Argus-Leader from Sioux Falls, South Dakota • Page 1

WW BATSTLE Company carves d-T out area 1 ambulance. OUTTA HERE Flag With Hank flies south 1 4 8M A ROlnJ Dodgers edge Astros 4-3 1D The Friday HQ IL(BSidl(Bir Sept. 20, 1991 fa 1991 Argus Leader Sioux Falls, South Dakota A Gannett Newspaper ovemorvsays nnarima will be built lp.ii-ii.ii..l.1.iiipiinimi.iiuiii.ji.iiniljiiiuiimiiiiuii)iiuiiiin Chamberlain Zhri i rc31 Citv Nisioux Falls I Vi' The first hearing in the lawsuit is scheduled Tuesday. Circuit Judge Steve Zinter of Pierre on Tuesday ordered state Transportation Secretary Dick Howard not to spend any money on the project until that hearing. Zinter will decide then whether to continue to block spending while he considers the constitutional arguments.

Bids on the marina work were opened Wednesday in Pierre. The low bid, from Weatherton Construction of Beresford, was about $1.3 million, $300,000 less than engineers' estimates, Howard said. "Prior to opening the bids we informed contractors a legal filing would prevent us from awarding a contract on the project until the court order was lifted or extended," Howard said. A delay could increase costs, he said. A U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers plan to do maintenance work on the Oahe Dam near Pierre means water flows past Chamberlain will be nearly stopped through much of October. "The river level near Chamberlain will be near an all-time low this fall, and that makes perfect conditions for a project of this type," Howard said. "We had good bids, good competition and ideal construction conditions. I just can't let any money be spent until the court tells us something." to build a breakwater and boating facilities for River Ranch, a resort on the west bank of the Missouri. The lawsuit contends it's unconstitutional to use highway funds for non-highway work and questions the legality of spending tax money to help a private resort.

"We aren't against progress for the area, but we don't think it's right to give one operation a break by spending public money on it while others in the same business finance their own projects," said Garry Allen, owner of a Chamberlain motel. "With roads and marinas and all, we could see as much as $3 million or more in tax money spent on that By TERRY WOSTER Argus Leader Staff PIERRE Some of the plans for a state-funded marina area at a Missouri River resort near Chamberlain may be changed by a court case, but the project will be built, Gov. George Mickelson said Thursday. "It's a project we want done," he said. "We're looking at the legal pleadings.

We want to make sure it's within the law, but we will build it. We may have to change the plans somewhat." Motel and marina operators in Chamberlain and White Lake sued the state Tuesday over a plan to use up to $1.6 million in highway money project, and that isn't fair. A lot of folks around here think the resort will be a positive thing for our area, and we don't really quarrel with that idea. We just want it to be done fairly and legally." 'fi U( (f Glut of grain Train car shortage leaves elevators full and then some Sunny, windy High Low 70 47 Today: Warmer with a high from 70 to 75 and south wind 15 to 30 miles an hour. Tonight, partly cloudy.

Saturday: Partly cloudy with a high from 80 to 85. Lows, 40s. Sunday: A chance of showers with a high in the 60s. Lows, lower to mid-40s. Monday: A chance of showers with a high expected in the 60s.

Lows, mid-40s. FULL REPORT. 2A Congressmen bounce thousands of checks WASHINGTON (AP) Members of the House bounced hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal checks written on their Capitol bank accounts and paid none of the penalties a normal citizen would face, the General Accounting Office said. The congressional watchdog agency said House members wrote 8,331 bad checks during the year ending June 30, 1990. And even after new policies were established midway through that year to cut down on the abuses, nearly a third of the 440 House members and nonvoting delegates bounced checks of more than $1,000.

All of the overdrafts were covered with no charges whatsoever, even though lawmakers took up to four weeks, to make their accounts whole, the GAO said. Bush's mom challenges property assessment JUPITER ISLAND, Fla. (AP) President Bush's mother is taking her son's campaign pledge of "no new taxes" seriously. She is challenging her latest property assessment and tax bill. Dorothy Walker Bush, 90, filed a petition this week challenging the Martin County property appraiser's $682,320 assessment of her Jupiter Island winter home.

She says that assessment is $173,000 too high. She paid $11,840 in taxes this year on the two-bedroom house with a swimming pool. Bush moves to quell a rumor of war Says he's not planning the 'Son of Desert Storm' WASHINGTON (AP) After a day of trying to downplay talk of another war with Iraq, President Bush issued new warnings to Saddam Hussein and reassurances to Americans. To Saddam, Bush said: "I've never been more determined" about ending interference with U.N. weapons inspectors.

"He should not miscalculate again. To Americans, Bush said he was not planning "Son of Desert i tf 1 Storm," but would rely on air power if neces sary. 1 "To allay the concerns of America, I would simply say we're it UJ' not talking about massive troop movements," he said. "What we are talking about, if required, is accompa C.X LJ nying helicopters with I By MATT CECIL Argus Leader Staff MARION Rapp Chevrolet used to mark the edge of this town of about 800 southwest of Sioux Falls. But in the past few days another landmark has risen to blot out the car dealership.

