The Knoxville News-Sentinel from Knoxville, Tennessee • 2

Seeks OK Pogs 2 The Knoxville Newt-Sentinel Thwtdcy October 22 1981 Floating Motel neighbor Rodman Town- send t' But the strip of railroad and the right-of-way for 25 foot to cadi skis of the track is between the parking ares and the proposed motel Adkins says he has presented two proposals to Pay the railroad 82000 a month for the use of the right-of-way or build a pedestrian ramp over the track that 1 trains could go under and pay nothing Both proposals require approval has not responded yet to either proposal Adkins said They made a decision" he said called them three or four times yesterday 1 know if they are holding off or what" Adkins said he is having someone contact Kentucky Governor' John Brown to gain support for Reclassification Jeff Collins Adjusts Brick as Ken Bishop Sweeps Excess Sand World's Fair Lake Readied To Hold Water by January of the the three-scre lake on the site of the 1982 Fair will begin to hold water by the first of the year Workers are putting the finishing touches on the masonry at the edges of the take Once that is completed a substance called mirafl a fiber mat manufactured by Du Pont win be placed on the lake bottom The mirafl will help the lake maintain an even temperature and keep it from freezing over in cold weather according to Charlie Smith director of site development for Knoxville International Energy Exposition developer of the fair The water will be pumped into the lake from a well which wiUeugsometo The well will be covered by a free-flowing fountain The lake win have three bridges two wooden structures at the north end of the lake and a land bridge just south of the Clinch Avenue viaduct The lake win remain the same size after the six-month-long fair ends Oct 31 1981 At its center the lake will be four feet deep Smith said It will be 18 inches deep near the edges Sculptures will be placed along the lake near the Sun-sphere and the Tennessee Amphitheater The lake was named by David Anderson Maryville in a contest sponsored earner this year by a local radio station and other firms hold the right-of-way said Withers Adkins the retired TVA chief architect who created and planned the project They haven't used the track in five years but they say they may need it for Knox Sand and Gravel Ca during the Fair" Adkins and his son-in-law Jeff Miller a focal accountant want to buy 75 houseboats and anchor them at temporary docks offshore from Knoxville Glove Ca near the Henley Bridge This would provide 75 units of much-need housing fix the Fair Each houseboat sleeps six Guests at the floating motel would park at Knoxville Glove Co which has hundreds of extra parking spaces Adkins said Such a puking arrangement has been made with the owner of the land Police Fire By JIM BALLOCH The question of how to classify police officers and lira fighters who temporarily have been performing duties above their official rank some four as long as four years remains unresolved after a meeting of the Civil Service Merit Board yesterday The board did agree to accept applicants aged 18 or older for police and fire department positions despite objections by Police Chief Bob Marshall and Fire Chief Paul Warwick City Attorney Jon Roach sakl the minimum-age requirement of 21 violates state law but this board agreed to request another opinion from the State Attorney General's Officei The board was to weigh three alternative sohitfona to the classification problem yesterday but voted to defer the question until the November meeting after Roach said there wen possible legal problems with each of the plans Roach said that it would be to adopt any plan until all the legal implications have been considered "The problems in the police and fire departments are not the same but we need to find a solution to resolve all the he said The problems stem from the practice of placing employees into positions of higher rank without actually giving them promotions and the additional pay About 100 persons currently hold such positions Suits have been filed against the city in connection with the issue and some cases are pending in court Only the Police and Fire Departments are affected because ab other city deportments were included in a comprehensive reclassi-flcstion study completed in 1979 The merit board staff racom-mends that anyone placed in an acting position before May 30 1979 and who has held the higher position continuously be reclassified to' the higher rank The staff also rec- ommends that anyone placed in an dieting higher rank after that data be required to take a competitive exam to be reclassified A second alternative would require anyone in an acting position to take a competitive exam tobe reclassified A third alternative would allow anyone in the tempo- rary position to be reclassified without taking the exam if the person has been in the position since July 15 1981 end performed the duties for at least one year 'Several policemen and firemen complained the city is taking too long to resolve the issue and for the exams to be prepared Ed Hinkle who