The dealet's Supplierneaer his cotnpetitor.

At press time, Georgia-Pacific spokesmen announced that G-P had purchased Rounds & Kilpatrick Co. for about $3 million in Georgia-Pacific stock.

Harry A. Merlo, formerly vice-president and general manager of operations for Rounds & Kilpatrick, was made a vice president of Georgia-Pacifit:.

Believed included in the sale. in addition to Rounds & Kilpatrick, were Rounds Lumber Co., 1J8.000 acres of timberland in Mendocino County. Cali{., and Rockport Redwood Co. Rounds & Kilpatrick op'rates a remanufacturing plant in Cloverdale. Calif.

'fhe National Bureau of Standards, accordir.rg to usually reliable sources. has released an opinion signed by the general counsel oI the U.S. Commerce l)epart' ment rcgarding the proposed revision to SPR i6-53 that is expected to have far-rt'aching efiects.

The opinion held that a.s a matter of law. no consensus resulted from last year's balloting orr whether the industry as a whole wanted the proposed new stand' ard. It also said that it would be illegal for the de' partment to issue the revised simplified practice recommendations, popularly known as the ll/2" dry standard. due to a lack of performance criteria and test pro' t'edures within the revised standard.

This is the sec'ond unsuccessful attempt by ll2" dry lrackers to pass a standard.

We will have complete details on both of these stories in our next issue.

The federal government opened hearings last month in Wash' ington. D.C. on proposal-" to ('reate a national rtdwood park in northwt'stern California.

Testimonv rvas ple,sentcd by redwood producels whose lands rvould be takrn for the park. Local plovernmetrt atrd citizen groups spokt' on tht: effect of a park on industrv antl community stability.

California (lovclnor Ronald Rt'agan endorsed a national redwood park, but sct specific conditions: The park must Irot de' privc timber'-dept'ndt'nt communitit's of their job base; tlrt' state must receive in exchange lull value {or state lands included in thc park: private landowners should reccive fair land exchangtfrom tht' federal govr:rnmcnt, and tht' emphasis on acquisition mrrst be on negotiatir)n. not condemnation. and the plan should also include seashore areas as proposed in the National Park and Scashore Bill sponsolcd by Rep. Don Clausen (R.-Calif.).

Starr- Reed. chairman of thc Redrvood Industry Land Committt't' and vice president timbcrlands of Simpson Timber Co., stated that industry and the county support the "livable park plan" o[ the "Redwoods-to-the-Sca" concept introduct'd b1' Senators NIur'phy tlt.-Calif.) and Fannin (lt.-Ariz.). He t'alled for an earlv settlt'mcnt of the redwood park issue to relieve the economic anxietit's and harassment that have plagucd evelyone for several years.

Othel industr'1- ,*pokesmt'n. in order o{ appearalt<:c. wt're: Hat'old A. \lillt'r. prcsident. Nlillt'r-Rcllim Redwood (}r.: G. Gray llvans. r'ict' plesident, Ceolgia-Paci{ic Corp.: C. D. Weyerhaeuser. boald t'hairman. Arcala lil'<lwood Co.: Philip T. Farnsworth, ext't:utivt' vicc president. California Redwood Association; Kramt'r A. Adams, manager of CRA's Rcdwood Industry Ilecreation Art'as. atrd J. E. Pi<'kt'tt. vice presidetrt. (lal-Pacifit, Iledwood Co.

Six more western retail yards have either opened new lumber and building materials stores or have greatly expanded previous operations by adding additional floor spaoe and new lines of nrerchandise.

The growing emphasis on attracting consumer trade is seen as a trend.

Among new and enlarged operations are: Fred McKensie. Rockuood Lumber and Hardware in Woodburn. Oregon. McKensie u.as formerll' with Signal Oil: Harold Wills. Vic Landreth and I)on McGec optnt'd a second Coast Building Supply in Gresham, Oregon; Mr. and Mrs. Howard Pettyjohn have built new quarters to house their expanding business in Heppn,er, Oregon; the A. C. Houston Co. opened a new lumlrt,r and materials yard in Silver City, Neu Mexico. The company now has three New Mexico locations.

Volco Builder's Supply, Inc. o{ Twin Falls, Idaho has a new huilding with 15,000 sq. ft. of floor space to handle Manager \I'arren Barnl's "supe rmarket" for building supplies. A third Big Pierre's lumber yard has been opened in Pasco, Wash. There are Bie Pierre lumber vards in Kennewick and Richland.

The Jim \&'alter Colp. has approved in principle the purchast' of certain assets of the building materials operations of Allied (lhcmical Corporation. J. W. Walter. chairman. has announced. Celotex Corp. is one part of the Jim W'alter Ct,rp. Properties to be acquired consist primaril,v of the Barrett r,,ofing, hardhoard, gypsumboard. plastic pipe. urethane insulation and fiberboard production facilities.

Purchaser price is approximately $,48 million. of which 920 rnillion will be paid in cash and the balance in a new $40 conr t'rtible prelerred stock. convertible into Jim Waltt.r comrnorl stock on a share-for-share basis.

Issuing lht' nt,w stock is subject to a definitive agreement and to approval br- Jim Walter stockholders. who will vote in June.

A Februarv pi<'kup in building contracts has brightened the or.rtlook for ctxstluct.ion activity ovcr the months ahead. reports the F. \['. Dodgt' Co., L'ading construction analyst. The value of constluction contl'acts for that monlh were eight per. ccnt below the comparabk, year'-ago amount.

"With this latest gain, construclion demand now starlds about hal{way between the supressed level of the past fcw months and the peak rate which had bet'n rt'ached almost a -year ago." said George A. Christic, chit'f economist of the Dodge Co. "Housing has r:learly strengthened trnd non-rt'sidential building appeared more buoyant."

A slow-<lown in the nation's busine-.s activity during tht' tttrxt l2 months could adcl to tht. anticipated step-up in t'otrstrur'tion, markt't rt'scart:her Sanford R. Goodkin has forcast.

"Tht, kt'r' to llrc housing outlook is in the savings picture," said Goodkin. wlxr added. "tht' total supply o{ lendabk' funds is risine. and if business should {ail to accelerate as expected, the housing indrrstn. n'ould most likelv be stimulated as a "t'outtter cvclical industry."

The analvst. rvlro is the official west coast statistical source for the National Association of Home Builders, said that even if this doesn't happen. there will bt' enough mortgagc and construction mone) available to financc a greater volume o{ housing during tht' last hal{ of 1967 and throughout 1968.

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