Fort Worth Star-Telegram from Fort Worth, Texas • 19

1 4Ar0kt 0 WEDNESDAY EVENING JANUARY 29 1986 '01986 FORT WORTH FAR-TELEGRAM LIM EditorialsLetters 1 I WEDNESDAY EVENING JANUARY 29 1986 T1986 FORT WORTH FAR-TELEGRAM OA' MMMIMME111IMIMIW 0 0 0 rs i :1 1144" olrir 1: tio: :::::::::441::" o' By JEFF GUINN and LAWRENCE YOUNG StarTelegram Writers Black business leaders in Fort Worth are seeking an informal minority quota system for contract work associated with a proposed city bond package Representatives of the Black Chamber of Commerce will meet Saturday with Mayor Bob Bolen to discuss the matter One former chamber leader said the meeting might determine some blacks' position on the bond package Although state laws don't allow quota systems as such said City Council member Jim Bagsby an informal system might be established Bagsby said Tuesday that he had been asked by Earl Burrell president of the Black Chamber of Corn merce and Wiley Sturns former chamber president to arrange a meeting with Bolen Mayor Pro Tern Bert Williams and himself "What they want us to do is set a percent of subcontracted work for minorities" Bagsby said "We all know that state laws prevent anything other than the lowest bids being accepted but you can reach a minority (percentage) goal by requiring subcontractors to come in and accept materials work some contributions from minorities" Bagsby said But council member Russell Lancaster said he opposes "anything that smacks of a quota system" Sturns said Monday that the black business community would have to "study" the bond programs carefully if the meeting with Bolen is not satisfactory It is possible that black business leaders could call for a bloc vote against the bond package Sturns said Scheduled for public vote on March 22 the $1649 million bond package includes $115 million for street repairs $1575 million for park improvements $10 million for library upgrading and site acquisitions $475 million for fire safety programs $25 million for city facili- ties $12 million to upgrade the Will Rogers Complex and $49 million for beautification of the city's North Side Heritage ail area as a Texas Sesquicentennial project Bolen said he had agreed to meet with the group but that he believed the meeting "will be informational Please see Set portion on Page 23 Louis Zapata (i41 1 Airport voting riles Zapata 0 By LAWRENCE YOUNG geles for t4115 ej 000-a-year post il Star-Telegram Writer prompted his riticism City Councilman Louis Zapata "That just kiighlighted my con-thinks it should be mandatory that cerns" Zapata said "The putdown at least one Fort Worth vote be cast of Sturns Cattle as a result of the with the majority to make Dallas votes cast by pne city Fort Worth Airport Board decisions "That makes me realize we are at official the mercy orDallas" Fort Worth city ordinances and Zapata ardued Tuesday that the the DallasFort Worth Airport char- city should take steps to correct an ter will be reviewed to see if that imbalance of power at the airport or requirement is specified "pull out and let it become a Dallas The request for such a review airport" came Tuesday from Zapata who ac- Zapata speaking during a City Council meeting vented his frustra- knowledged that the recent deci- tion at the influence of Dallas off i- sion to pass over acting Airport Di- dais in selecting Oris Dunham Jr as rector Vernell Sturns in favor of an airport administrator from Los An- Please see Zapata on Page 23 Fire guts old school on Side joe 1'''t4 NI If '4 1 ''er'Ct'' i Vtkir4i i 7414 d' 7 'i i i ::1 i 4 4 iesi: '1' k1 '1440it4i 1 ib-r 4v -1 PN I 1 1 0' 44 AJcl 7 'ii 4 ii 74: ri 15 7::: A :) '4 1 -14 1:: 1 rt 1 -vI'4'ft-s''''''' At I '-'1 7 4i 1 '1 I -A1 477'3) 'S: I e- it 1 54T 4 1-- sl-: 114 -k -4et 3 'i ''''''''-i- 1k47: I t- (114: 1 '14 1 1 cl li 1 i 4 'i i 0000 -4 1 i 4 tj''''' if-- Si "J'''''' k1 i' 3x 17 i --t: :4 1 tt 't4' 1-'t l' it5: 4: 1 4-tr' it 4 'i ::7 1 Ai -r I 'cl'': 1 I 41''s Xi -tii'-1: 4 '2 I -1 xni -'i 4 4 i 4 i By TOM ANDERSON Star-Telegram Writer A three-alarm fire possibly started by transients today destroyed an abandoned school once attended by many of Fort Worth's civic leaders The fire which shot flames 300 feet into the air gutted the wooden interior of the two-story Merida Ellis Elementary School in the 1500 block of North Main Street The structure was built in 1905 before the city of North Fort Worth was annexed into Fort Worth Residents reported the fire at 5:07 am and eight minutes later it had gone to three alarms Flames from the fire were visible from North Richland Hills to Benbrook It was brought under control at 6 am Fire officials said the blaze apparently was started by transients trying to keep warm in nippy 43- degree weather City Councilman Louis Zapata said North Side residents were trying to preserve the building as a historic structure but developers bought it four years ago from the Fort Worth Independent School District They had plannrd to make offices and a restaurant out of the structure but fire officials said developers had been unable to complete financing "This is where people on the North Side years ago got educated" Zapata said as he watched the flames The councilman lives about three blocks away He said developers had been unsuccessful at finding any takers who wanted to invest in it Charlie McCafferty the Fort Worth Fire Department's public in-Please see Fire on Page 23 ----surrerermil Fort Worth firefighters battle a three-alarm blaze today at the abandoned Merida Ellis Elementary School in the 1500 block of