European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 26, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                1k Page 16 the stars and stripes Money matters monday. July 26,1993 of today s rates following Are fixed rates at which Community banking and credit Union facilities will sell for eign currencies to . Personnel for personal use German Mark 1.68 British Pound 1.54 dutch Guilder 1.89 greek drachma. 227.6428 note the Ratos above apply within the Host country figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to the Dollar following Are Interbank rates that fluctuate and should be regarded As the approximate value of the . Dollar to foreign Curren cies italian lira 1,613.50 turkish lire 11,318.30 Spanish peseta 137.90 portuguese Esau do 172.03austrian Schilling 12.093 saudi rial 3.75bahrain Dinar 0.3768 Kuwait Dinar norwegian Krone 7.341 danish Krone 6.681british Pound 1.502 German Mark 1.717swiss franc 1.5131 French franc 5.871dutch Guilder 1.932 belgian franc 35.50canadian Dollar 1.2813 note figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to the Dollar Gold quote $392.60 an ounce Silver quote s5.06 an ounce vow attempts crisis control paper reports Berlin a members of Volks Wagen a s supervisory Board held a Cri Sis meeting to control damage from allegations that a company executive who defected from general motors committed Industrial espionage a news re port said saturday. The Frankfurter Allie mine likened the situation to the dirty business shenanigans in the to series Dallas and said it was hurting Volkswagen Europe s big Gest automaker and a prominent Symbol of German Industry. The Welt am sonntag weekly newspaper said supervisory Board members met late Friday to Hannover with Volkswagen chief Ferdinand Piech and sharply criticized him for being on vacation As controversy Rose around Josd Ignacio Lopez de Arn Ortua the Spanish Cost cutting expert who moved from general motors to Volkswagen in March. General motors accuses Lopez of Mak ing off with Trade secrets. Prosecutors in Darmstadt said thursday that they found pm documents in a Home of a Lopez aide who moved to Volkswagen with him. The prosecutors have not lodged charges but their revelation intensified suspicion of wrongdoing and was the Sec Ond setback of the week for Lopez and Volkswagen. On tuesday a court in Hamburg lifted a gag order on the newsmagazine Der Spiegel which had said in a May cover Story that Lopez and aides who defected to Volkswagen together committed Industrial espionage of the highest order. After hearing three pm witnesses and examining some 20 affidavits the Ham Burg court said Der Spiegel had sufficient grounds to assert that Lopez too piles of pm proprietary documents when he left. Lopez denies the claim and Volkswagen Nas supported Hira the Welt am sonntag report said the Volkswagen supervisory Board Hopes to keep Lopez and his aides to oversee re structuring of the company which lost j/32.5 million in the first Quarter of 1993. Try Lima Ohio not Bay area for Best bargains on houses Washington a looking for a cheap Home go to Lima Ohio Man Chester . Brazoria Texas or Grce Ley Cpl. The National association of Home builders said thursday that its Survey found those cities to be the most affordable markets in each of the nation s four regions during the january March Quarter. Nationally Lima was the most affordable Market of All and the Midwest remained the most affordable Region. Lima succeeded the Saginaw Bay City mid land Mich., area the fourth Quarter Leader which fell into the no. 2 spot the association said. At the other extreme was san Francis co which has been labelled the least affordable area since the association began compiling its housing Opportunity Index in the first Quarter of 1991. The least affordable markets in other regions were Stamford Conn., in the Northeast Elpaso Texas in the South and Kalamazoo Mich., in the Midwest. Regionally the Midwest was followed by the South. But 18 of the 25 most affordable markets were in the Midwest. Four others were in the Northeast two in the South and one in the West. The least affordable markets were mostly in the Northeast and the West particularly California. The West had 20 of the least affordable markets is of which were in califor Nia. The other five were in the Northeast. Wherever they shopped the association said most americans found housing More affordable in the first Quarter of 1993 than affordable housing the 10 most affordable and 10 least affordable . Housing markets in the first Quarter of 1993, according to the National association of Home builders. The number corresponding to each area is the percentage of the Homes sold that were within reach of the median income household at the prevailing mortgage interest rate. Most affordable least affordable Lima Ohio .94.2 Saginaw Bay City Midland Mich. 93.2 Brazoria Texas 92.5 Lansing East Lansing Mich. 91.9 grand rapids Mich. 91.9 Mansfield Ohio 91.8 Jackson Mich. 91.6 Rockford. Iii. 91.5 Champaign Urbana Rantoul Iii. 91.4. Manchester . 91.0 san Francisco 14.3 Salinas Seaside Monterey Calif. 23.6 Santa Rosa Petaluma Calif. 