A huge pile of corn 400,000 bushels has accumulated on the parking lot there. The harvest is on, the Marion Grain Co. elevator is full, and there are no trains to take the grain away to market. "We could sure use a train here," says Duane Tieszen, assistant manager of Marion Grain Co. "The way it's coming in now, it's sure to continue to pile up." A train Wednesday took away 54 carloads of grain, allowing farmers to unload at the elevator Thursday.

But another train is not expected any time soon, so the pile at the edge of town will likely grow larger. The pile-up is caused by a shortage of Burlington Northern train cars to haul away the harvested grain. It's a problem throughout the eastern part of South Dakota. It's not a new problem, though the shortage has become more severe because of an earlier than expected harvest. "It's been quite a battle every year," said Orville Brunk, manager of the grain department at the Huntting Elevator in Canton.

"I guess it's not something that unusual." Burlington says the shortage is caused by speculation over Soviet demand for U.S. grain, a higher than normal harvest and the difficulty the company has getting grain cars unloaded at ports. Grain glut See 2A stocks 1 f. Standard and Poor's Dow Jones I. 387.56 500-STOCK COMPOSITE some air power.

And George Bush we've got a lot of air power there." u.N. allows Iraq The president's re- iiA marks reversed the to sell Oil. HA course of a day in WKMtBIIMIIMimM which Bush had ducked questions about his ultimatum to Saddam the day before. At one point, Bush was told that Iraq's state-run news media had accused the United States of "spreading false information to justify its resumption of aggression." He replied, "I'm not looking for a fight with anybody." Earlier in the day, the Pentagon said, "Nobody is going anywhere." Defense Department spokesman Pete Williams refused to comment on the alert status of any U.S. forces, saying the Pentagon doesn't comment on contingency plans.

He did say that U.S. Patriot missiles and the troops that fire them will be leaving bases in Europe soon for Saudi Arabia. Queried about the sudden deployment of the Patriots, Williams said there was no increased threat that sparked the move. The antimissile weapons were requested by King Fahd because the Saudis feel threatened by Iraq since Baghdad continues to try to sidestep the U.N. Security Council resolutions on destroying their ballistic missiles, Williams said.

Market gains slightly NEW YORK (AP) The stock market put together a modest gain Thursday, extending Wednesday's tentative advance. Markets Argus Leader photo by MIKE ROEMER Andrew Wykshorn, a worker at the Marion corn being unloaded at the elevator Grain pulls out a sample from a load of Thursday afternoon. Sioux Falls livestock: Cattle Hogs Sioux City commodities: Corn Group wants city to add Great Bear to park system $5.78 Soybeans First frost Chilly weather doesn't leave farmers out in the cold $2.85 Spring wheat Marketplace. 6D Tomorrow Today, Sioux Falls residents join in a nationwide recognition of prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action. Read local coverage Saturday.

pay off its debt for equipment and buildings, said Mark Swanson, a park board member involved in the discussions. A group of parents and skiing enthusiasts, known as Ski Sioux Falls sees the city as the logical owner of Great Bear. The city already owns the 81 acres the ski slope is on, and the area has functioned as somewhat of a public facility, said group member Steven Sanford, a lawyer. "It's open to the public, it's the only ski area in 150 miles," he said. "There is a large group of parents who are interested in seeing the facility continue as another asset of the community." Great Bear See 1 A By MARJORIE LIPSEY Special to the Argus Leader Thursday's early frost didn't threaten South Dakota farmers because most crops are fully mature by now.

But some farmers say they wish they had a little more time before cold weather sets in. "We knew it was coming when it got clear and still last night," said Ron Krogstad, who farms north of Sioux Falls. "I wish it would have waited. I'd like to have seen a couple more weeks of warm weather." Temperatures dipped to 27 degrees in Sioux Falls early Thursday morning, bringing the first frost of the season about two weeks early this year. The first frost usually arrives about the beginning of October, said Richard Ryrholm, meteorologist for the National Weather Service.

Temperatures were expected to dip into the low 30s again Thursday night but are expected rise into By USA GAUMNITZ Argus Leader Staff A group of ski enthusiasts wants the city to buy Great Bear Ski Valley in northeast Sioux Falls and add it to the park system. The ski resort's principal owner, Lowell Hansen, wants to get out of the business after more than a decade, his lawyer, Bill Taylor, said. Hansen, a former lieutenant governor, is president of the Jack Rabbit Lines transportation company. He has run Great Bear more as a service to the public than as a profit-making venture, and he is ready to hand over the responsibility to someone else, Taylor said. Great Bear has been able to cover its operating costs but not the 70s today.

Saturday will be sunny with a high in the 80s. It will be in the 40s and 50s Sunday and Monday with a chance of showers. At least 70 percent of the state's corn crop was rated mature at the end of last week, the South Dakota Agricultural Statistics Department said. And 99 percent of the corn crop was advanced enough to be safe from a frost, said Steve Noyes deputy state's statistician for the department Noyes said those were higher percentages than normal for this time of year. Usually, only 44 percent of the corn crop is considered mature by now, he said.

A good growing season with plenty of moisture allowed farmers to plant early and crops to develop more quickly than usual, he said. inside 40 pages Business 7D Opinion 10A Classified 6-12C Life Sec. ComicsTV 4B Sioux Emp. Sec. Ann Landers 6B Sports Sec.

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