The Californian from Salinas, California • 15

111115 iiiiwti fell immi 'iwiiwyiitiiiii liliiliiimnnXnli to New chancellor: France A.Cordova is the new chancellor at UC Riverside2C WEDNESDAY April 10 2002 Californian www.californianonline.com MICHELLE MAITRE, ASSISTANT CITY EDITOR Phone: 754-4279; Fax: 754-4293; E-mail: mmaitresalinas.gannett.com Datelines Compiled from staff reports Settlemeimt eimds Mas suaihl MOSS LANDING Judge finds Duke lawsuit valid PROBATION ADMINISTRATOR WINS $175,000 A Monterey County Supe 'It was both parties' mutual desire to avoid going to trial, but neither party is admitting liability or anything like Adrienne Grover Monterey County counsel What's next Attorneys for Monterey County and county probation employee Margaret Mudd will negotiate Mudd's attorney's fees in a gender-bias lawsuit. rior Court judge has refused to throw out an environmental lawsuit over the refurbished Moss Landing power plant Judge Richard Silver rejected arguments by the state Water Resources Con She accused her ex-Monterey County boss of discrimination bation Department $175,000 to settle a gender-bias lawsuit. The settlement, in which in the county may face paying more than $200,000 in fees to the plaintiff's attorney, was approved Tuesday by the' Board of Supervisors. Assistant Probation Officer Margaret Mudd accused her former boss, now-retired probation chief Vince Lostetter, of discrimination, harassment and retaliation. County Counsel Adri-enne Grover said, "It was both parties' mutual desire to avoid going to trial, but neither party is admitting liability or anything like that." The settlement came two weeks after the judge in the civil suit rejected a county motion to block a trial.

"They agreed to pay what she asked for, and they agreed to pay attorney's fees," Mudd's attorney Michael Stamp said. "She's trol Board and Duke Energy tion and, possibly, binding arbitration. Stamp hasn't submitted a bill, but Grover said attorney's fees often "significantly exceed" settlement amounts in this type of case. very proud to be working in the department under the current management and looks forward to don-tinuing." Under the settlement, the issue of attorney's fees will be subject to media "Everyone on both sides is glad this is over, and we can put it behind us and move forward," said Mudd, who was promoted to her current position by Probation Chief Duane Tanner. By Larry Parsons The Californian Monterey County will pay the top-ranked woman administrator in the Pro FT" County changes housing statute Affects rules for low-income residences j- 1 1 1 Corp.

in a ruling sought by the group Voices of the Wetlands. The group contends that state and regional water boards failed to require Duke Energy to install state-of-the-art cooling equipment that would protect wildlife in Elkhorn Slough and Monterey Bay. CARMEL Incumbents keep seats on council Sue McCloud was reelected Carmel mayor Tuesday in a municipal election that also saw two City Council incumbents retain their seats. According to semifinal results released by the Monterey County Elections Department, McCloud received 60 percent of the vote to defeat challenger Barbara Livingston, a three-term councilwoman. Incumbent councilmem-bers Paula Hazdovac and Gerard Rose won re-election with 30 percent and 28 percent of the vote, respectively.

They defeated challengers Jim Wright and Ken White, a former four-term By Larry Parsons The Californian- Monterey County supervisors Tuesday approved changes in the county's affordable-housing law, but said they want the program to be flexible for innovative housing ideas. On a 4-0 vote, with Supervisor Dave Potter absent, the supervisors OK'd several changes to the 22 -year-old "inclusionary housing" law that requires developers to. help provide low-cost housing. Among the changes: increasing "in lieu" fees that developers may pay instead of building at least 15 percent low-cost units. Pacific Grove land-use lawyer Jane Haines, calling inclusionary housing "an outdated concept," urged the county to allow devel Carmel mayor who received Death March survivors recall horrors on 60th anniversary By J.

Michael Rivera The Californian MONTEREY In June 1941, two Salinas natives neighbors who grew up on Natividad Road joined 105 other members of the Salinas-based 194th Tank Company for what was supposed to be a five-month tour of duty in the Philippines. William Braye and Frank Muther, both 82, have done a lot together since then, but their experience on that long-ago tour of duty eclipses all others. The tour turned into a 3 12 -year ordeal in battlefields and prison camps in Bataan, the Philippines, during World War II. Only 47 of the company's original members would return. "It was the greatest defeat in American history," Muther said of the battles and resultant capture of American troops by Japanese on April 10, 1942.

