The Lebanon Express from Lebanon, Oregon • 1

mm rmrgmtm II II fill IX 3N39R3 20 (I Ynx LPJN lui Re u) EMAREC lay I percent of work force V. i. 'I (T i I L. By Brooke Brannon Forty-one workers at Entek's-battery separatorbusiness, EMARK, were laid off perma nently this month. That represents about 20 percent of EMARK's work force 41 employees out of 200, said Tony Vander Heide, director of administration.

EMARK makes a material that's used in lead acid batteries, called battery separator material. "Our that the rebound and to hire who are Tony director of expectation is business will in mid-summer, we'll begin most of those available." Vander Heide, administration Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture, hands a check to Lebanon Mayor Bob Smith Thursday morning at the gov ernor's office in Salem. Glickman was on hand to present a $350,000 grant and a $340,000 loan to the city. (Photos by Jess Reed) Lebanon builds at airport thanks to $1 ,049,000 grant tracts and agreements on construction," said Windell. "Hopefully it will be completed by January of next year." Ready-to-go property means the city will provide water, lewer and street improvements to the area, making it possible for businesses to locate there without having to make those improvements.

Two businesses will move there if the improvements were made, creating new -jobs and maintaining others in the area. West Coast Industrial Systems and Forest Products will be the first two businesses to settle on the site, creating at least 18 new jobs and keeping about 60 oth The money is coming from the Special Public Works Fund of the Oregon Economic Development Department, which is loaning the city $340,000 and awarding another $350,000 in a grant. The Rural Economic and Community Development Department of the Department of Agriculture has awarded a $350,000 grant, and the Old Growth Diversification Fund, from the National Forest Service is awarding another $19,794. According to City Administrator Joe Windell, the construction will start soon. "The project will begin as soon as the city can get con "Having the commitment of the two businesses, with the job creation, was the anchor for our request for the funding," said Windell.

The project will provide about 39 acres of fully-serviced industrial area. The Special Public Works Fund and the Old Growth Diversification Fund awards were set up through President Clinton's plan to help timber-dependent communities adjust, to reductions in the federal timber supply, i The Special Public Works Fund is funded by lottery revenues and provides low-interest loans Continued on Page A6 to relocate Livezey child The devaluation of the peso didn't help, either. "We ship a significant amount of material to Mexico, and our Mexican customers have basically stopped order ing for a period of time. That was a major factor," he said. Vander Heide doesn't expect to permanently lose 41 positions.

"We fully expect it to be short-term. It is the second time in the company's history that we've had to go to a lay-off he said. "Our expectation is that the business will rebound in mid-summer, and we'll begin to hire most of those who are Continued on Page A2 from Gore time principal and a half-time teacher in the new, unified district if he had stayed. Gore School had 83 students last year and is expected to have 103 next year. The Express was unable to reach O'Day for comment on this story.

The nine Lebanon area school districts were forced to unify as a result of state legislation. The UH1 board was chosen to be the board for the entire unified district. Lebanon Public Schools Superintendent Ike Launstein, Crowfoot School District Superintendent Bob Nelson and Supervisor of Facilities Management Brad Black have all resigned in the past three months. those services to meet our community's changing needs," he said. Both construction phases are now complete, he added, and the departments are all operational.

The planning started in 1991, and the capital campaign began in 1992. Construction began in early 1993, he said. Employees as a group gave $130,000 in out-of-pocket donations. The hospital's physicians pledged $150,000, and the board of directors pledged $70,000. Major corporate donors were Willamette Industries and MJ Murdock Charitable Trust.

Crossword B9 B6 Legals A2 B8 Obituaries Opinion A10 Sports B1-3 Weather A3 Wedding B5 a I iff. V- a- 3.: hi: few it try I- a- -irT'-sJ 'k" The layoffs came because winter unusually warm this year, Vander Heide said. Demand for batteries was down, which made the summer months even slower than usual. O'Day resigns By Rob Oster With unification only days away, another Lebanon area administrator resigned last week. Gore School's Ron O'Day is leaving the district to become superintendent of the Alsea School District.

His resignation is effective July 1. He will continue to live in the Lebanon area while commuting to his new district, according to a secretary at Gore. O'Day has been the superintendentprincipal of the Gore School District for the past five years. Before that, he was a teacher in the Crowfoot School District and at Queen Anne School. He would have been a half- about $1.3 million.

