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 1511 - 1535 of 3067
Lukjan Metal Products celebrates its first year in production at its Sidney facility this month and the company's regional manger says they are pleased with the move and its results. "We're close where we wanted to be," said Herb Gibson. Gibson said the company was able to "leapfrog" ahead of its original plan in some ways, thanks to an opportunity it had to purchase the equipment of a former competitor. Getting that equipment, he said, "gives us lots of potential to grow." As it is, the Sidney...
With the Cheyenne County Fair just days away, the board of commissioners received an update Monday on work being done at the Cheyenne County Fairgrounds. Troy Kurz reported scheduled improvements on the pavilion is nearing completion. “I think we’re pretty much wrapped up,” he said. He said the invoices would be submitted that day for animal panels and that the final fire alarm inspection would be done the next day (Tuesday, July 3). Fair Board president Gerald Frerichs met with the board regar...
LINCOLN – Secretary of State John Gale reminds Nebraskans that important dates are approaching that impact candidates and voters. The first of those dates, July 8th, signals the start of the early voting process. Voters who wish to cast a ballot by mail can submit their request to their local county election official beginning on that day. Early voting ballots will be mailed to registrants who have made a request starting on October 1st. July 16th is the last day for any current office holders to file for races not previously on the primary b...
The decision was made and approved. The proper officials met to determine how to make it happen. All that is left is to put the parts in motion. Dispatchers are ready to talk to new residents and first responders as their territory of influence has greatly expanded. The Cheyenne County Communications Board and the county commissioners were approached earlier this spring about dispatching services for Deuel County. At the time, Deuel County agencies were dispatched by Kimball County. In the April...
Most everyone in the work world sees things on the job that could be done "better." Sometimes it is only a point of view, and other times it motivates a person to seek an opportunity to do it their way. Yet others find themselves in the kind of job uncertainty that encourages entrepreneurship. Regardless the reason for exploring business ownership, the path is seldom smooth. Western Nebraska Community College's business development program held a meeting Friday for potential entrepreneurs. The...
Robert C. Davis, who has served the Office of Human Development as its director in Sidney, has been promoted to oversee all agency services in the Panhandle The Governing Board of Region I Office of Human Development (OHD) announces the promotion last week. Davis previously held the position of Area III Director in Sidney. He began his employment with OHD in 1987 as a residential staff member and was continuously promoted to Supervisor, Program Director and Area Director. As the regional head,...
President Donald J. Trump last week declared that a major disaster exists in the State of Nebraska and ordered Federal assistance to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by a severe winter storm and straight-line winds from April 13 to April 18, 2018. Federal funding is available to State and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe winter storms and straight-line winds in the...
At a news conference in the Nebraska State Capitol Rotunda last week, members of Media of Nebraska unveiled a public awareness campaign about the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. The core message: "Think F1rst." Elements of the campaign will be used by the Sun-Telegraph to help pass along this important message. "The purpose of Media of Nebraska centers around the First Amendment to the Constitution, arguably the only Amendment in the Bill of Rights that Americans use every...
Marcella "Marcy" N. Merrihew, 66, of Alliance, NE, passed away on June 26, 2018, with her family by her side. She was born in Sidney, NE on April 9, 1952 to James and Gladys (Earnhard) Haskell. She was the youngest of five children. Marcy grew up on a farm by Lodgepole, NE. She attended Lodgepole High School and graduated from Chadron State College. On May 31, 1975 she was united in marriage to Dwight Neil Merrihew. Marcy was a country school teacher that taught at Hemingford, District #44,...
NexGen Outfitters is a step closer to reality in Sidney. Tuesday evening the Sidney City Council approved sale of 4.03 acres of the Sidney Industrial Park to NexGen Outfitters. “This is a continuation of the LB840 agreement with NexGen,” Economic Development Director Melissa Norgard said at the council meeting. The purchase of the land also include a requirement that NexGen Outfitters create new payroll and jobs. According to city council discussion Tuesday, if the company does not meet its job...
A Mitchell man was arrested Wednesday following an operation of the Panhandle Region Team of the Nebraska Human Trafficking Task Force. James Raymond Hill, 52, was arrested for solicitation of prostitution after offering to pay for someone to perform a sexual act. According to an arrest affidavit filed by a Nebraska State Patrol investigator, an undercover officer with the Human Trafficking Task Force communicated with Hill via text and phone conversations referencing a Craiglist ad posted by...
Laws against drinking before driving are clearly stated. Drinking while carrying a CDL license is tighter yet, and the use of opioids was recently added to the mix. Sidney's Human Resources Director Jo Houser met with the Sidney City Council Tuesday regarding modifications to the City's Drug and Alcohol policies. Houser said in the council meeting one of the additions to the policy is testing for opioids. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States is in an...
Cheyenne County is updating the emergency alert system effective July 1. Emergency and weather alerts are presently sent to subscribers of the CodeRed system. The system relays messages to email addresses and phone numbers submitted by people within the coverage area. Beginning July 1, alerts will be sent by Panhandle Alert. The Panhandle Alert system serves counties Banner, Box Butte, Cheyenne, Dawes, Deuel, Garden, Grant, Kimball, Morrill, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan and Sioux. To sign up for...
