The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 255, Ed. 1 Friday, August 23, 1996 Page: 1 of 20
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: The Baytown Sun and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Sterling Municipal Library.
- Highlighting
- Highlighting On/Off
- Color:
- Adjust Image
- Rotate Left
- Rotate Right
- Brightness, Contrast, etc. (Experimental)
- Cropping Tool
- Download Sizes
- Preview all sizes/dimensions or...
- Download Thumbnail
- Download Small
- Download Medium
- Download Large
- High Resolution Files
- IIIF Image JSON
- IIIF Image URL
- Accessibility
- View Extracted Text
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
What’s Inside
Calendar, Page 2-A (Opinion, Page 4-A
Police Beat, Page 5-A I Sports, Page 1 -B
Bible Verse.
Opinion ........4A
Calendar...
. ...2A
PolceBeat.....5A
Cbsslfed.....
Sports............1B
Comics......
.....9B
Sun fifes..........7A
Obituaries..
. ...3A
TodayinHslory ...4A
Sumer graduation
GCCISD summer graduation
ceremonies, 7 pm tonight
Morton Kondracke:
Repulicanstrytogetfair
shake from‘liberalmedia’
Man sentenced
Baytonian gets five years
for aggravated robbery
District champs
13yearolds
snag first
tEfe Jfoptotott §&m
Volume 74, No. 255
Telephone Number 422-8302
Friday, August 23,1996
Baytown, Texas 77520
50 Cents Per Copy
Meadowlake homeowners eye lawsuits against firm
By JASON MOORE
The Baytown Sun
1MEADOWLAKE — Although
officials with the company that
conducted seismographic testing
north of Baytown two weeks ago
assured residents their homes
were safe, homeowners Thursday
night were poised to bring law-
suits against the company for neg-
ligence.
Residents claim small explo-
Council
approves
roadway
repairs
By CHRISTIAN MESSA
The Baytown Sun
A portion of the graveled Ever-
green Road is scheduled to be
smoothed over with asphalt after
Baytown City Council members
Thursday night approved the
plans and specifications of the
Evergreen Road overlay project
and authorized the advertisement
of bids for the work.
The project — estimated at
$82,000 — includes some grade
work and a 2-inch asphalt overlay
of 4,230 feet on Evergreen Road
westward from Tri-City Beach
Road.
. The resurfaced section of Ever-
green Road will lead to the en-
trance of Baytown’s first public
golf course, which is currently
under development by Hazelwood
Enterprises Inc.
The project should be awarded
Sept. 26, and construction, which
is expected to be completed in
three weeks, will begin the sec-
ond week in October.
In other business, the council
authorized the publication of a
notice of intention to issue $4.68
million in certificates of obliga-
tion bonds for sewer rehabilitation
projects.
The council last month autho-
rized a financial assistance appli-
cation to the Texas Water Devel-
opment Board for the rehabilita-
tion projects. The board, which
administers a revolving loan fund
to finance water-related projects,
approved the application during
its Aug. 15 meeting.
Council members approved the
final $25,106 payment to Angel
Brothers Enterprises Inc. for the
installation of a 12-inch water line
to Highway 146.
The original $515,445 contract
included two change orders that
totaled $12,980, increasing the
contract to $528,425.
However, the final construction
amount was $494,726 after a
$33,699 cost underun.
Also approved were three
change orders to the Public Works
Municipal Service Center that of-
fered a net credit of $6,277 to the
construction contract.
Added to the rest of the change
orders in the construction con-
tract, the work increases the origi-
nal $2.21 million contract by
$35,584, or 1.61 percent.
sions conducted by Houston-
based Eagle Geophysical for two
weeks near their subdivision
cracked foundations and walls in
homes and disrupted the quiet life
of this neighborhood.
Company officials have said the
blasts were set off about 120 feet
below ground but have not re-
vealed the exact location of the
test sites or the types of explosives
used.
At a homeowners’ meeting, a
local residential inspector told res-
idents about extensive damage to
homes throughout the area, and
several Houston lawyers warned
that the seismic testing is a classic
case of “ultra-hazardous activity.”
“It’s our position that they
caused a nuisance and extensive
damage. If you just live in this
area, you have a claim and a cause
of damage. But get ready for a
dogfight. These people are not go-
ing to rush out and give you mon-
ey,” said Vic Bonner, a Houston
attorney representing several vic-
tims of the recent Colonial Texaco
pipeline explosion.
Bonner and another Houston
lawyer, Dana Kirk, told the crowd
that the only way to ensure a fair
response to their complaints is
through litigation.
“We have the power to subpoe-
na all their records. We can find
out what they did, where they did
it... everything,” Kirk said. “This
is a classic situation in law. It
sounds to me like you have a good
case.”
Most of the residents at the
meeting, homeowners like Randi
Wingate for example, were wor-
ried that the company would not
pay fairly for damage to their
homes or would disclaim future
damage resulting from the blast-
ing.
“I’m suspicious,” Wingate said.
