As the water line replacement project in the City of Great Bend moves full speed ahead, Interim City Administrator George Kolb says there have been a few “growing pains.”

The estimated $6 million project is replacing water mains that are old, copper, cast iron, and too thin. As the new plastic pipes are installed it is causing more pressure and leaks are beginning to pop up throughout other parts of town as a result.

Kolb noted the City is finding out about some of the obvious leaks, but encourages residents to notify the City if they spot a leak or are having water issues.

George Kolb Audio

Residents can call the city offices at 620-793-4111 or report the concern via the City’s website, greatbendks.net. On the right-hand side of the page there is a tab labeled, “Report a Concern.”

Kolb says water will always find a hole and repairing one pipe that had a leak only pushes the potential problem further down.

George Kolb Audio

At the June 19^th Great Bend City Council meeting, on-call engineer Josh Golka said APAC Kansas is ahead of schedule for the project that has until March 2019 to be complete. Golka said the nearly 40,000 linear feet of pipe replacement could be done as soon as late fall or early winter.

In other City Council meeting news from July 2, 2018…

– Kolb reminded the council of the fireworks display at the Great Bend Expo Complex Tuesday, July 3 starting at 10 p.m.

– Great Bend Chamber of Commerce CEO Jan Peters says the City was chosen to participate in a survey regarding workforce development. Local businesses are encouraged to fill out the survey that will identify shortfalls and what type of workforce Great Bend and Kansas needs to be targeting.

– Sanitarian Austin LaViolette says one troubling area of overgrown vegetation that many homeowners forget about are easements. Property owners are responsible to maintenance their alleys so city staff and others can maneuver through if needed.

– The City Council voted 7-1 to officially adopt the ordinance to change the time of the regular City Council meetings to 6:30 p.m. Four of the council members and the mayor were late to Monday’s meeting that started at 6:38 p.m.

– The Council went into executive session for 45 minutes to discuss the review of candidates for City Administrator. No decision or selection was made following the executive session.

The 4^th of July officially kicks off July 3in Great Bend. The City of Great Bend took it upon themselves this year to raise $15,000 for the fireworks show that will begin at 10 p.m. at the Great Bend Expo Complex. In April it was announced the City reached their goal by collecting donations from various sponsors.

Great Bend Community Coordinator Christina Hayes says the display is a great way to begin the holiday the night before.

Christina Hayes Audio

Hayes encourages citizens to come out to the Expo and park facing the southwest.

The gates at the Expo Complex will open at 7:30 p.m. with the first test shot starting at 9:45 p.m. followed the official show at 10 p.m. 100.7 Eagle Country will be out at the Expo to cover the fireworks display starting at 8:30 p.m.

Adams, Brown, Beran and Ball have given Barton County a clean bill of financial health following the 2017 audit that the accounting firm recently completed. The firm issued an unmodified opinion on the audit that covers the financial condition of Barton County from January 1, 2017 through January 31, 2017. Melissa Ille of Adams, Brown, Beran and Ball presented the audit report to Commissioners on Monday.

Melissa Ille Audio

The county’s ending cash balance was $15,496,210.

The audit did find a couple of minor violations that Ille says have been taken care of.

Melissa Ille Audio

Ille explained that an unmodified opinion is expressed to the financial statements that were prepared in all material respect and complying with applicable framework. This opinion is issued once auditors obtain sufficient and appropriate audit’s evidence to the financial statements as the result of their testing.

6/29

BOOKED: Jacob Schenkel of Great Bend on Barton County District Court serve sentence.

BOOKED: Raymond Chapman of Hoisington on BTDC warrant for probation violation, no bond.

BOOKED: Kawliga Zimmerman of Hoisington on HPD case for driving while suspended habitual, illegal tag, bond set at $2,500 C/S or 18-hour OR bond.

RELEASED: Amy Dawn Hartung on Barton County District Court warrant to Kansas Parole.

