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 401 - 425 of 1200
Voters returned Joe Arterburn and Burke Radcliffe to their seats on the Sidney City Council Tuesday. Voters faced three choices for two seats: Arterburn, Radcliffe and Loren Hoekema. Hoekema, the challenger, garnered 1,073 votes, to Radcliffe's 1,880 and Arterburn's 1,680. Hoekema ran on the platform of adding technical and engineering experience and expertise to the council. Arterburn has served on the city council since 2012 and has lived in Sidney since 1993. Radcliffe is a Sidney High...
Some towns are small enough, quiet enough, that when two departments meet outside of a cafe, the occasion gets attention. Shades are opened, the cafe staff drop their towels and even the banker takes notice. That is when the real story is told. The officers aren't in town after a fugitive or retrieving stolen property. They are part of a cross-county chain of recognition for fallen officers, called "Flag for the Fallen.” The flag is in memory of Capt. Tyler Erdman of Pennsylvania who died F...
The cumulative positivity rate for the western Panhandle has reached 15 percent, according to Panhandle Public Health District. Unified Command announced Thursday, Nov. 5, 338 more cases of COVID in the Panhandle region. Scotts Bluff is seeing the highest number of cases at 184, followed by Morrill County at 33, Cheyenne County at 30, Box Butte at 29, Dawes at 25, Sheridan County at 20 and Kimball County at 12. Garden County reported three cases, Grant two, and Banner, Deuel and Sioux Counties h...
Late last week, I sketched out my view on the presidential election. Even as the keyboard was getting warm, I had this feeling that President Trump had one more card up his sleeve. Maybe it would be better said that observers and prognosticators got too busy trying to secure an ending. As recently as Friday morning, results were spread wide enough that the view from the cheap seats gave the decision to either candidate. That changed overnight. By mid-morning, news sources were announcing Joe...
The Sidney City Council recently approved an engineering firm for work at the Sidney Elks Lodge. The City received $415,000 in Community Development Block Grant Tourism Development Funds for the Elks Lodge project. The intent is for the funds to be used to initiate a restoration effort for the building. A Request For Qualifications was sent out in September for architectural design and engineering services. Four firms submitted qualifications: Joseph R. Hewgley and Associates (office in North Pl...
The classroom is converted to a photo studio. Cameras are mounted on tripods. Lighting is balanced perfectly. The background is set in the right position behind the seat. All that is left is for the subject to be poised correctly and the photographer to see the personality in the image. Well, that is not quite all. There is the bookkeeping, the photo editing, the marketing and the numerous steps from concept to returning photos. One of the newest approaches in Sidney High School's Career...
We have a dog, again. Or maybe better said is he has us. I used to smile at, maybe quietly question, people who had the “100 pound lap dog.” The examples I think of were probably 100 pounds or more by the time I met them, or maybe not. The end result was the same, a dog big enough to request his own zip code also indignantly acts like his has a place on the couch, the love seat, the bed... even snooping on the countertop. I remember watching the movie “Marley and Me” and thinking “you guys need...
The Potter-Dix Coyotes added another notch to the win column Friday when they defeated the visiting Wallace Wildcats 66-34 in the first round of the D6 playoffs. The game started with the Coyotes managing the field well. The first score attempt of the game was earned by the Coyotes at 7:37 in the first quarter by Luke Kasten. The play was called back on a holding call. About 40 seconds later, the Coyotes reclaimed their presence in the end zone with a touchdown pass by Kasten. The Coyotes return...
Nic Haas and Jesse Mueller have are seeking voter support as write-in candidates for the Sidney Airport Authority Board. The board has two positions open, and two candidates. The ballot will show Jim Price as a candidate for the board. However, he has left Cheyenne County. He was appointed earlier this year to fill a vacant seat. Mueller is a pilot for a major airline, and involved in aviation in his spare time. He owns a personal airplane which is hangared at the Sidney airport. He graduated...
In any given town, there are attractions that draw people, social cathedrals in a sense, that people value as part of the community's identity. In many towns, especially smaller communities, theaters fall within that definition of cathedral. There is the anticipated release of a new movie. Historically, theaters started as a venue for stage performances, then the black-and-white reels. Along the way children saved their allowances for the night out; the five cents that a generation later turned...
Of all times to be reminded of a bike ride, this one arrives just as the first real snow of the season is predicted. My last bike tour took place in my new backyard, sort of. It was a round trip tour of the Panhandle viewing things I hadn’t seen for a long time, some I was aware of and some that were close enough if something went really wrong I was confident I could get home. It was also close enough to be tempted go left instead of right at certain intersections. It happens when you’re in a p...
The Sidney City Council on Oct. 13 approved the Sidney Volunteer Fire Department contracting for a new fire truck. Fire Chief LaVerne Bown reported the truck to be replaced is 30 years old and undergoes frequent repair. The truck will take about a year for assembly and delivery, according to Bown. City Manager David Scott said because of when payment would be made, the council is committing into the Fiscal Year 2022. Bown said the biggest difficulty is finding parts for the current engine. He...