Braye, Muther and more than 40 other members of the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor have come to the Monterey Peninsula to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the surrender of U.S. and Philippine troops to the Imperial Japanese Army. The reunion at the Casa Munras Hotel in Monterey is an opportunity for the veterans, who come from seven different western states, to reminisce and fey RICHARD GREENTHECALIFORNlAN Roy Diaz, left, talks with Monterey Mayor Dan Albert Tuesday in Monterey during a reunion of Bataan Death March survivors. Second from right is former Salinas resident William Braye. Next to him is Frank Muther.

Diaz, Braye and Muther all survived the Death March after the Philippines fell to Japan during World War II. Route of Death March Cabanatuan 22 percent of the votes. SPRECKELS Sheriff hopefuls square off today Monterey County sheriff candidates Lonnie Heffing-ton and Mike Kanalakis will meet at a candidate's forum at 630 pan. today at the Spreckels Veterans Memorial Hall, Fifth and Llano avenues. The Deputy Sheriffs Association of Monterey County is sponsoring the forum.

Information: 758-8103. SALINAS Police dog bites suspect again What it means Today marks the 60th anniversary of the fall of Bataan, when 1 1,000 U.S. and 66,000 Filipino troops were captured by the Imperial Japanese Army. i Luzon Manila Bay Corregidor Cavite N.1 honor their fallen comrades. When the Japanese overran the Philippines, 70,000 soldiers were marched from their defensive positions to a prison camp 63 miles away.

The Bataan Death March had a devastating toll. About 10,000 soldiers died on the way, and others escaped to hide out in the dense jungles, where they fought the Japanese for three years. Braye and Muther became Japanese prison ers of war. Tuesday, Muther attended a luncheon at the Carmel American Legion Post 512. The luncheon included films and videos of their experiences.

Inhuman treatment If the 63-mile march wasn't torturous enough, the living conditions as a prisoner of war were even worse. "We only lost five in action during the march," Muther said. "The rest died in prison camps. A 1 VPl USA TODAY tA.rth r4 sea They were bayoneted, decapitated and starved to death." Scurvy, pneumonia, tuberculosis, dysentery See SURVIVORSPage 3C A 21-year-old Salinas man Area of sy detail tjV SOUTH COUNTY Council denies child center Nature Conservancy buys the Arroyo Seco Ranch Background Property was owned opers to go outside the rules if they can produce a large share of affordable units. County housing chief Jim Cook said the new rules would allow projects to be reviewed by the Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission on a case by case basis.

Juvenile justice On other issues, the supervisors received assurances about the county's safeguards against tuberculosis and personal testimonials from several teenagers in juvenile-justice programs. Officials from several programs that help troubled juveniles with everything from drug problems and gang tattoos to truancy and sports programs helped pack the supervisors' chambers. "It feels good to have some good news," said Chief Probation Officer Duane Tanner, outlining how the county's $1.3 million share of state juvenile crime-prevention money will be spent this year. Though the state reduced funds by $38,000, Tanner said the money would be more efficiently used because seven programs are being rolled into three. Receiving funds are the Rancho Natividad Youth Complex, Truancy Mediation Program and Rising Eagle Youth Services.

One girl, describing herself as "a 15 -year-old crack addict eight months ago," praised the juvenile drug court for turning her life around. The girl said she's See COUNTYPage 3C What's next County officials will prepare changes to the inclusionary housing ordinance and prepare a new program guidebook. The Arroyo Seco Ranch purchase is the first in Monterey County by The Nature Conservancy since the 1 970s and '80s, when it helped preserve Elkhorn Slough. by Mueller family of Carmel Highlands Staff report A conservation group has who was bitten by a police dog in December was bitten by the same dog again Monday after he fled from police. Salinas police said Justin Dodge ran from officers who were trying to detain him on suspicion of possessing a knife and drugs about 1050 pjn.