But it represents something more than money, said Mark King, hospital administrator. It represents a community coming together to fill a need. "It's an outstanding effort from the staff and from the community," he said. The renovations include remodeling surgery, same-day care, the laboratory, the therapies department, pharmacy, emergency room and imaging center. The services are now located around a central lobby and are easier to find, King said.

"It's easier access for everyone and we're expanding Inside Anniversary B6 Births B8 Business 1 Calendar B5 Classified -m Eighteen new jobs to be created; 60 others to be kept By Terry Hudson The city of Lebanon, with the help of three grants and a loan, will begin making improvements to an industrial site adjacent to the airport in an effort to create or maintain jobs in the area. The city has received a total of $1,049,000 in grants and will spend another $30,000 of its own money in creating "ready-to-go" property at the site. CSD planning By Terry Hudson A one-year-old boy, taken hrom the home of a Lebanon couple hoping to adopt him earlier this year, will probably not be returned. Todd and Cherri Livezey have been in a custody battle with Children's Services Division since the child, Devan, was taken from their home on February 23 after tests revealed that he had suffered fractures of the leg and arm. The Livezeys were cleared of any child abuse after an extensive police and medical investigation early last month.

But Devan has not been returned to the Livezeys because the injuries could not be explained, either by a medical, team headed by Dri Mary Steinberg of Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, or by a special committee organized by CSD that concluded its investigation on June 5. According to CSD's Communications Manager Floyd Smith, the only way that the Livezeys would get the child back would be if law enforcement officials were able to conclusively prove that the injuries were caused by abuse, and by someone other than the Livezeys. Since no one has been able to prove when or how the injuries occurred since they were discovered in February, that scenario seems to be a stretch. "Children's Services Division will be moving on to planning for a permanent home for the child," said Smith. "There really is no recourse for the Livezeys unless, the law enforcement ers.

process had been completed, we would have at least had the judi-cialprocess to go through." The Livezeys began the adoption procedure in December of 1994 when the then 8-month-old child was placed in their home. The natural mother of the child, a relative of Todd Livezey, had agreed to the adoption and consented to placing the child with the Livezeys. Devan was removed on February 23 after the injuries were discovered. The Livezeys maintained that the injuries must have occurred when Devan slipped off a toy of the floor of their home on Feb. 10.

The child was taken to the family doctor, who diagnosed a strain. When Devan kept favoring the leg, Cherri Livezey took him back to the doctor and asked for x-rays. This time, a fracture was discovered. Devan was referred to a bone specialist, who also found a fracture in the boy's arm. The bone specialist notified authorities of the injuries, and CSD removed the baby from the home.

Devan has lived in two foster homes before and after his stay at the Livezey's, and spent his first birthday, June 11, in foster care. According to CSD Marion County Branch Manager Linda Sunday, who will be trying to place Devan in a permanent home, it will take another three to four months to place him. "It's really rare that something like this happens, everyone feels bad about it," said Sunday Continued on Page A2 agencies were to find a perpetrator of the abuse. The findings of the medical team and the latest committee were the same as CSD's: that the injuries to the child were from abuse. There's just no way of finding out who it was." The Livezeys could not be contacted by press time, but their attorney, Bill Lewis, "Children's Services Division has notified us of their position and we're very sorry, but we don't agree with their actions or conclusions." Bill Lewis, Livezeys' attorney seemed to cling to the hope that the case is not finished.

"We're in the process of having some medical people evaluate the reports and information that had been provided to the latest committee," said Lewis. "We want to see if there's anything that needs another look. We'll be getting together and makings some critical decisions about the position we want to take as we go forward. "Children's Services Division has notified us of their position, and we're very sorry, but we don't agree with their actions or conclusions. If the adoption Lebanon Community Hospital (LCH) surgeons Dr.

Pat Harding, at left, and Dr. Terry Shortridge perform a procedure at the LCH operating facility. (Courtesy photo) LCH dedicates $4.5 million renovation By Brooke Brannon Lebanon Community Hospital will dedicate its $4.5 million renovation project Saturday afternoon. The ceremony will be held from 1 to 1:30 p.m. An open house, complete with guided tours, children's activities, prizes and refreshments, will be held from 1 to 4 p.m.

The renovation is the result of five years of planning, about $280,000 in donations from hospital staff and physicians, $70,000 from the board and about $3 million in donations from businesses and individuals. The community raised Express inserts: A Bite at the Beach, Buick Price Chopper Foods, Roth's IGA, Bi-Mart How to Find Us 90 East Grant PO Box 459 Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Office 258-3151 Fax 259-3569 Newsstand Yearly Pre-paid Subscription $18.50 Out of County, Yearly r-'.