Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Sorted by date Results 366 - 390 of 439
City employees should get better health insurance coverage, while at the same time with less cost to the city, under a plan given the go-ahead by the Sidney City Council at its regular meeting Tuesday evening. Officials from Holmes & Murphy insurance presented the company’s proposal that gives employees the same basic coverage they currently have, with additional options that haven’t been available for a couple of years. The new option, providing for a co-pay plan, has not been an option sin...
Economic development will be a big part of discussion at tonight’s Sidney City Council meeting, as members consider approval of an economic development study and marketing strategy, as well as renewal of the city’s economic development plan. In late May, the city solicited qualification information and bid proposals from economic development consultants, seeking services for evaluation of identification of potential projects fitting Sidney’s needs. Four proposals were received, and city staff...
Most shooters will tell you the offhand (standing) position is, by far, the most difficult to master. Unlike other positions, there is no additional support to steady one's aim. Offhand is the least preferred setup when in the field, and the truest challenge of skill when it has to be used. Beginning this month, Sidney's Joe Arterburn is taking the writer's equivalent of a long-distance standing shot on what he hopes will be a regular basis with an outdoor column aptly name "Offhand Shots."...
Sidney Volunteer Fire Department responded to a grass fire southeast of Lorenzo Tuesday afternoon when an attempted controlled burn got away from an area farmer. Sidney Fire Chief Keith Stone said blaze, which burned approximately 60 acres, was started when small fire was set to burn off thistle and cheat grass. Stone said the fire burned out of the landowner's control, resulting in the call for SVFD response. The call was received at 3:46 p.m. and SVFD responded with four fire fighting trucks...
Judges serving the 12th Judicial District, which includes Cheyenne County, received good marks from attorneys practicing in local court rooms. The review, held by the Nebraska State Bar Association (NSBA), is a biennial poll the NSBA uses to eveluate judges across the state. "While not an absolute measure, the poll give practicing attorneys the opportunity to evaluate judges on a variety of important criteria," said Tom Maul, president of the NSBA. In a press release, the NSBA said 55 percent of...
With the completion of several road projects recently, the Sidney City Council turned its attention to long term financing at its regular meeting this week, and found its options somewhat limited. Over time, the city will need to obtain bonds for up to around $14 million, and council members wrestled not only with the size of the bonding – which is much larger than previous needs – but also concern over whether or not it can get a favorable bond rating, and the lower interest rates that suc...
Sidney and Cheyenne County have seen the benefits of storms that brewed up Wednesday evening and into Thursday, but as of Thursday morning had yet to see much damage despite the severity seen in parts of the region. Tornado sirens in Sidney blared Wednesday evening after the National Weather Service in Cheyenne detected rotation on radar - the type of rotation that NWS Meteoroligist Chad Hahn said can produce tornados. “Fortunately, this one did not,” Hahn said. The decision to issue a tornado w...
Sidney’s City Council approved a plan for city crews to demolish the Bertrun O’Conner Swimming Pool on Toledo Street, leaving the rubble in place. Under the plan, presented Tuesday evening at council’s regular meeting, City Manager Ed Sadler told council members that leaving demolished material on the pool site will be the most cost effective method, for several reasons. Sadler said if rubble were taken off site, the city would incure the additional expense of finding a place for the material, p...
Attorney General Doug Peterson’s office released a statement Tuesday saying it will not appeal a ruling by the Cheyenne County District Court overturning a decision by the Nebraska Oil and Gas Commission. In its statement, the Attorney General’s office stated that while it disagreed with the District Court, the state will not file an appeal. “The Attorney General’s office maintains that the Nebraska Oil and Gas Commission acted properly and within its authority when it approved the applica...
Cheyenne County's 130th Fair and Rodeo is in the books, and by all indications was a successful event. For the youth, 4-H members officially ended activities Saturday morning with the livestock sale, topping months of work with their animals. More than 100 animals, from rabbits to beef, went into the show ring for the last time during the sale while supporters' bids showed appreciation for 4-Hr's efforts. The sale was held in the new Livestock Pavilion, the center of activity for larger...
With mostly clear skies and favorable conditions, Cheyenne County’s wheat harvest went by quickly this year, and was mostly finished by the weekend. This year’s harvest has been deemed a success, with overall good test weights and about average yields. The only disappointment, according to Blake Mackey, general manager at Scoular Grain, was low protein levels, around nine percent. “It was a good harvest,” Mackey said. Mackey said test weights average around 62 or 63 pounds per bushel, and est...
SCOTTSBLUFF - Sidney's 10-and-under Cal Ripkin team got off to a rough start in Babe Ruth Regional Tournament action here last week, and was unable to break its offense open to advance into bracket play. Friday, the group fell to Colorado's team 16-1, then lost to Kansas 16-1. "They were tough losses," said Sidney Coach Jason Jones. "But the boys played extremely well." Jones said Sidney went through the tournament with good fielding and hit the ball hard, "but we just couldn't hit the ball...
