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Archive 2001

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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas

Top Stories

Friday, September 28, 2001

Winners announced for homecoming parade

By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- Football players, queen candidates and favorite  "Hollywood" characters could be seen in  Pecos yesterday afternoon at the annual Homecoming Parade.

Individuals and groups were encouraged to dress like their favorite "Hollywood" stars and participate in the annual event, just one of the many events held this week, leading up to the Homecoming Game scheduled for this evening.

The Pecos Eagles will face the Monahans Loboes at 8 p.m., at Eagle Stadium. The Homecoming Queen will be crowned at halftime. This year's nominees include senior candidates, Christina Arenivas, Brenda Fuentes and Desirae Tercero. Duchesses are Abby Romo, Nikki Reyna and Jessica Abila.

Winners of the parade included the Colts Pee Wee Football, whose float took first place. Second place winner was the FFA float; third place was the Business and Professional Association float and fourth place went to the Chiefs Pee Wee football.

The Pecos High School bonfire went on as scheduled Thursday night, after vandals set the original bonfire pile ablaze about 1:30 a.m. on Thursday. Students and community members worked during the day on Thursday to built a new woodpile just to the east of the original location at the old Pecos landfill site, and Pecos volunteer firemen set off the bonfire about 9:15 p.m.

City loosens retirement requirement

By LEIA HOLLAND
Staff Writer

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- The Town of Pecos City Council voted to lower the number of  years that city employees can serve before retiring, during the regular  meeting last night at City Hall.

The council held a public hearing concerning the Texas Municipal Retirement System Credit Service during the meeting where they had no objections to lowering the years of service making employees eligible for retirement after 20 years instead of 25.

City Finance Director George Bejarano said that the U.S. Congress passed an amendment that lowered the number of years before employees could be fully vested from 10 years to five years.

Bejarano explained that the city puts in a percentage of money for each employee's retirement fund while the employees also put in a certain percentage.

The new law now says that the employee is able to draw on that money after five years.

"When they passed that bill, they went ahead and gave us the right to drop the years before retirement," he said.

The council also approved the second reading of the ordinance that sets the city tax rate for 2001-02 at .6967 on each $100 valuation of property.

"It is the same as last year," Bejarano said. "It did not change."

Bejarano said that the council decided to keep the same rate as last year even though the city lost approximately $18,000 in valuations.

Frank Spencer of Spencer & Associates gave the council a report on the progress in the development of the South Worsham Water Well Field.

Spencer showed the council the design plans for the pipeline, tank, and pumps for 18 wells.

"These plans are basically completed," he said.

Spencer also informed the council that his company took the liberty of getting permits for five additional wells that would be used as back-ups if problems arise with the first 18.

"We decided we're going to permit five new wells so we'd have them just in case," he said.

Since the planning stage is about 90-95 percent completed, Spencer asked the council for their authorization to begin advertising for bids for the engineering stage of the project.

Spencer said that the schedule for the bidding is to open up for bids on Oct. 1 and receive the bids by 3 p.m., on Oct. 31 with the council rewarding the bid on Nov. 8.

During his report, Spencer also gave the council a proposed budget for the completion of the project, but said that the budget could change very easily.

"We won't know how much it will cost until the bids come in," he said.

Spencer said that the budget he passed out to the council is the best estimate that they could make.

"We're hoping, and we feel like these numbers are going to hold," he said.

On a happier note, City Manager Carlos Yerena informed the council that the Texas Water Development Board approved the Environmental Impact Document (EID) from the city and would now begin reimbursing the city the money used during the planning stage of the project.

The council authorized Spencer to advertise for bids for the South Worsham project as well as for a tank to replace the deteriorating tank in the Worsham field.

Anchor Appetizers Group Plant Manager Bruce Salcido asked the council to approve assignment of the tax abatement for Anchor Foods to the new owners, McCain USA, Inc.

City Attorney Scott Johnson said that the abatement contract for Anchor allows the company to assign the abatement to another company.

"They have the right to assign the abatement to a third party," he said.

Bejarano said that Anchor has fulfilled all their obligations as stated in the contract, which includes job creation.

The council approved assigning the abatement, which has two years left, to McCain, which completed its acquisition of Anchor Foods this week.

The council also approved Anchor's request to use Maxey Park for their annual company picnic set for Oct. 13 and have the streets barricaded from noon to 5 p.m., that day.

In other business, the council approved the juvenile court, municipal court and the tax collector's reports as well as the minutes and the accounts payable.

Pecos FD seeking donations Saturday for NYC firemen

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- Pecos volunteer firemen will be working at road intersections Saturday to raise money for the fallen firefighters of New York City.

