Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
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Bids for the upcoming north side street projects were awarded to Nienhueser Construction at Tuesday night's city council meeting. This project involves replacing the street, curb, gutter and sidewalk on four blocks of Forrest Street between 15th Ave. and 17th Ave. The work will continue along 17th Ave. from Forrest to Elm, according to Brett Meyer of Baker & Associates, the company engineering the job. The bid opened on August 29 at which time two companies submitted proposals on the project, including Nienhueser Construction and Reed Construct...
Some people in our society receive little sympathy from the community at large. I'm not saying that everyone deserves to be forgiven for terrible things they do. Reprehensible acts require punishment. But everyone should be recognized as a person, with a history and feelings, just the same as the rest of us. In discussion with many about the child porn case I reported last week, many commented that this man deserves to be shot. Although the behavior of this person currently being prosecuted for unspeakable actions toward his own son and the...
The 9th Street apartments, located on 9th and Jackson, were evacuated yesterday after suffering extensive damage during Monday's storm when a tree crashed through the structure. "The roof sustained severe, catastrophic damage," said Sidney Police Chief B.J. Wilkinson. The building was deemed unsafe for habitation by the city building inspector, according to the evacuation notice. Residents had to be out of the building by 3 p.m. Tuesday. Landlords worked with the city to attempt to refund...
Sidney's school bond was voted down by a narrow margin of 105 votes on Tuesday. The final results were 1139 votes for the bond and 1244 against. The bond would have financed new K-4 school, consolidating three of the system's current schools, the oldest of which was originally constructed in 1929. The school board cited difficulty with installing new technology in the older buildings, the newer of which were built in the 1950s, as one of the reasons students needed a new structure. "I think it was good to have an election," said Sidney schools...
A hearing open to the public to voice criticism or suggestions about Sidney schools proposed 2013-2014 budget received little public interest last night. The hearing was opened and closed with no public comments. After the hearing the school board approved next fiscal year's budget with a general fund of around $6.5 million. The qualified capital purchase undertaking fund for kindergarten through 8th grade was approved for around $50,000 as well as the qualified capital purchase undertaking fund for kindergarten through twelfth grade for...
Extensive flash flooding paralyzed the city of Sidney Monday night. High winds related to the storm caused damage to houses, signs and trees across the city. Heavy rains around 6:30 p.m. soon overwhelmed the city's storm drains and filled many streets with deep and fast flowing water, which made travel in parts of the city dangerous or impossible. The underpass to the North side of town was still closed at press time due to extensive flooding that left it impassible. Illinois street at 13th...
Sidney Schools technology integration teacher Rick Meyer received a $2,000 grant for his efforts to use technology in creative ways. The grant, awarded by ING, a national financial institution is called the ING Unsung Heroes Award. "Since I applied for it in January, with how fast technology goes, my original idea is not even close to what we're doing now," Meyer said. "But the same premise is still in place." Originally he wanted to use QR codes, which can be scanned by any smart device and...
After receiving only one bid during the first attempt to contract out work on the city's golf course irrigation project earlier this summer, the city's second effort went much more smoothly. "There was far more competition in bidding," City Manager Gary Person said. Sidney contracted with Staples Golf Design to design, plan and coordinate the irrigation project for improvements to the municipal golf course. Project One, a project management firm, is coordinating with Staples on the plan. Although the project initially only received interest...
The body of Martin Wilson, 30, of Texas was located at 3:30 p.m. Friday in the pasture to the north of the Dinklage Feedlot in Cheyenne County. Wilson was reported missing Thursday evening after walking off a job site on the day before. He was last seen on Wednesday, traveling on foot in the hills north of the feed lots, carrying a .410 shotgun. The feedlot is located about six miles west of Sidney on county road 20. The Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office received a missing persons report from the company Wilson was working for at about 5 p.m. Th...
Josef Slezak, 36, of Rivergrove, Ill. pled no contest Friday afternoon to four counts of motor vehicle homicide, a class IIIA felony and one count of motor vehicle homicide involving an unborn child, a class IV felony. Judge Derek Weimer, ruling over Cheyenne County district court accepted the pleas and found Slezak guilty of all counts. Weimer ordered a pre-sentence investigation report and scheduled sentencing for October 16 at noon. On Sept. 9, 2012 Slezak was driving a commercial tractor...
Martin Wilson, a 30 year-old white male from Texas, was reported missing yesterday evening after walking off a job site on Wednesday. He was last seen walking with a shotgun in the hills north of the Dinklage Feedlots, located about six miles west of Sidney on county road 20. Wilson is 5'10" tall and weighs around 160-165 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen Wednesday at around noon. The Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office received a missing persons report from the company...
If you've got scrap tires, during at least one week of September Sidney has the means for free disposal. Currently, the Sidney landfill takes tires for a fee. Car tires are $5, truck tires are $10 and tractor tires are $20. "When we have enough, we send them off to get recycled," said Rob Campbell, solid waste superintendent with the city of Sidney. Cheyenne County's first scrap tire cleanup since 2009 will start Sept 16 and will run through Sept 21, or until a 300 ton quota is reached. Tires...
