Also remember there's a special election on May 4 for the state representative District 47 seat vacated by Susan Combs. Still running for this unexpired term, to serve through the end of this year: Democrat John Lindell, and Republicans Kirk Ingels and Patty Keel, whose son, Terry Keel, beat Ingels in the GOP primary, and will face Lindell in the November general election. Mrs. Keel says she's running to keep the seat warm for her son, who can't vacate his post as sheriff of Travis County until his term ends next December. Early voting will continue through April 30. Call Travis County election division at 473-9553 for polling info.
Early voting -- for the AISD trustee board, the city council, and the Austin Community College board -- also continues through April 30. To find out which school, library, or recreation center near you is open for polling, call the city clerk's voter information line: 499-2210. (See "Page Two" for the Chronicle's endorsements.) -- A.D.
Fowler explains that in March, the PAC tried to hold a faculty association meeting to endorse candidates, but that of the 45 faculty who showed up (there are over 2,000 ACC faculty), there was no two-thirds majority vote to endorse anyone. But, he said, "we had to do something about the people who got the most votes. So, John [Herndon] put out the leaflet. We just couldn't call it an `endorsement'."
Naturally, the ad irks Place 1 candidate Norm Colbath, who was not endorsed. Colbath says the group intentionally uses the words "ACC faculty" in their ads to trick voters into thinking they represent the entire college faculty. "I feel those people have betrayed the very people they claim to represent," he says. "They used subterfuge and synonyms."
The ad distributed by the group reads, "ACC Faculty Political Committee Says: These Candidates are the Top of the Class!" The ad then lists the following candidates as "The Teachers' Choice": Place 1, Gary Bledsoe; Place 2, Bill Spelman; Place 3, Steven Dietz and Dr. Carol Nasworthy.
Place 1 candidate Lillian Davis remarked after an endorsement meeting with Chronicle editors this month that the ad did not represent all the ACC faculty, and that someone should look into it. Bledsoe responded that it was merely this group's "choice."
Asked if he thought using the term "ACC Faculty" on the ad was unfair, Fowler said, "No. But it's always going to be a confusing term, and always ends up being sort of misleading. But that's just politics." Fowler noted that the PAC will be dissolved after the election due in part to his being disheartened about the poor showing at the faculty endorsement meeting and the controversy the PAC incited. -- L.C.B.
The settlement talks started last Thursday when Freeport CEO Jim Bob Moffett flew to Washington, D.C. to meet with Harkin. The announcement came Friday afternoon. As part of the settlement, Freeport agreed to create a $100 million trust fund to finance environmental remediation at the mine. The settlement is a major win for Moffett, whose pay package last year included stock options and cash compensation worth more than $47 million. Moffett can now attend the company's April 30 stockholders meeting with the news that the company has settled the contentious dispute.
However, the move could also prove valuable for OPIC and environmentalists who have been critical of the mine. One source said that OPIC was spending some $200,000 per month on legal fees to deal with the arbitration issue, which could have dragged on for many more months. (Freeport's representative in the matter was former CIA director James Woolsey.) OPIC also can revisit the Freeport mine until the end of the year and investigate the environmental programs, a fact that could provide further ammunition to the company's critics.
Harkin expressed satisfaction with a report on the mine just released by Dames & Moore, an environmental consulting firm hired by Freeport. The company's environmental audit said that tailings from the mine were "non-toxic, but unsightly." Harkin added that she was particularly pleased with the change in Freeport's attitude, saying the company is "addressing themselves to a wide range of things that weren't discussed before."
Freeport spokesman Bill Collier said the company had no comment on the settlement. Harkin said she was pleased to have the matter resolved. "I thought the talks were very constructive and quite frankly, was very pleased with the outcome." -- R.B.
Inner city residents protested that the changes would dilute Austin's representation on the PAC. Raul Alvarez, representing the East Austin environmental coalition PODER, read a citation from a U.S. Dept. of Transportation publication stating that a major problem in many U.S. metropolitan planning organizations is over-representation of suburbs at the expense of urban centers. Roger Baker of the transportation activist group ROUTE noted that currently, Austin has only its mayor and two city councilmembers on the PAC, each representing about 150,000 people. "A body like the ATS that handles huge amounts of federal money should base its actions on the principle of one person, one vote," said Baker. The ATS will hold a public hearing on the proposed changes at its next meeting on May 13.
In other action, ATS head planner Mike Aulick recommended that the ATS postpone for another two years the funding of a center median for Koenig Lane, because the city has yet to provide money for right of way and utility relocation. State Representative Elliott Naishtat complained that the project has already been delayed three times since 1992, and he placed the blame on "lack of communication" between the city's Department of Public Works and Transportation and the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDoT). Naishtat echoed recent criticisms by State Rep. Glen Maxey that TXDoT moves quickly only on big highway projects.
Meanwhile, the mayors of West Lake Hills and Rollingwood led contingents of their communities' citizens to the ATS requesting money for a left turn lane on Bee Caves Road, in case the ATS frees up $6 million by postponing the Koenig Lane project. Several Austin residents suggested that Bee Caves Road would be better served by traffic calming to slow cars down, rather than a left-turn lane permitting faster speeds. Capital Metro representative Scott Polikov requested a presentation on traffic calming techniques at a future ATS meeting. The ATS will decide at its May 13 meeting whether to continue or postpone the Koenig Lane project funding. -- N.E.