“It’s scary. I have extensive dam-
age to my house, and I’m con-
cerned that they’re putting me
off,” Wingate said
Billy Plante, an inspector wjth
Baytown-based Inspection Spe-
cialties, warned that damage |eT
suiting from the blasts might pot
be noticeable for some time. ’
“The majority of houses in tire
area are in major stress. I!m
telling you, with all the rain we’re
getting right now, something’s go-
ing to give,” Plante said
State agency to
mediate dispute
on Carver sAe
Photo by Canie Pryor-Newman
A kiss from mom
Alejandro Renteria gives his mom, Gloria Renteria, a kiss as he boards the school bus
headed for Crockett Elementary. Gloria and the baby she cares for, Erika Burnett, tried to
stay dry. But don’t put those umbrellas away yet — forecasters say rain is expected
throughout the weekend.
By JASON MOORE
The Baytown Sun
A state-sponsored mediation process
begins Monday to resolve a dispute
over a local elementary school involv-
ing the Goose Creek school district and
Exxon Co. USA.
The two are at odds over costs related
to Carver Elementary, shut down last
September when contamination from a
sunken oil pit built by Exxon’s prede-
cessor company surfaced on the
school’s playground.
Since then, Exxon has spent more
than $2 million working with the
school district cleaning up the site.
But in May, the Goose Creek Consol-
idated Independent School District
Board of Trustees voted to ask the
state’s chief environmental regulatory
agency, the Texas Natural Resource
Conservation Commission, to hold a
public hearing to review Exxon’s claim
that the site is safe enough to hold
classes — a claim school officials dis-
pute.
To guard against future lawsuits aris-
ing because of the oil pit, GCCISD of-
ficials have asked Exxon to indemnify
the school district against future liabili-
ty at the site, but Exxon has refused to
issue such a guarantee.
The TNRCC denied GCCISD’s hear-
ing request, proposing instead that
Exxon and the school district work
things out with the help of a special
mediation division at the TNRCC.
So starting Monday, the TNRCC’s
Alternative Dispute Resolution division
will hold special mediation negotia-
tions in Austin to help resolve the dis-
pute between the two Baytown institu-
tions.
Although the ADR division is rela-
tively new, TNRCC spokesman Patrick
Shaughnessy said Thursday that several
other environmental disputes have been
resolved with the help of die team.
Because the negotiations are closed
to the public, Shaughnessy said he
could not go into detail about the medi-
ation process.
“I can say it’s up to the individual
parties who to bring, but that’s about it
It’s confidential,” Shaughnessy said.
“Although it’s a new office, the media-
tion process has proven to be effective.
We have seen some success.”
Exxon spokesman Ron Embry said
the company would not release the
names of its representatives to the ne-
gotiations because of the confidentiali-
ty of the process.
He did say company officials are ex-
cited about the prospect of a resolution
to the dispute.
“When this was suggested, we imme-
diately agreed to the process, and we
sincerely hope it will be successful.
That’s why we are participating in good
faith,” Embry said.
Also citing strict confidentiality
clauses, Richard Peebles, the attorney
for the school district, did say he, along
with school board President Jim Jeffrey
and Superintendent Jerry Roy and oth-
er consultants, would represent GC-
CISD at the negotiations. ;
Not unlike routine mediation negotia-
tions in civil cases, this process, Pee-
bles said, could produce an agreement
between Exxon and the school district.
“I’ve had good successes with media-
tion in civil cases, and I think there i$ a
good likelihood this thing will be (e-
solved, in my estimation,” Peebles said.
He added that if the two parties can-
not reach an agreement, further media-
tion negotiations or a contested case
hearing, which GCCISD had originally
asked for, remain possibilities in the fu-
ture. *
Weather
Friday: Mostly cloudy with a 60
percent chance of showers or
thunderstorms.
Saturday: Mostly cloudy with a
50 percent chance of showers.
Art by Kristanya Harrison.
‘Sun’ accepting teen reporter applications
The Baytown Sun is accepting
applications for teen reporters for
the 1996-97 school year. Reporter
positions are open to any middle
school or high school student in
the Anahuac, Barbers Hill, Crosby,
Dayton and Goose Creek school
districts. Students who attend pri-
vate schools are also invited to ap-
ply.
Any student interested in be-
coming a teen reporter should sub-
mit an application letter explaining
their reasons for seeking the job, as
well as information about school
activities, community involvement
and any writing experience. The
letter should also include the stu-
dent^ home address, phone num-
ber, a copy of his or her last report
card and the names of two school-
related references. Teen reporters
will be notified by mail when they
have been selected. The deadline
for all applications is Friday, Aug.
30. I ;
Letters should be sent to: the
Baytown Sun, P.O. Box 90, Bay-
town, 77522, attn: Next Genera-
tion editor.
NiwTtip? Call 422-8302
m
For home delivery, call 422-8302
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Dobbs, Gary. The Baytown Sun (Baytown, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 255, Ed. 1 Friday, August 23, 1996, newspaper, August 23, 1996; Baytown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1095368/m1/1/?q=%22Places+-+United+States+-+Texas+-+Harris+County%22: accessed July 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sterling Municipal Library.