Police caught up with Dodge in the yard of a body shop on the 200 block of Merced Street and Dodge was arrested with the help of K9 officer Khe Dodge was treated for dog bites before being lodged in Monterey County JaiL Klief bit Dodge once before after he fled the scene of a fight, police said. SALINAS Demonstrators support Israel About 20 people demonstrated Tuesday in front of the U.S. Post Office on West Alisal Street to draw attention to the conflict in the Middle East Demonstrators held up signs supporting Israel's actions in the conflict and questioned President Bush's demand that Israeli forces pull out of Palestinian areas of the West Bank. paid $2.9 million to protect about 1,700 acres of ranch-land straddling the Arroyo Seco River west of recruiting and retaining police officers. The program could save the city money if it helps retain officers, said Salinas police Lt Gerry Lambert Lambert said training costs for one officer run about $41,000, money that's wasted when that officer leaves.

The department has seen high turnover, he said, sometimes because of high housing costs. approved the issuance of $3.2 million in bonds to help the National Steinbeck Center refinance $23 million in outstanding debt The bond issue requires payments totaling $192,600 a year. The legal arrangement is for the Steinbeck Center to pay that amount to the city as a lease payment and for the city to use that payment to make the bond payments of an equal amount If the center defaults on the agreement, the city could take possession of its landmark building at One Main Street In 1998, the Steinbeck Center took two loans totaling $2.5 million to complete construction of the $11 million building. That loan was originally due in June. "It's the fiscally responsible thing to do," Mayor Anna Caballero said.

Site was Laurel Heights park ByVinneeTong The Californian The Salinas City Council on Tuesday denied the lease of a portion of a city park to the developer of a child-care center but agreed to take steps to look for another suitable site. The council's unanimous vote came after more than 100 people packed the council rotunda for a public hearing on a proposed 10 -year lease agreement with the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation. Under the agreement, the foundation would have paid $1 per year to lease land in Cesar Chavez Park on Circle Drive. The foundation wanted to build at child-care center with space for 144 children on the land. Residents of the Laurel Heights neighborhood told the council they were against the proposal, citing concerns over traffic, crime and declining property values.

The council voted 7-0 to deny the lease agreement, but said it wanted to create a subcommittee to look for alternative sites because of the critical need for child- care centers, city attorney Jim Sanchez said. "(My neighbors) do not want to have the neighborhood devalued by extra traffic and extra crime," area resident Edward Kendall told the Council. MAOF President Martin Castro said his organization helps "prepare the children of farm-worker families for a brighter future. "The most critical service we bring is we are preparing children from low- to moderate-income families to succeed in school" Also Tuesday, the Council: unanimously agreed to a one-time expenditure of $500,000 from its general fund operating reserve for a new Police Residency Incentive Program. The program would provide low-income loans of up to $50,000 to police officers to help them buy homes in the city.

Officials said the new city program could end up saving the city some money, if it works. City Manager Dave Mora warned the program is risky. "What we're undertaking here is an experiment," Mora said. "By all honesty, I don't know if this will even work." He said no statistics were available to attest to the program's effectiveness in The Nature Conservancy purchased the land known as the Arroyo Seco Ranch or Mueller Ranch from Richard and Dianne Mueller of Carmel Highlands. They stepped to the Arroyo Seco River for about 2.5 miles and butts against the Ventana Wilderness in the Los Padres National Forest.

The sale was the first land protection deal for the Nature Conservancy's new Monterey Project, which was launched last year. "Arroyo Seco, like Elkhorn Slough, the Big Sur Coast and Monterey Bay, is one of the many natural treasures in Monterey County," said project director Bill Leahy. The ranch contains rare floodplain forest and provides good steelhead habitat in its river run, he said. It also includes two miles of Horse Canyon, an important tributary to the Arroyo Seco River. plate and bought it," said Lee Martin of Alain Pinel Realtors, who handled the sale for the Muellers.

"This property needed to be saved. It's wonderful property." In recent years, the ranch has been used for private recreation and leased for 0BITUARIES2C Phillip Eugene Poole Hawkins Rayann Ellis Locke cattle grazing, Martin said. ine rancn tronts tne II..