The Modesto Bee from Modesto, California • 32

C-1 Thursday Sept 21 1978 The Modesto Bee MID to sell drinking water to city? have a have a commodity here we can sell and not free MID irrigation engineer Richard Ericsen told his board of directors Tuesday might as well let this all Ericsen let the remark drop during a spirited discussion of storm drainage for the proposed Orchard Neighborhood northeast of Briggsmore Avenue and Oakdale Road The question of the moment revolved around whether By Thorne Gray Bee staff writer Modesto residents someday may get their drinking water from Don Pedro Reservoir on the Tuolumne River for a price Modesto Irrigation District leaders apparently have their eyes on becoming water suppliers possibly at some kind of a for the non-profit agency Modesto continues study of supply quality be supplied at the MID's cost of delivering and treating it no more been no talk of charging a large fee for the water "he S3id Ericsen on the other hand put it this way: certainly would want compensation Did Ericsen mean the MID would want to make a profit I he said Domestic water is different from agricultural water and the price would have to be established he said Being a public agency expect a fair rate of return whether we treated the water or supplied raw water just as we do on the electrical system The electrical system however always has subsidized the irrigation system in the MID Farmers pay $2 per acre for water each year nowhere near enough to pay for irrigation department let alone the dam and its canals They are financed from power revenues levied against city dwellers farmers and industrial users alike By contrast city residents pay about $42 per year for water now including its distribution The assumption is that Don Pedro water either would be drained into the underground water table to recharge it or treated and distributed somehow through the city system Either approach would be expensive and the cost all agree would be passed on to the domestic water user Hosegood said The question is what would the MID charge for raw water at the canal? As little as $2 per acre which would translate to $2 per resident per year under existing irrigation formulas? know what the board of directors would Ericsen said The board meanwhile agreed at long last to take Orchard Neighborhood storm drainage into the MID canal system although Director Penney abstained on the vote Director Norton Coleman was absent A precise agreement to cover the drainage will be returned for board approval the storm drainage would be used to recharge the underground water table or simply be pumped into the MID canal and drained away If there is to be underground discharge Ericsen said the city might want the MID to pay for it a thought which incensed Director Richard Penney On the other hand Ericsen then added the city might need water someday and it too might be costly By coincidence remarks came the same day he met with MID attorney Warren Gant and City of Modesto officials on future water policy In that meeting Gant said the city has no direct right to MID water although there has never been any dispute that the city could approach the MID for Don Pedro water if needed in the future He explained later that city residents all of whom are MID customers have every right to a share of MID water for irrigation The MID always has invited any city resident to install the pipes and valves needed to take water for landscaping or gardens though few do so Use of MID water for domestic municipal or industrial purposes would involve securing new state water rights however that could be somewhere down the road in the not too distant Gant said city is looking into that possibility and the MID has considered that Modesto water engineer Richard Hosegood explained that the city and the MID are looking both at future water supplies for Modesto and at future control of the underground water table The city staff would be with MID control of the underground if such management is required by the legislature Hosegood said But Hosegood added that his talks with the MID have been predicated upon the idea that Don Pedro water would he reported "The amount of nitrate is quite small below public health As for the amount of water Page said cooperative work by the Modesto Irrigation District and the city to start recharging the basin in 1980 might level off the water table and keep it comparatively constant Now recharging the basin the hydrologist explained are the Tuolumne River past Modesto the irrigated fields of farms bordering the urban area and spills and seepage from the MID canals Page said the USGS continues to collect data on wells from about 542 square miles around Modesto and is matching the water levels with a computer model When completed in 1980 the mathematical model will be capable of indicating where new wells should go how recharging efforts should be handled and when water treatment facilities will be needed Richard Hosegood the assistant public works director responsible for the city water system credits the 1977 voluntary conservation efforts of Modesto citizens as well as last heavy rainfall with helping restore basin water levels after the drought But he points to a decline of 10 feet over the last 15 years as reason enough concern about this community's future water supply By Bill Phillips Bee staff writer Ron Page the hydrologist conducting the US Geological Survey Water Resources Division study of underground basin will not say the city is going to run out of pure drinking water But city officials are taking no chances Years ago when the officials became concerned because other areas in the state were facing water shortages they launched studies to determine city water rights and the potential of the basin The resulting cooperative baSin study between the city and the USGS is now in its eighth year at a shared cost of $201000 The drought of 1976-77 brought home the seriousness of water shortages when Marin County residents were forced to ration water Five years ago the USGS study determined that Modesto would have no quality or quantity problems with its water for from five to 10 years leaving plenty of time to develop a warning system before serious deterioration could occur When interviewed Page said the five to 10 year leeway remains true today and could remain true for years to come not a great threat