8/4/2019 Liquor Industry Latest 'Victim' in Minn. Shutdown

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USA TODAY THURSDAY, JULY 14, 2011 NATION 3A

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitanotold residentsin theflooded North Dakotacity ofMinot on Wednesday that the federal govern-mentis herefor theduration,but shecautionedthat state residents should prepare for futureflooding.

Napolitano, who oversees the Federal Emer-

gency Management Agency, took a helicoptertour over the city where 4,100 homes have beendamaged by Souris River floodwaters and morethan11,000people havehad to leavetemporarily.

Only 375 homes in the flooded areas of Minotwere insured against flooding, according toFEMA. The agency is making aid available, butNapolitanotold residents they should not expectthe federal government to make them wholebecause assistance is capped underfederallaw.

Missing boys dismembered bodyfound

A Brooklyn boy who got lost while walkinghome from day camp in his Orthodox Jewishneighborhood was killed and dismembered by astranger he had asked for directions, police said.Some of the remains of Leiby Kletzky, 8, werefoundin therefrigeratorof thesuspect,Levi Aron,Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said. It isevery parents worst nightmare, he said. Whendetectives arrived at Arons apartment, they

asked wherethe boywas,and henodded towardthe kitchen, Kelly said. Leiby disappeared Mon-dayon hiswayto meet hismother.

N.M. ex-mayor guilty in gun smugglingThe former mayor of the small border town of

Columbus, N.M., pleaded guilty to charges heparticipated in a gun smuggling ring that federalprosecutors saidsent hundredsof gunsinto Mex-ico,U.S. Attorney JohnMurphysaid.

Eddie Espinoza,51,faces65 yearsin prison. Hewas arrested in March with two other townofficials: Police Chief Angelo Vega and formertrustee Blas Gutierrez. The three were among adozenpeoplechargedin thefederal sting.

Atheiststarget Texas day of prayerA group ofatheistsandagnostics fileda federal

lawsuit to try to halt an evangelical Christianprayer eventnext month proposed andendorsedby Texas Gov. Rick Perry. The Freedom fromReligion Foundation claims Perrys day of prayer

and fasting would violate the constitutional banon the government endorsinga religion.

Theevent, billedas a Christiangathering,is setfor Aug. 6 at Houstons Reliant Stadium. Thegroup asked the court to keep Perry, a Repub-lican, from using his office to promote or recog-nize the event. Perry spokeswoman CatherineFrazier saidthe lawsuit willnot change hisplans.

No charges in roller coasterdeathA double-amputee Iraq War veteran who was

hurled off a towering roller coaster to his deathnever should have been allowed on the ride, butoperators of the park near Buffalo will face nocriminal charges, authorities said. Signs at theRide of Steel roller coaster at Darien Lake ThemePark & Resortclearly state ridersmust have twolegs, GeneseeCounty SheriffGary Mahasaid.Butan investigation found no recklessness, intent orother criminal wrongdoing, he said. Sgt. JamesHackemer,29,wholostbothhislegsto aroadsidebomb,died Fridayafter falling about150 feet.

Also . . .

uSALEM, N.Y. An explosion leveled a two-family home,killedfour people andinjuredeight.The cause of the blast, which blew debris hun-dredsof feet,was beinginvestigated.uMEDIA, Pa. Testing was underway to de-

termine whether a braintumor contributedto anex-convicts shooting rampage that killed fivepeople. The pituitary gland of Mark Geisenheyn-er, 51, was removed during an autopsy and sentfortests,said TrishCofiell, a spokeswomanfor theDelaware County medical examiner. Geisen-heynerdiedin a standoffwithpolice July 4.

Nationline

Napolitano tries toreassure flooded city

Please recycle

ByJohnBacon with staffand wire reports

ByPaulSancya,AP

Funeral set for todayFordto belaidto rest next tohusband: A mil-itaryhonor guardcarriesthe casket of formerfirstladyBettyFordafterarriving atGerald R.FordInternationalAirportin Cascade Townshipin Michiganon Wednesday.

ByNickUt,AP

Gang crackdownWeapons haul:Members ofthe news mediaphotographconfiscatedweaponsduringa newsconference Wednesdayin SantaAna, Calif.,where authoritiesannounced dozens of arrestsin raidsthat followed a 2-year investigation.

As the longest government shut-down in Minnesota history reachesits14th daytoday,an ever-increasingnumber of state employees, busi-nessesand non-profits arefeelingtheconsequences of the stalemate overhow to solve the states $5 billiondeficit.

Its reallyhard on thepeople whorely on our services, says ChristineDurand, a spokeswoman forthe Min-nesota Council of Nonprofits. Non-profits dont run on air. These arecritical services that need money tosurvive.

Durand says almost every one of

the 35,000 non-profit organizationsher council representshas madecut-backs during the shutdown, includ-ing the Minnesota AIDS Project,which has reduced its staff of morethan 57 to 29 full- and part-timeemployees, according to public pol-icy director AmyBrugh.

Were in a state of disarray,Brughsays.