Over 300 firemen are missing and feared to have been killed when the World Trade Center collapsed on Sept. 11, after two jetliners were crashed into the building by terrorists, causing fires to break out on the upper floors.

Firemen will be at the intersections from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. tomorrow and at Wal-Mart from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Anyone wishing to contribute to the fund can also drop their contribution by KIUN/KPTX Radio or the Pecos Enterprise offices.

Checks should be made payable to the Pecos Volunteer Fire Department.

Toyah woman identified as train collision victim

By LEIA HOLLAND
Staff Writer

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- A Toyah woman was killed after a Union Pacific train struck the  vehicle she was driving late Thursday morning in Toyah.

Kathryn Gibson Paterson, 76, died after the 1993 Buick Park Avenue she was driving was hit by an eastbound train at 11:50 a.m., Thursday while crossing the tracks southbound on Center Street in Toyah.

Department of Public Safety Trooper Terry Gilchrest speculated that Paterson did not see the train until she was on the tracks.

"I think she didn't see the train initially," he said. "I think she just froze on the tracks."

Gilchrest said that Paterson was not wearing a seat belt when the accident occurred and explained that the vehicle was pushed off the tracks soon after impact.

"The train struck the passenger side of the vehicle and threw it north of the tracks and away from the train," he said.

Gilchrest said that the vehicle did not receive much damage because the train was moving slowly at 34 miles per hour.

Pecos Ambulance and Toyah Fire personnel responded to the accident along with the DPS.

Justice of the Peace Amonario Ramon pronounced Paterson dead at 12:49 p.m., and the body was taken to Pecos Funeral Home.

Gilchrest said that following the accident part of the train was uncoupled from the front section, in order to open up the crossing, which is the only crossing in Toyah.

There are no warning signals at that crossing.

The accident was the second vehicle-train collision fatality in the Pecos area in the past 2½ months.

Firemen busy with bonfire, trailer blazes

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- A trailer home on the northwest side of Pecos suffered heavy damage after it caught on fire just before sunrise today, but Pecos volunteer firemen said no one was injured in the blaze.

The fire was reported about 7:35 a.m. and flames were coming out of the windows of the mobile home, located at 1837 W. `F' St., when the fire trucks arrived. It took firefighters about an hour and a half to extinguish the fire and two fire trucks were on the scene.

"It was a brand new mobile home, but the owners had left town earlier in the morning," said firefighter Arturo Granado.

"We're going to go back and see if we can find the cause of the fire," Granado added.

He said that Pecos Fire Marshal Jack Brookshire, who was out of town today, will also need to do an inspection and that the trailer received extensive damage.

The morning fire call came less than five hours after firemen were called out to the "old landfill" to extinguish flames caused by the bonfire, which was held Thursday night in preparation for tonight's Pecos High School homecoming game.

The original bonfire had been lit by vandals early Thursday morning, and firemen were called out to the site at 1:45 a.m. Friday's call came at about 2:45 a.m. after the second bonfire pile re-ignited, and a second call for additional firemen to hose down the pile was made at 3:10 a.m. today.

`American Pie' sequel matches original movie

By LEIA HOLLAND
Staff Writer

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- Perhaps there has never been a comedy sequel as funny as  the original, well until Universal Pictures released  American Pie 2.

The sequel to the megahit American Pie (1999) just could be even funnier with the original cast re-uniting for a look at the group of crazy teens one year later, after a year away at college.

Whoever chose to cast Jason Biggs, Alyson Hannigan, Chris Klein, Mena Suvari, Thomas Nicholas, Tara Reid, Eddie Thomas and Stifler (Seann William Scott) together for the original American Pie was a genius.

Whoever convinced them, along with the rest of the original cast, to come back for a second time was even a bigger genius than the first, unless it's the same person then they're almost a saint.

It is hard to believe new director J.B. Rogers could almost top the first one.

No matter what, if you loved American Pie you'll surely love American Pie 2 so make sure to check it out at least once.

American Pie 2 is rated R.

Weather

PECOS, Fri., Sept. 28, 2001 -- High Thurs. 93. Low this morning 52. Forecast for tonight: Clear.  Lows in the upper 50s. East winds 5 to 10 mph. Sat.: Partly cloudy. Highs in  the mid 80s. East winds 5 to 10 mph. Sat. night: Partly cloudy. Lows in the  mid 50s. Sun.: Partly cloudy. Highs in the mid 80s. Mon.: Partly cloudy.  Lows in the mid 50s. Highs in the mid 80s.

Obituaries

Alvin Bransford and Kathryn Paterson



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Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
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Copyright 2001 by Pecos Enterprise