News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida • Page 18

2B Fort Myers News-Press, Tuesday, June 12, 1979 Bulldozing vandals wreck course site Blackfly infestation is found MARK STEPHENS Collier Bureau Chief "1 -v i lira Department. According to Deputy Jeff Taylor, who answered the call, the contractors made a "conservative" damage estimate of $5,000. But Taylor said he does not have any clues as to who committed the vandalism. "I haven't got a thing on it," he said. "It was someone who can operate heavy equipment," Taylor said.

Maddox agreed. "They must have known what they were doing" because two safety switches have to be released to move the bulldozer, he said. "It obviously was not kids," Taylor said. But the contractors have not had any labor problems or firings at the site and there have not been any complaints by local residents in the area about the construction project, he said. Once the area is cleaned up, a new fence with barbed-wire topping will be installed, Maddox said.

And to make sure there are no more weekend surprises, a watchman will be hired to see that the fence keeps the vandals out and the bulldozers in. By CATHY REIMAN Newt-Pres Staff Writer When Bill Maddox returned to the construction site of a golf course Monday morning, he found not all was as he left it last week. Maddox, the contractor for the Fore Woods golf course on Island Park Boulevard, learned that a shed filled with tools and construction supplies was plowed over Saturday night by a bulldozer. The fence surrounding the half-acre construction site south of Fort Myers also was plowed down in many places. "It looks like we had a little excitement over the weekend," Maddox said Monday as he watched workers clean up the mess.

Cans, tools and crumpled fencing lay strewn about the site. The clean-up work began Sunday morning, Maddox said. By Monday afternoon, a new shed was moved in to replace the ruined one. Maddox said the vandalism occurred sometime after 9 p.m. Saturday and before 7 a.m.

Sunday, when a site superintendent arrived at the scene and reported the incident to the Lee County Sheriff's CONTRACTOR BILL MADDOX SURVEYS DAMAGE Ne Horper vandals destroyed property on golf course site with a bulldozer Commission to discuss finding building for medical examiner 3h Dateline: Southwest Florida Lehigh man injured in auto-truck wreck Finding a new place for Medical Examiner Dr. Wallace Graves to store his bodies is the top item on this week's Lee County Commission agenda. The meeting is being held on Tuesday instead of Wednesday because the commissioners are going to Fort Lauderdale Wednesday to attend a seminar on Impact fees. Those fees are equivalent to a growth tax charged to new residents of an area. Graves has been asking the commissioners to find him a new building to use as a morgue for the badly decomposed bodies on which he must occasionally perform an autopsy.

The commissioners are looking for a temporary shelter while they dicker with Graves about just how elaborate a facility he needs. In other activity, the commissioners are expected to: Decide the location for the Trailwinds sewage treatment facility. Consider what type of zoning would be appropriate for an area off Bayshore Road near Whetstone Road in North Fort Myers. Discuss the need for a fire sprinkler system at the Giant Warehouse Outlet in South Fort Myers. Riverdale principal to be chosen After a three-month search, school officials are ready to recommend a new principal for Riverdale High School, Assistant Superintendent Weaver Hipps said Monday.

Superintendent Ray Pottorf is expected to announce his choice for the top job at Riverdale during tonight's regular school board meeting, which begins at 7 in the School Services Building in Fort Myers. As of Monday, the list of applicants had been narrowed to four candidates, Hipps said. One of the educators being considered is from Fort Myers, and the three other leading applicants are from Sarasota, Michigan and Kissimmee. Jim Middlebrooks, principal at Riverdale since 1975, has been granted a year's leave of absence beginning June 22, when his contract expires. When he announced in March his intention to leave Riverdale, he said he wanted to spend more time with his family, with a day-care center operated by his wife, and working on a weekly newspaper in Dunbar called "The Peoples' Press." "This is a very difficult decision," said Hipps, referring to the choice for a new principal.

