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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Thursday, August 28, 2003
City to discuss payment delay vote by county
By JENNIFER GALVAN
Staff Writer
PECOS, Thurs., Aug. 28, 2003 -- Town of Pecos City Council members have scheduled
an executive session today to consult legal counsel regarding possible
litigation against Reeves County for the breach of Water Distribution and
Sanitary Sewer Collection and Treatment Services Agreement.
The item in regards to the contemplated litigation was added to tonight's
regular City Council meeting, which will be held at 5:30 p.m., in the Council
Chambers at City Hall.
"Due to urgent public requiring immediate action due to reasonably unforeseeable
situation and imminent threat to public health the following addendum is
posted," the addendum reads.
Mayor Dot Stafford stated that in the executive session the council would
discuss the payment of Reeves County.
"It will be up to the council if they want the commissioners to sit in
on the executive session," Stafford said.
In Monday's Commissioners Court meeting Reeves County Judge Jimmy Galindo
asked that some of the commissioners attend tonight's meeting to represent
the county in this manner. However, Galindo will not be on hand due to a
trip to San Antonio to meet with federal officials in regards to acquiring
inmates to fill the new Reeves County Detention Center III project.
The 960-bed facility was completed in March, but the lack of inmates
has left the county with a severe budget shortfall. The first bond payment
for the facility is due next week, and other bond payments on sections of
the prison also are pending.
As a result, commissioners voted on Monday to put available funds towards
prison-released payments, and hold off making its $422,320 payment to the
city, which is due on Sunday. The payment is the county's contribution to
construction of the city's new South Worsham water field.
However, during Monday's meeting Galindo was quoted as saying that the
payment to the city was not due till November.
"I've been talking to the mayor before this meeting and the payment to
the city is actually not due until November," Galindo was quoted as saying
in Monday's edition of the Enterprise.
When Stafford was questioned on Galindo's statement, she said that the
county's payment to the city is due on August 31, though the money owed
by the city to the Texas Water Development Board is still two months off.
"The county's payment is due on August 31," Stafford said. "The payment
that is due in November belongs to the city."
She added that if the county does defer its payment they would then break
their contract.
Stafford also wanted to make it clear that the counties payment is not
an actual water payment but rather an infrastructure payment on the construction
done to South Worsham Field.
"I want to make it clear, this is not a water bill," Stafford said. "We
just can't cut off the water supplies. It is not that simple."
While consulting with its legal council, Stafford said that she was unsure
of what their options would be if the county did defer its payment.
"What I am not wanting to do, and I said this that the Town Hall meeting
is to increase taxes, limit services and or limit employees," Stafford said.
"I do not want to do any of the three things."
The city has been working on the South Worsham project for nine years,
since engineers told them the current Worsham and Ward County fields can
only provide Pecos with adequate water supplies through the year 2008. The
payment agreement between the city and county was reached as part of a deal
to provide increased water supplies by the city to the Reeves County Detention
Center.
Hawaiian dress-up plans face football conflict
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Thurs., Aug. 28, 2003 -- Got any purple and gold Hawaiian skirts?
That would be the perfect attire for Friday in Pecos.
Friday is the date for the Second Annual Hawaiian Beach Party, which
local businesses will be participating in. The event is sponsored by the
Pecos Chamber of Commerce, and Chamber Executive Director Linda Gholson
said, "We have about eight businesses that have called in, not counting
the two banks, so we should have about 12 or 14 participate."
The businesses and employees are to dress up in Hawaiian-style outfits
and decorations, and those businesses that want to can participate in judging
for the best Hawaiian design. The results will be announced during the Beach
Party reception planned for 5-7 p.m., at West Texas National Bank.
The first Beach Party was held the Friday prior to Labor Day last year.
However, due to a late schedule addition, Friday will also be the 2003 home
opener for the Pecos Eagles football team, and as a result, the first purple
and gold day for fans in Pecos.