In 2018, a group of guys were pursuing a dream, a cause really motivated by another company's decision. As they introduced themselves to the public, some admitted it was an idea devised during their time in the garage. The idea was to take what they've learned in the corporate world and apply it with their own name. In June 2018, the Sidney City Council approved a 4-acres subdivison on the east side of Sidney for the future site of NexGen Outfitters. The move came after NexGen founders started...
In the early 2000s, there was a program that allowed people to connect. It was fun. It was new. It was treated as playful and cutting edge. It predated the platforms most of us use today. About the same time, Facebook was developed at Harvard University by then college student Mark Zuckerberg. What started as likely a dorm-room geek project has become a global phenomenon beyond definition. What has also happened is the electronic communication world has equally exploded without definition. Is...
When life gets challenging, Nebraskans come together. The Nebraska Chamber of Commerce held its Fall Forum via Zoom conference from Western Nebraska Community College in Scottsbluff on Oct. 7. Wednesday's teleconference was part of a series of Zoom meetings. Thursday's virtual forum included Nebraska Chamber President Bryan Slone and Blueprint Nebraska President Jim Smith. The Fall Forum was named “Straight Talk with State Leaders,” designed to inspire community dialogue on economic dev...
The Panhandle Public Health District (PPHD) released a statement Monday afternoon, Oct. 12, that six Panhandle counties have joined Box Butte County in moving to orange on the risk dial. The risk dial is a four-level definition of COVID-19's impact on the Panhandle region. Green is the lowest level, then Yellow (Moderate), Orange (High risk) and finally Red (Severe risk). The chart has shown a slow but steady increase in recent weeks. The PPHD stresses the chart is only guidance and does not...
There are some experiences in life that never fully get filed away in the caverns of memory. They have a way of always staying near to the top. Compare them to the worn-out hiking boots or jeans your wife wants you to throw away. That event is so deep in the past you should be blowing dust off the book cover. Nevertheless, it is a memory that brings back a smile like it happened this morning. Dads have a way of stockpiling those memories. Some of those memories are reflections of previous...
The Alan Hartzler Memorial Basketball Court is a step closer to reality. In the Oct. 5 meeting of the Cheyenne County commissioners, the commissioners were asked to consider a donation from Keno Funds. On Jan. 28, John Phillips and Sidney Parks/Aquatic Center/Cemetery Superintendent Tom Von Seggern first presented the proposal of constructing a memorial basketball court to the city council. The site will be at 519 Toledo St., east of the Cheyenne County Community Center. In February, a project...
Voters will be deciding on several local races, including school boards, the Sidney City Council and a county commissioner seat. Sidney voters will have two seats and three candidates for city council. Incumbent Joe Arterburn is seeking a return to office, as is Burke Radcliffe. Loren Hoekema has tossed his hat in the ring to unseat one of the incumbents. The Sidney School District No. 1 School Board has two incumbents and one newcomer on the ballot. Incumbents Brad Kennedy and Kathy Nienhueser...
The Sidney City Council candidates were asked to respond to a few short questions regarding their candidacy. Below are their responses: 1. There appears to be a gradual economic recovery momentum in Sidney; more small businesses, medium to larger players showing interest in the area. How do you propose keeping the momentum positive? Joe Arterburn: Positive is the key word. It is the positive attitudes of Sidney residents creating the momentum; positive attitudes of former Cabela’s employees w...
“Affordable” has different meanings, depending on if the buyer has two quarters in his pocket or an extensive line of credit. The same can be said for determining a community's housing market. Additionally, available housing is a key part of encouraging economic development of a community. Sidney Economic Development Director Melissa Norgard met with the Sidney City Council on Sept. 22 proposing a comprehensive housing needs assessment of the community. In her proposal, Norgard said the study is...
The Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce continues to stay active in promoting the business community of Sidney and the county, according to Chamber President and CEO Hope Feeney. Feeney met with the Sidney City Council Sept. 16 to present her quarterly report. In her report, Feeney reported an “uptick” in responses to business outreach efforts. She said the Chamber received four business relocation contacts this quarter. Charlotte & Emerson Boutique was approved for rental assistance. She sai...
As of Sept. 28, the Nebraska Panhandle has experienced nine deaths related to the COVID-19 virus. The Panhandle Public Health District reported 14,052 people have been tested since March. Of that number, 810 cases returned positive for COVID-19, and 716 of those have recovered. There are three active hospitalizations at this time, 80 active cases, 779 total recovered of 868 positive cases for a cumulative positivity rate of 6.1 percent. The risk dial used by the Unified Command shows the region...
“Without a vision, the people perish.” That might sound a little preachy, critical, or condemning even. It might even sound a little egotistical. Go my way or you’re wrong. Well, actually that isn’t the point. Even in my age, I never thought I would sit in a newsroom or have a conversation with another news hound in the region who is equally concerned about stories packaged as news but even we have to admit are on the edge of “fake news.” It isn’t because we do or don’t agree with the writer...
The sunrises and sunsets are varied shades of red against the tinted clouds, a symptom of the many fires that are or have been burning west of Sidney. Hurricanes have impacted the Gulf of Mexico region into the United States. Drought is also a continuing factor through parts of the United States. And as we get closer to winter, the chances of snow and ice storms increase. “The Well” church in Sidney recently underwent training to be part of a response team that can be sent to where the need is g...