to the purity at this New jury denied Panel to decide Stankewitz fate McClatchy Newspapers Service were conscientious honest and intelligent and would follow his instructions on what to disregard On Monday the judge said no cause had been shown to change his mind And he pointed out Stankewitz had himself from the courtroom voluntarily that no one else had attempted to prejudice the jury against him Martin also denied a defense motion to exclude certain information about a previous crime of violence the defendant is alleged to have admitted when he was a juvenile Although any information about a previous criminal record is excluded during the course of a trial when the issues were guilt or innocence the judge and jury is entitled to know about any previous record at the time of sentencing The judge will impose the actual sentence either life in prison without possibility of parole or the death penalty but the jury will decide which it will be FRESNO The death penalty phase in the trial of killer Douglas Stankewitz 21 convicted of the Feb 8 kidnap robbery and murder of Theresa Graybeal 22 of Modesto will start today as scheduled Superior Court Judge Robert Martin denied a defense motion to impanel a new jury to determine the sentence Deputy Public Defender Sal Sciand-ra asked the judge to discharge the all-male jury that found Stankewitz guilty in the murder trial Grounds for the motion Sciandra said were that the jury which convicted him probably had become prejudiced after his escape from the courthouse while his trial was in progress After Stankewitz was captured by police without incident 41 hours after he walked out of an unlocked holding cell Sciandra had made the same motion Martin denied that defense motion saying he was satisfied the jurors Which is it? If you're perplexed bv contradictory downtown parking signs imagine how motorists feel when they start to park there City Traffic Director Douglas Carmody humorous ly explained It's perfectly all right to park there for two hours so long as you keep the 24 minute meter filled That's commented traffic department aide Ken neth Cruce "I found one 24 minute parking sign in a red noparking zone the other In seriousness Carmody said "It was an oversight we'll take care of With 2500 parking spaces along downtown streets and hundreds of traffic signs posted that's going to happen Sometimes new signs are posted and personnel forget to remove the old signs But I'm sure the police are lenient when conflicts like this arise Bee Photo Fired reinstatement bid is denied TURLOCK Patrolman Jimmy bid to be reinstated to the Turlock Police Department was rejected Wednesday by an appeals board composed of three city council-men In a three-page written decision Councilmen Harold Logsdon Doyle Hallum and Charles Bakke ruled that Puthuff in misconduct as a police officer and failed to properly perform his duties Puthuff 35 was fired June 30 by Police Chief James Greenway following a three-month departmental investigation Puthuff subsequently appealed his dismissal in a series of public hearings that began in July The hearing concluded Monday with expert testimony from a Berkeley psychiatrist Bernard Diamond who stated in a letter to hearing officer William Ivey that Puthuff not have a psychiatric disability which would preclude his employment as a police In denying his appeal however the board cited specific testimony given during the hearing that Puthuff was unable to control his temper and emotions tended to be unduly aggressive and defensive and was uncooperative with fellow employees A member of the department for four years Puthuff was represented in the appeal by Modesto attorney James Milam Puthuff was unavailable for comment following the decision Milam who learned of the ruling from The Bee late Wednesday night however indicated it would probably be appealed in Superior Court Judge stays suspension of licenses Fashions a floor-covering firm attorney Richard Harriman has submitted a petition for a writ of mandate claiming the state order should be declared invalid for a number of reasons The petition also contends Diede has had only one minor complaint made against him to the State License Board since the September 1977 hearing Homeowners in the southwest Modesto subdivision complained of poor construction and cited numerous deficiencies including failure to put required underlayment on the roofs defective vents and improper foundations Diede has two subdivisions under construction College West near the west campus of Modesto Junior College and San Ramon II 20 homes at Whitmore Avenue and Mitchell Road in Ceres A San Francisco County Superior Court judge has ordered the State License Board to delay a nine-month suspension of two licenses issued Modesto builder Lloyd William Diede because of 456 construction deficiencies in 33 homes in a Modesto subdivision The suspension which was to have been effective Sept 3 was stayed by Judge Francis Mayer until a Dec 6 hearing in his courtroom Diede does business under the name of Abco Construction Co formerly known as Willo Construction Co during the time the Herndon Estates subdivision was completed in 1976 in southwest Modesto Abco builds homes for Marway Inc 950 Oakdale Road of which Diede is president and chairman of the board The other license under the state order is issued to Diede for Floor Turlock TV: viewing the underground streets fereting out cracks defective joints tree roots and other problems without trenching up whole sections of streets and sidewalks Moreover he said it will enable the city to locate illegal connections and lateral lines which often are hard to pinpoint on maps In the past the city has rented (he equipment but Martin said it would be cheaper in the long run to own it City councilmen receptive to the proposal this week authorized the public works department to seek bids for equipment using some $35000 allocated in the budget Unless the camera happens to bump into the from the black doubtful there will be any award-winning performances but to say what it might flush out TURLOCK Flipper eat your heart out no room for your subaqueous antics in upcoming underwater television adventure series but then again there be much of an audience either The major networks definitely touch the program and local cablevision officials consider it distasteful even as public service programming Yet