STATE-BY-STATE
News from across the USA
ALABAMA Wetumpka:
The Poarch Creek Indians stopped construction of their planned 20-story hotel and casino last week with plans for more discussions about the future of the site that some Creeks consider sacred, the Montgomery Advertiser reported. The Muscogee Nation of Creek Indians has fought expansion of the casino.
ALASKA Fairbanks:
The 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment will travel down the Richardson Highway on its way to a training exercise at Eielson Air Force Base. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that about 120 vehicles will be on the road today.
ARIZONA Phoenix:
Maricopa County election officials say the wrong date was printed on Spanish-language mailings containing new voter registration cards. County Recorder Helen Purcell said officials found nearly 50 cards had an incorrect date.
ARKANSAS Texarkana:
At 13 feet, 3 inches and nearly 1,400 pounds, the bull alligator Mike Cottingham and his crew captured in September in the lost lakes area below the dam at Millwood Lake is the largest alligator ever harvested in the state.
CALIFORNIA San Francisco:
The federal government has ended a 433year-old historical controversy by declaring that English explorer Sir Francis Drake came ashore in the San Francisco Bay area when he claimed California for England. Some scholars claim Drake landed in other locations. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar designated the Drake site as Point Reyes in Marin County, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
COLORADO Denver:
Staff at the Denver Zoo used “mouth to snout rescue breaths” to save the life of a newborn Malayan tapir. The Denver Post reported that the mother, Rinny, was having trouble giving birth and a staffer freed the newborn. A staff member then breathed into the calf ’s snout and helped it get liquid out of its lungs. The zoo says Rinny and the baby tapir, named Dumadi, are doing fine.
CONNECTICUT Hartford:
Police are trying to find vandals who overturned nearly 40 gravestones at a Jewish Cemetery. Police say the headstones at the Congregation Ados Beth Israel Cemetery were damaged sometime between Oct. 12 -19. The cemetery superintendent told police there was more than $20,000 in damage.
DELAWARE Wilmington:
The Delaware Symphony Orchestra’s management reached a short-term contract with its musicians’ union to hold three classical series concerts, tentatively set to begin in January. The scaledback season is part of a restructuring to save the 100-year-old symphony.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
The University of the District of Columbia has agreed to pay the U.S. government $530,000 to resolve allegations that the school submitted false claims for funding from a National Science Foundation grant. The grant was awarded in 2004 to establish a science and technology program. UDC did not admit guilt as part of the settlement.
FLORIDA Tallahassee:
The state Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported a strong year for loggerhead sea turtle nesting. Researchers surveyed 250 miles of beaches and counted 58,172 loggerhead nests. Nesting on the same beaches peaked in 1998 with 59,918; the low was 28,074 nests in 2007.
GEORGIA Atlanta:
Georgia State University has received a $4.8 million federal grant for a project meant to improve the lives of the families of people who receive substance abuse treatment through the DeKalb County Drug Court.
HAWAII Honolulu:
The Honolulu Police Department is investigating a report that two boys, 12 and 14 years of age, were burned and beaten at an Army base in Wahiawa. Hawaii News
Now says the families of the boys say the assault occurred on military property at Schofield Barracks. The Army says it is looking into the report.
IDAHO Moscow:
The Latah County Zoning Commission has approved a permit for an ammunition maker to build an outdoor firing range after determining the county can’t impose stricter noise limits than Idaho code. The commission approved the project by PNW Arms despite concerns from neighbors about noise. PNW Arms said the range will be built next year.
ILLINOIS Chicago:
The South Side neighborhood of Auburn Gresham is the tenth Bungalow Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The designation means properties are eligible for an eight-year property tax freeze if they make renovations equal to 25% of the homes’ market value.
INDIANA Liberty:
A growing population of Canada geese at Whitewater Memorial State Park means a goose-reduction hunt will be held. The growing numbers of geese threaten the park’s ecosystem and potentially the safety of park patrons, says the Department of Natural Resources. The number of hunts and dates are still to be determined.
IOWA Iowa
City: An antibiotic resistant “superbug ” has been found by University of Iowa researchers in area wildlife. The potentially deadly bacterial strain MRSA was found in two rabbits and a migrating bird in a study led by the university’s Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases.
KANSAS Wichita:
A graduated driver’s license law that went into effect in January 2010 helped sharply reduce the number of accidents involving teen drivers. Kansas Department of Transportation records show the number of accidents involving drivers ages 14-16 fell from more than 5,000 in 2004 to less than 3,000 last year.