directs the Po- bee Crime Prevention Program said he is ready to accept whatever solution the board chooses But he added don't want to do a job for you for four years while you develop a test for me to have to take in order to keep that Fireman John Nicely should a man who has been doing job for fbur years have to take a teat to keep that trying to find one or more corporate sponsors wilbng to Underwrite the 81 million cost of the pavilion Fair officiate are in the process of establishing a deadline" for sponsorship of the Afro-American Pavibon Robinson added Robinson met last week with recently appointed Ambassador to Nigeria Tom Pickering to discuss the priority of the foir Robinson aid ha also met with the soon-to-be appointed ambassador to Gabon -The UJSL embassies in both African nations plan to make the feir a top priority Robinson said Robinson a former city councilman visited 10 African nations test summer to recruit feir participants Last July when the fair College of Commissioners General met in Knoxville Nigeria and Gabon sent Still Seeking Black Representation US Agencies Weigh Use of Pavilion Official Says the project Brown may- help oiit because the 75 houseboats an to be bought from Somerset Boat Cop Somerset Ky firm and the purchase could benefit economy' The string of houeeboats woifld extend 225 feet along the lake bank and would reach about 2(10 feet into the lake Adkins said The US Army Corp of Engineers has determined that the boats would not interfere with marine traffic To get motel guests across t(ie river to the Fair site Ad-Idns hopes to contract for shuttle service with' BB Riverboats the company that is bringing two excursion riverboats to the fair tya originally had considered providing a special ferry service for the guests Now Adkins says such-a service would be too expensive Iv 1 Preston Phelps board secretary said competitive exams are being prepared but it takes time to gather and select the appropriate material because the tests for each position must be different "We are not jutt going to slap few questions to gether and cab it a tost" he said On hiring 18-year-olds Marshal and Warwick said they are for more likely to create disciplinary problems and are not mature enough to handle the life-and-death sftuatioqs that confront police officers and fire fighters some of the 21-year-olds take a few years before they settle down Marshall arid 18-year-old is just not mature enough to strap on a gun and make life-and-death Warwick said that in the fire department "an immature judgment can jeopardize not only the life of the fireman but the lives of his co-workers and citizens" Marshall asked the board to delay accepting applicants from persons under 21 until the State Attorney General's opinion can be obtained" Board member Dr Robert Harvey said the board should not delay when it has an dear opinion from Roach that the 21-year-old age requirement is invalid The board voted to ask the State Attorney General's opinion and to accept applications in the meantime from persons 18 or oyer The board deferred until No-1 vember questions about radassifi -cation of five employees in thp Fleet Management Department representatives to attend the three-day meeting look first hand at what a Fair is all Robinson said Robinson said the Nigerian representative intended to recommend to his government that Nigeria contract for more than the 4000-aquare-foot minimum for nations I-Nigeria is the second largett supplier of 03 to the UJ5 and has the second highest United balance of trade deficit Nigeria could strengthen its relations with the USL through the foir Robinson Originally fair officiate proposed a joint African Nations Pavibon but those plans wen dropped in midsummer when fair officiate determined there enough time left to put together a joint pavilion Stadium Background its officiate say is a financial bui of sponsoring a pavibon That vate fending) is a erts said Their participation dependent upon that It wouk used to embellish and expend 1 So that China can partiripel the meeting of the commtesio general in November an at Chinese commissioner win be pointed in three or four days I ertssaid Tfcr knuillr Nm-Vsiiur nisrs nt-um wlw Wwieawi 2M aw wanst tm jr U1-SHI sn-iiii tiwneeus is i Mi par HIUl By CHARLES SILER mi Wvtlor An ambitious plan for a floating mold on the south bank of Fort Loudoun Lake will be junked unless Railroad officials allow the authors of the plan access to a nearby railroad right-of-way There is a track behind Knox-ville Glove Company that they Liquor-by-Drink Riverboat Plan Faces Hurdles Starts ea Page One Corps of Engineers have jurisdiction I wonder whether maritime law Davis added the boat on the high seas or is it in Blount County?" The three-member ABC has delayed action on the request for a temporary liquor license while more information is gathered Davis said The Blount-Knox County line runs down the center of the river Knox County allows liquor by the drink while Blount County is dry Rep MF (Benny) Stafford (R-Lenoir City) joked that the Legislature would have to establish