The Californian from Salinas, California • 21

SALINAS AUTO AIR STEREO Thursday, July 6, 2006 INSIDE IHEALTH CARE2D Senior Olympics rn mm A ulf ONLY (does not include refrig) events unusual 250 Abbott st. saunas ASSISTANT CITY EDITOR: Ria Megnin PHONE: 754-4271 FAX: 754-4293 E-MAIL: Rmegninthecalifornian.com www.thecalifornian.com CLOSE-UP MARINA Ord building heavenly home Astronomy group MIRA expands its operation MARINA City receives development honors The city of Marina has received two awards for economic development partnership from the Monterey County Business Council The business council honored the city's Strategic Development Center and the University Village development at its third annual Economic Development Forum, held June 22 in Monterey. Awards were presented to showcase public and private partnerships that have resulted in economic benefit throughout county communities. The Strategic Development Center is a separate facility that oversees various housing, downtown vitalization and airport development projects. The University Village project includes residential and commercial development on 429 acres on the former Fort Ord.

Developers plan to provide 1,237 housing units, 30 percent of which will be affordable, to be completed in eight years. Officials say the project will create more than 880 construction jobs, about 4,700 permanent jobs and will contribute more than $6 million in school construction fees. MARINA Rotarians give chess set to center The Marina Rotarians dedicated a large outdoor, patio size chess set on June 21 to the Teen Center of the city of Marina at 304 Hillcrest Ave. The club installed and donated the game board, measuring 12-feet square. They also donated the 3-foot tall chess pieces.

All teens are invited to stop by and play an athletic game of chess. miftnrt nun i iii ii JHMlHMIIIHIHMUMHIIllll PROVIDED PHOTO William Bruce Weaver, observatory director for the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy, looks over equipment at the group's new facility on the former Ford Ord. By SILAS SPAETH For The Salinas Californian MARINA Since building its observatory atop Chews Ridge in the 1980s, the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy (MIRA) has constantly striven to expand and improve its facilities. Incorporated ais a nonprofit in the early 1970s, MIRA is the only independent professional observatory founded in the 20th century. It operates without university or government support The funding for the research center comes largely from grants, a modest endowment and financial support from the Friends of MIRA.

Whether it's determining the age of the universe, investigating star and planet formation or stellar atmospheres, the astronomers at MIRA are involved in a number of projects at any given time. In some cases, the work will take decades to complete. For instance, observers are helping classify some 125,000 stars and monitoring variations in Einstein's Cross and other gravitational lenses. The group's latest project will stay closer to home. MIRA has planned a major makeover to one of the four buildings it received when Fort Ord closed.

Located on the northern boundary of California T0ATJEND The next IRA-sponsored public lecture happens at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Lecture Forum No. 102, Monterey Peninsula Community College. Admission is free. Dr.

Stephen Thorsett, Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at Lick Observatory, will speak about "Great Balls of Fire Gamma Ray Bursters: The Most Powerful Explosions in the Universe." ONLINE State University, Monterey Bay, the institute's former Stinger Missile training building will become a multilevel astronomy center. When completed, the renovated three-story structure at 200 8th Marina will contain offices, classrooms, a library and a dedicated meeting room for the Friends of MIRA. The other buildings on the site are currently being used to house a 14-inch telescope for student and public use as well as a workshop and storage area. The elements of a top-notch astronomy facility include a great site and telescope, good instrumentation, a library and a place for staff, said Observatory Director William Bruce Weaver, Ph.D. With most of those pieces in place, MIRA now just needs space to house its staff and create a proper educational ambiance.

