t
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V
SUNDAY, MAY 9
vy nil i c ijvi'rt iu"'-fL
N ' y (USPS C9j-3S0)Lj
.... ' '" i I 1 -
Words Of Wisdom .
Nothing b particularly hard If yon. divide ft
Into, small Job.
yr;;- nearyford
Oar grand business b not to sec what fie'
dimly at a distance, bat what Bes dearly at(
hand. '
Carfyfe.
VOLUME 60 - NUMBER 18j
i DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA T SATURDAY, MAY 8. 1332'
TELEPHONE (919) 682-29T3
Officials, Citizen Clash Over Itaseb,
Utilities Commission Referee
V4 - , , 5-f
1
v -I
' By Donald Alderman argue tts case. Coalition, one ot tive-
Durham's boiling con- For example, lawyers, plaintiffs in the. suit filed!
troversy over bus service, representing the Durham , against ; Duke Power?
. swings between being a Citizens Roundtable Company and the city1
; hen and egg - question, ,
and a hot potato. - -On
the one hand, peo
ple, who told the N.C. ,
Utilities Commission' in ;
;; hearings last weeki that t
Duke Power ; should ;
restore Durham's bus,?
service to 1973 levels,
argue hat service cuts
and .. poor .marketing,,
created the company's
escalating losses,' 1 v
. Duke Power oa the
other hand contends, in
justifying its decisions to ;
cut service, that decreas
ed bus , use ' create
substantial losses in
'..'revenue, making the ser-
vice ? reduction,
unavoidable.
Since both , sides uset .
almost the ; . - same -
' documents to support
their contentions, it's not
. really clear which came
first: decreased ridership
or reduced services.
But then the issue is a
' real hot potato because,
Duke Power contends
, that the company can't-make-a
'profit; with the. 1
system, and must con
tent itself with trying to
, cut 5' losses. , hrankly,
Duke Power wants the
. iu iac .tins
' rsn if
1 1
' " !
& ;,' 1 1
after the council honored;
; the company's request to
end night J?uf service1
Februarjrl5, argue thatr
fttnnanu
systematically . - reduced '
service . which - caused;
reduced ' ' ridership
thereby aiding the com
i pany's argument that the;
service is not being used
and aiding the company
in not " providing ade
quate transit sefvice. v
On the other hand,
Duke attorneys argue
that losses caused partly
by low ridership prompt
"service cuts.
rr Irrespective of the dif
ferent views the service
and ridership :v have
declined. ,
Between ' 1968 and
1978, total ridership (in
cluding charter service)
decreased 42 per cent,
from ' 3,546,538 to
2,067,799; hours of ser
(Continued on Page 4)
I..
Authors Honored
r ;Sla area authors were honored last week during a
' reception given by the Durham County library
Association recently. The reception was scheduled
by the library group to give the authors an oppor
tunity to introduce themselves and explain their
works.
1 ( Pictured here (L-R standing) are: Lee Green, Ms.
Amanda Smith, Mrs. Doris Haynes, authors; and
Dr. Benjamin Speller, acting chairman of the
DCLA program committee.
Seated (L-R) are: Mrs. Norma Royal, outgoing
president of the library association; Mrs. Jane B.
Wilson, David Guy and Ms. Linda Chandler,
aumors. n,
, fttt
VII. T ' tv Lau v i
albatross from around
our necks"." , -;
r: But city officials simp-r
ly ignore suggestions that
BRIAN
Wanted: Black Parents
With Lots of Love
To Adopt A Child
Bass Elected Vice President RJR Industries
WINSTON-SALEM
Marshall B. Bass has
been elected vice presi
dent of R.J.' Reynolds
Industries, Inc. " - "
; The announcement
was made "by , R.J.
Reynolds Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer,
'Brian,
-;. Bass joined the per
sonnel department of
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco
Company in 1968 as
director of personnel'
development With' the
formation R.J. Reynolds
Industries in '1970, he
moved to the position of
nils last names' confidential Is'tWs- ' raui r.agSS,
nim.1 . ' I. i r.. ji
t -"v''rass'; transit in-uymam . .. ;
' VS!nnM; Brian can perform many self-help tasks. He can
SS SSS2.nS: dress, feed and bathe himself. Brian attends special
to want the headache of
and
rising transit costs
increased demand.