KENTUCKY Lexington:
Domestic violence victims in Fayette County can now seek assistance from a central location where they can file emergency petitions, talk to authorities and connect with community resources. Amanda’s Center is named after Amanda Ross, who was gunned down by her fiancé, Steve Nunn, in 2009.
LOUISIANA Baton Rouge:
The nine schools managed by the state-run Recovery School District have lost more than 850 students compared with a year ago, according to preliminary enrollment numbers. Istrouma High and Crest worth Middle suffered the biggest declines, 289 and 197 students respectively.
MAINE Waterville:
The largest solar power panel system in the state is going up at Thomas College. The 700 panels, measuring 12,600 square feet, are scheduled to be installed on the school's Alfond Athletic Center this week. College officials say the 170kilowatt array is expected to generate 11% of the college’s energy needs and pay for itself in 15 years.
MARYLAND Baltimore:
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is grappling with a deficit of at least $750,000 in the last fiscal year after four years of balanced budgets. To avoid further deficits, the administrative staff plans a one-week furlough at year’s end.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston:
A joey has started peeking out of its mama's pouch at Franklin Park Zoo, and officials say the baby red kangaroo is ready for visitors. The unnamed joey was born about six months ago, but its gender still isn’t known.
MICHIGAN Lansing:
A virus spread by a biting fly has killed 8,671 deer in the state this year, according to the Department of Natural Resources, causing some hunters to skip the season and dealing a blow to shops that sell hunting gear. The disease is not a threat to humans.
MINNESOTA Two Harbors:
Outdoor-gear company Granite Gear is expanding its operations near its headquarters, in part because of military contracts that have increased demand for its rugged products.
MISSISSIPPI Jackson:
The state Supreme Court will hear arguments Dec. 3 in Texaco’s appeal of a $19 million verdict for five women who claim the company is responsible for their children born with disabilities and illnesses. The women say they were exposed to leaded gasoline fumes.
MISSOURI Independence:
Some officials want to permantly ground glowing sky lanterns. The lanterns are made of thin paper with a candle or other heat source inside. They generally stay airborne for about a halfhour. Fire Chief Sandy Schiess called them dangerous balls of flame that can’t be controlled.
MONTANA Shawmut:
Goldwind Global held an official groundbreaking for a wind farm where 14 turbines are being erected and should start producing power by year’s end. The turbines are divided into two projects, which are planned to produce enough electricity for 5,000 homes.
NEBRASKA Lincoln:
The University of Nebraska will host an international human rights conference Nov. 1-2.
NEVADA Reno:
The Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority board has approved a new administrative building at the Reno- Stead airport north of the Truckee Meadows, the Reno GazetteJournal reports. Plans will be drawn up with the cost not to exceed $6 million for a 12,000-square-foot building.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Durham:
The University of New Hampshire has shut down an athletic field with artificial turf because of high lead levels. University officials say Memorial Field was shut down Saturday after the school was advised that measurable lead levels has been detected in dust samples from the field. The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services said the lead levels are’t a high risk to adults, but children 6 and under should keep off the field.
NEW JERSEY Woodland Park:
Amtrak says a squirrel that came in contact with a circuit breaker caused delays on Oct. 4 for thousands of commuters on nearly 100 NJ Transit and 30 Amtrak trains. The damaged breaker caused an electrical transformer to trip and a signal that guides engineers to go dark.
NEW MEXICO Albuquerque:
Calibers Shooters Sports Complex canceled a planned two-day statewide contest to see who could kill the most coyotes. General manager Will Hogsett said his shooting range and gun store had gotten too much hate mail. Coyotes, not protected under state law, are a bane to ranchers, who say they prey heavily on livestock.
NEW YORK Stillwater:
The Daughters of the American Revolution dedicated a marker to Horatio Gates, who lies somewhere in the graveyard at historic Trinity Church. Gates led the American army that defeated the British at Saratoga in 1777, the turning point of the Revolutionary War.
NORTH CAROLINA Raleigh:
Gov. Perdue, a Democrat, shifted $20 million in funds to accommodate up to 6,300 more youngsters in the state’s pre-kindergarten academic enrichment program. A state appeals court had ruled that any at-risk 4-year-old whose parents seek admission to the program must be admitted. Republican lawmakers cut funding by 20% and said they wanted to appeal.