"I don't think I've ever seen the superintendent work so long and hard on appointing a new principal. We've been working nearly full time for the past two or three weeks on this thing." According to Hipps, school administrators who will make the decision are looking for an educator who is a leader, a disciplinarian, someone with a solid academic background and good judgment. "We want the perfect person for the job," he said. "And those people don't always come in looking for a job." BONITA SPRINGS Citrus blackflies have been found in another tree in southern Lee County, increasing the area of infestation around Bonita Springs. Laboratory confirmation came Monday that insects discovered Thursday in an orange tree about one quarter mile east of new U.S.

41 and the same distance south of the Imperial River are blackflies, according to Ben Harrell of the Florida Department of Agriculture. Harrell, who is in charge of the anti-blackfly spraying program in Bonita, said the new find, the first in more than two weeks, increases the area of infestation from about 2'i square miles to about three square miles. The Bonita outbreak is the farthest west in Florida blackflies have been found this year. The fly, which in its immature stages sucks the juices from citrus leaves, can cut fruit yields by up to 80 percent if uncontrolled and can eventually kill the plants. Thursday's discovery was made as pest control specialists distributed the last of a shipment of insect parasites along the edge of the infestation areas.

The parasites lay eggs inside the immature blackfly bodies. When the parasites hatch, they live off the blackfly, preventing it from maturing and reproducing. The find means more painstaking spraying for the four crews operating full time dousing Bonita's citrus, mango and surian cherry trees with Orthene, a biodegrade-able insecticide. So far, no groves of commercial size (10 acres or larger) have been affected by the infestation, which has been endemic on the Florida East Coast for several years. Water plant chief denies charges By KEN PAULSON Cape Coral Bureau Chief Cape Coral's superintendent of water production and chief plant operator Monday denied allegations of mismanagement at the city's water treatment plants.

At a hearing before a city council committee appointed to investigate charges made by former utilities department employee John Nowak, superintendent Jerry Marshall and chief operator John Boardman said they knew of no improprieties at the plant. In a letter to Mayor Lyman Moore dated May 14, Nowak alleged that the plants had been mismanaged and the water quality was questionable. "The water quality we're putting out is good," Boardman said. "The one time they found contaminated water, it was just the possibility of it because they couldn't (be certain)." Samples of Cape drinking water taken in March were discovered to contain unusually high levels of bacteria. At that time, the utilities department instituted several remedies suggested by the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation and the bacteria vanished.

Boardman said there was no truth to Nowak's charges of mismanagement and that changes in operators' schedules were designed to provide better training, not to harass mp loyees Committee member Tony Rotino asked Boardman if he had ever asked other operators to help him repair a pump used in his outside work at Orange Harbor Estates. "One guy had a look at it with me, but I did not have him repair it," Boardman said. Rotino criticized the use of city premises for the repair and cautioned, "I wouldn't like to see it happen again." Marshall confirmed Nowak's allegations that he had fired operators who were later reinstated. "Do you have the authority to fire?" Marshall was asked. "I found out I don't," Marshall said.

Marshall said the water plants comply with all applicable government regulations, except the requirement that each shift have a licensed operator. "I don't think anyone in the state of Florida is (complying with the requirement), except possibly on the East Coast," Marshall said. Marshall said Cape salary offers have been inadequate to draw a sufficient number of qualified operators. Marshall said past personnel problems at the plants have been caused by those who are reluctant to work. "We try to treat all of them the same.

Some of them will work and some of them won't," Marshall said. "When you get on them, they start complaining. First thing they do is start running to higher-ups," Marshall said. Sanibel planners hear proposals, approve permit for subdivision A Lehigh Acres man was injured Monday when his car struck a semi tractor-trailer after he failed to stop for a traffic light, according to the Lee County Sheriff's Department. Loe San, 51, of 1111 Homestead Road, Lehigh Acres, was reportedly traveling south on State Road 45 when he failed to stop for a traffic light and struck an eastbound tractor-trailer traveling on Pine Island Road, lawmen said.

