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 2381 - 2405 of 3078
Probation officers working out of Cheyenne County are revving up services and trying to find more space. The state government passed Legislative Bill 561 in June, a new juvenile probation plan being piloted in Omaha and Nebraska probation districts 11 and 12. This law will expand the organization's current juvenile services. "We'll need more employees," said Linda Buehler, chief probation officer for district 12. Probation district 12 encompasses all of the counties in the panhandle. At this point, Buehler is trying to put together...
Step after step, mile after mile brings Rolla Joyce closer to Washington D.C. His zeal pushes closer to his destination, day after day. Joyce, from Richland, Wash., passed through Sidney Thursday afternoon on a near cross country walk. Earlier this summer he felt a calling to leave his family, catch a ride to Salt Lake City, Utah and begin his trek across the heartland for the sake, he says, of his country. As Joyce sees it, Americans are in a state of isolation. The thought of individuals helpi...
Balancing planned construction against the current needs of Sioux Villa residents caused Sidney's Housing Authority to reconsider their schedule and workload. The board spent part of Wednesday's meeting discussing a proposed cut in their meeting time, but an increase in their commitment. Rather than gather once a month, debate centered around a bi-monthly meeting schedule, with a lot of work in between. Executive Director of Sidney Housing Authority Nancy Bentley will need more time in the future, if the authority ever finds funding for a...
Drought, late winter storms and vicious summer heat makes for an uncertain harvest. Even among local farmers, there is some disagreement about expected quality and yield of this year's winter wheat crop. Logan Snyder, merchandiser at Scoular Grain, thinks it's still too early to speculate about the quality. "The stuff coming off right now is from drier areas," he said. Once the portions still containing moisture are cut, then farmers might have a better idea about the specifics of this year's crop. "It'll be interesting to see what the wetter a...
One trip to the concession stand apparently couldn't satisfy an alledged burglar with a sweet tooth. James Russell, a 20 year old Sidney man, was arrested in connection with a break in that apparently took place sometime on the night of July 15 at the Legion Park concession stand. Russell was previously arrested and charged with theft of candy and soft drinks from the same location in June. At around 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Sidney Police responded to a report of a burglary at the Legion Park baseball...
Nebraska ranks in the country's top five states in two polls for quality of life and business-friendliness. Nebraska was named second most business friendly state by Pollina Corporate Real Estate, Inc., a national leader in corporate site selection. The state was also named number four for quality of life by CNBC because of its low crime, clean air and stress free lifestyle. "I think we're one of the leading business-friendly communities in a leading state," said City Manager Gary Person. Sidney and the state of Nebraska work in conjunction to...
The board of commissioners met on Monday with Cheyenne County Treasurer Diane Scott to compare the county's current fiscal situation to figures from a year ago. "2012 tax collections are at 62 percent, and last year at this time they were at 60 percent," Diane Scott said. The biggest concern in Scott's mind was a drop in inheritance tax collections which were $32,000 less than last year and seems to be on a downward trend, she said. Last year collections were $46,000 less than the year before. "...
The county is looking for some help, in the form of community donations, to make the fairgrounds more hospitable. Connie Hancock of the Cheyenne County Fairgrounds Association spoke with county commissioners at yesterday's meeting about potential upcoming fairgrounds projects. The plans call for new facilities and upgrades, perhaps even a catering set up. Hancock assured the commissioners that there were no final plans and reminded the group that everything was still up for discussion. "As we think of the future of the fairgrounds and the...
Budget cuts in Washington may again affect funding of the Western Nebraska Intelligence and Narcotics Group (WING). In 2005, the interagency task force received $229,546 in grant funds. A year ago, that amount had been slashed to $70,000. With current cutbacks on the federal level, some fear this year's allocation may fall short even of that mark. “It’s petty tough—we have to buy equipment and pay the salary for an officer,” said Joseph Aikens, Sidney's acting police chief. A significant portion of the funds used by local departments to inve...
On an overcast summer day, with a cool breeze—rare of late—blowing through their windows, 200 tourists in 80 old cars pulled into Sidney on Saturday. The group is from Norway, Denmark and Sweden. They are driving across the U.S. on the Lincoln Highway, in celebration of the storied road and its centennial. The column of American and foreign makes left New York's Times Square on July 1, bound for San Francisco. Norwegian Morten Ruud, traveling with his wife Annstine and his father Jan-Erik transp...
On July 7, 41 year old Draven Watson of Hudson, North Carolina was charged with second degree assault and disturbing the peace for a fight that took place in the Sidney McDonald's parking lot. Around 3 a.m., Sidney Police Officer Scott Tobler witnessed two men fighting near a Semi truck with its lights on in the lot. He observed a younger male he later identified as Tory Stacy punching an older male, later identified as Draven Watson, to the ground. Tobler then witnessed Watson get up and hit Stacy on the side of the head, according to the arre...
There's more than one reason to scurry from a nearby skunk. At Tuesday's city council meeting, Sidney Mayor Wendall Gaston announced reports of rabies in towns close to Sidney. Communities in northern Colorado have discovered the disease in their feral cat and skunk populations, Gaston said. With the number of people and animals that travel between Sidney and Sterling, Colo., the mayor expressed concern the issue could spread. No cases have been confirmed so far in Cheyenne or any of the...
