The Daily Sentinel from Grand Junction, Colorado • 9

V- A THE 3 DAILY Sentinel, SECTION TELEVISION CROSSWORD OBITUARIES WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1996 'V 4 1 i- Ripleys New Aquarium Believe It Or Not Staffer price for parental t' i i ix't vL -i is proposed BySHARYNWIZDA The Daily Sentinel have told her its rare for a first-time offender as most parental kidnappers are to serve any time behind bars. By comparison, a conventional kidnapping conviction In Colorado carries a prison sentence range of four years to life. The problem is that (Hardy) is in a lot more trouble for stealing his current wifes car than he is for stealing my child, Pearson said. Parental-abduction laws vary widely from state to state. Spurred by the abduction of a 3-year-old Grand Junction girl, 3rd' District Congressman Scott Mclnnis said he will introduce legislation to crack down on parental kidnapping.

The Grand Junction Republican has dubbed the plan Epiilies Bill, after Emilie Pearson Hardy, who Is missing after she was abducted in January 1995 by her father, ReJean Hardy, authorities say. Staffers are still researching the specifics, but Mclnnis plan would make parental kidnapping a federal crime and increase the possible prison sentence. I think parental kidnapping has to be a national priority, said Mclnnis, who decided to introduce legislation after meeting with Emllie's Joanne. Im going to do what I can to enhance the penalties. Parental abduction in Colorado now is punishable by a prison sen-, tence of three to five years.

But Joanne Pearson said prosecutors MICKEY KRAKOWSKIThe Daily Sentinel Pearson said she believes a federal law with stiffer penalties would deter parents who are considering abducting their children, "If we have Joe Blow who decided he wasnt happy with visitation terms, hes not going to risk a 10-year mandatory prison term to get his kids, she said. Pearson is still searching for Emilie, now 4. I know Ill find her, Pearson vows. "I know I wilL Reynolds Polymer workers Lance DeCrow, left, Eloy Rayan and Vernon Beleu polish the curved comer of a 5-inch-thick aquarium wall bound for Ripley's Aquarium in Myrtle Beach, S.C. When completed, the aquarium will be 12 feet wide and it takes eight people about a week to polish.

i 1 f' 1 District 51 cracks down on students with dangerous weapons By 1AURENAMAYNE DAVIS Pie Daily Sentinel Possessing a dangerous weapon will mean' mandatory expulsion for School District 51 students this year. And students who are alleged to commit violent crimes on or off campus can be expelled. The school board gave prelimi Any object device, instrument material or substance, whether animate or inanimate, used or intended to be used to inflict death or serious bodily injury. The school board or Straface also may expel students between the ages of 14 and 17 if they are alleged to have committed a crime on or off Most significant were the time lines given for student suspension and expulsion, and clarification of what are dangerous weapons, Straface said. Many of these weve already had in practice were just aligning our policies, he said.

Gone is the distinction for a "concealed weapon. In Its place is a ban on weapons, including; Firearms, whether loaded or unloaded, or facsimiles. Any pellet or BB gun, operational or not A fixed-blade knife with a blade longer than 3 inches, or a spring-loaded knife or pocket knife with a blade longer than 3M inches. nary approval Tuesday to new guidelines on dangerous weapons, and crimes of violence, among other topics, as mandated by the Legislature or recommended by state education agencies. Superintendent George Straface said most of the policy changes were typical first-of-year adjustments.

campus that would be a crime of violence if committed by an adult can be decided at the conclusion of court proceedings, but it is the option of the school district to expel before a verdict Students also can be suspended, for more minor infractions, for no longer than 25 days per offense. i Urban Area Growth Plan New garbage system bags the old method of disposing of leaves may get GJ council OK ByPAULLLOYD-DAVIES The Daily Sentinel By PAUL liOYD-DAVICS the Daily Sentinel Mesa County to pay $132,000 for revision of land-use code With Grand Junctions month-old automated garbage pickup system, residents no longer can stack bags of leaves next to their garbage cans. The city collects 3,500 to 4,000 cubic yards of leaves each fall, roughly enough to fill the Grand Junction High School gymnasium, said public works Superintendent Doug Cline. People used to just bag their leaves and stack the bags next to their garbage cans or rake their leaves into the gutter. Because the automated garbage-collection system has eliminated the workers who By BEN GAGNON The Daily Sentinel Residents no longer can stack bags of leaves next to their garbage cans.