a port authority to handle the issue He later turned serious and said feeling is the same it was on the Hilton Hotel liquor issue Blount County voters have made it clear they want liquor and IU vote on this just like the Mertz said the investors may decide to bring the riverboat to Blount County without a mixed drink license political prob-! lems involved in getting a liquor license may be too much to he said Civil Service Changes Urged NASHVILLE Broad changes in the Civil Service laws are needed to allow mid-management state employees to give meaningful merit raises or fire employees as they see fit former Finance Commissioner Lewis Donelson told public administrators yesterday Donelson said he found most state employees to be "cautious resistant to change and bureaucratic" He said Civil Service has protected those who should be weeded out of state government and perpetuates the negative attitude toward public employees Service was the worst thing ever done to government" the former finance commisstoner told the American Society of Public Administrators need to eliminate political appointments from government service end avoid nepotism and political interference But merit raises should be handed out by career employees rather than political Donelson said state employees reacted to recent funding cutbecks from Washington like Little They all claimed the sky was falling and the wprtd was coming to an Donelson said the impact of the Federal cuts on Tennessee may be greater than the impact felt by other states because Tennessee ranks at the bottom in per-capita tax burden Police and Deputies Told To Dress Alike Knoxville police and Knox County sheriffs deputies win have the same dress codes after 'Nov 1 in preparation for the Fair -Deputies win no longer wear the so-called Smokey Bear hats Officers in both departments will war shut-billed caps such as those worn by police now Hair length will be no more than 1 inches Only two rings per hand are permitted Most of the regulations already are in effect Fair Exhibit all of our business ia energy Lewis said ia important for the public to have some sense of the things that produce an energy participation has been rumored for some time Company officiate have been negotiating with Knoxville International Energy Exposition (KIEE) developer of the fair since early last summer Roger Hibbs president of the Nuclear Division at Oak Ridge is an active member of the KIEE management committee and has been instrumental in getting participation Carbide earlier loaned KIEE as part of the 82 million in the second-tier private financing program Carbide largest employer in Tennessee operates three research and production facilities of its Nuclear Division at Oak Ridge for the UJSL Department of Energy Its Carbon Products Division a leader in the manufacture of carbon graphite products has plants at Clarksville Columbia and Lawren-ceburg Carbide FOrna Packaging Division has a plant at Loudon and Carbide has industrial gas plants at Knox v31e and Memphia New Alderman Named CHURCH HILL Blake Hack-worth last night was named to replace Kay Alley on the Church Hib Board of Mayor and Aldermen Hack worth w3l represent the west wanL Mra Alley and Alderman Glenn Allen resigned test month claiming they could not work with new Church Kb Mayor Randall Housewife By ROGER HARRIS A black presence at the 1982 Fair is uncertain Fair officials hoped to sign at least two African nations and secure corporate becking fbr the Afro-American Pavibon this fob but neither has materialized Theotis Robinson Jr vice president of economic development for Knoxville -International Energy Exposition developer of the fair said he hopes to hear something positive on two African nations in November after the new ambassadors to Nigeria and Gabon assume their posts On the proposed Afro-American Pavilion which would trace the historical contributions toward energy production by Mack Americans Robinson said feir officials are still Several Federal agencies have expressed interest in using the 820J million US Pavilion after the-World's Fair according to William Morris Jr assistant secretary for trade development for the International Trade Administration US Department of Commerce Morris in Knoxville yesterday for topping-off ceremonies at the jpavflkm said the process of finding tenant Aw the building after the fair is just beginning He would not name the agencies which are interested Federal law requires that the Commerce Department give Federal agencies first choice on postfair uses of the pavilion i The General Accounting Office (GAO) which needs office space in Knoxville considered using the pavilion but officials said in March it would cost from 16 million to 88 million to convert the building to GAO use They said that is too much UT considered using the building after the fair for an energy research center but UT officials said it would cost more than 85 million to convert the pavilion for such a use The university says it cannot Union Carbide Confirms affordit The possibility of post-fair UT use of the pavilion was raised