North Main Street High schools' high spirits bring on basketball brawls By ORVILLE HANCOCK StarTelegram Writer A basketball brawl between Mineral Wells and Azle which graduated from fouls to fighting may eventually reach the courts Two separate bench-clearing fights broke out at the high school game Tuesday night in Mineral Wells Mineral Wells won the game 72-66 It was generally conceded that Azle won the fight i ii: i IMO) 6aell-too- ilit ot i 'A" 11)1 50 )7 q3i- 't AA 1 A 'f': 1 $0dt -sty ri- t'''' 0' ''-f' 1: i :1::: L-11c' 1 1 i 1 1 I '''''IlH 1 'l' 1)i I 4 I i 1 Lif 4: 011 c'i 4 i 7' 1 1 I i' H- :4:0:::::: ir -f: it '''e (' only one other fight in the four years I've coached here" Miller said "It was with Diamond Hill Not a word was said about that I think the Mineral Wells thing is being blown out of proportion" The first of the two fights occurred with 3 minutes and 39 seconds left in the game Witnesses said an Azle player pushed one from Mineral Wells and the push was returned It lasted about a minute but it took five minutes to get the game going again When the game ended the biggest brawl broke out It lasted longer than the first and reportedly there were major fights and little pushing matches around them The Azle coach called police for an escort out of town said Mineral Wells Police Chief Don Fairrel He removed his team from the floor and hurried from the gymnasium Mineral Wells Principal Scott said there has been bad blood between the two schools for many years "I think they came over here with their feelings on their shoulders" Scott sa id "The coaches complained Please see High on Page 22 Today the father declined to comment until an investigation is complete Charlie Scott principal at Mineral Wells High School said films of the game would be reviewed today to see if the matter can be made clearer Ron Miller Azle basketball coach said he understood that Joe Williams believed Trevino had hit his son who had fouled out during the game "But it is my understanding that Trevino was helping to try to quell the outbreak of punches and grabbed Williams and took him to the floor" Miller said "I'm told that Trevino told Williams that he suggested there be no more fighting and that Williams agreed" Officials at both the Mineral Wells Police Department and Palo Pinto County Sheriff's Department said today that no charges have been filed against anyone Miller said he didn't look on the incident as anything more than flaring tempers that got out of hand Some people are overreacting he said "My teams have been involved in Three Mineral Wells players were considered injured One had a bruised cheek and one a bruised wrist Injuries to the third Richard Williams were not known but officials said he seemed to be most seriously hurt Azle reported one player whose ear was smarting Williams' father said after the game that he would sue an Azle assistant coach Joe Williams left the stands to rescue his son from the grasp of Bert Trevino the Azle assistant coach Richard Williams was taken to the emergency room of a hospital and family members said he was hurt Road work tioaa worK Star-TelegramRODGER MALLISON highwayThe work is on a Highway 380 bypass to provide a quick east-west thoroughfare for Construction worker Maria Davis stops traffic on Highway 287 in Decatur as heavy road construction machinery crosses the Vaccine available to protect dogs against new disease By ORVILLE IIANCOCK Star-Telegram Writer tivating it with chemicals "We then used the 'killed' virus to provide a vaccine" he said "Veterinarians all over the country are becoming good at diagnosing the virus and we hope wecan control it with vaccine A booster shot should be given each year after the first innoculation" Savell spent a year at the Stnall Animal Department of Texas AMU at College Station in 1973-74 before becoming associated with the Iowa laboratory "Dogs should be vaccinated against it once a year My dog that I lost to the disease had every shot you can think of except for corona virus and it caught the disease" Although few cases of the disease have been reported here she said puppies need the vaccine The vaccine was developed six months ago said Dr Charles Savell of Fort Dodge Laroratories in Fort Dodge Iowa He said corona virus was discovered in Germany in 1971 during an outbreak among German shepherds "A few years later it showed up in the United States" Save said "We isolated the virus at our laboratories and developed a vaccine" "The disease is highly contagious and it is spread through transportation of dogs" he said "In many instances the disease is spread by a large number of dogs at the same place such as a dog show" Save 11 said the vaccine was developed by growing the corona virus and then mac The disease affects dogs of all ages but is more prevalent in puppies she said Symptoms are vomiting severe dehydration diarrhea and listlessness It has the same symptoms as parvo virus except dogs with parvo run a high fever and those with corona don't Corona virus affects the dog's small intestine Prater said both can be fatal to dogs and are contagious but treatable "Veterinarians in Fort Worth have the vaccine against corona virus" Prater said Fort Worth veterinarians are advising dog owners to get their pets vaccinated for a new disease corona virus Stony Prater executive director of the I lumane Society of North Texas said veterinarians in Fort Worth now have the vaccine which was developed in July "I'm having shots given to all my dogs since I lost one which had corona virus" she said 1 11 i.