Weaver also hopes for a single site for the organization's library, currently spread over various locations, and a building with a direct microwave link to MIRA's 36-inch mirror telescope at Chews Ridge. In addition to donations to help pay for the building renovation, Weaver said MIRA See MIRA, Page 2D and Learn more about MIRA the universe at www.mira.org. PEOPLE MARINA Magazine to showcase CSUMB designer's skill By ADAM JOSEPH For The Salinas Californian Brittany Fischer, 22, of Marina, hopes to push the limit of magazine publishing with her latest project Fischer, a publication design major at California State I Ocj jmi NORTH SALINAS af EAST SAUNAS SOUTH Nioft SALINAS PeniitMil South CountyA Chuatar-v ftKfflc Ocean -n (-4 University, Monterey Bay, hopes to weave the university's emphasis of mul-ticulturalism and worldLiness into her senior capstone project She's creating an alternative magazine with a mission to "let the magazine's design influence its content" Its working title is "Atypical." CALENDAR TODAY MONTEREY COUNTY FREE LIBRARIES 2006 SUMMER READING PROGRAM, events: Dana Smith and His Dog Lacey: 10:30 a.m. Buena Vista Library, 1 p.m. Seaside Library, 3:36 p.m.

Carmel Valley; Pigging Around Tales and Craft: 10 a.m. Aromas Library; Samba, Samba: Drums and Music: 1 p.m. Prunedale Library; Juan Sanchez: Bilingual Songs: 3:30 p.m. Pajaro Library; Magic of Norman Ng: 11 a.m. Greenfield Library, 1:30 p.m.

Soledad Library, 4 p.m. Gonzales Library. 796-6022. 77-8 DAVE MANNING, ALASKA'S PIANO MAN, 6 to 9 p.m. Cafe Aromas, 304 Carpenteria Road, Aromas.

(775) 530-8722. SAT. 78 FAMILY STORY TELLING EVENT, 11 am San Lorenzo County Park, 1160 Broadway, King City and 2 p.m. Soledad Library, 401 Gabilan Drive, Soledad. Bob Kanegis and Liz Mangual with stories in English and Spanish.

Free, entrance fee waived at park, all ages welcome. 796-6022. NEIGHBORHOODS CALENDAR appears Monday through Thursday in Communily. We welcome news and events regarding Salinas-area neighborhoods and towns, including neighborhood groups, new businesses, community services and more. Send in a timely manner in care of NEIGHBOR- HOODS.

See "Share your news" on this page for details. Community, presenting a close-up layer of local news, appears Monday through Thursday and also Saturday as the last section in The Salinas Californian. In appreciation of the varied neighborhoods and communities that make up the Salinas area, the Close-up and People articles on this page are from daily rotation of geographic areas. The weekly schedule: Monday: South Monterey County, including Chualar, Gonzales, Soledad, Greenfield and King City. Inside: Public Safety.

Tuesday: North Salinas and north Monterey County, including Moss Landing, Castroville, Prunedale and Aromas. Inside: Schools. Wednesday: East Salinas, covering east Salinas neighborhoods. Inside: Our Kids. Thursday: Marina.

Inside: Health Care. Friday: Automotive classified section. Saturday: South Salinas, including south Salinas neighborhoods, plus Toro Park, Spreckels, Las Palmas Ranch, Corral de Tierra and San Benancio Canyon. Inside: Religion. Share your news To contribute news items, photos and THE SALINAS CALIFORNIAN "I want the magazine to show my skill Brittany Fischer as a designer," Fischer said, "but I also want to create a new look and feel that is exciting and refreshing.

(The magazine) will be an alternative to what's already out there." 'Atypical" will feature several unique sections, including one she described as a "look inside the world of student pet owners." She's worked as a professional dog trainer at Pet Smart for three years. But Fischer is adamant about the magazine appealing to the community outside of the campus. She hopes additional sections such as world politics, fashion and music will draw diverse readers beyond the student demographic. With many hours spent on the project already, Fischer said the biggest challenge will be raising the estimated $5,000 needed to publish the magazine. story suggestions for Community and its daily inside-page topics, send them in care of COMMUNITY: by fax to 754-4293; by e-mail to newsroom salinas.gannett.com; or in person or by mail to The Salinas Californian, P.O.

Box 81091 (123 W. Alisal St.) Salinas, CA 93912. Information: 754-4260. Online: For profiles of Salinas-area communities, school districts and schools, click on "communities" at www.thecalifornian.com. Come See the Differences.

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