The tractor-trailer, driven by Maxie Earl Martin, 52, of 704 Nobles Road, LaBelle, was struck on the passenger's side and received approximately $400 damage to the cab, a spokesman said. San's vehicle reportedly received $1,000 damage. According to lawmen, both drivers were taken to Lee Memorial Hospital for treatment. Martin was treated and released and San was admitted for multiple injuries and listed in fair condition Monday night, a hospital spokeswoman said. The sheriff's department reported that San was charged with running a red light.

Comprehensive plan hearings set today Fort Myers City Council has scheduled public hearings today and Thursday to obtain comments from city residents on Fort Myers' comprehensive plan. Today's hearing will cover six sections of the plan, including economic development, housing and redevelopment, recreation and open space, conservation and coastal zone protection, water and sewer, and solid waste and drainage. Sections on land use and traffic circulation are set for Thursday's hearing. Both meetings begin at 7:30 p.m. in council chambers at Fort Myers City Hall.

$1,000 damage to school reported Recent vandalism at Cypress Lake High School caused nearly $1,000 damage to the building, said Assistant Principal Kurt Squitier on Monday. During one night near the end of the school year, students squirted "super glue" into locks on 26 doors and marked on the walls. The lock cylinders were ruined, according to school maintenance workers. Lee County Sheriff's deputies arrested six students who allegedly were involved in the vandalism and the youths have been charged with burglary, said Agent Morgan Bowden. Five of the six were from Cypress Lake and the other teen-ager was enrolled at North Fort Myers High School.

Two of the students are juveniles and the others are: David Van-Dyke, 18, of Fort Myers; Olen Oates, 18, of Fort Myers; Glen Broder-sen, 18, of Cape Coral; and John Graf, 18, of Cape Coral. Brush fire scorches more than 1 00 acres Firefighters from the Bayshore Fire Department worked nearly three hours Monday afternoon battling a brush fire which scorched more than 100 acres in southern Charlotte County, Fire Lt. Rick Sears said. The firemen from the Bayshore unit were aided by the Florida Division of Forestry. The fire apparently began as a controlled burn, Sears said.

The blaze was located off Cook and Brown Road about two miles north of the Lee County line. The flames inched near a home under construction, but the building was not damaged, firemen said. No injuries were reported. Man hit by melon no longer 'critical' Ralph Lee Mumford, 54, of Fort Myers who was injured a week ago when a watermelon sailed through the windshield of his truck cab, had been removed from the critical list and was reported in serious condition Monday night at Fort Myers Community Hospital, a hospital spokeswoman said. Mumford was northbound on State Road 31 a few miles north of Fort Myers when an unknown person in an unidentified southbound vehicle loaded with watermelons threw a watermelon through the windshield of Mumford's semi tractor-trailer, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

The watermelon struck Mumford while he was at the wheel of the truck, the highway patrol reported. Mumford guided the truck to the east shoulder of the roadway, turned on his emergency flashers, attempted to get out of the truck and fell to the ground, Trooper Vernon Welsh said. The highway patrol is investigating and asks anyone with knowledge of the incident to call the agency. Nutrition, longevity discussion planned Dr. Vijaya Ratnesar, a specialist in internal medicine, will speak on nutrition and longevity Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

at Fort Myers Community Hospital. Ratnesar's speech, which is free to the public, is one in a series of medical lectures sponsored by the hospital. Council approves police equipment bids Fort Myers City Council approved bids totaling $43,241 Monday to provide city police with a new maintenance building and polygraph machine. The new metal building, which will be constructed at the city's public works center in East Fort Myers, will be used to repair parking meters, repaint traffic signs and store equipment, according to Police Chief Morgan House. The city was able to save $546 on the $40,541 structure by substituting metal overhead doors for wooden ones, he added.

