Now that school is back in session and vacation season is mostly over, events for local residents are on the increase at the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau.

CVB Executive Director Jana Jordan has a preview:

The Hays CVB posts daily reminders about upcoming activities on their Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HaysCVB

As of Wednesday, 62 customers have signed up for the new online utility bill pay offered by the city of Hays, according to Finance Director Kim Rupp.

“It’s gaining in popularity,” he says, ” and is perfect for people who want the flexibility of paying their bill any time of day.”

There’s no fee to utilize the program which started August 23^rd.

Rupp and city I-T Coordinator Chad Ruder have been working on the project for awhile:

Utility customers can enroll in the program by clicking a link on the front page of the city’s website www.haysusa.com.

You’ll need your account number and customer identification number, both found on the printed billing statement.

The new online system also allows viewing a customer’s bills the past 13 months as well as a look at their monthly water usage.

The Hays Police Department conducted 8 traffic stops and received 3 animal calls on Tuesday September 10th according to the Police Activity Log.

Domestic Disturbance / Dispute

• 09/09 11:00 PM > 09/10 12:04 PM – Domestic Disturbance reported in the 2300 block of Walnut St
• 5:08 PM – Civil Dispute reported in the 2700 block of Augusta Ln

Drug Offenses

• 2:01 AM – Traffic Stop, Drug Offenses reported in the 600 block of Elm St

Suspicious Activity

• 7:28 AM – Suspicious Activity reported in the 500 block of W 23rd St
• 10:34 AM – Suspicious Person reported in the 2900 block of Vine St

Animal call

• 8:41 AM – Animal Call, Disturbance – Noise reported in the 1100 block of Vine St
• 12:15 PM – Animal At Large reported in the 400 block of W 16th St

Parking complaint

• 8:47 AM – Parking Complaint reported in the 300 block of Mopar Dr

Disorderly Conduct

• 09/08 07:00 PM > 08:00 PM – Disorderly Conduct reported in the 2700 block of Vine St

Transport

• 10:58 AM – Transport, Warrant Service (Fail to Appear) reported in the 210 block of E 4th St, Russell

Harassment

• 11:29 AM – Harassment, Telephone/FAX reported in the 2300 block of Hall St
• 10:12 PM – Criminal Threat, Harassment (All Other) reported in the 100 block of E 19th St

Phone/Mail Scam

• 11:58 AM – Phone/Mail Scam reported in the 3700 block of Fairway Dr

Identity Theft

• 12:09 PM – Identity Theft reported in the 1000 block of W 27th St
• 04/10/2006 > 05/03/2007 – Identity Theft reported in the 2200 block of Pine St

Unwanted Person

• 12:53 PM – Unwanted Person, Vagrancy reported in the 3400 block of Vine St

Counterfeit Currency

• 1:01 PM – Counterfeit currency/documents reported in the 1100 block of E 27th St

Document Service

• 1:11 PM – Document Service, Probation/Parole Violation reported in the 100 block of W 12th St
• 2:51 PM – Document Service reported in Hays, No address block listed
• 2:51 PM – Document Service reported in Hays, No address block listed

Theft

• 1:40 PM – Theft (general) reported in the 4300 block of Vine St

MV Accident / Driving / Traffic

• 3:11 PM – MV Accident-City Street/Alley reported in the 200 block of W 6th St
• 3:58 PM – Impaired driving, Driving Under the Influence reported in the 3200 block of Vine St
• 3:48 PM – Traffic Stop reported in the 2300 block of E 15th St
• 4:49 PM – MV Accident-City Street/Alley reported in the 3300 block of Vine St
• 8:31 PM – MV Accident-Private Property reported in the 2900 block of Vine St
• 09/08 08:00 > 09/09 07:00 PM – MV Accident-Hit and Run reported in the 200 block of Pershing Ct

Criminal Damage

• 3:17 PM – Criminal Damage to Property reported in the 200 block of E 13th St

Assist – Other

• 3:37 PM – Assist – Other (not MV) reported in the 100 block of W 12th St

Tigers in Service and the Hays Rotary came together for the 3rd annual Paint-A-Thon on September 7th.  Over 100 students signed up to paint two houses in Hays from 8am – 3pm.  Tigers in Service Co-director Becca Kohl says that her group was happy to get involved again this year.

“Our purpose is to provide opportunities for students to volunteer in the community. It’s a really good way to completely intermix all different social groups and everybody throughout the college and build a community by helping out the Hays community.”

Kohl added that Tigers in Service doesn’t have membership.  Instead, the students in charge organize volunteer efforts, seek student volunteers for various efforts, and help student volunteers track service hours to earn credit for their work as part of other organizations.

Greg Sund, Hays Rotary President, told Hays Post that the annual Paint-A-Thon has been a success every year. Sund says that the project is aimed at helping low income, elderly, or disabled people that need their house painted but don’t have the means to do it, either financial or physical.  He adds that assistance comes from more than just the students that show up on the day of the event.

“Paint for one house was donated by Home Depot and the other house’s paint was donated by Heartland Building Center. And then, we also had a nice arrangement worked out with Dominos where for lunch, for every pizza we bought they donated one, so that was wonderful to have that arrangement.”

Sund added that the event has been successful each year, and has grown in popularity each time.  The only challenge the  Rotary ran into was getting houses to apply to receive the free house painting.  Sund said that they will use the next year to encourage people to apply for the service.  He says this event was a huge success and everyone should be proud of their work.

“I really appreciate all the people and businesses that were involved.   It’s a great community project.”

Hays Safe Ride is about to hit a large milestone, and the city is taking steps to thank those that will be on board when it happens.  Estimates indicate that Safe Ride will carry its 100,000th passenger soon.

Partnership for a Safer Community board member Mike Ashcraft told Hays Post that as of today, September 11th 2013, they were 1000 riders short of the 100,000 mark.  They expect to hit that milestone either on Friday September 20th or Saturday September 21st.  Whoever that lucky person is will be rewarded for using the free service.

Ashcraft said that Safe Ride is going to celebrate this mile stone with prizes for more than the just person who boards the vehicle at just the right moment.

The 100,00th passenger will win an Android Tablet and a $100 Wal-Mart gift card (both donated by Wal-Mart). Passengers that are riding at that time will also win certificates for free food, which are also being donated by various establishments in town.  Ashcraft said he didn’t have the final list of restaurants donating certificates for free food, but there will be something for each person on board at the time.

To claim the big prize, a certificate with instructions will be given to the winner.  Per those instructions, the winning passenger will need to call the number listed on the certificate, and arrange a time to pick up the prize as well as have their photo taken to commemorate the milestone.

Ashcraft said the purpose of this is to thank those that use the service.  Safe Ride has been operating since June 2005.  It’s a collaborative effort between FHSU, local businesses, and the City of Hays to He added that regardless of why people use it, this is a time to celebrate those that use the service as well as encourage more to use it.

“We really just want to thank the community at large for using Safe Ride and making it a safer community.”

Safe Ride picks up and drops off passengers anywhere within city limits for free with no questions asked.  The bus runs between 10 pm and 3 am, Wednesday through Saturday nights.  You can request a pick up during this time by calling 621-2580.