RELEASED: Melbra Orr on GBMC warrant for contempt or 180 days in jail, GBMC warrant for contempt or 180 days in jail, GBMC warrant for contempt or 180 days in jail, GBMC warrant for contempt or 180 days in jail, GBMC warrant for contempt or 27 days in jail. Released by order of the court through Great Bend Municipal.

RELEASED: Christina Chapman of Great Bend for BTDC serve sentence.

6/30

BOOKED: Jimmy Hayes of Ellinwood on BTDC case for aggravated battery, bond set in lieu of $10,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Euggnia Hayes of Ellinwood on Ellinwood case for battery DV, bond in lieu of $1,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Derrick Buess on Barton County District Court case.

BOOKED: Ismael Dominguez on GBPD case for DWS 3rd offense and illega tag, bond is set at $2,500 C/S or 48-hour OR.

RELEASED: Euggnia Hayes of Ellinwood on Ellinwood case for battery DV after posting a $1,000 surety bond through A-1 Bonding.

RELEASED: Jimmy Joe Hays on Ellinwood Municipal Court case for aggravated battery with a bond of $10,000 surety through Ace Bail Bonds.

RELEASED: Kawliga Zimmerman of Hoisington on HPD case for driving while suspended habitual, illegal tag after 18-hour OR bond.

RELEASED: Ismael Dominguez on GBPD case for DWS 3rd offense and illegal tag, bond was posted in the amount of $2,500 through Dyn-O-Mite Bail Bonding.

7/1

BOOKED: Jill Zecha of Great Bend on KHP case for violating DL restrictions, and DUI, bond set in lieu of $2,500 C/S.

BOOKED: Seth Hillegeist of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for driving under the influence and defective tail lamps with bond set at $1,000 C/S or 48-hour OR bond.

BOOKED: Alberto Navarro-Favela of Wichita on Great Bend Municipal Court case for no driver’s license and no headlights with bond set at $500 C/S or 48-hour OR bond.

BOOKED: Jorge Aguilera on GBMC case for possession of methamphetamine, possession of paraphernalia, felony interference, flee and elude, expired tax, no insurance, and DWS habitual, bond is set in the amount of $10,000 C/S.

BOOKED: William Kilgore of Great Bend on BTDC case for flee and elude, DWS, bond set at $2,500 C/S.

BOOKED: Jedidiah Boyd of Great Bend on Barton County District Court case for aggravated battery DV with bond set at $20,000 C/S.

BOOKED: Angelia Espino of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for defective headlamp and no driver’s license, bond set in lieu of $500 C/S.

BOOKED: Austin Riley of Great Bend on Ellinwood Municipal Court case for stalking, criminal trespass, and disorderly conduct, bond set in lieu of $1,000 C/S.

RELEASED: Jill Zecha of Great Bend on KHP case for violation of DL restrictions and DUI, posted bond through Dyn-O-Mite.

RELEASED: Seth Hillegeist of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court case for driving under the influence and defective tail lamps after posting a $1,000 surety bond through Dyn-O-Mite Bail Bonding.

RELEASED: Jacob Schenkel of Great Bend on Barton County District Court case serve sentence in full.

RELEASED: Alberto Navarro-Favela of Wichita on Great Bend Municipal Court case for no driver’s license and no headlights after posting a $500 cash bond.

RELEASED: Jorge Aguilera of Great Bend on Barton County District Court case for possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, felony interference, expired tag, no insurance and habitual violator after posting a $10,000 surety bond through Ace Bail Bonding.

First, a drought update is in order.  Unfortunately this is as of 8 a.m. this past Tuesday and doesn’t reflect the heavy rains much of the area received that morning which certainly helped.  Much of Northeast and North Central are now out of drought conditions.  Much of our immediate area, except to the east (Rice and a sliver of Barton Counties) are out of severe drought and in the moderate drought/abnormally dry categories.  Southwest Kansas has improved some while Eastern Kansas stayed the same or intensified a bit.  The rains of last week should help but the extreme temperatures from last Wednesday through Saturday erase some of the gains.  Compared to last year, summer crops and pasture in the area are in much better shape than last year but the rains need to keep coming.  Now on to today’s topic.

