By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

School is out for summer, freeing up time for youth to find ways to keep themselves busy — however, roaming the streets of Hays at all hours of the night is not an option.

According to Hays Police Department Lt. Brandon Wright, the curfew is in place all year long and is intended to keep those 17 and younger safe.

Wright said there is a slight increase in curfew violations during the summer, noting many parents, guardians and youth are either unaware of the curfew or confused about the details.

The city of Hays curfew ordinance states:

“No minor shall be present in or on any public street, park, square, or any public place within the city between the hours of 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and between the hours of midnight to 5 a.m. Friday through Saturday, inclusive, without the knowledge and consent of a parent or legal guardian having the care and custody of such minor.”

Wright explained the law does not mean the youth must be at home at that time, but roaming the streets in public after curfew is not OK without the supervision or consent of their parents/guardians.

Wright added city curfews are common across the country.

“The intent is reasonable … to make sure our kids are safe and not roaming the streets in the middle of the night,” he said.

Wright added it is OK to be out past curfew if you are coming straight home from work, for instance, but stopping to hang out with friends at a public park or street would mean “breaking curfew,” if the child does not have parental permission or supervision.

Typically, Wright said when a youth engages in a curfew violations, the parents and guardians are called and the youngster goes home.

However, if the curfew violations occur repeatedly, especially in cases of a younger child, the Ellis County attorney could pursue charges and the youth could be placed in foster care.

“We would follow the same basic procedure for a younger person in most cases: Identify the child, ask them what they are doing and if their parents know where they are, contact the parents via phone or in person, ask them if they know where their child is and if they gave them permission to be out, inform them of the city’s curfew ordinance, etc.,” Wright said.

“If we do not think it is a child-in-need-of-care case, we would send, escort or transport the child home, depending on the circumstances,” he added. “If we do find it to be a CINC case, we would make arrangements for an alternate place for the child to stay – could be another of the child’s family members, could be temporary foster placement, could be a juvenile facility of some kind, depending on the situation.”

For more details on the Hays curfew, search the city of Hays website section of municipal codes.

The Hays Police Department conducted 31 traffic stops and received four animal calls on Tuesday, May 27, according to the HPD activity log.

Traffic Stop, Seventh and Elm, 2:03:34 a.m.
Abandoned vehicle, 1500 block Canterbury, 5:49 a.m.
Motor vehicle accident/hit and run, 100 block East 18th, 7:05 a.m.
Abandoned vehicle, 1500 block East 19th, , 9:42 a.m.
Probation/parole violation, 1000 block Fort, 10:18 a.m.
Found/lost property, 200 block West Eighth, 10:23 a.m.
Animal call, 1300 block Agnes, 10:57 a.m.
Reckless driver, 100 block East 27th, 12:52 p.m.
Suicidal subject, 2800 block Augusta, 1:38 p.m.
Counterfeit currency/documents, 4700 block Roth, 2:51 p.m.
Animal cruelty/neglect, 4300 block Vine, 3:31 p.m.
Theft, 2700 block Hall, 3:46 p.m.
Phone/mail scam, 200 block East 20th, 3:50 p.m.
Abandoned vehicle, 2900 block Skyline, 4:34 p.m.
Lost animals, 600 block East 11th, 8:08:28 p.m.
Vehicle theft, 100 block East Seventh, 9:03 p.m.
Warrant service/failure to appear, 100 block West 20th, 9:25 p.m.
Domestic battery, 1500 block Old U.S. 40, 9 p.m.
Driving under the influence, 2000 block Vin, 11:51 p.m.

The Hays Area Planning Commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. June 3 at City Hall.

On the agenda is the reorganization of the commission — appointing a new chair, vice chair and secretary.

The commission also will hear a presentation from Kendig Keast Collaborative, the firm recently was signed to conduct a rewrite of what have been called outdated zoning regulations in the city.

In April, the Hays City Commission approved spending up to $150,000 for the project, and the June 3 presentation is expected to outline the process, which will include a series of hearings with stakeholders.

Click HERE for a complete agenda for the planing commission meeting.

By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

For the first time, Hays youth baseball and softball players will celebrate their own opening day tonight — thanks to the Hays Recreation Commission.

Hays Rec is inviting all of the youngsters participating in summer leagues to take part in the Opening Day celebration, scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Bickle/Schmidt Sports Complex.

Keith Smith, Hays Rec youth sports director, said this is a fun way to kick off the season. There are 750 total kids signed up this summer.

Smith said all of the teams, coaches and sponsors will be introduced that night. Although they won’t play any games, the event will be fun for the kids and a way to get everybody excited about starting out the season.

There will be a hot dog feed, a home run derby and inflatables for the kids.

There will also be drawings with a chance to win tickets to a Royals, Wingnuts or T-Bones game, and Smith said that the Hays Larks and local businesses will also be helping out with the event.

According to Smith, there are 29 baseball teams, 23 softball teams and 21 T-ball teams signed up for the season.

By NICK BUDD
Hays Post

Hays City Manager Toby Dougherty updated city commissoners last week on the amount of money available in the commission’s financial policy projects fund.

Currently, the commission has around $2.5 million in the discretionary fund that has accumulated throughout the fiscal year, according to Dougherty. Approximately $1.5 million of that will be used to offset the mill levy to keep it at 25 mills, which leaves the commission with approximately $1.09 million. The fiscal year ends June 30.

The commission also has approximately $812,000 in excess funds from previous capital projects. According to Dougherty, when the city identifies a project, they estimate it and then the commission immediately moves the money in order to pay for them. Due to the fact some projects have came in cheaper than expected, those extra funds are available to the commission under the same policy. This leaves the commission with approximately $1.9 million.

The commission has approximately $558,000 worth of items that have either been identified or discussed for funding that will come out of that fund. Approximately $205,000 is needed for the 13th Street curb-to-curb reconstruction, and approximately $203,000 will be used for the airport terminal renovations. The commission has also committed $150,000 for the Core to Campus Initiative with Fort Hays State University.

Dougherty provided commissioners with a list of other potential projects. Items include a $1.5 million Eighth Street replacement program from Milner to Vine; a $3.5 million Allen Street replacement project from 13th to Vine; an opportunity to add $250,000 to the annual street maintenance program; new street signals on Vine Street, which would cost the city around $50,000; signal upgrades at 22nd and Canterbury, which would cost around $30,000; and the opportunity to pay off a $600,000 bond.

“Commissioners can look at this and decide if they value a certain project more than another,” Dougherty said.

Owing mostly to a special sales tax collected to fund long-term water improvements, the city also has a sizable reserve invested — more than $53.5 million. Should the R9 Ranch project — a water pipeline to Edwards County — proceed as planned, the city has said that reserve would be used to fund the bulk of that project.

ELLIS — The Ellis City Council will hold a work session at 6 p.m. Wednesday in council chambers to discuss the city’s capital improvement plan.