Sidney’s City Council will be considering a plan for demolition of the swimming pool on Toledo Street when it meets Tuesday, its last meeting for the month. The old pool, replaced with the Sidney Aquatic Center, which opened this spring, went out of service in part because of increased leaks and concerns over related expenses. The pool was Sidney’s second, replacing the Bertrun O’Conner pool which sat near the Legion Baseball Field in what was the center of Legion Park. That pool was fille...
It was the "Amazing Race" all over Sidney earlier this week, when members of the Sidney High School cross country team could be seen crisscrossing town in sometimes unusual ways. The exercise, inspired by the popular television show "Amazing Race," was carried out for the second year to give team members a fun activity. Team building was also a big part of the day, said Donna Wiedeburg. During the race, team members went (ran) from place to place, following clues and instructions found at four...
SCOTTSBLUFF - Sidney’s 10-and-under Cal Ripkin team got off to a rough start in Babe Ruth Regional Tournament action here this week, but showed it can complete strongly with the best teams in the tournament. Sidney played defending regional champion Minnesota Thursday in its second tournament game and led 4-0 after four innings. But Minnesota deployed the strength is used to rise to the top of the heap last year, eventually winning 16-6. Sidney opened play against North Dakota, losing 12-4. S...
Baseball fans watching the Americal Legion Class B Junior State Tournament at Legion Field were given a surprise Thursday when the tournament came to an end. Hickman came into the state tournament as two-time defending champions, and as the tournament progressed, went through the bracket and into the championship game without a loss. Hickman powered its way to the final using hot bats and solid defense to mow down challengers. Talk around Legion Field, and expectations from many, considered Thur...
Three farm families were recognized at the Cheyenne County Fair this week for long time farm ownership within the county. The family farms, Easterly Family Farm, Narjes Land and Livestock, LLC, and Rasmussen & Sons, LLC, received the 2016 Nebraska Pioneer Farm Award during the fair rodeo. The Pioneer Award, presented by the AKSARBEN Foundation, along with Nebraska Farm Bureau and the Nebraska Association of Fair Managers, is given to farm families who have consecutively held ownership of land...
Hickman set itself up for a third defense of the state Class B legion baseball title with an 8-5 win over McCook. But even facing Hickman, the southwestern Nebraska representatives weren't intimidated, bouncing out to a 4-0 lead, displaying their own prowess at the plate. McCook scored one run in the bottom of the first inning, then exploded with three more in the second. Hickman answered with three runs in the top of the third, while shutting down the home team in the bottom half of the...
Hickman blasted its way to the top of the heap Monday night in the American Legion Class B Junior State Tournament, with a 12-3 drubbing of Seward. Both teams entered the game without a tournament loss, and the it showed the promise of being yet another tight tournament contest, with the score tied 3-3 after three innings of play. For the second night in a row, lightning halted play, with Hickman being one of the teams involved. Players sat for an hour and a half, while lighting lit up the...
Young entrepreneurs saw the results of their efforts come to life at the Hickory Square Farmer's Market Saturday, opening up shop for products developed through a local program established to give them a taste of being small business owners. Through a collaboration with Cool Kids Club and UNL Extension, students participating in the EntrepreneurShip Investigation program(ESI), which taught them the process of marketing products – from concept, to development, securing financing and finally, p...
A passing storm system brought with it an impressive lightning show early Sunday evening, but local fire departments weren't as impressed with the results. Lightning sparked nearly a dozen grass fires within the county, sparring only one rural fire department, Lodgepole, calls for service. The Sidney Rural Volunteer responded to four separate fires, spread across the southern and western portions of its district. Just one of those, near the intersection of County Roads 4 and 111, in the...
Cheyenne County's smallest animals took center stage to christen the fair's biggest building when the Small Animal Show got underway Saturday morning. First up in the new Livestock Pavilion was Jacob Kruse of Gurley, who put forth a purple ribbon performance by showing Carmel, one of the family's hamsters. Kruse, along with his brother Jonathan and Mason Riemers, comprised the opening Small Animal class, each earning a purple ribbon with their knowledge and presentations. Jonathan also had a...
Sidney's Legion Junior team saw its season come to an end Sunday in state tournament play, and while losing its final game was disappointing to players and fans alike, the season was a success nonetheless. "If you'd have asked me after the first practice if we would end up with a record like this – no way," said Coach Ray Witt following Sidney's last outing. Going into the tournament with a 15-11-1 record, Sidney had its hopes set on turning some heads. And, the way they started, they did in a...
Baseball fans from across the state weren't disappointed over the weekend, as the American Legion Class B Junior Tournament got underway at Legion Field. Defending state champions Hickman show they still have what it takes, moving through their first two games with wins over Waverly (7-2) in the tournament opener, and Waverly in a Sunday afternoon marathon. Hickman took control in both outings, but on Sunday, an unexpected game delay cooled the red-hot Post #11 Knights, who needed extra innings...
Legion baseball players and fans from across the state will converge on Sidney this weekend to see the state's best 13-16 year old players compete for the Class B American Legion State Junior Tournament crown. The tournament, and five others across the state, will cap the 91st year of Legion Baseball in Nebraska. In all, more than 4,000 Nebraska baseball players have played in the Legion program this summer on more than 290 teams. State tournaments are held for both Junior and Senior teams in...
