BOOKED: Christopher Hughes of Great Bend on BTDC case for driving while revoked, tag not assigned to vehicle, no proof of insurance, bond is set at $2,500 C/S.
Category: Local
Woman dies after pickups collide in Ness County
NESS COUNTY — One person died in an accident just before 7:30p.m. Tuesday in Ness County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 Ford F150 driven by Shirley K. Weeks, 64, Brownell, was eastbound on 210 Road at Z Road six mile east of Ness City.
A northbound 2014 Dodge 3500 driven by Timothy Turner, 38, Ness City struck the Ford in the intersection. Both vehicles continued northeast into the ditch and then into the field going through a barbed wire fence.
Weeks was transported to Ness County Hospital where she died.
Turner was transported to the hospital in Ransom. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.
Waterline project ahead of schedule in Great Bend
The City of Great Bend’s on-call engineer, Josh Golka from Professional Engineering Consultants, says the waterline replacement project is approximately 60 percent complete.
The waterline improvement has a total budget of $6,452,196, of the total $5,171,625 has been allocated to the project and well improvements. The remaining budget of $1,280,571 is available for additional improvements. Golka received permission from the Great Bend City Council for a change order of $294,597 for extra modifications.
Golka says there are about 30 service lines they want to modify the configuration, specifically concrete or brick meter vaults that need to be replaced that APAC Kansas was hoping to reuse.
Josh Golka Audio
Golka felt the remaining balance after the deduction of the change order would still be enough for additional costs going forward.
APAC has until March of 2019 to finish the project that is replacing roughly 40,000 linear feet of pipe, but Golka noted the crew is currently months ahead of schedule and hoped to be done by late fall or early winter of 2018.
Josh Golka Audio
Golka says APAC works in three crews with a drilling crew that handles the main installation, a service crew that does the line switchovers, and a restoration crew to repave the street.
Commissioners yet to review structural analysis of Barton County Courthouse in depth
In December 2017, the Barton County Commission authorized WDM Architects to perform a structural analysis of the Barton County Courthouse. The County paid the architecture firm from Wichita $24,300 to conduct the study.
The contract stipulated that any travel and overnight expenses would be an additional cost. Barton County Administrator Phil Hathcock says the County owes an additional $532.75.
Phil Hathcock Audio
The Courthouse turned 100 years old this year and the Commission wanted to get an idea for potential repairs. Hathcock estimated it could cost anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million to fix the issues with the Courthouse. The Commission has yet to examine the structural analysis in depth, but Hathcock did not imagine the Commission would be able to do all the repairs at once.
The main issue that was found during the analysis was the four outside corners separating from the center of the building on the 4th floor.
Sunflower Diversified awarded $15,000 grant from Barton County
In the 2018 operating budget, the Barton County Commission allocated $15,000 under Solid Waste for recycling with an understanding that applications would be accepted locally for the monies. Sunflower Diversified Services submitted the only application and was awarded the grant at Monday’s meeting.
Sunflower Executive Director Jon Prescott says he expects their crushed glass recycling to increase soon with a new machine.
Jon Prescott Audio
Prescott added the County can make use of the glass through asphalt mixes on roadways.
Eligible applicants are any County department, agency, organization, recycling center, city, school district or community college located in Barton County. The application needs to demonstrate a positive economic and environmental impact in the county.
Sunflower has been offering their recycling service since 1999, and in 2017 the agency collected and processed 2.6 million pounds of recyclable material that did not go into the landfill.
Barton County working to extend the life of the Landfill
The Barton County Commission approved a larger hazardous waste building to be constructed at the Barton County Landfill to house hazardous waste, but the long-term question that Commissioner Kenny Schremmer was more concerned with was the longevity of the Landfill.
Barton County Administrator Phil Hathcock says the Landfill is permitted to last just over 30 more years, but the County is working with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to extend the permit.
Phil Hathcock Audio
The time assigned to a permit is based on space. Hathcock says the current landfill located one mile east of Barton Community College has more room available to dump waste into, but KDHE did not include the space in the original permit. Once approved, Hathcock expects the extended permit to allow the Landfill to have a shelf life of 70 to 80 years.
Phil Hathcock Audio
The existing 20′ x 20′ building at the Landfill that houses household hazardous waste has become too small to support recycling demands. Commissioners approved a bid from Steel Builders Construction to construct a 40′ x 60′ steel building to replace the existing structure for $53,692.
The Landfill is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Russell names Swayne interim USD 407 superintendent
The Russell school district has named Shelly Swayne as Interim Superintendent.
According to a press release Monday Swayne, will be moving to Russell and will begin working in the position on July 2nd.
The USD 407 School Board voted in a special meeting Monday to enter into a contract with Swayne. She replaces current Superintendent Angela Lawrence.
Lawrence resigned as of June 11, citing personal family issues. Her entire statement to the board can be read below.
According to the press release, the interim position will allow the board to complete a more formal search beginning in October-November, if it elects to do so.
Swayne graduated from Bethany College in 1996 with a bachelor of arts in social science education and a minor in economics. She completed her master of science degree in educational leadership in 2001 and her district leadership certification in 2015 from Fort Hays State University.
She has served as the superintendent of the Stockton school district for the past two years and has been a principal for the last 18 years.
