boyfriend, 35- year-old Mark Dixon, and Lopez to kill her husband so she could collect about $700,000 in life-insurance benefits.

They say she offered Dixon and Lopez $50,000 each. Council to discuss city administrator's contract, railroad crossing Ji Council members voted 4-2 during their last meeting not to extend the city administrator's contract for another year. By MONIQUE A. HITCHINGS The Daily News DICKINSON The city council today will continue to discuss and then decide whether to extend City Administrator Don Taylor's contract until March 2000. Council members voted 4-2 during their last meeting not to extend Taylor's contract for another year.

The current contract expires this month. Councilman Kerry Neves, who voted against renewing the city administrator's contract, had said the council's action pos- sibly could set a precedent of not having a city administrator under contract. "I can understand (a short-term contract) if you have a person moving here and they have to relocate their family," he had said. "I just don't think city em- ployees should have a long-term contract." In other business, Steve Calles of the Texas Department of Transportation is scheduled to be at tonight's meeting to discuss closing the 46th Street railroad crossing during construction on FM 517. "The city said the 46th Street closing wasn't necessary," Taylor said.

"But TxDOT said the 517 project would be pulled if the street wasn't closed, according to a federally mandated law." It was a safety issue with the department of transportation, Taylor said. Council members also will discuss amending the amount of time political signs can be in yards from 30 days to 60 days. Some representatives already have started campaigning for May 1 elections, Taylor said, and "they're violating the law." What: Dickinson City Council meeting. When: 7 p.m. today.

Where: City hall council chambers, 2716 Main St..