WDBJ 7 morning news AM cutins for 06/24/03

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[ANCHOR=marya]

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A street closing in Roanoke may affect your commute this morning. Franklin Road is blocked off between Williamson Road and Jefferson Street for paving. The work should last all day.

[7-11Giles-Body]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=jmc]
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A man missing for two weeks has been found dead in Pearisburg.
Police say the 57-year-old died of natural causes.
The town's police chief says the body was found Sunday by the man's son in an empty lot on Route 460.
The son told police that no one had seen his father for about two weeks.
The chief is holding off on releasing the man's name until other relatives are notified.

[7-11Affirmative-Action]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=myr]
[TAPE#=03-17 TC1:07:45]
[GRAPHIC=Affirmative Action]
The Supreme Court's ruling upholding affirmative action is causing Virginia Tech to take another look at its policies.

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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]
The university says it will go back and review some of the 16 minority programs that were scaled back in order to comply with state guidelines.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 5922]
[IN Q=we had 16 programs]
((LARRY HINCKER/TECH SPOKESPERSON: WE HAD 16 PROGRAMS THAT WERE ALTERED OR ELIMINATED. AND WE'LL GO BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT THOSE AGAIN 27 AND WE ALSO HAD FIVE PROGRAMS THAT WE HAD QUESTIONS ON AND THAT WE'VE ASKED THE AG FOR FURTHER INFORMATION . ONE OF THOSE WHICH IS ADMISSIONS PROCESS.))
[SUPER=01-Larry Hincker/Virginia Tech Spokesman;]
[RUNS=15]
[OUT Q=admissions process]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
This is the second time the university will review a decision it made regarding affirmative action. In March, the board of visitors voted to eliminate race-based admissions, only to reinstate the policy two weeks later.
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[7-11Richmond-React]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=mmu]
[TAPE#=03-18 TC1:35:20]
[GRAPHIC=HOLD]

The ruling will NOT have a major effect on the policies at Virginia's OTHER colleges and universities.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Richmond]

Attorney General Jerry Kilgore says the Supreme Court's decision came as no surprise.
He says it mirrors what he has been advising to schools all along.
Governor Mark Warner says he agrees with letting colleges give minority applicants an edge.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT 12:25:35]
[IN Q=THE FACT THAT DIVERSITY]
((GOVERNOR MARK WARNER: THE FACT THAT DIVERSITY WAS UPHELD TODAY AS ONE FACTOR THAT RACE CAN BE ONE OF THE FACTORS CONSIDERED IN COLLEGE ADMISSIONS WAS THE RIGHT DECISION.)) ((ATTORNEY GENERAL JERRY KILGORE: OVERALL, VIRGINIA SCHOOLS ARE GOING TO FARE WELL UNDER THIS RULING IN THAT WE'VE BEEN GUIDING THEM TOWARD THIS RESULT OVER THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF.))
[SUPER=@markwarner; :00]
[SUPER=@kilgore; :10]
[RUNS=:18]
[OUT Q=OVER THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF.]
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[VO-NAT]

State officials say the majority of the admissions and scholarship policies at Virginia's schools are already in line with the ruling.
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[ANCHOR=marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=cak]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]

A street closing in Roanoke may affect your commute this morning. Franklin Road is blocked off between Williamson Road and Jefferson Street for paving. The work should last all day.

[45-11Jefferson-Forest]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=03-13 TC1:45:46]
[GRAPHIC=none]

Bedford County supervisors have approved a 26 million dollar-plan to overhaul Jefferson Forest High School.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Bedford Co.]

Architects recommend expanding the schools auditorium, relocating its cafeteria and library and adding new classrooms.
The concept got the O-K from the school board earlier this month.
Some supervisors believed they should not override that decision, but others still have concerns about whether the plan goes far enough.
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[SOT]
[IN Q=Last I checked]
((ROBERT BASHORE/BEDFORD CO. SUPERVISOR: LAST I CHECKED.. ...STAY WHERE IT IS.)) ((DEBBY ALLEN/FOREST PTA COALITION: ONE SUPERVISOR SAID.. ...WORK WITH THAT.))
[SUPER=01-Robert Bashore/Bedford Co. Supervisor; :00]
[SUPER=01-Debby Allen/Jefferson Forest PTA Coalition; :25]
[RUNS=41]
[OUT Q=we will work with that.]
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[VO-NAT]

