Community Chest Drive
October 15 to 24.
Balley Mrnntiersman
PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE MATANUSKA VALLEY
VOLUME 5. NUMBER 5.
PALMER, ALASKA. THURSDAY, OCT. 11. 1951
PRICE. 10c
Annual Community Chest Drive Begins Monday
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CITY COUNCIL HEARS
REPORT ON LOCAL
TELEPHONE SURVEY
A complete dial telephone sys
tem for Palmer, including dial
stations at Wasilla, Jonesville and
the Butte-Eklutna area and rural
service would cost between $320,
000 and $370,000, according to a
telephone survey report made to
the City Council last night by
representatives of Kellogg tele
phone equipment.
The engineer’s survey was
made in accordance with an offer
made by John Gorsuch, Anchor
age representative of the com
pany, when he appeared before
the Council last August. Last
night Gorsuch reiterated the fact
<that his company was interested
only in selling telephone equip
ment. Survey findings were pre
sented to council members in an
informal question and answer
presentation with Gorsuch ques
tioning William Burke, the en
gineer who made the survey.
According to Burke’s estimates
a telephone system including 300
equipped lines and 300 wired
lines would take care of Palmer
area needs for the next 10 years.
After that, if the equipment hous
ing were large enougn, expansion
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CITY IS RICHER BY
NEARLY $5,000
September collections from
Palmer’s tax on sales and ser
vices will approach $5,000, City
Clerk Bill Head announced at
noon today.
Escaping from his sick bed
where he has been confined for
a week, Head checked over re
turns received in his absence
by U. S. Commissioner Doro
thy Saxton. Returns totalling
$4,724.23 have already been
deposited, and returns from
two of the largest accounts are
still outstanding. Although the
deadline for September collec
tions was October 10, these re
turns must come from com
pany headquarters in the
States. There will be no pen
alties in such cases, Head ob
served.
could be accomplisned merely
through the purchase of addi
tional dial equipment. The 300
equipped lines would take care
of 650 local customers and would
permit 40 percent trunking. To
serve outside areas, small dial
units to serve Wasilla, Jonesville,
and the Butte-Eklutna area were
suggested. Cost of the outside
plant was based on the assump
tion that MEA poles could be
used.
Here are some of the estimates
which go into the total figure for
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• 1 • • . * , i
The Well-Baby Clinic held the second, third and fourth Tuesdays of each month at the Health
Center is one of the Valley services receiving support from the Community Chest. Here Public
Health Nurse Marjorie Myren is weighing young David Casey, aged one year.
CITY ROADS GRADED;
DAILEY HILL STREET
TO DE EXTENDED
The Yanks won the World Se
ries and Cordova suffered a $500,
000 fire, but the big news in Pal
mer this week was the ARC road
grader having a workout along
Valley Street and Co-Op Avenue.
Mayor Carl Meier couldn’t ex
actly explain how the miracle
happened, but he did say that
ARC Supervisor Oliver Onkka is
back on the job after his vaca
tion in the States. Onkka prom
ises that the main roads through
town, at least, will all get their
pot holes eliminated before the
snow flies in earnest.
It could be that the city is pay
ing for the street face lifting job
out of $500 in funds approved last
week for the purpose, but coun
cilmen hoped that grading is de
layed action an ARC agreement
to continue service to Palmer’s
roads until freeze-up. Even if the
city has to pay, councilmen were
agreed last night that the roads
are getting the best blading they
have ever had.
Bailey Hill Street Extension
James Hurley appeared before
the City Council last night with
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CUT DOWN PAYMENTS
ON 21 AHA HOUSES
Lowering of required down
payments on the new AHA
houses in Palmer wras made
known this week through Glen
Wilder, director of Alaska Hous
ing Authority.
COUNCIL RESOLUTION
CONGRATULATES AHA
Resolution adopted by City
Council last night:
“The City Council congratu
lates the Alaska Housing Au
thority on completion of their
project; and the City Council
wishes to endorse the AHA’s
plan for their new lowered
down payments, which will en
able a lot of local people to
obtain housing.”
Total cost of each dwelling will
remain the same but purchasers
not having the previously re
quired down payments may now
be able to obtain a new home.
The difference between new
down payments of from $1,575
$2,500 and previous figures of
$2,275-$3,800 will be arranged on
a contract basis to be added to
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PUNNING MONEY FOR
NEW HIGH SCHOOL
ADVANCED BY APW
Advanced planning funds am
ounting to $39,000 are assured for
the Palmer’s new High School
this week, according to a wire
received yesterday by Supt. Wil
iam T. Zahradnicek from ths
district director of Alaska Public
Works in Juneau.
The wire revealed that the ad
vance planning funds were based
on a $1,114,700 school building for
which approval was given by
APW last July. This does not in
clude a gymnasium or an audi
torium, approval of which must
necessarily await lifting of build
ing restrictions adopted because
of the national emergency.
A School Board meeting will oe
held some time this week to ex
ecute the legal papers being
brought here by an APW repre
sentative.
What does this planning money
mean as far as Palmer’s new high
school is concerned? School Board
Member James Hurley says the
board now has the money to pay
the architect for a final set of
plans. After these have been com
pleted and approved, construc
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VOLUNTEERS TO SEEK
$3,000 CHEST GOAL
IN 10-DAY CAMPAIGN
Next Monday, October 15, Pal
mer joins communities all over
the nation in the annual Red Fea
ther Community Chest Campaign
for funds to support health, wel
fare and recreational activities in
the traditional American way.
Dozens of magazines feature
the story of the Red Feather cam
paign in their October issues,
Many hours of radio time are be
ing donated for the cause, with
national leaders and entertainers
in high public favor proudly lend
ing their support. President Har
ry S. Truman, who spoke over
combined radio and television
networks recently stressed the
added responsibilities of Com
munity Chests this year and said:
“Nothing can ever take the
place of the good old-fashioned
rule that neighbors should always
help each other. That is the heart
of the American ideal .... peo
ple working together, sharing
their joys and their sorrows, try
ing to make the world a better
place to live in. That is what the
Community Chest means to me. It
is, I think, one of the finest deve
lopments of our time.”
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MAYOR ENDORSES
COMMUNITY CHEST
CAMPAIGN .
October 9, 1951.
I personally and officially
welcome this opportunity of
endorsing the Community
Chest campaign which begins
next Monday, October 15. Pal
mer is proud of its health,
welfare and recreational facili
ties, and of the community
spirit which makes these
things possible.
CARL H. MEIER,
' Mayor.
Here in the Matanuska Valley,
campaign manager Emil Gan
schow is planning a snappy cam
paign of 10 days running, from
October 15-24. The 1951 goal has
been set for $3,000 to take care
of the carefully trimmed budgets
of five member agencies and the
United Defense Fund.
Only two supervisors remain
to be chosen to cover the nine dis
tricts included in the Matanuska
Valley Community Chest. The
total Community Chest area ap
proximates that of the Palmer
School District. The following
supervisors have offered to serve
in this year’s campaign to receive
offerings from neighbors in dis
tricts as named: District 1 (South
of town), Mrs. Alba Brooks; Dis
trict 2 (Matanuska Expt.. Station
area), Mrs. Curtis H. Dearborn;
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