So the matter is now at
an impasse, with Duke
Power and the city lined
up on One side sup
porting service cuts
and a coalition of local
community organiza-
lions lined up on the'
other supporting in
creased bus service. .
Now the decision has
to be made by the N.C.
Utilities Commission
that held two days of
hearings in Durham on
the issue, and wrapped
up .last Wednesday in
Raleigh. '
And so, though the
current controversy was
sparked
Power eliminated night
bus service, the issues are
much deeper, and the
problems more complex.
They go back a long
way. ;" ; '
Since 1973, when
Duke Power Company,
which owns the, local bus
system, renewed if s con-,
tract with the City of
Durham jo provide, tran
sit service, the service has
been Cut almost to a bare
f classes in a local school. In addition to class studies,
corporate
development
continue to serve as
secretary of the public
policy'committee of the
company's board of
directors." i ,
he is being taught basic sign language to aid with ,
communication. He has a speech impediment which
sometimes makes it difficult for him to be
understood. He enjoys art, music and strenuous
outdoor play such as baseball, running and climb
ing; His latest accomplishments iwve included
writing his name and identifying numbers. His
overall independence will depend largely on extend
ed family support and encouragement. He needs a .
family who wijl love and understand him and com
mit themselves to helping him achieve his maximum
potential. , V t -
Brian is one of three children in Durham County
who have been cleared and are waiting now for
adoption; Across the state the figure is 3,420 black
youngsters.
Generally speaking, black youngsters are harder',
to be placed for adoption than white youngsters;
harder, both because they are black and because
they are older, or for other reasons.
This entire issue of adopting black youngsters
niroversy was wij be tne subject of a two-day conference session
wnen uuKe , o..n g rxv rhru mi c AicfnM
ai.ivuaawii iTAviitviiai viti viiuivii, i uj nuivu
Avenue. Thej workshop is scheduled to begin Fri
day, May 14,'at 7 p.m., and run through Saturday,
i The conference, pegged, "One Church-One
Child Black Adoptions; Revving Up-Reaching
Out V, is sponsored by the Triangle Chapter of the
National Association of Black Social Workers. All
sessions are free and open to the public. '
Father, George Clements, pastor of Chicago's
Hojy Angels Catholic Church, who became na
tionally famous when he adopted a 12-year-old son
to dramatize the problem of black youngsters who
are hard to adopt, will be the principal speaker.
Clements, 49, who also operates the nation's
minimum, citizens nave southside Chicago church, brings his 4,one church,
protested, each cut,, , but one chld mcssage t0 Durham.
to almost no avail. . Clements, in his national campaign to find
, j j c uCjtSi uC ,n" families for hard to adopt black youngsters, says
eluded schedule changes, that if n-biaick church in the nation will urge at
route reductions and jeast one family in it's congregation to adopt a
elimination bf hojiday, child, some 100,000 black youngsters would find
aunuay anu iciiiwiai y nomes - : , v- , , ,1
night bus service, Irt fact ,- Following a 4 p.m. press conference, Clements
a company transit of- ipcak at a Community Forum at the Russell '?
ficial testified in hearings Memorial Church. His topic wUl be the "Church,
last Friday before the and tne FamijyM, . ,
utilities commission that 0n Saturday morning, Clements will keynote the j
since 1973, the company ooenjn session at 9 a.m. and also conduct one of
has been betore tne tne tw0 concurrent workshops on the program. His i of Seagram employees.
Durham - City Council worksnop wiU , bc entitled, "The Church 'il Since the, program'
about forty times re-1 Resource and Advocate''. The second worksnop is i inception in 1 961 , ove
personnel responsible for federal
and will .contract compliance pro
grams,, equal .employ
ment, opportunity and
policies, pertaining'' to
training, promotion and
evaluations of perfor-
mance.
