TOLL CALL: Here’s a good measure that...

TOLL CALL: Here’s a good measure that the local job market is still tight: When the 3.5-mile segment of the Foothill Transportation Corridor opens Oct. 16, toll booths will be run by 15 attendants. And 224 people have applied--including people with master’s degrees--for those 15 jobs. . . . Officials say another 120 left their names, despite a message that no more applications would be taken. The pay range: $7.50 to $13.50 an hour.

SCARING UP SALES: Maybe you’ve forgotten that today is Friday the 13th, but the folks at Knott’s Berry Farm have had it circled on their calendar for months. Today--by no coincidence--is the first day that tickets go on sale for its annual Halloween Haunt. . . . It’s the one time of the year that Knott’s is the tourist attraction instead of Disneyland. The park takes on a ghoulish decor for 11 days--all on weekends--leading up to the finale Halloween Night.

VOLLEYBUCK$: Fans will have to pay to get an up-close view of San Clemente standout beach volleyball player Karch Kiraly this weekend at the $150,000 Miller Lite Open at Seal Beach. For the first time in the tournament’s 10-year history, admission will be charged for courtside seating. Reserved tickets range from $10 to $50. . . . The Assn. of Volleyball Players has experimented with paid seating at a few tournaments the past two years. Matches start at 9 a.m. today and finish Sunday afternoon.

AIR ALERT: Santa Ana Mayor Daniel H. Young and Police Chief Paul M. Walters will take to the air in their fight against graffiti. Next Thursday evening, they are scheduled to hop into a Goodyear blimp that will display the message all over Santa Ana: “Stop Graffiti. Take Back Your City!” It will also include the telephone number of the city’s Neighborhood Watch program. . . . Says Santa Ana businessman Bob Acosta, who put together the event: “Wherever you live, your tax dollars are being wasted on this plague.”