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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CommScope has announced it will close its Sidney facility and eliminate 140 jobs. Employees will be laid off from the company in phases through mid-2016, when all operations are slated to be discontinued at the facility located along Greenwood Road in Sidney. The company was formerly known as TE Connectivity. CommScope acquired the location in a deal that closed in August, according to Kris Kozamchak, CommScope director of corporate communications. The Sidney facility manufactures copper cable...
While rumors and speculation about the future of Cabela’s intensify, the Sidney-based outdoor retailer has continued to remain silent. However, despite the assertions of a news report from a TV station in Montana, Sidney Mayor Mark Nienhueser said the city has not been informed of a change in the ownership at Cabela’s. “As far as we know, there’s nothing that’s true to it,” he said. “Cabela’s hasn’t said anything one way or the other.” On Wednesday, KULR-TV reported an employee at a Billings, Mont., Cabela’s retail store said managers there h...
Sidney junior and senior high partnered with Sidney Regional Medical Center to host their first Veterans Day program Wednesday afternoon. The middle and high school choir members performed for local veterans....
While rumors and media reports circulate about the future of Cabela's, Sidney's mayor said residents must be patient. "As everybody well knows, there's an active investor that's taken an interest in [Cabela's]," Sidney Mayor Mark Nienheuser remarked at a city council meeting on Tuesday. "There's nothing we can do at this point trying to speculate on hypotheticals at this time. We just have to wait and be patient and allow Cabela's to do what they need to do to run their business." Last month,...
Applications will soon be accepted for the vacant Sidney city manager position. Mayor Mark Nienhueser said representatives from an executive recruitment firm hired by the city to help in the search process were in town last week. The representatives met with department heads and city councilors to help identify characteristics sought in a new city manager, the mayor said at a city council meeting on Tuesday. “We are in the process of finalizing the drafts of those documents that will hopefully get posted this week,” Nienhueser said. The pos...
The Sidney Public School District exceeded state averages last year on tests administered to students throughout Nebraska. According to the State of the Schools Report released by the Nebraska Department of Education, 83 percent of Sidney students tested exceeded or met proficiency standards in reading, 78 percent in mathematics, 85 percent in science and 80 percent in writing. In addition to scoring above statewide averages, more Sidney students scored as meeting or exceeding proficiency in reading, science and writing than the previous year....
School lunches in Sidney are being sourced more locally this year. Through a partnership with the Cheyenne County Farm Bureau and local agriculture producers, the Sidney Public School District is able to serve local beef to students. “It’s a new program that we just started this school year,” said Tyson Narjes, Cheyenne County Farm Bureau president. The Raider Beef program, headed by the local Farm Bureau, accepts donations in the form of cattle. They also accept funds to purchase cattle to provide beef for the school district. The only cost...
Cheyenne County is expanding a juvenile diversion program that offers alternatives to the formal justice system for minors alleged to have committed offenses. Paul Schaub, Cheyenne County Attorney, said in the past, diversion has been offered on a case-by-case basis. A $30,000 state grant, awarded in May, will now allow the county to hire a full time coordinator to create a systematic juvenile diversion program. "Any eligible person for the program is going to be presented with the same set of...
A trial scheduled to begin next week for a 19-year-old woman who faced six felony charges has been avoided after a plea deal was announced in court Wednesday. The charges against Mylissa Pennington were reduced to four class one misdemeanors – two counts of attempted possession of illegal mushrooms, attempted possession of more than 1 pound of marijuana and obstructing a peace officer – in exchange for no contest pleas. Each count carries a maximum possible penalty of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. According to the plea agreement, Pen...
The Peetz Plateau School District will soon have three new board of education members. In Colorado’s Tuesday election, voters in Logan County’s Peetz Precinct selected from among four candidates to the fill the vacancies created by term limits. According to unofficial results released by the Colorado Secretary of State Elections Division, Michael Hill received 182 votes, the most of all candidates. He will be joined on the board of education by Nick Fehringer, who received 178 votes, and Tiffany Vallier, who received 116. Loretta Coakley was...
As the responsibility of distributing general relief funds has been shifted from a state agency to counties, local officials are working to introduce pragmatic policies. "We've run into situations where there's basically two forms of general relief that we've been dealing with, and with the transition from [Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services] over to counties, we've just been ironing them out as we go along," Paul Schaub, Cheyenne County attorney, told commissioners this week. For...
LifeSmiles of Sidney hosted its seventh annual Halloween candy buyback event on Monday. The event is sponsored by LifeSmiles of Sidney, Hoppens Orthodontics, Western Nebraska Endodontics, Sidney Regional Medical Center and local UPS employees. The office collects the candy to be made into care packages for soldiers overseas through Operation Gratitude. Its mission is to lift the spirits and meet the evolving needs of the active duty and veteran communities and provide volunteer opportunities for...