Gabriel Portillo, 37, of Sidney sustained a gunshot wound to the chest area Wednesday evening. At this time, it appears to law enforcement that Portillo was accidentally shot by a juvenile. Portillo was flown to Loveland, Colorado for surgery and is currently in stable condition. Witnesses have been identified in this case and the investigation is ongoing....
Area senior citizens were surprised to learn yesterday that they have a place to turn for free legal help. Shelldon Skelcher, an attorney out of Scottsbluff with Legal Aid of Nebraska, spoke with seniors at the Cheyenne County Community Center about their rights and the services his firm provides. "We're the organization for individuals who don't have another place to turn legally," Skelcher said. He advises all those who can afford their own legal help to pay for a lawyer, but understands that...
Painful budget cuts due to sequestration hit Nebraska's Head Start programs hard this year. According to officials with the organization, 372 children and families in the state will be cut off from Head Start's services because of these rollbacks. More than 100 early childhood program staff will lose their jobs or have their hours reduced as well. Budget sequestration went into effect March 1 of this year, causing massive budget cuts to many federally funded organizations. Sidney's Head Start is feeling these budget cuts in a big way,...
I like to think that I'm pretty hard to surprise. But I went out on the town in Sidney last weekend with a female friend in tow and I can honestly say I was astounded at the amount of attention our presence elicited, and by the behavior of many of those I encountered. I was surprised because most of the people I've met so far in Sidney have been perfectly courteous, friendly and polite to me. So far, aside from a few cat calls and wolf whistles when walking at night, I have not been the object of any unwanted male attention. All this changed...
Levi Hallett, 25, of Sidney was arrested last week in connection with alleged possession and manufacture of child pornography. He was charged with five counts of manufacture of child pornography, five counts of possession of child pornography and one count of child abuse by the Cheyenne County attorney's office. According to arrest records, a probation officer heard second hand that Hallett allegedly stored multiple photos of nude underage females on his cell phone, but none of those who spoke...
Local teens LaNaya Gutierrez and Brandon VanDeMortel learned valuable lessons about leadership and gained lasting bonds at this year's Rotary Youth Leadership Awards camp. Sidney's chapter of the rotary club sponsored the two Sidney High School seniors to the camp held in Halsey each summer. At the camp the students listened to various speakers for a few hours per day. Some of the counselors told stories about their own lives. "Some of them were really touching and kind of explained to you why...
Those volunteering with TeamMates believe that every student can benefit from having a mentor, not just those at risk. Angie Jacobsen, the Sidney chapter’s program coordinator thinks the largest benefit of taking part in the program herself is having the opportunity to hang out with a young person without any added worries. “It’s the best part of my week,” Jacobsen said. This program matches an adult mentor with a child mentee to meet for one hour per week during the school year. The Sidney...
Levi Hallett, 25, of Sidney was arrested yesterday and charged with manufacture of child pornography, two counts of possession of child pornography and child abuse, which are all felonies, according to arrest reports. Police were tipped off to this alleged activity by Hallett's probation officer and an unnamed citizen informant. Police allegedly found evidence leading to this arrest on Hallett's cell phone....
The city's parks department hopes to build new tennis courts to replace its aging outdoor facility. Demand for updated courts picked up recently. Around the time of the Wimbledon tournament, some local high school kids put together a little tennis tournament of their own. "I was embarrassed that they didn't have a better place to play," said park superintendent Tom Von Seggern. Kasey Kantor, sports director at the Cheyenne County Community Center, where the courts are located, confirmed that the courts see a fair amount of use, with a few...
The city's collection of scrap wood is growing, and Raffelson Rock and Recycling proposed a possible solution that might save Sidney some time and money. B.J. Raffelson of Raffelson Rock and Recycling spoke with the city council on Tuesday about leasing some land from the city and the possibility of working with Sidney to ease problems with scrap wood. "I know the recycling machine Sidney had burnt down this summer," Raffelson said. "And I thought this would be a great time to maybe start...
The city of Sidney plans a slight decrease in property taxes for next year, while also looking forward to some big improvements. At Tuesday's meeting, the city council filed the 2013-2014 budget with the city clerk and set the tax levies to prepare for the September 10 public budget hearing. "There'll be a slight property tax reduction in the levy," said city manager Gary Person. "Even considering that we had to be fairly aggressive this year in trying to plan for a lot of new projects, and a lot of new development in the community. I think eve...
Construction on 13th Ave. and Illinois is moving forward on schedule. Work scheduled for this week included installation by the electric department of loops for the right hand turn lane for south bound 13th Ave. These loops detect when a car is present in the lane. The city plans to pour concrete for the westbound lanes on the north side of Illinois today and tomorrow. Next week the remaining portion of 13th Ave. south of Illinois will be poured. After that, the city plans to complete work on the 14th Ave. intersection. The project is set to...
Earlier this week, 17 were arrested in relation to the distribution of methamphetamine in western Nebraska and eastern Colorado. These arrests occurred in Ogallala, Brule and nearby cities. More than three pounds of methamphetamine and $8,000 in cash were seized in connection with this investigation. Most of those arrested were residents of the Ogallala area, said John Higgins, Drug Enforcement/Asset Forfeitures Chief with the U.S. attorney's office in Nebraska. Although none of those arrested were Sidney area residents, the Western Nebraska In...