again yesterday when fair Commissioner General Charles Fraser said a special grant could make it possible for UT to afford the conversion costa The building was designed for residual use by he said Fraser would not say where such a grant might come from The last beam of the pavilion was raised into place yesterday The pavilion is scheduled to be completed in ApriL The six-story pavilion with 100000 square feet of space is intended primarily to educate visitors about energy problems and possible solutions The Commerce Department has contracted with Johnson Controls Ca to provide a computerized energy-management system for the structure The Johnson Controls system which is designed to make the building more energy efficient by controlling heating ventilation and air conditioning win be supplied to the pavilion through the company's branch office in Knoxville Video equipment at the pavilion will be supplied by Sony Corp have arranged for school kids all over the city and their teachers to spend time with these No exact cost of the exhibit was given but Lewis said participation would be in the neighborhood of 81 miHion The toys and games include learning devices in introductory math and spelling for preschoolers and primary school children with older children and adults invited to participate Lewis said Carbide's exhibit also win include a pictorial presentation of how the company uses hydrocarbon and electrical energy in its plants to produce petrochemicals and plastics industrial gases carbon products and metals yesterday next area will be south of Cumberland on the east side of the AO of the fair site except for the Family FUnland area on Neyland Drive will be paved this fall Keen said Site-preparation work on the Family Finland area is just beginning and that area where all the fair's rides will be will not be paved unta spring The three main companies involved in the paving are Blalock Construction Ca of SevierviDe Walton Construction Ca of Nashville and Harrison Construction Ca of Maryville In the spring the asphalt wiB be coated with a tan substance to make cooler in the summer Keen said By HOYT CANADY Union Carbide Corp today said it will participate in the 1982 World's Fair with an exhibit of battery-powered toys and games The exhibit called How They will take more than 4000 square feet of space in the Center for Lifestyle and Technology The exhibit win be an opportunity for visitors to operate more than 150 toys and games powered by Eveready Energizer batteries The exhibit a particular Ain thing done here in New said Marshall Lewis director of corporate communications at New York office Lewis said during the Christmas season Unfinished Pavilion Reserved for China Is Near Neyland i urtship China Says Yes Asphalt Paving To Transform Ditch' in Few Weeks unlay said the Chinese win use 15JM0 square feet of indoor pavilion space and 5000 square feet of outdoor spaca The area reserved for them Pavibon Gb a SSJMO-aquare-foot building across Neyland Drive from the city boat docks China may share the building with Hungary the only other Communist country participating in the fair Because the building ia a hollow shell at thia point it could be arranged many different ways depending on the nature of the Chinese exhibit which has yet to be determined Of the exhibit Roberts said only that and antiques that are a part cf Chinese win be shown For example the Chinese pavilion could be linked to the Family Funland area by a large bridge across Second Creek or the pavilion could be isolated from Funland Keen said As reported in The News-Sentinel Oct 5b private fending may be used to help China rope with what glad to inform you that after two years of hard work by various people and three days of negotiating the People Republic of China has definitely deckled to participate in the 1982 World With those words spoken by phone from China Knoxville International Energy Exposition (KIEE) President SJL (Bo) Roberts moved the foir a step forward Tomorrow he will go to the Phihppines to try to get a simifiar commitment from that government The decision by China to spon-sor a pavilion at the fair after two yean of reticence is considered a milestone in the foil program China participation became even more important when the Soviet Union decided not to participate Fair Commissioner General Charles Fraser has estimated that China participation wffl mean an additional three percent of ticket sales of STOnuffion Roberts who left for China Sat- i Last winter a writer for a New York newspaper criticized Knoxville International Energy Exposition (KIEE) operator of the World's Fair for trying to have a fair in a "muddy (the Lower Second Creek Valley) Like most construction sites the site had its share of mud And while the fair site will remain somewhat concave 79JI00 square yards of asphalt will soon cover the mud Paving on the fair site is ached- uled to begin in two weeks and wil be completed by Dec 13 weather permitting "The first area we pave wiB be 'north of Cumberland on the west side of the railroad KIEE chief operating officer Ed Keen said.