While the Sidney and Cheyenne County community is experiencing changes, it is not without growth as well. Sidney City Manager Ed Sadler reported to the City Council Tuesday that the City has recorded “just under 580 new customers” in the last two years. New customers are new utility services, not transfers of service, he said. According to a report provided by Sadler, 318 of the new customers are from Nebraska, 145 are from Colorado, and 22 were from Wyoming. Eight new customers were from California, seven from Arizona, five from the sta...
Allegations of civil rights violations against Cheyenne County Sheriff John Jenson have been dismissed by a federal judge. Judge Richard G. Korf dismissed claims against Jenson and Kevin Spencer, the Scottsbluff police chief. The case originated with a complaint filed in Lancaster County District Court last October, where two Nebraska Crime Commission members, Lisa Stamm and Vanessa Humaran, sued Jenson, Spencer and Scottsbluff County Sheriff Mark Overman for harassment. Stamm and Humaran...
The City of Sidney is trying to avoid the awkwardness of meeting an individual or private enterprise who wants to support development in the community, but the City can’t accept it. The Sidney City Council met in a special session Monday morning to consider a program that would allow private contributions for economic development. Presently, LB840 limits where and how Sidney can receive funding. “We can only do what the plan says we can do, and get funds from where it says we can get them,” Economic Development Director Melissa Norgard said...
The warm and breezy day offered the perfect opportunity to display the many wheat varieties being tested in the Panhandle of Nebraska. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln held its High Plains Ag Lab Field Day Thursday north of Sidney. The Field Day included demonstrations of growing peas in the area, including the pros and cons of applying nitrogen to the plants. Speakers on pea production included UNL Alternative Crops Breeding Specialist Dipak Santra, UNL Soil and Nutrition Management...
Long standing jokes and folklore highlight the rivalry between police officers and firefighters. Memes, cartoons and even story lines on television embellish the differences between two sets of important public servants. Many of us have heard the jokes; "The reason they made [insert department] is so [insert department] could have heroes, too." But when community safety and well being is on the line, all respond where they are needed. Sidney's volunteer fire fighters and police officers will be...
Sidney’s City Council will hold a special meeting Monday morning to examine a potential revision to the city’s economic development plan. If okayed by council, the revised plan would be sent to voters for approval. The city is currently operating under the economic development plan that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in the November 2016 election. That gave the city authority to continue setting aside $300,000 of a previously approved special use tax, specifically to be used for eco...
There was a time mail carriers had more threats than an unrestrained dog or an angry customer. They had miles of wilderness and all of the dangers that come with it. The Pony Express earned a place in history, an Old West legend. It was the fastest mail service available to the western territories. Mail sent by stage coach could require a 25-day journey, and by ship would be a months-long adventure. The success of the riders depended on the availability of resources including relay stations,...
Sidney High School's track and football field facilities will be closed starting the first week of July for the Track Resurfacing Project. It will be closed a majority of the month of July until the project is completed. The will upgrade our facility for the community to continue to utilize throughout the year. The district will send out a notice when the project is completed and the facilities are open again. Sidney High School Athletic Director Mike Brockhaus says "We apologize for this...
He doesn't manage the office with a coat and tie. He has the relaxed look of someone who is more comfortable walking, or riding, the prairie than to spend too much time behind a desk. He has the appearance of a man who is most relaxed sharing stories and fireside coffee almost as strong as the characters in the stories, building relationships with dramatized stories of the West. There are those people in the world who don't slow down. They have an energy in everything they do that is almost...
The Cheyenne County Commissioners discussed approaches to controlling weeds in the county Monday. The issue is how to control specific weeds that may be added to the county’s noxious weed list while on a limited budget. Specifically, the commissioners talked with Weed Superintendent Cris Burks regarding the impact of Canadian thistle, dalmatian toadflax and bindweed. Common Mullein is a biennial plant with grayish white, woolly leaves. It is listed as a noxious weed in Colorado with the USDA l...
The State Highway Commission will hold its regular meeting June 22 at 10:00 a.m., at the Western Community College, 371 College Drive, in Sidney. The agenda for the meeting can also found on the NDOT website at http://dot.nebraska.gov/news-media/ by clicking on the “State Highway Commission Meeting” link. The State Highway Commission meetings are conducted in compliance with the Open Meetings Act, as cited in the Nebraska Revised Statutes. For details, call (402) 471-4567. The State Highway Commission will gather for dinner on Thursday, Jun...
A project to protect Sidney homes and businesses in the general area of Western Nebraska Community College and the Case dealership is soon going to be a reality. Galen Wittrock, assistant manager with the South Platte Natural Resources District, has announced that the Joint East Sidney Watershed Authority Project (JESWA) is expected to break ground this week after years of planning. Since 1999, SPNRD, City of Sidney and other officials have been working on the project after severe rains flooded...
