Kenosha News from Kenosha, Wisconsin • 33

News Kenosha News aa Monday December 21 1987 Wrong decimal point BRISTOL A computer error to the preparation of tax bills for Lake George proper ty owners wilt be corrected today providing a little financial relief just prior to Christmas Bristol Town Clerk Gloria: Bailey said-ae tax bias printed by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission listed the take George Rehabilitation Dis-' trie tax rate as 5 per $1603 of assessed property value1 in Stead of 53 Cents per $f5C3 Bailey said the error in the decimal point meant the owner of a home assessed at $50683 to Lake George bad a tax rehabilitation district tax levy of $250 when it should be only $25 Asbestos threat to cost billions Krnosh Newt photo by Joe Vaa Zaadt I pensive Items and trinkets bat they give the Hlublcek house at 274th Avenue and 96th Place in Center Lake Manor a festive air for the season Each year she said scores of their friends from senior citizen centers in Bristol and Antioch come to view the display Her biggest problem is deciding when to take the display down Sometimes she says it stays up almost until Easter When Anna Hlublcek 80 above got married her husband Frank bought her a Nativity scene Every year since then couple has added pieces Today after 59 years the Hlublcek Christmas display includes more than 300 pieces and has expanded to include an entire village as well as the manger Anna says most of her collection consists of inex- Display grow New law to be tougher on drunken drivers She said the mistake was discovered Saturday but tax bills had already been sent to the 390 property owners in the lake George Districts Tm just glad we caught the mistake when we Bailey said this morning peciaily since none of property owners paid their tax 'v Bailey said SEWRPC which made the error is scheduled jo print the rected tax biOs today She Said property owners to the George Lake Rehabilitation 5 'District shook! disregard the bills sent out to them and corrected bills should beH available this week for any- one wishing to pay their taxes prior to toe end of the year total ban for another 10 years Meanwhile a bill sponsored by State Sen Charles Chvala and being considered by the Legislature in Madison would authorize DIHLR to survey all state-owned and state-leased buildings to determine if they contain friable asbestos Jack Borders assistant director of the DIHLR Bureau of Inspection said the survey would be a first step aimed ultimately at removing all asbestos from state buildings Following that he said the Legislature would most likely pass a law calling on DIHLR to inspect municipal buildings and then order the asbestos to be removed from them Ultimately he said the hope of experts like him is to see all asbestos removed from all buildings public and private will all take he said "There are 6750 state-owned or state-leased buildings Wisconsin and right now we even know how many other public buildings there are in the state" Borders said enough money in whole world to get rid of all the asbestos at once so we have have to do it in stages" In Illinois a state Asbestos Task Force has estimated the cost of removing asbestos from its 20000 public buildings at several hundred million dollars Hall said when ail the asbestos is finally removed from all public buildings and is no longer used in products ranging from brake linings to potholders the government may have to undertake another gargantuan effort to remove fiberglass insulating materials Hall said as the manufacturers mill fiberglass finer and finer the fibers are getting down to the same size and have properties similar to asbestos fibers Only time will tell he said whether fiberglass will also cause the same kind of lung-related illnesses and diseases as asbestos By JOE VAN ZANDT Staff Writer The amount of asbestos found in schools throughout the state is insignificant compared to that believed to be lurking in public buldings ranging from courthouses and city halls to movie theaters restaurants and hospitals according to experts at the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Wisconsin Department of Industry Labor and Human Relations Finding and getting rid of potentially lethal asbestos in thousands of public places will say the experts require several decades and the expenditure of billions of dollars Tom Hall asbestos removal specialist with the US Environmental Protection Agency said the government has been working since 1979 to remove friable asbestos from school buildings Friable or aging and crumbling asbestos releases microscopic particles into the air He said because of foot-dragging by Congress it was just this year that the EPA finally obtained the authority to issue regulations requiring schools to develop asbestos management and abatement plans looked at the danger in schools Hall said young people must attend by law and because there is a 15-year to 40-year latency period before susceptible persons develop asbestosis of lung cancer from exposure to asbestos So we felt that protecting young people should be our first Hall said a bill currently before Congress would establish the same kind of regulations for all public buildings as are now facing school districts across the nation The Stafford Bill if it becomes law would apply to all buildings that house large numbers of persons The only exception would be private houses or apartment buildings of nine units or lefcs Ironically Hall said many products containing asbestos are still being manufacturered and congress might not establish a trator James Van Sistine said If the blood alcohol level is lower in the second breath sample than the first the police will use that figure in determining whether the driver is really drunk The beauty of the changes to the Intoxilyzer 5000 said Twin Lakes Acting Police Chief FrankvZemball is that it will not involve any complicated or time-consuming procedures by the testing officer and the officer will be able to get back out on patrol almost as quickly as previously To make sure all officers who administer the Intoxilyzer test are fully informed about the new procedures DOT sent detailedinstructions in November to every police