LODGEPOLE – The communities of Lodgepole and Chappell are collaborating on a proposed water project to drill a shared well field. Every public drinking water system is required to have its water tested, and a level of arsenic slightly over what the state allows has been found in Lodgepole’s, village clerk Tammy Sherman said. Chappell, 10 miles southeast, is facing a similar issue, she added. Working with the state, a regional water study – which encompassed just the two communities – was recently completed. From the report, the idea of a colla...
Cheyenne County could have a public defender in place by the first of the year. Paul Schaub, Cheyenne County Attorney, has said in the 20 years he’s worked in the county, there’s never been a public defender. Instead, Cheyenne County judges currently appoint lawyers to represent individuals charged with crimes who can’t afford to pay for counsel – and the county takes care of the bill. In recent years, the annual cost of paying court-appointed lawyers has grown. Last year, the county paid out nearly $350,000, according to numbers provide...
Children's health and well-being were the focuses of attention at the first Sidney Regional Medical Center kids health fair on Saturday. The "All About Kids Health Adventure" was held at the Cheyenne County Community Center and included more than a dozen local groups and organizations. Tammy Meier, a community health nurse at SRMC, said children and their parents were able to learn about nutrition, physical activity and drug awareness at the many booths. The idea for the event came out of a...
OSHKOSH – As Garden County High players celebrated their victory at the opposite end of the field, Leyton coach Glen Lipska stood in the north end zone, surrounded by his players and Warrior supporters. In a low voice, he praised his team's effort despite the 74-32 loss in the first round of the Class D-2 eight-man state playoffs. He asked his senior players, who had just competed in their final high school football game, to lead the team in a cheer. And then, under the bright lights and with t...
Interstate 80 through Sidney should return to normal traffic patterns in the coming weeks. Work began this spring on eastbound lanes, from mile markers 51-69. Next year, the project will move onto the westbound lanes, from mile markers 62-90. Wayne Rhamy, Nebraska Department of Roads project manager in Gering, said workers are wrapping up work for the season and both east and westbound lanes would be open for normal traffic flow by the middle of November. While this year's construction was...
After a four and a half hour-standoff with authorities, a 44-year-old man was placed into protective custody Wednesday morning in Sidney. Police and sheriff’s deputies responded to a residence near North Elementary School at about 3 a.m., Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub said. “Family members reported concerns that the subject was not taking his medication, hallucinating and delusional,” a media release from Schaub’s office states. The man – whose identity was not disclosed because of state laws regarding mental health subjects – told au...
The search is on for a new Sidney city manager. On Tuesday, city councilors approved a proposal from Texas-based J.D. Gray Group, an executive recruitment firm, to help lead the search. At a cost of $27,500, J.D. Gray will consult with stakeholders to determine what qualities are desired in a new city manager, conduct a national recruitment effort and screen perspective candidates. According to the agreement, the firm will present a minimum of four individuals to the city council – which will make a final hiring decision. Mayor Mark N...
Prosecutors have charged Joshua Woolery, 26, of Sidney, with six felony charges relating to the alleged sexual assault of a minor between the ages of 12 and 16. A County Court judge bound the case over to District Court on Monday, ruling it appeared the offenses were committed and that there was probable cause to believe Woolery committed them. He is being held on a $500,000 bond. Throughout the hearing, Woolery – who wore shackles and an orange inmate jump suit – sat with his head looking dir...
SUNOL – Residents and visitors in Sunol got an early start to Halloween last weekend. On Saturday, the community held its fifth annual Halloween festival. Throughout the afternoon and evening, games, activities, food – and for the brave, a haunted house – greeted those who visited the former Sunol School. Brenda Broughton, who helped organized the event along with Barb Henke and Brenda Stene, said planning for the event began in February. Numerous community members pitched in, she said, point...
No injuries were reported after a cement truck rolled on its side late Monday Morning in Cheyenne County. Emergency crews were dispatched to the intersection of county roads 19 and 19A shortly after 11 a.m. Both the Sidney Volunteer Fire Department and Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office responded. Fire crews worked to clean up diesel fuel that had spilled on the road as deputies directed traffic and conducted an investigation into the cause of the crash. No further details were available as of...
As Cheyenne County moves toward constructing a new jail, officials say they are deliberately moving slowly to ensure a new facility is prudent, economical and sensible. Earlier this week, the board of commissioners approved an agreement with D.A. Davidson, a bond underwriter, to help crunch the numbers. A feasibility study has already documented the myriad deficiencies of the existing jail and the need for an expanded facility. Cheyenne County Sheriff John Jenson said that report just put in writing the lack of space, safety issues and...
A structure fire on Thursday afternoon caused extensive damage to a single-dwelling trailer in Sidney. The Sidney Volunteer Fire Department responded to the residence in the 2300 block of Jackson Street at 2 p.m. "When we arrived, smoke was coming out of the trailer," Larry Chaon, assistant fire chief, said. "After we entered, we found a fire in the back end of it, in the bedroom." An investigation conducted by the Nebraska State Fire Marshall's Office determined the flames were caused by an...
