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 8 - 32 of 138
Dear Editor, I grew up in Sidney, a poor kid, from the “other side of the tracks.” As such a kid, I often felt marginalized and left out of many community organized activities. Having said this, I recently heard what the daily admission price to the new pool was going to be. I want to challenge every elected city council member, on the first 90-degree day of summer, to go up to Sioux Villa, Cheyenne Villa, or any playground on the North side of town and explain to each of those children why they aren’t good enough to swim in the new pool with...
Dear Editor, There is currently an effort by the establishment of the Republican Party to sabotage the candidacy of Donald Trump. This is an effort that will destroy the Republican Party for decades if not for all time. They have even gone so far as to promote the candidacy of Hillary Clinton in order for them to retain their positions as the all wise and all knowing who should decide the candidate of the party and their personal perks which go along with same rather than let the voting public elect the Presidential candidate. If they are...
Dear Editor, I want to thank Mr. Arterburn and Mr. Galloway for reminding the council that the 1/2 cent sales tax being collected is to be used for street improvements, not new construction. So why are the other three against the use of the tax money? Jack Schilling Sidney...
Dear Editor, I hate to bring this subject up once again, but after reading the article about the $4 million that our city council is spending on the new swimming pool, I feel a few items should be addressed. First off, I see the daily rates/seasonal costs to go swimming. They cannot be called “yearly” rates because it will only be open maybe three months out of the year, and that’s stretching it. Of course, we all knew the cost was going to go up because you can’t have something like this and expect to pay $1.25 per day to get in. So now the...
Dear Editor, The Cheyenne County Democratic Caucus will take place at the Cheyenne County Community Center in Sidney on March 5 at 10 a.m. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. This is the first determining step in the selection process. This will decide between Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton, who will be Nebraska’s choice for the presidential nominee. Nebraska has 25 delegates and five super delegates. With 56 percent of the delegates to be awarded nationally, in the month of March, Nebraska wanted to be included in that number. This is your c...
Dear Editor, I see they want a name for the water park. As much as the taxpayers are being hosed on this project and how big it is, they need to call it The Hose Monster. Jack Schilling Sidney...
I just warmly want to thank The Sun-Telegraph, the sponsors and the participants for this year’s football contest. It was a real competitive season of 14 weeks, challenged by many intuitive and insightful participants. I, for one, looked forward to getting my football picks in each week! Thank you, Sun-Telegraph, the fine sponsors and everyone else involved in this season’s football contest. You guys are just great! Stan Fox Week one winner Sidney...
Dear Editor, The president waxed long and evasive Tuesday night in his annual address. The topics ranged from distortions to downright lies over more than an hour. Here is a man who has spent over $3 million to keep his records at colleges and others from being released and whose birthday record, which was released after much procrastination, was a phony, altered on a computer, which of course was not in existence at the time of his birth. He stated that the nation’s economy was in good shape and improving when he has presided over the g...
Dear Editor, The city council is going to vote at the next council meeting on borrowing money to pay for the water park. They want $4 million but by the time they add everything in and to it, it will probably be over $5 million. Question? What right does the mayor and council have putting the city of Sidney that far in debt by trying to float a bond or borrowing money without voter approval? They need to check with the city attorney to see if they are breaking any laws. What the mayor and council have done is dug themselves a hole and wants...
Dear Editor: It appears that the city council will have an opportunity to rehire the best city manager that this city has ever known since he has applied for the position. In contrast to other of his predecessors his performance increased steadily year after year while he was in that position. He is not only respected throughout the state but revered by all that showed their trust in him. Let’s not miss this opportunity. – C.J. Cornelius Jr., MD Sidney...
Dear Editor, So many people from the Sidney area have contributed to the success of Cabela’s. They must be very proud to have been a part of Cabela’s amazing story. One would assume that Cabela’s knows and appreciates the help they received from this caring workforce. Can you imagine the way these people must now feel as they watch Cabela’s potential death spiral as a major player in the Sidney area economy? What a terrible payback for these people and the Sidney community and area! Jim Northup Raleigh, North Carolina Former Sidney residen...
Dear Editor, I see that the city is having trouble finding funds for the aquatic center, which now is being called the new swimming pool. Before they float a bond or go in debt $4 million by borrowing the money and wanting the tax payers to pay the bill, they need to see if any laws are involved. There are some things that can’t be done without voter approval. I know a lot of taxpayers don’t want their taxes to go up over council mistakes. If council does not have the money to pay for the water park, they need to cut their losses and stop const...
Dear Editor, In the “interest of shareholders,” Cabela’s seems ready to destroy a vibrant town and negatively impact the lives of thousands of hard working residents. Always sad to see what can happen when a great company goes public. The Cabela family and board should review the impact on Sidney from the closing of the Sioux Ordnance Depot. Jim Northup Raleigh, North Carolina Former Sidney resident and 1956 SHS graduate...
Dear Editor: I was totally appalled by the self back patting article in Thursday’s paper (Sidney mayor highlights success of city and business partnerships). The statement by the mayor, “Regardless of what happens in our near future, we’ve got a positive foundation in place,” sounds pretty close to what City Manager Tom Coffey said just before the Sioux Army Depot closed years ago. All the talk about street improvements, utility upgrades, recreational amenities, housing developments and business developments over the years and not a word ab...