department Unfortunately Van Sistine said the double testing will probably not deter some individuals from drinking and driving on New Eve or nights Such persons either refuse to admit that a few drinks can impair their reactions behind the wheel or they figure the odds of being stopped are slim so they take a chance Van Sistine suggested persons planning to party on New Eve select a designated driver who agrees not to imbibe Otherwise he said you will be playing Russian roulette with your licenses with your life and the lives of othqrs driver license suspension or revocation The new law is expected to reduce the backlog of court cases said Hancock because it eliminates the incentive to delay the judicial process The state will require two instead of one breath samples of suspected drunk drivers to be taken by police for analysis on the Intoxilyzer 5000 That instrument is used by every police department in the state to determine a blood alcohol level Thanks to new software installed in police departments in recent months by the DOT arresting officers need only enter data once into the Intox-ilyzer and take two breath samples The machine will conduct the alcohol test on both breath samples and will also do a self check to make sure it is functioning properly It produces a computer readout and verifies that all systems were working Armed with this information a police officer who testifies in court that a driver was drunk will be far less likely to have the data questioned successfully by an attorney That means fewer dismissed cases and fewer drunk drivers allowed to go back onto the roads The change in the Intoxilyzer test procedures will also protect the driver DOT Adminis By JOE VAN ZANDT Staff Writer New Eve partygoers may want to quit drinking earlier than usual because of new enforcement measures to be followed by police departments throughout the state starting at 12:01 am Jan 1 The new administrative suspension law will result in an almost immediate license suspension for anyone who registers 01 per cent or higher bloodalcohol concentration on the Intoxilizer Jerry Hancock assistant legal counsel for the state Department of Transportation said the law is based on research that found people were more afraid of losing their license than they were of high fines or jail terms Under the new law the arresting officer will confiscate the driver's license when an Intoxilizer test shows a bloodalcohol concentration of 01 percent or more said Hancock The driver is issued a receipt which serves as a driving license for 30 days then it expires At that point the license is suspended automatically for six months When the driver goes to court on the operating while intoxicated charge the judge will credit the time served under the administrative suspension against the mandatory Surrogate mother ads draw response MADISON Wis (AP) A man who arranged a contract for the surrogate mother In the nationally famous Baby case 1 reports his advertisements have attracted business inquiries in Wisconsin Noel Keane of Dearborn Mich said the Midwest Is a good place to find women who are willing to bear children for infertile couples Wisconsin has no law forbidding surrogacy contracts Legislators say they hope to enact rules to restrict the sort of business solicited by advertisements think Wisconsin is very similar to Michigan and Ohio in that there are more apt to be surrogates Keane said a slower-moving more family-oriented Keane who advertises na-' tionally ran advertisements in September and October in Madison daily newspapers and University of Wisconsin campus publications The advertisements which have angered many critic of surrogacy have led to two surrogate-mother contracts he said Friday in an interview Area Items Meetings set in county Meetings are scheduled at respective school town or village hall PARIS The Paris Town Board will meet at 7:30 tonight SOMERS The Somers Town Board will meet at 7:30 tonight BRISTOL Regular meeting of the Bristol Planning Board will be at 7 tonight TWIN LAKES The Twin Lakes Village Planning Board will meet at 6:30 tonight SALEM The Salem Grade School Board will meet at 7:30 tonight PLEASANT PRAIRIE The Pleasant Prairie Town Board will meet at 7:30 tonight Immunization clinic scheduled An immunization clinic will be conducted by the Kenosha County Health Department from 1 to 3 pm Tuesday at St John Church in Twin Lakes Children two months to 18 years will be given innoculations for diphtheria pertussis (whooping cough) tetanus measles mumps and polio Playing Santa is JANESVILLE Wis (AP) -Sherwood Helwig was uneasy when he began his first day as a department store Santa Claus but friendship quickly dissolved his discomfort just know what to expect" he said But as he strolled through a shopping mall in his red costume he said "everyone I passed smiled and said hello to Santa Helwig is now a member of the legion of immitation Santas who share secrets kisses and whispers with the youngsters sitting on their laps Within yards of Helwig at the Janesville Mall children call name and beg their parents to stop so they could talk with him Mandy Johnson 5 climbed on his lap to whisper she wanted a doll for Christmas see what I can do" Helwig replied as he gently patted her hands Before leaving his lap she turned and gave Santa a hug "Playing Santa has been one of the best experiences of my Helwig said "Everyone should have an opportunity to see the smiles this suit brings" Another Santa John Neeson operations assistant at a department store has played the role for or four years After awhile hard to keep "Playing Santa Is one of my biggest Neeson said watching the eyes light up when they see Santa has made it all worthwhile" While some of the younger children have little to say to Santa others ramble he said Many want to give Santa a New roller coaster to be tallest Fastest Construction Is under way on the Shock Wave a new steel roller coaster at Six Flags Great America in Gurnee 111 The ride billed as the tallest and fastest steel roller coaster will be a new attraction when the theme park opens its 13th season In April 1988 Bugs Bunny and workers review progress on the ride which will be In the Orleans Place area i.