Amherst News-Times, 1998-06-24

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Burgdorf calls it quits at Al's — Page 3
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Vmherst News-Times
Juno  24.   1998
Amhorst.  Ohio
-.  Safety
ops
<ids
en iu adults
Amherst's new Safety City
got off to a roaring start June
16 as about 85 children took
turns driving around the permanent $11,000 facility or
learned how to cross a street
and ride a school bus safely.
No sooner did mayor John
Higgins and police chief William Hall cut the ceremonial
ribbon did the first group of
students clammer into their
little cars.
There were no car accidents, just a lot of traffic
jams and confusion about
which side of the road to
drive on. Had things been for
real, there probably would
have been a lot of driving
left of center citations handed
out.
Overall, more than 170
children are enrolled in this
year's Safety City program,
which includes instruction in
basic traffic safety, pedestrian
safety and school bus safety.
To make things easier, the
children were'divided into
three teams, red, green and
yellow — the colors displayed on traffic lights.
Patrolman Les Carrender,
who oversees the program
and the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE)
program, was the only casualty. A young reckless driver
on the red team ran over his
foot as he was instructing a
child on the green team how
to safely cross a street.
No citation was issued, just
a stern warning. Carrender
survived, but not without telling the driver, "you flunked.''
The first series of classes
ended June 19. A second set
of classes with about 80 or
more children kicked off June
22 and will end Friday.
Because of the program's
growth in popularity, Carrender said he is considering dividing the program into three
sessions next year rather than
two.
"It'll make it a lot easier
because there's just too many
(children) this year to give
them the kind of time we'd
like," he explained. "Smaller
groups would help."
The donations of time, money, talent and materials cut
the originally estimated
$25,000 cost of the facility in
less than half.
Volunteers spent several
weeks building miniature
buildings that look like those
found throughout the city.
Until this year, the program
had been held at Powers
Elementary School. The new
facility is located immediately
south of the police station on
N. Lake Street.
More than 60 area businesses, groups or individuals donated either time, money or
materials for the facility's
construction.
CONTINUED on page 2
Holly Rushton, 5, of Vermilion, watches as Marie Osmond autographs her doll during a special doll signing session at Treasure's In
the Attic attended by about 500 people. The signature will make her
doll more valuable.
Oh, what a doll! Marie delights
crowd of collectors at Riddle's
by QLEN MLLER
Nsws-Tlmss reporter
Marie Osmond is best known as a
singer, TV personality and stage
performer, not a doll designer or
collector.
But last Saturday, several Amherstonians were among about 500 people who stood in line at Treasures in
the Attic on S. Main Street to get
her autograph. Not on paper, but on
the back of one of the many dolls
that she has designed.
People came from as far away as
Cincinnati and parts of Indiana with
their dolls, or to purchase the Marie
Osmond dolls in the shop's stock. It
is one of the five biggest sales outlets of her dolls in the country, according to owner Judy Riddle.
Samples of the Osmond collection filled the downstairs window.
To avoid an overflow and make
things easier, Riddle handed out
numbers, to patrons and called them
upstairs as room permitted. More
than 200 numbers had been handed
out to customers by June 17.
Another 300 managed to sneak in
with those that had numbers, but by
4 pjn. the backs of the heads of every doll had been signed by
Osmond.
"This way,.the signature will stay
on it no matter what parts get old or
replaced over the year," she explained. "It makes it a keepsake —
more valuable."
She designs most of her own
dolls and supervises the costuming
, and painting of others. Those she
creates herself have her own personal trademark, a small beauty
mark next to their left eye just like
Autograph seekers line the store as they await
Marie Osmond's arrival. Despite the use of tick
ets, many were able to sneek inside to get a do- •
seup took of the star who designs dolls.
the one over her's.
A doll collector since she was a
child, she started designing her own
dolls for the L.L. Knickerbocker
Co., a California doll and teddy bear
manufacturer, about three yean ago.
"Doll collecting is bigger than
most people think,'' die said. "Right
now, k's right up there with coin
collecting."
Osmond, who is scheduled to co-
host a new syndicated TV variety
talk show with her brother Donny
this fall, flew into Northern Ohio
CONTINUED on pegs 3
Anderson
lawsuit's
in hands
of judge
by OLEN MILLER
News-Times reporter
Law director Alan Anderson and
city council will have to wait six
weeks to three months for a decision
to be rendered in his lawsuit against
council and the city administration.
That's how long it will take the
Ninth District Court of Appeals'
three judges to review and make a
decision on briefs and oral arguments presented during a June 18
appeals hearing.
Mayor John Higgins, treasurer
Kathleen Litkovitz, auditor Diane
Eswine and several council members attended the hearing held in the
Lorain County Administration
Building last Thursday.
The appeal seeks to overturn a
Lorain County Common Pleas
Court decision that ruled council
can override the law director's authority to name a bond counsel.
It took 15 minutes for the judges
to receive briefs from Anderson and
Thomas Muzilla, one of the city's
attorneys, and hear arguments from
Muzilla, before the hearing was
dismissed.
Anderson waived his right to present oral arguments. Instead, he presented the court with a 31 -page brief
outlining his position and law supporting his claim that he, not city
council, has the right to appoint a
bond counsel.
Muzilla presented more than a
100-page brief filled with documentation and exhibits supporting council and the city administration's
position.
He argued that the Ohio Supreme
Court has held that a city council,
not a law director, has the authority
to retain legal counsel when the law
director is ill, absent or unqualified
to provide the needed legal services.
His argument is based on the assertion that Anderson noted he had
no bonding experience and selected
the Cleveland law firm of Calfee,
Halter and Griswold, to act as bond
counsel.
Council appointed. Squire, Sanders and Dempsey, another Cleveland law firm with bond expertise,
thereby ignoring Anderson's recommendation and initiating his 1997
lawsuit,
Anderson claims the county court
erred in its ruling because Amherst
is a statutory, not a chartered city.
State law gives the law director of a
statutory city appointing authority.
Muzilla's brief claims the Ohio
Revised Code and case law give a
statutory city's council bonding
authority.
"This is especially true where the
law director is unable or not qualified to perform the legal services,"
he wrote in his brief.
Anderson has previously said he
will appeal the case to the Ohio Supreme Court if (he appellate court
upholds the common pleas court
ruling
Priest enjoys return to St. Joseph's start
^•ef
'vm
Fathtr Anthony Kreps
The Rev. Anthony Kreps,
the pastor who oversaw the
building of Sl Joseph's
Catholic Church in the early
seventies was honored by his
parishioners June 14.
Not only was it the pastor
emeritus'* 90th birthday, it '
also was the 60th anniversaiy
of his ordination as a priest,
according to current pastor
Rev. Lawrence Martello.
About 500 people ainiidful
a noon Mass officiated over
by Kreps. About 400 or more
parishioners attended a reception held in his honor in the
church social hall following
the service.
Prior to Kreps's arrival at
Sl Joseph's in 1967. Martello
said a small church was to*
cated in the rear of the
school in an area that hat
since been converted to a
gymnasium.
While pastor, be completed
the church and offices located
behind Ae school aad officiated at km ifrl*-'tt-*n oa
March 19, 1971.
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July 1978. when he retired.
During those years. Martello
said tie
in the adds of
changes brought about by the
Vatican II
SL Joe's am going thro
some growing pains at the
MarteUo said. "But Father
Kreps always kept in mind
the iuradavrnental principle of
faith that Christ is always
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are "only a sriaascaii rep-
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during the illness of its pastor
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