County officials say they won't need to borrow money for the project until construction begins in 2005.
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[45-11Virgilina-Elementary]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=03-25 TC29:21]
[GRAPHIC=None]

A plan to close a Halifax County elementary school will go forward.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Halifax Co./January 2002]

School board members say even if supervisors come up with more money, Virgilina Elementary will still have to close.
The school board cites declining enrollment and hefty renovation costs as reasons behind the decision.
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[45-11Miss-VA]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=cda]
[TAPE#=netC]
[GRAPHIC=None]
This week, 27 Miss Virginia contestants are embracing a week filled with camaraderie and community.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke;]
Yesterday, the women contestants visited the Art Museum where they spent some time with kids from the West End Center.

Then it was off to the Hotel Roanoke for swimsuits, evening gowns and lots of photos. This year is the 50th year for the Miss Virginia Pageant.
The competition runs Thursday through Saturday.
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[8-AM-Radford-Park]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=03-30 TC10:03]
[GRAPHIC=None]
Radford City Council has already passed an ordinance to allow alcohol sales at city parks.
But one council member who originally voted for the ordinance now wants the public to decide the issue.
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[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Radford]

That announcement came after the council heard once again from supporters and opponents.
The ordinance passed two weeks ago would allow vendors to sell beer and alcohol in restricted areas of Bissett Park, Riverside Park, and the city's new Recreation Center during non-city events.
The ordinance passed by a 3 to 2 vote.
But now the Vice Mayor wants the city to look into the possibility of residents deciding the issue through a referendum.
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[SOT 43:12; 44:06]
[IN Q=I would like personally]
((GALE COLLINS/VICE MAYOR: I WOULD LIKE PERSONALLY RATHER THAN THE FIVE OF US COUNCIL MEMBERS MAKING THIS DECISION I'D LIKE IT BE MADE BY THE CITY OF RADFORD.)) ((LAURIE BUCHWALD/COUNCIL MEMBER: THE LAWS OF THIS COUNTRY ALLOW FOR THE RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL AND DOING SO DOESN'T NOT MAKE ME OR ANYONE ELSE IMMORAL AND I AM OFFENDED BY THAT ASSERTION.))
[SUPER=01-Gale Collins/Vice-Mayor; :00]
[SUPER=01-Laurie Buchwald/Council Member; :09]
[RUNS=:19]
[OUT Q=BY THAT ASSERTION.]
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[ANCHOR=Marya]
[SS=none]

Council members took no action on the second reading of this ordinance.
The council agreed to have the city Attorney to look into the possibility of asking the General Assembly to put this issue on a referendum in the future.

[8-11Center-Funds]

[ANCHOR=Marya]
[NEWSCAST=cutin]
[WRITER=syo]
[TAPE#=03-23 TC35:38]
[GRAPHIC=None]

Center in the Square is about to undergo the second phase of a bold new advertising campaign.
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[VO-NAT :16]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke;]
The series of print ads depicts downtown Roanoke as it was before the Design '79 project. The photographs show a prostitute, a wine bottle and a homeless person rummaging through a dumpster. Starting in August, new ads will show the market area as it looks today.
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[SOT 50:44 - 50:58]
[IN Q=Of course, the campaign was...]
((JIM SEARS/PRESIDENT, CENTER IN THE SQUARE: OF COURSE, THE CAMPAIGN WAS MORE TO LOOK AT PAST AND COMPARE IT TO PRESENT AND HOPEFULLY PEOPLE WOULD SEE A CONNECTION BETWEEN CENTER AND THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN THE HISTORIC MARKET AREA AND DOWNTOWN ROANOKE.))
[SUPER=01-Jim Sears/Center in the Square President;]
[RUNS=:14]
[OUT Q=markiet area and downtown Roanoke.]
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[VO-NAT :24]
Sears credits the campaign with raising 600-thousand dollars in donations during the current capital campaign, more than the annual fundraiser has EVER raised. But he stresses that the non-profit's also running a 600-thousand dollar *deficit*. He says, if finances continue to be as strained as they have been since Center lost its state funding, the organization could close in three to four years. (------------)