My wife and I were traveling from the San Francisco Bay Area to Omaha for Thanksgiving. We stopped in the Safeway Starbucks on our way to Omaha and we struck up a conversation with a random customer and her two kids. They were the nicest family and were so enjoyable. At random, she and the two kids bought us a Starbucks gift card and wished us safe travels and a happy holiday. I have never witnessed such generosity – and it happened in Sidney, Nebraska. Bryan Krajeski San Francisco...
Dear Editor: I have watched the city’s boom and bust cycles since the closing of the Army depot but am not liking the trend that currently exists. We have lost the best city manager we have ever had, the most qualified police chief in memory, the disapproval of the Keystone-XL pipeline and now the prospect of losing Cabela’s would seem to be more than we deserve. Let us pray that our largest employer will remain in the city. If not, our prospects for a replacement does not appear likely. I wish that I had reason to think otherwise, don’t you?...
Dear Editor, I have read the letters from Larry Nelson and Rita Hart and agree with both of them. I have heard the walking trails along 11th Avenue (which nobody knows how that got approved) and around Cabela’s new pond was paid for with tax dollars. If that is the case why does Cabela’s benefit from our tax dollars? I heard that the road that connects road 20 and Ft. Sidney Road and the new bridge is being paid for with the half-cent sales tax money. That is not what the money is supposed to be used for; it is to repair our deteriorating stree...
Dear Editor, Disclaimer: I am not a bridge builder nor do I claim to be one, but I’ve worked in manufacturing long enough to know when I see progress, or lack thereof. Since I am unemployable, I’ve had plenty of time to walk the dog past the Fort Sidney Road Bridge down the walking trail. I’ve also had the inconvenience of finding an alternative route when I want to go to Bomgaar’s. I read in the newspaper where construction had to be halted on the bridge because of unforeseen fiber optics cables. I’m not an expert, but when I want to do som...
Dear Editor: Just have to wonder, is Sidney getting too big for its britches? Seeing and hearing about all of the turmoil that Sidney has been through in the last six months makes me wonder. First we find out that our “new” police chief is getting in trouble over something that happened almost right after he was hired. And the “good ol’ boys” who got him in trouble decide they don’t want to play the game anymore, so they leave their positions and throw him under the bus so that he has no choice other than to leave his position. This man wa...
Dear Editor, Since early July, there has been much concern among the good citizens of Sidney about the treatment of our chief of police, B.J. Wilkinson. He received an outrageous sentence for his plea. The mayor and city council wanted to assure the good people of Sidney that they would conduct a thorough investigation. They would hold executive sessions and get to the bottom of it all. The mayor was sent emails and had public requests to support B.J. Wilkinson. Council members were sent similar emails and had to have taken input from citizens...
Dear Editor, In 1979, Tammy Wynette won a Grammy for her fabulous song entitled “Stand By Your Man.” I know that the title of this song applies to the situation regarding Sidney’s Chief of Police. To the good people of Sidney – and to the not-so-good as well – this letter is a request for your support of Chief B.J. Wilkinson. I’ve met so many new folks and friends who have agreed with me regarding this mess that was created by people – two of whom no longer work for our city. There have been many fist-bumps, many handshakes, many more words of...
Dear Editor: The City Council will be selecting a new city manager soon. I hope they will pick one who will listen to the people and taxpayers of Sidney and stop this wasteful spending and overspending on projects. In 2012, the voters approved a half-cent sales tax to help pay for our streets, pay for a swimming pool, upgrade the irrigation system and park improvements. So far, the city officials and city council have overspent on every project except for our deteriorating streets. The so-called swimming pool was to get $3 million, and now it...
Dear Editor: Ya know, I’ve been thinking, and I got a question I would like the city attorney to answer. Let’s see, now if I got this right, we have five council members, three who work for Cabela’s, including the mayor. My question is could we have the possibility of collusion here or a threat of repercussion in the workplace if one did not vote for the mayor’s personal agenda? If the city attorney answers “yes,” and with the people wanting up-and-up and straight and narrow government here in Sidney, we would need another resignation...
Dear Editor: I find the Nebraska legislator, Ken Haar’s proposal to dissolve the Nebraska Oil and Gas Commission and spread its responsibilities around to a variety of other organizations very interesting, but baffling. At a time when it’s clear there is too much government and too much government spending, why not dissolve a small, efficient commission that takes nothing from the Nebraska General Fund? Why not ignore the fact that regulating one of the most important industries to our Country requires substantial expertise? And above all, why...
Dear Editor: Until this year, Nebraska’s home-grown oil and gas industry has been largely out of sight and out of mind of the public and state policymakers, and for good reason. Nebraska operators are small oil and gas companies, not giant oil companies. We are a well-regulated industry that contributes significantly to the rural economies of southwest Nebraska and the Panhandle. Ever since Nebraska’s first long-term producing oil well was drilled in Richardson County in the 1940s, Nebraska producers have been generating income for inv...