25.1 Honolulu 26.0 Santa Cruz. Calif. 26.4 los Angeles Long Beach 27.3 Stamford Conn. 34.0 san Jose Calif. 35.7 san Diego 36.8 new York 36.9 source a the final three months of 1992. The association said the National medi an Home Price in the january March Quarter was $105,000. National median income Rose to $39,700 from $36,800 in the fourth Quarter of 1992. The housing Opportunity Index Mea sures the ability of a typical family to buy a Home by comparing median family in come with median Home Price. Lima for instance had a median in come of $37,900 and a median Home Price of $60,000. Is according to the mortgage underwriting standards used for calculating the Index at the prevailing mortgage rate of 7.57 percent a family could afford to buy a Home costing 3.3 times its annual in come $125,070. In Lima 94.2 percent of the Homes sold during the first Quarter were priced at or below $125,070. But san Francisco had a median in come of $54,300 and a median Home Price of $280,000, meaning the typical family could afford a Home costing$179,190. Watering holes to give golfers another round by the new York times it is hot. You have just three putted to fall farther behind. You would love a cold drink to revive your spirits and maybe your game. But six holes remain Between you and the clubhouse. In the old Days like now about the Best a golfer could Hope for was a nearby water Fountain. But George r. Jensen jr., who once turned old Black and White movies to color for communications Mogul Ted Turner is about to change All that by bringing the 19th Hole right onto the course. In his latest Endeavor Jensen 44, runs a company that makes conless computerized vending machines that dispense cans of Beer and soft drinks and charge the purchases to credit cards. He plans to install the first machines in december on Golf courses in Florida where they have been tested and have 2,000 others i place within five years. And that could be just the Start. He said his company Usa entertainment Center based in Wayne pa., intended to expand into marinas Tennis clubs hotels motels Bowling centers and elsewhere with machines that might sell other products such As snacks books and office supplies. It s the ultimate in Low overhead merchandising Jensen said wednesday. If i m right there will be millions of machines All Over the world. No doubt they re  in a simpler form they have already arrived. Several years ago a danish com Pany developed Coin operated Beer vend ing machines that accommodated several currencies and dispensed Beer according to the amount spent. Ben Steinman executive editor of Beer marketers in sights a Trade publication said some it s the ultimate in Low overhead merchandising. If i m right there will be millions of machines All Over the world. No doubt they re coming George r. Jensen or. Beer in Japan is sold by vending dispensers. The version made by Usa entertain ment stretches the technology. The machines Are equipped with surveillance systems that enable someone in the club House for example to communicate with customers through a video camera and intercom. Only when the Monitor is con Vinced that a buyer is of appropriate age and sobriety will the machine be activated. Short people might be at some Dis advantage because the video camera is 5 feet-8-inches off the ground. But it s a wide Angle Lens Jensen said. It sees  by Jensen s estimates Side by Side dispensers one Selling As Many As eight brands of Beer the other eight kinds of soft drinks could generate annual reve Nues of More than $20,000, based on prices of $2.50 for a Beer and $1 for a soda. The proprietor who must have a liquor License would keep 60 percent of the Gross. The computer system recognizes a credit card number for accounting Pur poses but does not verify the worthiness of the card a function that would Cost Usa entertainment More Money. Jobless to learn importance of Early Blooming Schagen Netherlands a can t get a Job because you can t Getup in the morning a Job training course in the Netherlands seeks to ease the Long term unemployed into the Rigours of an Early Day. One of the major open Job markets in this nation of High unemployment is the seasonal Flower Industry. But last year 40 percent of the temporary workers digging Lily bulbs in the Schagen Region North of Amsterdam quit after a week. The Early starting time and strenuous physical demands were just too much Monique ruins hotel regional director for the state Agri cultural employment Bureau said thursday. Many of the jobless come to the Flower Fields after Yean of Seden tary employment. So ruins hotel s Bureau has devised a preparatory course meant to accustom aspiring agricultural workers to a totally Dif Ferent Type of workday. The first Day of the two Day course will begin at a nonthreatening 9 30 . Gradually the Start ing time will be pushed Forward to 7 30 ., the usual starting time in the Lily Fields. The course also jul address the problems of adapting to physical labor and even How to find Sitters for their cats ruins hotel said. We want to create a smoother transition for these workers she said. We Don t want any Hin Drance to prevent them from Tak ing this  t