John Hehnke knows what to do in case of disaster. Sidney's Emergency Manager and Public Services Director is prepared for flooding—rain sometimes falls—tornadic storms and even chemical spills. When a problem arises, he takes charge of the situation. “We use an emergency plan almost every day for something,” Hehnke said. Major issues are covered by the Local Emergency Operation Plan, a guide approved by the state every five years and implemented at the county and city level. Representatives from government, healthcare, first responders and oth...
The French Door Antique Mall is just one of the businesses in Sidney that is helping to keep the city beautiful. Mary Jo Putman, opened the store two and half years ago in a rented space off of Toledo Street. She just moved the mall to its current location, on 10th street, in May. Because of its stellar outward and inside appearance Putman's store has been honored with the Community Beautification Award by Keep Sidney Beautiful. "The Community Beautification Award is given out quarterly to an...
Ben Sasse worked to turn around companies in crisis for 20 years. Now he's considering putting that skill set to work in the U.S. Senate. Sasse is currently traveling around Nebraska on a listening tour—including a stop in Sidney on Thursday—to help him decide whether or not he wants to run for Congress. After a series of discussions, he believes that three major concerns are at the forefront of most Nebraskans' minds. To begin with, many agree that there's a crisis of work in the United Sta...
The city is preparing to begin spraying against mosquitoes. More people are spending time outdoors. It's the time of year when people turn to Diethyl-meta-toluamide, otherwise known as DEET. Despite its popularity and repeated calls by experts to use repellants with DEET to prevent bites, many are concerned about its safety. Some attribute eight deaths to the chemical since 1961—including three from ingestion and three children who reportedly succumbed to over-application. Veronica Phelps owner of KISST Organics said, “Anytime you're put...
Pilots and passengers flying in and out of Sidney will finally have a place to relax and take a load off before and after air time. After many years of operating without one, the Sidney Airport Authority is planning to add a terminal building. The group hopes that construction will begin in spring 2014 for completion in fall of the same year. The price is estimated at around $600,000 and the committee expects the Federal Aviation Administration to pay for 95 percent of the construction. The Sidney Airport Authority will fund around 3 percent...
Relief is on the way for those worried about West Nile or suffering from itchy bites. Mosquito spraying in Sidney starts this weekend. "They're not too bad recently because there hasn't been water," said superintendent of Sidney parks, Tom Von Seggern. But he predicted that the volume of mosquitoes will soon rise because of the recent rain. "I expect there to be a surge," Von Seggern said. The city uses a spray process called ultra low volume. This means that about 1.5 oz of the pesticide is used on an area around the size of a football field....
At mile marker 62 on Highway 30, the Kielian’s family have lived for the past 42 years in relative quiet. Improving their driveway one day, however, brought them into conflict with the state of Nebraska. Without a permit, Tom Kielian strengthened the edges of the driveway, hoping to prevent erosion during rainstorms. He also added to the grade, allowing the family to swing a tractor or large truck onto the highway without crossing over into the far lane. The state responded by issuing a 30 d...
New state mandated library accreditation will amp up community involvement. "We have to have a strategic plan for our new accreditation," said library director Doris Jensen. "They went in and wrote some new rules and regulations for the accreditation program because it had not been updated for a number of years." The library will be working to meet the new standards set by the state before mid-October. These regulations include forming a community planning committee. Only two current library board members will be allowed to take part in the...
Sidney High School Principal Steve Arent attended ASCD—formally known as the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development—teaching conference in Washington DC on June 27. “After the second day I was there, there was some different things I was hearing in every session,” he said. The program emphasized excellence in the classroom. Sessions dealt with developing a core focus on classroom instruction. As Arent put it, panels taught the value of “teachers not only having good content skills, but also solid instructional practices in how y...
New signage and saving money were the biggest concerns at last night's city council meeting. Scott Day of Urban Development Services, a company that specializes in design management and commercial revitalization, displayed various design concepts for a "Welcome to Sidney" sign planned for the intersection of 11th Ave. and Old Post Road. The council appeared unanimous in their appreciation of the concept of a long, low stone wall as the base for the new sign. Roger Gallaway pointed out that the...
Sidney has a new hospital--on paper, at least. The Sidney Regional Medical Center's Board of Directors approved architectural plans and forwarded requests for proposal to five contractors, putting a face for the first time to an idea that has been deliberated for almost five years. Reality will have to wait until June of 2016, when SRMC's chief executive, Jason Petik, expects the new 122,000 square foot facility's doors will open. The new structure will include a 25 bed critical access...
In Cheyenne County Court on July 8, Jethro Harris faced sentencing for his fourth driving under the influence of alcohol offense. Judge Randin Roland granted Harris probation for 24 months, under the condition that Harris submit to drug and alcohol evaluations and counseling. As part of the sentence, he cannot visit any place where alcohol is consumed. He is not allowed to have alcohol in his home and will be submitted to random tests and searches. Harris a dishwasher at a local restaurant told Judge Roland that he has applied to a school in th...
A high speed chase from Sidney to Chappell ended with the driver in protective custody after he was finally stopped by spike strips deployed on Interstate 80. Doug Freude, 50, of Pueblo, Colo. led State Troopers in a pursuit along the Interstate June 26 after allegedly driving recklessly through multiple parking lots in Sidney and reportedly informing bystanders that people were trying to kill him. "He endangered a lot of peoples' lives," said Deputy Cheyenne County Attorney, Jonathon Stellar. The incident began when Nebraska State Trooper Jay...