the stage is set and the crew is waiting in the wings to begin filming as soon as the submersible camera arrives providing it can be purchased for the $35000 set aside in the city budget City Engineer Rick Martin said the closed-circuit camera equipment would be used to explore the miles and miles of sewer and storm drain lines beneath city I School bus cuts: Parents fill the void Oakdale man gets 6 years in heroin overdose death Trust established for Modesto boy who suffocated Graveside services will be held at 2 pm Friday at the Ceres Cemetery for Patrick Wayne Taylor a 4-year-old Modesto boy who died of suffocation Monday evening when he became trapped in an abandoned refrigerator in his yard A memorial trust fund has been opened in his name to help pay for burial and service expenses Donations can be mailed to Patrick Wayne Taylor trust fund memorial account Bank of America Paradise Branch PO Box 2528 Modesto Calif 95351 Survivors include the parents Lenard and Sharon Taylor of Modesto three brothers Lenard Ronald and Ralph Taylor all of Modesto and his grandparents Mr and Mrs Jim Gore of Colorado and Etta Taylor of Lathrop Ponies wanted Got a spare pony? The YMCA is asking for donated ponies and tack to offer children a pony ride on Saturdays at its facility located at McHenry and Floyd avenues More information is available from Dean Slate at 524-4301 4 says 1 have to start walking and I live over by Gemco It takes 30 minutes" Gina Mayer also has to walk and she think fair since her younger brothers and sister (elementary school busing limits remain intact) still get to ride the bus Says Gina who lives near mom bring me cause too much traffic and she has to get to work I think I ought to be able to ride the bus I get tired of walking My toe is killing Across the street from Somerset the city bus stop is crowded Some of the waiting students could still ride school buses but city buses are and go closer to their homes Joe Lamkin is no longer eligible to ride the school buses but he mind the change get here in 5 or 10 minutes and get home in 20 And I think funner riding the city he explained Still does cost more" he added Maybe age makes a difference Downey student Tracy Rowe was indignant when asked about the possibility of riding the city buses wants to pay for the city bus? I think if they make us go to school they should give us a teach and can usually get here and we have teen-age drivers in the family But for some people I know a One of those people is parent Cindy Lockwood who starts work each day at 3:30 pm But she thinks the alfnost two miles to the Lockwood home east of Rose Avenue is too far for a seventh grader to walk So she picks Angela up at 3 10 pm hurries home and then to work In the mornings her husband does the duty on his way to work another race against the clock The distance worry Rita Orlandi another Somerset parent waiting in line but McHenry Avenue does Even though the Orlandis live only a mile and a half from the school she ferries Anita each way "It petrifies me to drive on McHenry let alone cross it I want her crossing McHenry Avenue in all that Exact figures are not yet available at Somerset on how many students are affected by the wider boundaries But about half of an eighth grade class raised hands when asked who used to ride and now Mike Gervase rides his bike and Jennifer Haldeman rides with her mother Cindy Randazzo also has been riding with her mother she Continued schools losing three buses that served the Sonoma and El Vista School areas So far at least in Tracy Rowe's El Vista neighborhood most of the affected students are finding rides should see the little cars jammed full of said Tracy But more may soon be walking according to city schools transportation officials in the mounting attack on illegal riders Those students simply walk from home to the nearest boundary and catch the bus Their fellow students at least blame them you rather walk a mile to the bus stop than 2'a miles to a Downey student asks Larry Leitner was waiting for his eighth grade daughter at Somerset Wednesday afternoon but only because she had a dental appointment Last year she rode the bus This year the Woodrow neighborhood is inside the new two-mjle limit and usually she walks or rides her bike quite a said Leitner I know that it's too far It's just one of those things an outgrowth of Prop 13 Something had to give We re not happy about it but we can manage If she needs a ride I 4 county jail sentence and probation for Taylor commit him to the California narcotics rehabilitation facility or order a pre-sentence diagnostic evaluation by the State Department of Corrections in lieu of a prison sentence Cook said the case was not one merely of furnishing the heroin but the death that resulted and and deterrence have to be the primary The judge pointed out that evidence showed Taylor has been a heroin user since he was 15 and called him a threat to the community In another court case Jose Luis Ybarra 21 of 303 Church St Oakdale received a suspended three-year prison sentence and was ordered to serve a year in jail Wednesday in the Stanislaus Superior Court for felony drunken driving Ybarra who pleaded no contest to the charge was arrested after his car collided with another vehicle June 19 at the intersection of Ninth and Streets Modesto Two occupants of the other car were seriously injured and the unborn child of one died as a result of the accident Dennis Gene Taylor 23 Oakdale convicted by a Stanislaus Superior court jury of second degree murder in the Jan 30 heroin overdose death of Andrew Clarke 28 Modesto was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison Under the multiple punishment law a four-year prison sentence imposed for an additional conviction of furnishing heroin to Clarke was ordered stayed until completion of the other sentence when the stay will become permanent Evidence in the nine-day trial showed Clarke died in his Modesto apartment after consuming a large amount of beer and injecting pure heroin Taylor had given him Taylor was acquitted of a charge of murdering Thomas Hendrix 22 also of Modesto by furnishing heroin to him Jan 27 Hendrix lost consciousness while riding with Taylor and another friend in car He died a short time after Taylor took him to the Scenic General Hospital emergency room Attorney Michael Ward urged Judge Jeremy Cook to order a i I I.