Just how close is the City of Great Bend to pulling the trigger on placing artificial turf on the baseball and softball fields at the Great Bend Sports Complex? The budget plans for 2019 would indicate close. The City transferred $1,300,000 into a fund for the artificial turf, but has yet to receive confirmation from the City Council to go forward with the upgrade.

George Kolb served as Interim City Administrator prior to Kendal Francis taking over the permanent position on July 30. Kolb noted at the budget session in July that not many municipal ballfields have artificial turf.

George Kolb Audio

When the Sports Complex opened in 2012, the master plan for the facility included football and soccer fields to the west. The 2019 recommended budget also has $409,350 allotted for potential improvements to the facility outside of the turf.

The thought of placing turf on the infields at the Sports Complex is to keep the facility competitive with attracting tournaments to Great Bend. The Class 2-1A State Baseball Tournament and KCAC Conference baseball and softball tournaments are contracted for one more year at the Sports Complex.

Kolb mentioned the City Council will have to decide how the City uses the funding for sports venues.

George Kolb Audio

Community Coordinator Christina Hays says that the KCAC will possibly find a new facility for their conference tournaments following the 2019 season if the Sports Complex does not receive turf.

USD 428 makes use of the fields for their baseball and softball teams from Great Bend High School. In the 2019 Capital Improvement Plan, the City has $520,000 coming from USD 428 for the artificial turf. Neither the school district or the Board of Education has approved any amount. The Great Bend Recreation Commission would assist with the annual maintenance of the facility. All the funding still needs to be approved by City Council, USD 428 Board of Education, and Great Bend Recreation Commission.

There are talks of adding an outdoor basketball court at Brit Spaugh Park with an anonymous donor willing to pay half of the expenses.

New Great Bend City Administrator Kendal Francis has been busy since starting his new job in the city two weeks ago. Much of his work has been familiarizing himself with the community and reaching out to other local governing bodies including the Barton County Commission. Francis made a stop at the courthouse Monday to extend an olive branch to Commissioners to let them know he is all about cooperation between the city and the county.

Kendal Francis Audio

Commission Chair Jennifer Schrartz echoed Francis’ comments concerning future cooperation and revealed that discussions have already taken place about scheduling joint meetings in the future where both Commissioners and Great Bend City Council members would take part.

Kendal Francis Audio

Francis spent nearly 20 years in Beloit with the city’s water/wastewater department. He has served as City Administrator for Lakin and most recently as City Administrator for Coffeyville from August 2015 to March 2018.

Barton County Sheriff Brian Bellendir’s jury trial on a misdemeanor charge on one count of mistreatment of a confined person will take place at 9 a.m. November 14th. The jury trial had been scheduled to take place on July 16th, but Bellendir says his attorney Jess Hoeme had a conflict with another case at that time and added that both he and the attorney felt more time was needed to prepare for the case.

Brian Bellendir Audio

When the trial finally takes place in November, it will have been over a year since Bellendir was charged for mistreating Nathan B. Manley while in handcuffs and striking the confined man on the side of his head on August 10, 2017. Bellendir was responding to a burglary that was reported at his daughter’s house and Manley was booked into jail that same day on a warrant. Following an investigation by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Bellendir was charged in October.

Brian Bellendir Audio

In Kansas, a Class-A misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year in jail with a fine of up to $2,500. A conviction could also mean desertification by the Kansas Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training.

Barton County Commissioners spent the first part of their Monday morning canvassing the ballots that were cast in last Tuesday’s general election. Barton County Clerk Donna Zimmerman explains the process that includes the counting of provisional ballots that were cast during the election process.

Donna Zimmerman Audio

Election officials in more than half of Kansas counties began the process of reviewing some 9,000 provisional ballots as part of a statewide effort to arrive at final official vote totals in the tight Republican primary for governor.

Donna Zimmerman Audio

Secretary of State Kris Kobach led Gov. Jeff Colyer by 110 votes out of 313,000-plus cast after late mail-in ballots from all 105 counties were added Friday to totals from advance voting and ballots cast at the polls Tuesday.

The canvass was beginning early Monday in suburban Kansas City’s Johnson County, where a board was set to review 1,800 provisional ballots, given to voters at the polls when their eligibility is in question.

Seventy-six counties including Barton started canvass meetings Monday, but some will meet later this week and next.

8/10

BOOKED: Jason Payne of Great Bend back for court from KDOC.

