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Show iV'-- ' !' Cf mji Li:!HAMS , Y may THE iA ! ri-.i- , 1 ' . , . '- J , ' ;V.U. 1 M i 11 1 - - - . Jt - - M J w j :I o ig? ,!l f f UW A. k r r , 'r r : ti r " J w i - 1 .. & Business news and commentary Volume 6 Number 44 Wednesday, May 4, 1977 50 cents Utah Edition Chamber criticizes new energy plan An energy committee of the Salt Lake Area Chamber of Commerce has taken a dim view of President Carters member of the committee believes the group should slow down and read the fine print. energy master plan, but one The committee is made up of 14 members representing a wide range of energy companies and representatives from railroads, architects, en- The duce is not dead --- yet The $2 bill is not dead. According to a spokesman at the Federal Reserve Bank, brainstorming is underway to devise a solution to the failure of the last $2 bill promotion. This year local merchants can look forward to a new marketing angle from the Fed. The Treasury has not given up,' the spokesman said. They have decided the best way to sell the bill is to take a grass roots' approach, rather than push it from' Big Brother in Washington, gineers, bankers. Meeting for the first time last week, the group was formed at the request of the chambers Board of Governors to draw up a response to Carter's proposal. The consensus of the group seems to be that the plan, in the words of Mountain Fuel Supplys John Crawford, misses the boat." Crawford says the plan has left ,out any encouragement to free enterprise to use our traditional American ingenuity in finding a solution. Instead he (Carter) has emphasized conservation, which is fine in itself, but its not the solution." D.C..' Planned to death He said the local Fed is discussing ways to get local Robert Moore, counsel for the Utah Coal Operators Association, characterized the energy plan as a no growth plan. It's rather ironic that all (Sec CHAMBER, page 8) merchants involved," adding, there is no way we can sell the bill without cooperation from merchants." '9L and investors .A-1- . ft.- Cancellations - .:- -? ' '' : ' v of river trips, occassioned by rumors that waters are low , have hurt western river guides . One reports business is down 30 : J percent and that hell be damn lucky to clear two thirds of his $750,000 gross . " Summer could be a washout River runners fear rumors Drought threatens to wash out up to a third of industhe Intermountain Wests try this summer, according to many western river guides. Some outfitters report many cancellations in April from vacationers who arc apprehensive that drought conditions in the West will ruin river trips. river-runnin- g Cancellations are not warranted, guides and government water forecasters say, and most popular rafting waters in Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming will be high enough to provide good is ex- Seasonal high-watriver-runnin- er g. California-styl- e by Tom Horton Enterprise Staff Waiter hula-hoo- p, the frisbee and smog, housing speculation is one California fad Utah doesnt seem to be inheriting. ' Speculators are few and far between, according to most people associated with the Utah housing industry, because the market is stable and healthy, not offering speculators enough incentive to take big risks. Several mort-- . gage bankers say over 99 of new house sales are to buyers who will occupy the houses, and very few purchasers intend to hold a house SE In some parts of California, builders estimate a few months, find a new and sell the contract for speculators make up 30 to 40 percent of their buyer profit. Acmarket. In Utah, the story so far is a different a S2,000-$3,00- 0 cording to Advance Mortgage one. pected a month earlier than usual on most rivers, but a few of the smaller rivers in southeastern Utah may all but dry up in August or September. Dee Holiday, owner and operator of Holiday River Expeditions, says about 30 of his clients have cancelled planned river trips despite his assurances that water will be plentiful and the It distrubs me trips will be of high quality. quite a bit," says Holiday, when they tell me about all these stories theyve heard about the drought, and how I might be given 'em some kind of song and dance." Reservation levels are down from the activity usually seen in spring. Holiday says, which worries him even more than the cancellations. I can't reassure people who won't call me to begin with." Cutting into profits Don Hatch, of Hatch River Expeditions in Vernal, has had to lay off 35 workers until late speculation the . Jf;& Utah wants no part of Unlike ti June due to cancellations. He reports business is down and says hell be damn lucky" of his usual $750,000 gross. to clear Hatch has had to cancel or reschedule 26 trips through the Grand Canyon, one of the few areas of the West where river levels are expected to become marginal at times. He has also cancelled many trips on eastern Utah's Yampa River, which is forcasted to be after June 10th. 30, Co., in some parts of California, such as West Orange County, builders estimate that speculators make up 30 to 40 percent of their market, with the result that prices are driven even higher when the to homes are de$97,000 for the average tached home in West Orange re-so- ld See related story Page 19 Speculation there County. and in the San Diego, San Francisco, and San Fernando areas has prompted builders and lenders alike to take action to discourage speculative buying, with little indication of success so far, the mortgage company says. (Sec SPECULATORS, page 18) two-thir- un-floatab- ds le The Grand Canyon of the Colorado has also dampened plans for Western River Expeditions of Salt Lake City. Spokesman Lynn Keller (Sec RIVER RUNNERS, page 4) |