NORTH DAKOTA Grand Forks:
Children of Grand Forks Air Force Base airmen got a glimpse of what their parents go through before they’re deployed. The base held a “family deployment line” event. More than 100 children ages 3 to 16 got dog tags, a passport and physical tests. They got candy and Jell- O to simulate vaccinations.
OHIO Dayton:
Goodwill Easter Seals Miami Valley has bought the final piece of real estate it needs to launch construction of an $11 million, 80,000square-foot human services center near downtown. The charity plans to move 125 employees from its current location into the center, and add 50 more jobs over five years.
OKLAHOMA Oklahoma
City: An exhibit examining the history and significance of state writers will open Thursday at the History Center. Over the next two years, the center will rotate artifacts and hold lectures about writers including novelist Edna Ferber, who wrote Cimarron in 1929, and John Steinbeck, who wrote The Grapes of Wrath in 1939.
OREGON Redmond:
Crystal Ann Strobl, 35, a biologist with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, was killed on Highway 126 when her motorcycle hit the rear tire of another motorcycle that was slowing down ahead of hers.
PENNSYLVANIA State College:
The union representing faculty at 14 stateowned universities will seek strike authorization from its 6,000 members. The Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties says a vote will be held on each college campus in November.
RHODE ISLAND Warwick:
Family members and friends of the 100 people who died in the 2003 Station Nightclub fire gathered Satruday with firefighters, police and dignitaries for the unveiling of a memorial plaque to the dead, injured and first-responders. The black granite plaque is a satellite memorial to the fire at a roadhouse nightclub in West Warwick. Longdelayed plans for a memorial at the fire site are now underway, the Providence Journal reported.
SOUTH CAROLINA Moncks Corner:
State-owned utility Santee Cooper will retire four coal-powered and two oil-powered generating units at the Jefferies Generating Station here and the Grainger Generating Station in Conway. The decision was made after considering the cost of complying with more stringent regulations.
TENNESSEE Nashville:
The Goo Goo Cluster is celebrating its 100th year. The milk chocolate, caramel, peanut and marshmallow nougat treat, possibly the first combination candy bar, was created here in October 1912 by Howell Campbell. The cluster is made today by Standard Functional Foods Group.
TEXAS Dallas:
Big Tex, the iconic 52-foot metal cowboy that greeted State Fair visitors for 60 years , went up in flames Friday. The fair closed Sunday, and the cause of the fire hasn’t been determined. Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings tweeted that Big Tex will return next year “bigger and better for the 21st century.”
UTAH Provo:
Mayor John Curtis is backing a man billed for an impound fee charged by a towing company after his car was stolen. After police located Brent Blackwood’s car , it was towed to an impound lot. Blackwood got a $175 impound fee, plus $25 for each day the car was held. “I don’t think that’s really fair, because I’m not the one who parked it there,” Blackwood said. Michael Lamont of University Parking Enforcement said the company was following its policy.
VERMONT Pownal:
The Pownal School District board is considering putting cameras inside and outside of school buses to deter bullying and to identify vehicles that fail to stop for the buses. The district board has included $10,000 in the current budget to buy cameras to be mounted inside its four regular buses, the Bennington Banner reported.
VIRGINIA Arlington:
The Arlington County Board will hold a hearing in November on whether to add 65 cabs, including the Electronic Vehicle Taxicab fleet. EV Taxicab would have 40 Nissan Leaf cabs equipped with iPads in the backseats to allow riders to browse the Internet.
WASHINGTON Yakima:
A federal grand jury indicted businessman Jason Jordan, alleging he sold thousands of counterfeit airbags online that were smuggled from China.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston:
Development of a Fayette County site for the Boy Scouts of America’s 2013 National Jamboree, where more than 40,000 scouts will be next summer, has meant more than $50 million spent on wages and material. Local businesses such as hotels have seen a $1 million boost to the economy. The 10,600-acre site will feature zip lines and hiking and biking paths.
WISCONSIN Platteville:
The University of Wisconsin campus here will allow people to visit a re-created murder scene. This year’s case involved the annual exhibit “Horrific Crime Scene Revisited,” which is being kept secret until the event starts Oct. 30.
WYOMING Laramie:
A team of University of Wyoming researchers will use the new NCAR supercomputer near Cheyenne to map the hydrology of the Colorado River Basin.