Bass' joined R.J.
Reynolds Tobacco Com
pany after a 23-year
military career during
which he rose . to the ,
grade of lieutenant col
onel. Bass is a graduate of
the University of
Letters from St.
Augustine's College, and.
in 1982, he was awarded
a third Doctor . of
Humane Letters from
Livingstone College,
Salisbury;
Bass is a member of
uic- university v , - , . j.
s' . . .. i . . . thi hnarrt of directors Of
power Development
Corporation and Pied
mont Federal Savings
and Loan Association,
, and is a trustee of North
BASS
several honorary doc-.
torates. In 1977, Bass
received a Doctor of
Humane Letters degree
from King ' Memorial
College, Columbia, S.C.
In 1981, he was awarded
a Doctor of Humane
Carolina
University.
A&T State
lpiGroyf .or Not To Grow Is the Question,
Good Public Transportation Is the Issue
' i ; -' - " Analysis
questing changes
Documents, many
a
Documents, many oi workshop will cover things to look for when placing
them letters from .Duke a chid m an adoptive home, as well as things not to i
officials, that were in- be overly concerned about. Each workshop is alsoi
troduced as evidencejn scheduled for afternoon sessions. ,
the hearing, suggest that 5-Basically, according to Ms. Gloria Hawkins, a.:
over the last ten years, member of the sponsoring Organization and a i
ridership has decreased, chapel Hill social worker, the program will address;
losses ; have mounted, the entrc xssuiS 0f ad0ption. Participants, for exam- a
service i . hasj , f becn piC wju iernt not only how serious the problem is ''
;; significantly reduced and concerning the placement of black youngsters, but':
little marketing or pro- as0 jearn now t0 g0 about becoming an adop- :
. motion efforts were, in-tjve fjunjw -
rtiated. , ' ' ; The Triangle Chapter of the National Associa-
.The effect of one or tion of Biack Social Workers is a ten-year-old,;
the other is hard to pin-. organization, composed mostly of social workers,
point because each side Dut open to all human rights professionals and ad-
uses the same evidence to vocates. ,
entitled, "Placement Issues and Concerns". This
By Milton Jordan
Across the nation, urban experts say that effec
tive, efficient mass transit plays a major role in ur
ban revitalization and growth.
,, Durham's urban experts apparently disagree.
This disagreement appears to contradict much of
the current discussion among local municipal of-,
ficials and urban planners about Durham's bright
future as a renewed, vibrant urban center.
On the one hand, city officials, especially elected
officials, talk glowingly about "moving Durham
off dead center", and passionately urge citizens to
"invest in the city's future".
' On the other hand, these same officials allowed
Duke Power Company to eliminate nighttime bus
service in Durham, continuing a, pattern of service
reductions that has plagued Durham since 1973.
This pattern features Duke Power complaining that
providing good bus service is too costly and im
provements are out of the question. But, Duke
Power; also provides the city's electrical services.
That is apparently too lucrative to sacrifice. So the
compromise is to cut bus service. .
Duke Power, a public utility, owns two municipal
bus systems Durham and Greensboro r giving
those cities ; the only privately Owned public
transportation systems in the state. All others are
municipally owned and operated as a public service.
In Durham, bus service is tied to electrical power
and contracted to Duke Power under two franchise
agreements. ,
In the past, Duke Power has tried to give the
system to the city, but city officials have ignored the
offer. Thus Durhamites are caught in a type of ur
ban Catch-22. The city won't provide mass transit,
and it won't make Duke Power do a better job.
The contradiction is blatant.
' For example, to sell the idea that Durham citizens
should support a $10.5 million bond proposal to
build a downtown civic center as a magnet to attract
more inner city development, city officials point to
Charlotte, In the Queen City, officials say their
civic center did in fact have a major impact on spur
ring downtown growth, but they say something else ,
..as well.'.M::'Vvv-V' ;: ' y,:- ,v :v ,: v- :
"This city would definitely be less of what it is to
day without our transportation system,'.' says Mead
Telfair, a transportation marketing specialist with
retired Seagram . Charlotte's Transit Department, "and an ag-
employees and in the top .grcssive marketing program is absolutely essen ial
to a viab' ; transportation system.'