As we celebrate Independence Day and two hundred and forty-two years as a nation, it is important to remember how much of country’s background, growth, prosperity, and outlook arise from agriculture.  Today, it often seems agriculture only matters during elections, especially the Presidential ones, and is stuck back in a drawer the rest of the time.  We seem to forget how many of the founders were either farmers as adults or grew up on a farm.  We know of Washington and Jefferson and many of the early Presidents.  But we shouldn’t forget Lincoln whose administration established the Department of Agriculture and the Land Grant system with K-State as the first Land Grant institution.  And the list continues down through Presidents Truman, Johnson, Carter, and Clinton.

What played a key role allowing the United States to prosper, grow, and develop?  Agriculture tied to the land.  The contiguous forty-eight states comprise not only a huge land area but also a variety of climates and soil types allowing for a diverse, highly productive agricultural system.  The Midwest U.S. is one of the largest, most fertile production areas on the planet.  And many areas not suited for crop production are excellent pasture/grazing areas.  This allowed for several major things to happen.

• Combined with investments of time, money, and personnel from Federal and state governments, these natural resources permitted, in conjunction with research and technological advances, increases in per acre production to allow for surpluses and a stable food supply. This also resulted in agricultural commodities importance in international trade and humanitarian relief.
• A cheap reliable food source meant a more stable society and the ability for people to spend money on a variety of items and thus helps drive our consumer driven economy.
• As productivity per acre went up and technology improved efficiencies, fewer people were needed on the farm. This allowed for people to explore other career paths, live wherever they chose, and for our modern technological society.  When a society doesn’t have to primarily worry about food, shelter, and clothing, it can develop at a rapid pace.  In many ways, your smartphone wouldn’t exist with modern agriculture.

Finally, what about those on the land.  In 1790. Farmers were ninety percent of the labor force and the country was almost entirely rural.  In 1860, fifty percent of the population lived on the farm and the workforce was a little less than sixty percent of the labor force.  By 1900, about forty percent lived on the farm and accounted for forty percent of the labor force.  In 2000, the farm population was around one percent of the total population and a little less than three percent of the workforce.  Yet even today, the impact of agriculture on our economy and our political process still looms large.  Happy Independence Day.

BUSINESS NEWS

Story by Micah Oelze

Barton Community College’s Center for Adult Education will soon begin its nine-week GED Preparation Class. Students must attend all orientation classes July 9-12, and the first day of class July 16. Failure to attend all five days will result in removal of the student from the program. The center is located at 1025 Main St. in Great Bend.

There is a one-time $65 fee for materials. Once students have completed the preparation courses, they will be able to take the official GED test. The cost to take the GED test is $132.

The July 9 session is from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. The day will include welcome information along with required testing. On July 10, from 8:30 a.m.-11:45 a.m., students will learn more information about Barton’s Student Support Services, the public library and more with the 1-4 p.m. time slot available to the students who may need to re-take the required tests from the previous day. All students will then learn how to navigate their GED.com account and take a basic computer skills test on July 11. Lastly, on July 12 from 8:30-11:30 a.m., students will learn about WorkReady! before meeting with their instructor one-on-one to discuss goals, their expectations, attendance requirements, workload, etc. Appointments will be 30 minutes each and scheduled between 12:30 p.m. and 4 p.m. on July 12.

On Tuesday, July 16, students will have the choice to begin attending the morning class pathway from 8-11 a.m. or the evening hybrid class pathway from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

Those interested in taking the GED exam without any preparation instruction can do so right away but are urged to receive advising before moving forward.

Minors must bring a parent or legal guardian to enroll and must also bring their disclaimer or exemption documentation from their high school or online program.

For more information, contact Adult Education Support & Testing Specialist Susanne Yarmer at yarmers@bartonccc.edu.