BOOKED: Brandon Maxwell of Hoisington on BTDC case to serve.

BOOKED: Michael Stroede on CKCC warrant for arrest and detain.

BOOKED: Derrick Bartonek on BTDC warrant for failure to appear, bond set at $200 cash only.

BOOKED: Sean Brown of Hutchinson on Central Kansas Community Corrections serve sentence.

BOOKED: Carlos Batres of Great Bend on GBMC serve sentence.

BOOKED: Stephen Jackson Crawford on Barton County District Court case for burglary with a bond of $5,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Marvin Allen Lewis Jr. on Great Bend Municipal Court warrant for contempt of court with no bond.

BOOKED: Juan Bautista of Great Bend on serve sentence.

BOOKED: Thelma Hernandez-Medina on Great Bend Municipal Court warrant for contempt of court with a bond of $742.50 cash only. GBMC warrant for contempt of court with a bond of $722.50.

RELEASED: Jacob Hoch on BTDC case for burglary, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, aggravated domestic battery, bond changed to $10,000 to cover both cases. Posted bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Jason Payne of Great Bend back to KDOC.

RELEASED: Derrick Bartonek on BTDC warrant for failure, posted bond of $200 cash.

RELEASED: Michael S. Stroede on CKCC arrest and detain to Rice County Sheriff’s Office.

RELEASED: Jennifer L. Ogden on BCDC case for battery DV with a bond of $2,500 through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Keith A. Meder on BCDC case with a $1,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Fernando I. Acosta on GBMC warrant for failure to appear with a $2,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Chelsea L. Guyton on Barton County District Court warrant to Russell County.

8/11

BOOKED: Jose A. Quezada of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for no tag light, no driver’s license, and no proof of insurance, bond set at $500 C/S.

BOOKED: Ralph Tuey of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for defective headlamps, illegal tags, no proof of insurance, DL revoked, and unlawful use of a DL. Bond set at $500 C/S.

BOOKED: Ralph Tuey of Great Bend on Barton County District Court warrant for failure to appear, bond set in lieu of $1,000 cash only.

BOOKED: Jesus A. Mercado on GBMC case for DWS and limitations on backing, bond is set in the amount of $500 C/S.

BOOKED: Cody Day of Great Bend on BTDC warrant for battery, criminal damage to property, and disorderly conduct, bond set at $1,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Dale Miller of Belpre on Barton County District Court warrant for failure to appear with a bond set at $500 cash only or 48-hour OR.

RELEASED: Jose A. Quizada of Great Bend on GBMC case for no tag light, no driver’s license, and no proof of insurance, after posting a cash bond of $500.

RELEASED: Jesus Mercado on GBMC case for DWS and improper backing after paying a cash bond of $500.

RELEASED: Alexandra Dirreen on BTDC warrant for aggravated battery after posting a surety bond of $75,000 through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Dale Miller of Belpre on BCDC warrant for failure appear after posting a $500 cash only bond.

8/12

BOOKED: Scottie Ketch of Great Bend on Barton County District Court warrant for violation of protection order and criminal trespass, bond set at $2,500 C/S.

BOOKED: Mark Ray of Great Bend on Barton County District Court case for driving while suspended, illegal registration, possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia, bond set in lieu of $10,000 C/S. St. John Municipal Court warrant for failure to appear, bond set in lieu of $198 cash only.

BOOKED: Aqueisa Koett of Great Bend on Barton County District Court case for possession of methamphetamine and possession of paraphernalia, bond set at $10,000 C/S.

BOOKED: George Ferdon of Hollister, MO on KHP case for DWS, speeding, and no insurance, bond is set in the amount of $1,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Elizabeth L. Meeks on Great Bend Municipal Court warrant for theft with a bond of $1,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Taylor Lynn Arnold on Barton County District Court warrant for unlawful possession of a controlled substance with a bond of $1,000 C/S.

RELEASED: Scottie Ketch of Great Bend on BCDC warrant for violation of protection order and criminal trespass after posting a $2,500 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Aqueisa Koett of Great Bend for BCDC case for possession of methamphetamine, possession of paraphernalia after posting a $10,000 surety bond.

RELEASED: George Ferdon of Hollister, MO on BTDC case for DWS, speeding, and no insurance after posting bond in the amount of $1,000 through All Out Bail Bonds.