The shutdown resulted from animpasse between Democratic Gov.Mark Dayton and Republicanlegisla-tive leaders over how to erase thedeficit. Dayton wants to raise incometaxes on the states wealthiest resi-dents to provide more money forsocial services and public education.Republican lawmakers oppose anytax increase. No talks were plannedas of Wednesday.

Brewing giant MillerCoors is

among those impacted. The statehastold MillerCoors it needs to pull itsproducts from stores, bars and res-taurants statewide because of a li-censing problem causedby theshut-down. Department of Public Safetyspokesman Doug Neville saidWednesday that MillerCoors brandlabel registrations with the statehave expired. The employees whoprocess renewals were laid off whenthe government shutdown.

Its unfortunate that were stuckin themiddle of this shutdown, saidMillerCoorsspokesman Julian Green,adding that MillerCoors is exploringall itsoptions,includinglegal action.

Bars, restaurants and stores couldsoon find themselves unable to pur-chase liquor to sell to customers.Those wishing to sell alcohol in thestateget theirliquorlicensesthrough

their local municipality. Once ap-proved, they must obtain a $20 buy-ers card from the state Departmentof Public Safety, which is now notstaffed to process them.

This doesnt just affect retailers,but wholesalers andthe manufactur-ers and wedding parties and churchfunctions, and one-day liquor li-censes for charity events and festi-vals, and the list goes on and on andon, says Frank Ball with the Minne-sotaLicensedBeverage Association.

The states zoos, parks and mu-seums have also been greatly affect-ed by theshutdown. With little ornostaff or security left, they are suf-fering from trash buildup and somevandalism.

Theres realhealthand safety con-cerns in some of our state parks notjust for people, but for all forms of

habitat in theresaysMark Peterson,executive director of Audubon Min-nesota, who visited William OBrienStatePark thismonth.Thereis a realmess in some of these parks but nooneto cleanit up.

Contributing: KARE-TV in Minne-apolis; the Associated Press

Impacts ofMinnesotashutdownpiling upBusinesses, groupsin state of disarrayBy LukeKerr-DineenUSA TODAY

ALEXANDRIA, Va. The kale, turnips and romainelettuce grow inneatrowsona 2-acreplotat Woodlawnestate, a Virginia property once owned by GeorgeWashington. Today, a non-profit organization uses theland toraisevegetablesand fruit tobe sold ininnercityWashington, where itshard to findfresh food.

Its really poignant, Pat Lute says of the circleformedby thefoodfromlandonce tendedby 91 slavesthat isnow goingto peoplein need.

Lute is executive director of the Arcadia Center for

Sustainable Food & Agriculture, which is equipping aused school bus to make regular stops in neighbor-hoods where residents food choices are limited tocorner stores, dollar stores andfast-food restaurants.

We wanted something that would be a visiblesymbol of better food choices, says Michael Babin,Arcadias founder, who has opened several Washing-ton-area restaurants.

The effort is one of many emerging across the coun-try as food deserts impoverished areas with littleaccess to healthy foods attract attention.

The 2008 Farm Bill directed the Department of Agri-culture to studyfood deserts.

First lady Michelle Obama helpedpopularize the term in 2010 whilediscussing her commitment to im-proving access to fresh foods. In thepastyear, retailersWalgreens, RiteAidand Duane Reade began selling fruitand other fresh foods. And in NewYork, the city is offering incentives tosupermarkets to open in neighbor-

hoods where there is a shortage ofgroceriessellingfresh food.

The Department of Agriculture de-fines a food desert as a Census tractwhere 33% or 500 people, whicheveris less, live more than a mile from agrocery storein anurbanareaor morethan 10 miles away in a rural area. Atleast 20% of the residents must livebelow the federal poverty line, cur-rently$22,350for a familyof four.

Food deserts exist in segregated ur-ban areasthat haveincome inequalityandin ruralareas thatlack transporta-tion options, a 2009 Agriculture De-partmentstudy concluded.

Thestudy foundthatabout 4%of thenations 170,357 Census tracts geo-graphic areasthat usually have2,500 to 8,000residents in2000 were food deserts.Of those,75% were urban.

Harris andDallas counties in Texas, hometo Houstonand Dallas, had the most food deserts of all U.S. coun-

ties, but the problem is not limited to urban areas.Counties where at least 25%of thepopulationlivesin afood deserttendto beconcentrated inthe GreatPlains.

What motivateseffortssuchas Arcadia is thepushfor sustainable agriculture and awareness about obesi-ty,saysGregMills,senior fellowat theUrban Institute.

Otherprogramsto improve foodchoices:uIn Baltimore, food desert residents may order

groceries from three libraries and a school under the

Baltimarket, program runby grocery stores andthe cityHealth Department.uIn Ceres, Calif., a community located in a county

with several food deserts, the Ceres Partnership forHealthy Children operates a farmers market and pro-videsreferral servicesfor financially struggling families.uIn central Iowa, the organization Farm to Folk

servesan area that lost twogrocerystores.Farmto Folktakes orders for fresh fruit and vegetables from localfarmers, and customers pick up the goods on a desig-

nated day at a local church, founderMarilyn Andersen says. Itwasto helpthe farmersas wellas theconsumers.uIn New York City, the Healthy

Bodegas Initiative works with thecitys bodegas, small stores in poorerneighborhoods, to equip them withmore fresh fruit and vegetables. Theprogram operates in the South Bronx,

central Brooklynand Harlem.Initiativeemployeeshelp stores fig-

ure out how to create better, moreattractivedisplaysfor fruitand vegeta-bles, says Donya Williams, programdevelopment specialist.