; The vontradiction could be costly. . ,
r' "To really analyze the value of a viable transit
system, you have to consider what would happen if
you didn't have it," explained Doug Sharer, the Ur
ban Frosram Manager with the N.C. Department
Applications ' vv are', pf Transportation. "And when you factor in,,f for
reviewed by the Seagram ; example, parking lots that you don't have to build,
(Continued On Page 4) streets jrou don't have to widen and people. who'
Seagram
Announces
1982 Scholars
NEW YORK
Joseph E. Seagram &
Sons, Inc., has announc
ed the 1982 recipients of
i its annual scholarship
awards. Two New York
residents, Justin and
Richard DeJean, twins,
are among the 12
students receiving . full,
four-year, scholarships.
; The Seagram Scholar
ship, covers tuition and
academic fees at the col
lege of the recipient's
choice in the U.S. or
Canada. The DeJean
."twins haye been accepted
by Columbia University
in New York, Both plan
I to v pursue .engineering
I careers'. , ' -
I After receiving more
1 than 75 applications, the
Seagram Scholarship
Committee, comprised
of v four ; academic
representatives, selected
the DeJean fwins in addi
tion to 10 other children
s
over
100. students have been
awarded scholarships
and attended 80 different
colleges. 1
To be eligible ap
plicants y. must be the
children of present or
half of their graduating
class. Mrs. Colette De
Jean, mother of the
twins, is a keypunch
operator at Seagram in
New York. .
would be immobile without the bus system, you
begin to see that it is worth more to the city than it
costs."
The contradiction could deal a death blow to
Durham's proposals for growth and development.
Former New York Mayor, John Lindsay, writing
in a late 1981 issue of USA Today, said simply: ". .
. .a decent transit system is basic to urban economic
growth and to public safety."
. In Detroit, where he has presided over a massive
revitalization effort, Mayor Coleman Young echoes
a similar sentiment.
"... .accessibility to and within this urban area
always has been essential, and now, new transit
studies and agreements with suburban governmen
tal units have finally produced a mass transit system
plan that will assure convenient, inexpensive and ef
ficient public transportation plus a direct road to
our economic revitalization."
And DOT's Sharer says: "When you look at
Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Raleigh, other ma
jor urban centers, you can easily see that an effi
cient and effective public transit system is a vital
part of the city's growth and development."
But just because the current contradictions could
be expensive, and create major headaches for
Durham, one should not infer that getting and
operating the bus system would be easy or inexpen
sive. - V.'. V V '. "'.' "'. A .t V
By 1984, there will be no federal money to sub
sidize public transit systems. Local transit systems
will need increased revenues, either increased fares,
or more tax subsidy just to maintain levels of ser
vices that determine if a system is viable:
The key words are "effective" and "efficient".
According to Sharer, "effective" refers to just how
much service a transit system offers per dollar. Effi
cient refers to how many riders actually get on the
bus. :.- :v.
By those standards, Durham falls far short of
comparable urban areas in providing bus services.
For example, during peak hours, according to data
compiled for a twelve month period ending
September, 1981, Durham has 22 'buses on the
streets. Other major urban areas have twice to four
times, as many.. Durham's buses ran about 958,000
route miles, while buses in Charlotte ran about 3.8
million route miles. In Raleigh and Winston-Salem,
buses ran 1.5 million and 1.6 million route miles,
respectively.
But the fact that Durham Has a poor bus system
gets almost no argument from anyone. Neither is it
seriously argued that Duke Power does not market
the local system, does not, in other words, try to get
more riders.
No, the real question is can Durham ever become
a major urban center without ' a good transi
system'? v - . j ti
. Across the nation, experts say no.
In Durham, city officials, say, in effect!, "We
hope so." I '
Itseems that only time wQl tell who Is. right. . '