"When we did this it (the game) was just a scrimmage, but we have to
go on," said Dot Stafford, who is helping to organize the event at West
Texas National Bank. "We're trying to make this be an annual thing."
"The first year we had this the reception was held at the museum, and
this year we're hosting it. Everyone in the community is invited to come
and dress accordingly," she added. "Hors d'oeuvres will be served during
that time and John (Grant, WTNB president) will have his famous spare ribs
if he gets back in time."
Stafford said Grant has been busy this week inspecting cattle for the
bank.
The bank will provide refreshments during regular business hours, and
Gholson said other businesses will be doing special things as part of Friday's
Beach Party. That inclues the U.S. Post Office in Pecos, which will be serving
refreshments from 10-11 a.m. and will have drawings for the new USPS lighthouse
stamp.
"Some will be participating, but won't want to be judged," she said.
Those that do can call the Chamber at 445-2406 before 2 p.m. on Friday to
get their name on the list.
"Judging will be done between 2 and 3, but I won't say who's doing it,"
Gholson added. The winners will be announced during the late afternoon reception
at WTNB.
Cowboys fans get Fox signal back for game
By JENNIFER GALVAN
Staff Writer
PECOS, Thurs., Aug. 28, 2003 -- With football season under way, Dallas Cowboy
fans in the Pecos area will be able to watch the Cowboy's last preseason
game tonight, after KPEJ brought its signal back up last night for viewers
in the Trans-Pecos area
The Fox Network station out of Odessa had been out since Sunday night
in the area, which receives its signal on UHF Ch. 20, by way of a microwave
relay from the station's main antenna north of Midland International Airport
to an antenna located on 6,500-foot Gomez Peak, 40 miles southwest of Pecos.
Classic Cable Technician Manuel Gonzales stated that the signal they
receive had been flickering for some time now.
"We talked to the engineers at KPEJ Fox station in Odessa," Gonzales
said. "They had to reset it (the signal) last night."
"I talked to my technician in Pecos and he said it was up last night,"
he added.
Although the signal had been down for three days, KPEJ engineers in Odessa
were unaware of the problem until Wednesday morning. The Ch. 20 signal went
out Sunday at about a little after 6 p.m., but the main signal, on UHF Ch.
24, was working normally for viewers in Odessa, Midland and neighboring
cities.
KPEJ set up its antenna on Gomez Peak in 1994, after Fox acquired rights
to the National Football Conference games, which includes most of the Dallas
Cowboys' regular season contests. The signal originally was on UHF Ch. 18,
but was moved to Ch. 20 last year in order to avoid conflict with the new
Univision station on Ch. 18 in the Midland-Odessa area.
Dallas plays Oakland tonight, and opens its regular season on Sept. 7
against Atlanta, in a game that will also be televised by KPEJ.
Local FSA seeks candidates to fill committee posts
PECOS, Thurs., Aug. 28, 2003 -- The Reeves County Farm Service Agency
is accepting nominations between now and next Friday, Sept. 5, for the 2003
County Committee elections. Nomination forms can be obtained from the FSA
County Office, 1417 W. Third St.
Anyone with an interest in providing guidance on federal farm program
issues that impact local farmers and ranchers is encouraged to submit their
nomination. All landowners, operators and tenants of legal voting age are
eligible to serve on FSA County Committees and vote in these elections.
For more information contact your local FSA at 432-445-3196 ex 2.
Weather
PECOS, Thurs., Aug. 28, 2003 -- High Wednesday 96. Low this morning 71.
Forecast for tonight: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms.
Lows in the upper 60s. South winds 5 to 15 mph. Friday: Partly cloudy with
a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 90s. Southwest
winds 5 to 15 mph. Friday night: Partly cloudy with a 30 percent chance
of thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 60s. Saturday: Partly cloudy with a 40
percent chance of thunderstorms. Highs near 80. Sunday: Partly cloudy with
isolated thunderstorms. Lows in the Lower 60s. Highs in the lower 80s.
Obituary
Richard "Calo" Gutierrez
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2003 by Pecos Enterprise
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