Youd be surprised at what a signcando, Williams says. Usually, whenyou goto a bodega, there are signs forsodas, energy drinks and cigarettes.Weregivinga differentmessage.

Williams says two-thirds of partici-pating store owners reported that thechangeshelped increasesales.

The Arcadia program sells freshfoods in a neighborhoodin SouthwestWashington thatspecifically askedfora farmmarket.

Residents at community meetings said one of theirbiggest needswas access to fresh foods, saysdeveloperMonty Hoffman, who is overseeing a makeover of theareas waterfront.

The market also teaches customers how to preparefresh food. Its good business and its good for thecommunity, he says.

Lute, former consultant for Chesapeake Bay areafarmersmarketsand theWhite HouseKitchenGarden,hopes the mobile market will help a generation ofpeople who have forgotten the old-fashioned ways ofcooking and eating. Its nourishing people who havebeeneating foodthat doesnt nourish them, Lute says.

PhotosbyBrendanHoffmanfor USATODAY

Local source of freshfruits andvegetables: Kyle Bailey, left,executivechefat Birch& Barley, andfarm managerMaureen Moodie harvest arugula on thefarm at Woodlawnestate in Alexandria,Va.

Programs cropping up

to address food deserts

Salad sampling:Anthony Chittum, thechef at Vermil-ion, tastessomegreensat theWoodlawn farm inMay.

Plans get fresh produce intoareas without grocery stores

By Melanie EversleyUSA TODAY

AUSA TODAYanalysisofDe-partmentof Agriculturedatashows thatthe countieswith thelargestshare of residentslivinginfooddeserts tend tobe intheGreatPlains. Countieswith the

highestpercentage of pop-ulationliving ina fooddesert:

County, State Pctg.

1. Sioux, N.D. 85.54%

2. Blaine, Neb. 68.62%

3. Jackson,S.D. 66.61%

4. Kenedy,Texas 65.87%

5. Costilla,Colo. 65.07%

6. Hudspeth,Texas 64.84%

7.KeyaPaha, Neb. 64.32%

8. Bennett, S.D. 64.24%

9. Shannon,S.D. 64.09%

10.Mellette , S.D. 62.70%Sources:DepartmentofAgriculture;USATODAYanalysis

Far from groceries

Been to Disney this summer?Check.A water park? Check.A tram-poline park?

Boing.The nations ever-expanding

amusement world is taking a newtwistthis summer asindoor trampo-line parks approach critical mass.About 50 are operating in a dozenstates, and revenue is approaching$100 million. The parks whichcharge $8 to $14 an hour featurewall-to-wall trampolines, withtrampolines evenliningside walls.

Itwasnton ourradar,but Ihaveafeeling it will be soon, says DavidMandt, spokesman for the Interna-tional Association of AmusementParksand Attractions.

Its certainlyon theradar ofortho-pedicsurgeons. Broken ankles, arms,legs and even a non-fatal brokenneck have been logged at these

parks. The AmericanAcademyof Or-thopaedic Surgeons advises folks tojumpwith extracaution.Wedonotrecommend recreational use oftrampolines, as sad as that may be,says Jennifer Weiss, an orthopedicsurgeon at Childrens Hospital LosAngeles.

Even so, celebs and their familieshave tried out some of these parks,including the Jonas Brothers, KobeBryant, David Beckham and Sha-quilleONeal.

Among thecontenders:uSky Zone. Sky Zone opens its

seventh arenathis summer in Orlan-do, with 12 more in development,owner Jeff Platt says. Who doesntlovebeing freefrom theEarthsgrav-ity? he asks. He even got his 81-year-old grandmother on a trampo-line, but she wasnt doing backflips.uSky High Sports. The company

has eight locations now, half ofwhich are in California. Three more

open this summer; two in the Chi-cago area. Co-owner Jerry Raymondquithis jobas a computerconsultantto open thecompany.I waslookingto do something where my kidswouldnt be embarrassed tocome towork with Dad,he says.uJumpstreet. Seven are operat-

ing,mostlyin Colorado,and sixmoreare in development. Owner TimCrawford says he came outof retire-ment to start the company afterdreaming that his backyard wasfilledwith trampolines.uRebounderz. Theres one in

Longwood, Fla., and one opens thismonth in Sterling, Va. The firm hasvideo cameras and referees trackingsafety, CEO MarkGurley says.uXtreme Trampolines. Eric

Beck, a former Burger King franchi-see, owns one unit in Orlando withone planned in Chicago. If its coldor rainy or snowing, were packed,he says. If its sunny outside, wereempty.

Trampoline parks growing by leaps and bouncesBy BruceHorovitzUSA TODAY

Elevating hisgame: A camppartici-pant atthe Houseof Airindoortrampolinepark in SanFranciscoreaches fora boardgrab.