Statement of Superintendent Angela Lawrence to the USD 407 Board of Education:
I want to Thank the Board of Education, the Staff, The Administration, The Students, Parents and Community of USD 407 for believing in me and for the opportunity to serve and lead this district as your Superintendent for the past three years. I am truly honored and humbled to have been chosen for this important position and I have greatly valued and appreciated the opportunity that was afforded to me.
As most of you already know, I am a huge family oriented person as well as, a strong believer. I have always believed that family isn’t just everything, it is the only thing. You also all know that sometimes life is a game changer. Recently, life has been a game changer for my husband and I with the loss of both of his parents who were also our 30+ year business partners. We have lots of family decisions facing us as we adjust to our “new normal.” During the past few weeks, I have been struggling personally where I am most needed and how to balance both my personal obligations and professional responsibilities without shorting either one. At this time, I know in my heart that my most valuable role is that of a wife, mother and business partner. I have therefore, asked the Board of Education to release me from my current contract effective June 30th, 2018 so that I may be fully present in that role without being a distraction for the important work that must continue here in USD 407.
The past three years has brought many positive changes to our district. We have developed our board goals, a vision for the district, implemented a consistent district wide evaluation system, reviewed and updated board policies and handbooks, implemented many positive curriculum changes to continue to improve instruction and opportunities for students, updated our web page, hired key positions to help support staff and students, dedicated many hours to improving our facilities and developed and implemented multiple systematic processes district wide so that we are more efficient and effective. Not one of these accomplishments in isolation seem significant, but as a whole, each one is a puzzle piece that is improving our district and moving us toward our vision of being “dedicated to providing a culture of learning that will lead the state of Kansas in student success!”
All of these accomplishments would not be possible without continued positive teamwork at all levels from the Board-Administration-Staff-Students-Parents and Community. The foundation for instructional improvement and the road map for the district through the detailed board goals and vision have been clearly established and will easily be developed as the district continues to work together as a team to meet the expectations outlined. This will take time, effort and dedication from all constituents as you work together positively and support each other in this process… but it is achievable and doable and I encourage all of you to do your best in being a team player moving forward.
Again, I would like to thank each and every one of my board members, co-workers, my staff and community members. You all have impacted my life tremendously by helping me grow both personally and professionally. This district and the people whom it serves will always hold a special place in my heart and I will be forever grateful.
Cop Shop (6/18)
Barton County Sheriff’s Office Incident Log (6/18)
K9 Use / Call Out
At 10:49 a.m. a K-9 call out was used at S. Main Street & Railroad Avenue.
Injury Accident
At 8:30 p.m. an accident was reported at 2544 Broadway Avenue.
Barton County Sheriff’s Booking Activity (6/18)
BOOKED: Trinity Galliart of Great Bend on Great Bend Municipal Court warrant for contempt of court, bond set at $622.50 cash only.
BOOKED: Christopher Adams on a Barton County District Court warrant for probation violation, bond set at $1,130.20 cash only.
RELEASED: Vickie Batt to treatment.
RELEASED: Sheldon Fletcher to KDOC.
RELEASED: Derrick Buess of Great Bend on BCDC serve sentence after serving a partial sentence.
RELEASED: Trinity Galliart of Great Bend on GBMC case for contempt of court after receiving an order to release with no conditions.
RELEASED: Michael Foos of Roeland Park on GBMC case for serve sentence.
Great Bend looks to raze dangerous structure on Adams Street
At the May 7th Great Bend City Council meeting the governing body passed a resolution scheduling a hearing for the dangerous structure at 819 Adams Street. Parts of the house are rotting, there are broken windows, holes in the roof, electrical issues, the floor has been ripped out, and the south side is gutted open.
The public hearing was held Monday night where the Council heard from Code Enforcement Officer Stuart Baker. Baker noted the structure is still in the same state with not much movement expected from the owner.
Stuart Baker Audio
The owner came into City Hall and filed for a demolition permit to demolish the structure himself on June 15, but noted it would be roughly 60 days until he was able to raze the building.
Great Bend City Attorney Bob Suelter recommended setting a date of July 16 for the owner to have the structure demolished, noting the City would move forward with state statute to be ready to take the matter into their own hands if the owner fails to cooperate.
Bob Suelter Audio
Suelter noted the owner paid the first half property taxes on the land in 2015 but has not paid the taxes since.
Other City Council news from June 18, 2018…
– Great Bend Brit Spaugh Zoo Curator Sara Hamlin promoted “Plastic-free July,” noting the negative effects of plastic that are not good for the environment and constant amounts of plastic trash that blows into the zoo.
– Great Bend Community Coordinator Christina Hayes touched on a dangerous crash that occurred at the SRCA Dragstrip this past weekend where emergency crews responded correctly and timely and the driver avoided serious injuries.
– Vickie Dreiling with Adams, Brown, Beran & Ball presented the 2017 annual audit report. Dreiling said overall, the financial outlook for the City looks good and received a good rating.
– The Council approved a waterline project change order not to exceed $294,597 for additional improvements. There are roughly 30 service lines that need to be modified or repaired that were not expected.
– The Council voted 6-1 to change the start time of future meetings from 7:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. A formal ordinance for approval will be submitted to the Council at the next meeting, July 2 to officially move up the start time.