Amherst News-Times, 1997-10-01

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Wrecking ball approaches — Page 5
Dream home is on tour — Page
Amherst News-Time*
Wednesday. October 1, 1997
Amherst, Ohio
Catalog
goes up
for bid as
computers
rule APL
The Amherst Public Library
plans to close the book on a
piece of furniture that was
once the heart of the library:
a nearly five foot card
catalog.
For people who haven't
been in a library in the lasi
few years, the tried and true
card catalogs have been replaced by computerized indexing. With computers, card catalogs have become relics of
the past. The unused ones are
a piece of history that some
innovative person can make
use of, according to assistant
librarian and public relations
coordinator Betty Bailey.
The library used to have
several in which the locations
of books where hand-filed by
subject, title or author.
Despite her research, Bailey
said she has no idea how old
the vintage catalog is, although it appears to have
been made in the 50s or
early 60s and has been kept
in mint condition.
Except for a smaller, older
catalog the library wants lo
hold on to as a keepsake, the
30-to 40-year-old card index
file is the last to be "discarded" by the library. The
index cards have been set
aside for scrap paper because
they are blank on one side.
The card catalogs aren't
even needed as a backup filing source should the computer suffer an electronic migraine or crash. Everything is
backed up on floppy disks
and locked away for safe
keeping, according to library
executive director Judy
Dworkin.
The old light oak catalog
will be auctioned off by sealed written bids accepted Oct.
5-19. They will be opened
Oct 20 at 10 a.m. No minimum bids has been set, although Bailey said she thinks
the card catalog may be
worth at least $650 because
of its good condition. New
High enrollmt...,
upcoming PI levy
on school board
members' minds
by GLEN MILLER
Amherst public library employee Kaye
Coler gives an old card catalog to be auctioned off a quick inspection to make sure.it
has been cleaned out. It is one of several
card catalogs that have been been outdated
by computer indexing.
ones made by the manufacturer, Bro-Dart Industries, cost
more than $ 1,000.
"Bul it's worth whatever
it's really worth to someone
for whatever reason," Bailey
said.
The more than a dozen
3X5 card shelves might be
used lo store small parts, a
host of notions and any num
ber of different kinds of
knicknacks, she added.
The profits from its sale
will be set aside to help support a.yearly summer reading
program for children and
young adults.
Bailey said many librarians
hate to see the card catalogs
be eclipsed by modern day
technology. Others don't.
They take up space that can
be used for bookshelves or
computers linked to the Internet, a new and growing
source of information available in nearly every library.
"In a way, it's a shame to
see them go because they
have been as much a part of
libraries as books, but adding
things to a computerized index and looking things up is
much easier," she added.
News-Times reporter
Amherst school officials are trying to balance the need to maintain
five schools with the ability to jam
an increasing number of students
into them.
According to unofficial figures,
3,772 students have enrolled in the
school district this year, 74 more
than last year. An official count will
be taken next week and sent to the
Ohio Department of Education on
Oct 10.
The official enrollment is important. Based on that figure, the school
district will receive about $3,700 in
state funding for the instruction of
each student.
A 3.954 mill bond issue that
would have funded $16 million in
additional classrooms and renovations for the public schools was defeated by voters in May.
Regardless of the additional students who have enrolled since then,
superintendent Howard Dulmage
said the school board probably
won't renew its efforts to pass the
bond issue until a future planning
committee makes a
recommendation.
That recommendation isn't likely
to be made until next spring in order
to give the committee time to collect
new information on projected residential growth iri the school district.
One option may be a reduction in
the bond issue millage, although
that decision will be based on the
committee's research, Dulmage
explained.
In the meantime, school officials
are gearing up to pass a 1.7 or 1.8
mill permanent improvement levy in
November for the maintenance and
improvements to school buildings
and equipment. The exact millage
must be determined by the Lorain
County Auditor's Office because it
is a renewal of a two-mill levy
passed five years ago. As a result,
the millage has decreased due to a
general decline in millage rates,
Dulmage said.
Whatever the new millage is,
Dulmage said it will not represent a
tax increase and will raise about
$500,000 a year for improvements.
The funds cannot be used for salaries and instruction but can be used
to purchase new equipment, including computers.
The superintendent said more
than $2.1 million has been spent
over the last five years on improvements, including new heating and
air conditioning units and the purchase of modular classrooms to ease
overcrowding.
"What we are doing is preserving
the integrity of the school buildings
because the community must realize
it has an investment of about $45
million in them," assistant superintendent of schools Timothy Logar
added. "Like a home, it's an investment that has to be maintained."
Additional modular classrooms
may be one answer to future overcrowding, although he said the final
decision rests with the board of education and will be based on the findings and recommendations of the
planning committee.
Beginning this month, Dulmage
said the committee will begin assessing new home construction anticipated by area builders.
"We want to take a look at the
enrollment from building and the
economic situation in the county,"
Dulmage said. "My guess is we
won't have a real handle on some of
this until next spring because that's
when people start buying houses."
Much of that will b an assessment of the closing of the Ford
Thunderbird assembly plant in Lorain and whether the automaker is
likely to keep making the Econoline
van in Lorain and Avon Lake, he
added.
School officials want to project
how many children of Ford workers
may be leaving ihe district. So far,
few have left although Dulmage
said the full effect of the plant's
shutdown on the school system may
not be fully known until late spring.
That's because many parents who
have accepted transfers to other
Ford plants have decided to let their
children finish the 1997-98 school
year rather than move their families
in mid-year, he explained.
In the meantime, school officials
have opted to increase class size
from 22 to 25 or more at Powers
Elementary School and Shupe
Middle School. Both have experienced the largest growth, although
CONTINUED on page 2
Township park is now reality thanks to CEG
An idea that began three years
ago has finally reached fruition
for Amherst Township residents.
A group called the Citizens for
Economic Growth (CEG) had a
dream of renovating the park
that is located in the Hidden
Valley area of Amherst
township.
Used by the Amherst traveling baseball teams, the Amherst
Youth Soccer Association, and
the general public, the park had
grown into disrepair with broken
equipment and unruly grounds.
The Citizens for Economic
Growth committee began to
seek grants to enrich, and make
improvements to the park. Finally, CEG received a $33,000
grant from the Ohio Department
of Natural Resources and a
$5,000 grant each in matching
funds from the Nord Family
Foundation, from the Helen
Steiner Rice Foundation and a
grant for the Nordson Corpora-
lion Foundation.
Jackie Fortino, board member
of CEG said "we used the money to double the size of the
parking lot, put in a one-half
mile walking track, and install
10 benches and six new picnic
lables."
Fortino further explained that
in cooperation with the Amherst
Traveling Baseball teams, improvements were also made to
upgrade the baseball field to
meet Hot Stove regulations.
"Last August," explained Joe
Sarnovsky, president of CEG,
"was the ground breaking ceremony. This year, we estimate we
had about 300 people in attendance." Fortino went on to say
that this year's ribbon cutting included a flag-raising ceremony
by Boy Scout 427, a reading
written by Helen Steiner Rice, a
blessing by Father Schmitz from
St. Joesph Catholic Church, and
then a ceremonial walk around
the new track lead by the Amherst girls' cross country team
from Marion L. Steele High
School.
Free hot dogs, popcorn, and
pop were provided which had
been donated by local businesses in the area. There was also
community awareness information available on  zoning,  the
trustees. North Central Ambulance service and the American
Red Cross. Access lo the park
area can be reached from either
Middle Ridge Road or walking
access from Hidden Valley
Drive.
Karaoke was also the order for the day at the Amherst Township Park ribbon-cutting celebration