Council members also approved the purchase of a $2,700 polygraph machine for the department's detective division. House said the action followed the successful completion by two officers of an operator's course for using the lie detector equipment. By SUSAN DeFORD Newi staff Writer The Sanibel Planning Commission heard a number of wide-ranging development proposals Monday, and approved a permit for a 60-home subdivision on West Gulf Drive. During the daylong meeting, the commission also recommended approval of projects to build 12 moderate cost housing units, to construct a new polishing pond for the Sanibel Sewer System to place riprap in front of properties on Sanibel's bay side and to expand the Island Shopping Center. A permit to begin development of Seagull Estates, a 60-home subdivision on West Gulf Drive, was granted by the commission to Rufus Dodrill, who owns the Shalimar Resort on Sanibel and the Indian Creek mobile home park on San Carlos Boulevard.

The subdivision will be located on a 63-acre parcel and include recreation facilities, paved streets and a small lake. A capacity sewage treatment plant owned by Dodrill near the site will serve the subdivision. Ray Fcnton, a planning commissioner and Lee County architect whose firm prepared Dodrill's preliminary development plans, said Dodrill will begin construction of the subdivision's streets this summer. Dodrill plans to begin construction of homes in the subdivision by late fall, Fenton said. A proposal to build 12 multi-family units as inexpensive housing behind Scotty's Pub on Periwinkle Way will be sent to the Sanibel City Council with the recommendation of the commission.

The units, proposed by Scotty's owner Al Duncan, would be built on an approximate one-acre site. According to Planning Director Bruce Rogers, Duncan wants to use eight of the 12 units as housing for employees of Scotty's Pub. The commission recommended approval of the project, as long as rental of the units remains below the market rate on Sanibel. The project probably will be going before the council for its review in July, Rogers said. A new polishing pond on the north side of Periwinkle Way that would treat waste water from the Sanibel Sewer System won the recommendation of the commission, despite protests from neighboring residents and businessmen.

Mariner Properties which owns the treatment plant on Donax Street, made the proposal to the commission. Mariner representative Tim Bogott said the new polishing pond, to be located on an 18-acre parcel, would help alleviate concerns that waste water from an existing pond on Donax Street may be polluting the fresh-water Sanibel River. Although Mariner has operated the treatment plant for three years, state environmental officials have withheld a permanent operating license pending construction of a new polishing pond, said Mariner Properties President Bob Taylor. The new polishing pond would be built near the Dunes subdivision and treated waste water could be used to irrigate the Dunes golf course, Bogott said. Several neighboring residents and businessmen complained that the polishing pond would produce an unpleasant odor and harm their property values.

Mariner officials denied that the pond would produce anv noticeable odor. The proposal must go before the council for its approval. The commission also recommended that the council permit the Lighthouse Resort and Club and two residents along Sanibel's bay beach to place rip-rap along portions of the eroding shoreline. Sanibel Mayor Duane White, who along with his neighbor Carlton Simmons appeared before the commission, said the eroding beach "looks like a disaster area" in front of his home. White estimated that about 15 feet of beach has eroded in front of his home in the last two years, and added that several mature palm trees on his property have toppled because of the erosion.

Jim Dvorin, who represented Captran owners of the Lighthouse Resort, made a similar request to place rip-rap in front of the interval ownership condominium. Captran had been granted a permit to renourish and revegetate its beach in January, but Dvorin said no work has yet been done. "Without protection for the renourishment area, it would very quickly wash out into the bay," Dvorin said. The commission approved the requests, but added the recommendation that the city study the erosion along the entire bay beach area. In other action, the commission recommended the council approve a request to expand the Island Shopping Center, located at Periwinkle Way and Tarpon Bay Road.

The commission also suggested that a proposed city bike path along Donax Street be built on the road's east side. Assistant City Manager Gary Price said Donax Street is slated for widening and reconstruction this summer, and the city is considering building a five-foot wide, bike path when street repairs begin. The estimated cost of the bike pth is $21,000, he said..