RELEASED: Sean Brown of Hutchinson on Central Kansas Community Corrections serve sentence.

RELEASED: Juan Miguel Bautista with a serve sentence on BCDC case.

RELEASED: Mark Ray of Great Bend on BCDC case for driving while suspended, illegal registration, possession of methamphetamine, and possession of drug paraphernalia, after posting a $10,000 surety bond. Released on St. John Municipal Court warrant for failure to appear after posting a $198 cash only bond.

RELEASED: Elizabeth L. Meeks on Great Bend Municipal Court warrant for failure to appear after posting a $1,000 surety bond.

RELEASED: Taylor L. Arnold on Barton County District Court warrant with a $1,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

First as usual, a drought update is in order.  Again, nothing after 8 a.m. this past Tuesday is included.  Not much has changed with the western half of Kansas mostly out of drought conditions, this area in moderate drought, and the eastern half of the state, especially in the central Flint Hills in extreme and exceptional drought.  Today’s topic isn’t about red or white wine but red or white wheat.  You may have heard of white wheat but what is it and why should we plant it?

First, there are different types of wheat with a variety of uses – hard red winter, hard white winter, hard red winter, soft white, and durum.  Hard, soft, and durum each have specific uses.  Very briefly, hard wheats are more for breads with some difference between winter and spring types.  Soft wheats are more for confectionary purposes.  Hard and soft types are mixed together for all-purpose flours.  Durum wheat is primarily a pasta wheat.  With the exception of extreme Eastern Kansas where some soft wheat is grown, Kansas produces hard winter wheats with the majority being hard red winter wheat (HRWW).  Some hard white winter wheat (HWWW) is grown, primarily in the western, drier, part of the state.  The Kansas Wheat Alliance has just announced the release of a new HWWW from K-State’s Hays Research Center Wheat Breeding Program named Venada.  This wheat is being released for increase this year and should be available to producers the following year.  This HWWW was developed to be grown in Western Kansas but is also suited for the wheat core from Wichita south and over towards Pratt.  The idea is to expand the area of HWWW production.  Past varieties weren’t well adapted to this region and riskier to grow.  This begs two questions.  Why do we need to increase HWWW acres?  And how is HWWW different from HRWW?

White wheat is very similar to red wheat in its milling and baking properties.  The obvious difference is naturally in the color of the kernel but the real difference is in what causes the red color.  The red is caused by tannins, the same tannins giving red wine an astringency not present in white wines.  Tannins are bitter.  Tannins from oak were used to tan animal hides.  In addition, HRWW contain phenolic acids.  When these compounds are removed from HRWW to create a HWWW variety, they create a problem in certain growing areas.  These compounds help prevent wheat kernels from sprouting while still in the head.  So in areas with more rainfall and higher humidity, HWWW is more prone to what is termed head sprouting which ruins the value of the crop.  This is why HWWW is primarily grown in the drier, lower humidity areas of Kansas, the western part of the state, particularly the northwest.  This new variety should expand the region of adaption.  But why does this matter?

Most of us in the U.S. do not consume whole wheat flour but refined flour.  This removes the tannins and phenolic acid and thus a sweeter flour.  Most of the world, where we want to export our wheat, whether Mexico or Asia uses whole wheat flour and they don’t like the bitter taste.  That is why areas like the Palouse of the Pacific Northwest and much of Australia produce HWWW.  Their climate fits and they can easily export their wheat.  Our wheat is less valued and tends to be exported when the price is right or as a last resort.  It’s not that simple but that is the gist of the problem.  So if Kansas can produce more HWWW, producers have a better export market for what they produce.

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — A man whose death sentence was overturned in 2014 has been resentenced to life in prison.

State prison records show 44-year-old Roger Gillett was resentenced in July.

Gillett and then-girlfriend Lisa Jo Chamberlin were convicted of killing Gillett’s cousin and the cousin’s girlfriend in 2004 because they wouldn’t open a safe. Dismembered bodies of Vernon Hulett and Linda Heintzelman were found stuffed in a freezer on a farm near Russell, Kansas.

The Mississippi Supreme Court voided Gillett’s death sentence, finding jurors wrongly considered Gillett’s attempted escape from a Kansas jail.

Forrest County District Attorney Patricia Burchell consulted victim families before deciding against the death penalty.

Chamberlin’s death sentence was reinstated in March after a federal appeals court dismissed accusations of racial bias in jury selection.

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