Judge Nixes Logging Road Plan

A federal judge in Boise, Id., blocked a ban on building roads in federal forests and called a Bush Administration plan to modify the rule a "Band Aid approach."

U.S. District Judge Edward Lodge issued the preliminary injunction in a lawsuit filed by Boise Cascade Corp., Boise. Id.. and the state of Idaho that criticized the Clinton administration for issuing a roadless ban to prohibit construction and the removal of lumber and oil from 58.5 million acres of forest land.

"Boise Cascade and our co-plaintiffs have maintained all along that the roadless rule was predetermined, onesided and failed to consider the longterm consequences for maintaining the health of our nation's forest," said Mike Moser, a Boise Cascade spokesman.

The Bush administration had said it would allow the Clinton plan to stand, for now, but also would modify the rule to allow local input so changes could be made on a forest-by-forest basis. Environmentalists and Democrats criticized the action as a tactic to weaken the orisinal rule and appease timber, mining and oil interCStS.

The ban had been set to go into effect March 13. but President Bush delayed it until May 12.

Judge Lodge said the Forest Service process used to develop the Clinton rules was "grossly inadequate" and failed to give the public enough time to respond. He labeled the plan a "serious" risk to the health of U.S. forests, as it prevents the Forest Service from considering alternative methods of managing U.S. land.

He also said the Bush administration proposal to amend the plan would not be adequate to address the flaws in the rule.

Lumber firms and the state of Idaho argue that prohibiting harvesting on the land would close off valuable resources, resulting in uncontrollable growth, wildfires and job losses.

BMHC Buys Rest Of Framer

Building Materials Holding Corp., San Francisco, Ca., is exercising its option to acquire the remaining 51Vo of Az.-based framing contractor Knipp

Brothers Industries.

BMHC, the parent company of 56unit pro dealer BMC West, bought 497o of Knipp two years ago, along with the right to buy the rest of the company within five years. As part of the deal, BMHC also will become sole owner of Az.-based distributor KBI Distribution and Ca. framing contractor Industries Ltd. Partnership.

The transaction is expected to close by July.

Talpx & Crow's Fly Together

Talpx Inc. and the management team from Crow's have acquired C.C. Crow Publications. Inc.. Portland, Or., reportedly the industry's oldest price reporting service.

Under the agreement, 80-year-old Crow's will continue to operate independently, but will now have an Internet presence that will expand their distribution and readership.

"This partnership with Crow's brings us one step closer to delivering the dream of e-commerce-the ability of our members to manage their enterprise seamlessly from their desktop," said Talpx c.e.o. George Frankfort.

"We are pleased to have joined

There are a lot of good reasons for carrying L-P Solid Start products: wide variety, a limited lifetime warranty and the fact that they build great homes.

Full line now available in stock: o LPI'20 and 32 series l-joists (solid sawn flanged)

. CTR* 150 and 250 series l-joists (Gang-Lam' LVL flanged) r LPI 36 and 56 series l-joists (Gang-Lam LVL flanged)

. Gang-Lam 2650 Fb and 2950 Fb beams in standard and billet thicknesses (1-314" to 7" thick) o 5olid Start rim board

For more information, including a copy of our warranty, contact Huff Lumber. HUFF TUMBER

SANTA FE SPRINGS, CATIFORNIA E00-347-4833 o 2000 LouiJiana-Paclfic Corporation. All righs re*rued. ulP#,:!i?k?#'f,,?rjn" forces with an industry stalwart like Crow's," said president Jim Olmedo. "Of the many content providers in our industry, Crow's has embraced Internet technology and shares our vision of e-commerce. Anchored by electronic trading and authoritative industry information, we will launch a suite of electronic services to deliver the eMarketplace of the future in our industry."

Fence Giant Buys Distributor

Leading fence system manufacturer and distributor Master-Halco. Inc.. La Habra, Ca., has acquired the assets of Reeves Southeastern Corp., the third-largest fencing product manufacturer and distributor in the U.S.

The purchase from Diamond Home Services included 32 Southeastern Wire distribution branches, including two with on-site manufacturing, plus Southeastern Access Control, Tampa, and Electronic Entry Distributors, Santa Monica, Ca.

A subsidiary of N.Y.-based Itochu International, Master-Halco now operates branch service centers, manufacturing plants and corporate offices from 92 locations in the U.S.

and Canada.

Bill Ullrich, general manager of major accounts for Master-Halco, is heading a team of 14 people to facilitate the integration. Previously, he led the management team responsible for the transition of operations from

Anchor Fence, which was acquired by Master-Halco in 1997.

The transition is expected to be complete in the fall, at which time Ullrich will take over as general manager of Master-Halco's new access control division.