used to throw those bags into the garbage truck, residents must put the bagged leaves in their garbage cans. City crews still changed as a result of the code revision, but only by request of property owners. Other goals of the project include rewriting ineffective sections of the code and making it easier for people to understand. Some bureaucratic processes connected to development will be streamlined. "Our process needs major changes, said Kathleen Selim an, planning director.

"We ned to be really critical of the process we have and come up with alternatives. The perception is it takes too long. The rode revision will also Include explanations of county requirements, which are often questioned by developers. The revision ill be the subject of extensive public hearings, with the entire process expected to take near- ly a year. Clarion Associates of Denver has been hired to rewrite the code, a job that requires both legal and planning expertise.

The Mesa County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to pay a consulting firm $132,000 to revise the countys land-use code. The revision will include new incentives that would make it easier for property owners to develop their land in ways favored by the recently adopted county land-use plan. The rewritten code includes zoning district classifications that do not currently exist The new incentives may encourage property owners to request a rezone into the new categories. The updated code will reflect the land use plans goal of encouraging development around existing rural and urban communities and seeking to preserve "buffer areas between communities to prevent urban sprawl Commissioners emphasized that current zoning would not be The Grand Junction City Council tonight is expected to adopt the Urban Area Growth Plan developed over the last two years to guide growth decisions in the city and adjacent urban areas for the next 15 years. The plan covers the area roughly between 19 and 33 roads and A to I roads.

It includes Grand Junction, the Redlands, Clifton, southern Appleton, Fruitvale and Orchard Mesa. The city planning commission adopted the plan Aug. 8. The council is expected to allow brief public comments at the meeting at 7 tonight in the City-County Auditorium, 540 Rood before a vote on the plan. Councilwoman Janet Terry said she was reluctant to adopt the plan without public comment before the council The public had numerous opportunities to comment during the two years the plan was being developed, said Councilman Ron Maupin, who supported adopting the plan as it came from the commission.

Because the growth plan contains only general guidelines, once the plan is adopted the city needs to rewrite its development rode, which contains the specific regulations for zoning decisions. Already, the consultants who helped the city planning commission with the growth plan are working on the rewrite. The process is expected to take nine months, acting community development director Kathy Portner said, and will include approval by the planning commission and the City CounciL For areas outside the city limits will suck leaves out of the gutter, Cline said, but that process usually doesn't start until the last week of October. The city has throe machines, he said, but starts with one and adds machines to the schedule as the volume ofleaves increases. The timing is driven by when the first killing frost occurs, which leads to a shower of leaves.

With leaves already turning color, Cline said, collection from the gutters might start in mid-October. "We're ahead of where we usually are, he said. Residents can keep abreast of collection plans by calling the public works department information line. 242-INFO. The heaviest demand for leaf pickup usually is mid-November to early December, Cline said.

The program ends with the first serious snow, usually in mid December, he said. Because people who bag their leaves ill have to put them in them trash containers, Cline said, those people will have to plan them leaf collecting so that they can get them bags into their trash containers. Bags left beside trash containers won't be collected, he said. Only leaves will be sucked from the gutters, so people shouldnt put any other yard debris in the leaves they rake into the gutter, Cline said. The leaves also should be raked into the street about a foot from the curb for efficient operations.

he said. urban growth area in and immediately adjacerft to the city, where public works already exist to support some of that development In general terms, the plan addresses land use, proposed zoning, development standards, housing densities and a range of other development issues. but inside the urban growth area identified by the two governments, the city and the county must adopt agreements for cooperative growth management consistent with the plan. One of the plan's hallmarks is a shift toward restricting residential developments to the 68.000-acre.