Beginning Monday, weather permitting, the following changes in road closure will occur related to the 41st Street reconstruction project:
• 41st Street will be closed between Fillmore and Harrison
• 41st Street remains closed immediately east of Hall Street
• 41st Street remains closed between Covenant Drive and Smoky Hill Drive
• 41st Street is open to local from Covenant Drive to the west.
• Northbound and southbound traffic on Hall Street will continue to be open, but with some restriction.
• Access to and from most areas in the Smoky Hill Drive area will be from 45th Street to Hall Street.
Click the image above to view the map.
Due to the change in traffic patterns, be sure to have your trash and recycling out by 7 a.m. on your normal collection day since pickup route times may change from what they have been in the past.
These closures will last several weeks as part of the continuing project to reconstruct 41st Street from the U.S. 183 Bypass to Hall Street. The city appreciates the public’s patience and understanding during the course of this project.
SALINA — Congressional candidates squared off in what will most likely be the only joint appearance before the November election between First District opponents.
Share your opinion by taking part in the poll below
Incumbent Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan., and Democratic challenger Jim Sherow explained their positions at a candidate forum Tuesday evening at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina.
They disagreed on nearly every issue addressed — same-sex marriage, immigration reform, the Affordable Care Act, minimum wage, and use of military force in the Middle East.
When answering a question about the Affordable Care Act, members of the audience booed Huelskamp when he discussed the amount of money taken away from Medicare. Sherow asked the crowd to refrain from making noise so Huelskamp could answer the question.
Sherow said if he were elected he would hope to be able to serve on the House Agriculture Committee, a committee that Huelskamp was removed from by the GOP house leadership following the 2012 elections.
On the issue of same-sex marriage, Sherow said he supported equal rights for all Americans, While Huelskamp said he would listen to the voters of Kansas who approved a gay marriage ban amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 2005.
The forum was sponsored by the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce and League of Women Voters.
The La Crosse volleyball teams drops two spots but remains ranked in the latest Kansas Volleyball Association poll released late Tuesday. The Leopards are No. 10 in this week’s 1A Division I poll. Hays High remains unranked for a second straight week.
Complete poll below…
Class 6A
1. Olathe East 17-3 (1)
2. Olathe Northwest 23-4 (5)
3. Blue Valley North 20-5 (2)
4. Blue Valley Northwest 18-6 (3)
5. Blue Valley 21-8 (6)
6. Maize 24-4 (4)
7. Derby 19-8 (8)
8. Manhattan 16-8 (7)
9. Washburn Rural 13-7 (10)
10. Hutchinson 15-10 (NR)
Class 5A
1. St. Thomas Aquinas 26-2 (2)
2. St. James Academy 28-3 (1)
3. Shawnee Heights 18-2 (4)
4. Topeka-Seaman 23-3 (3)
5. Bishop Carroll 15-3 (6)
6. Blue Valley West 16-6 (5)
7. Blue Valley Southwest 16-9 (8)
8. Andover Central 28-4 (7)
9. Andover 20-6 (9)
10. Emporia 15-4 (NR)Class
Class 4A – Division 2
1. Clay Center 23-4 (1)
2. Jefferson West 22-7 (2)
3. Baldwin 17-7 (3)
4. Rock Creek 18-6 (4)
5. Holton 17-8 (6)
6. Atchison 16-7 (7)
7. Holcomb 16-6 (5)
8. Frontenac 14-7 (8)
9. Baxter Springs 16-7 (9)
10. Iola 14-9 (NR)
Class 3A
1. Silver Lake 21-9 (2)
2. Hillsboro 17-1 (1)
3. Hesston 15-2 (3)
4. Douglass 15-2 (4)
5. Garden Plain 18-1 (5)
6. Nemaha Central 15-7 (6)
7. Cheney 17-6 (7)
8. Sterling 19-6 (10)
9. Council Grove 18-4 (8)
10. Wellsville 21-5 (9)
Class 2A
1. Central Plains 21-1 (2)
2. Spearville 22-2 (4)
3. Washington County 19-3 (1)
4. Wabaunsee 22-3 (5)
5. Smith Center 21-5 (3)
6. Lyndon 22-4 (6)
7. St. Mary’s Colgan 20-5 (7)
8. Ness City 17-3 (9)
9. South Central 18-5 (8)
10. Meade 20-6 (10)
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — A former executive officer of a Manhattan builders association has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for stealing from the organization.
The Manhattan Mercury reports 45-year-old Tracy Roberts of Wamego was sentenced on Monday on 30 charges of felony theft.
Authorities say Roberts wrote business checks from the Flint Hills Area Builders Association for personal use between 2008 and 2013. It’s unclear how much money they believe he stole.
Roberts had asked the judge for probation.
The association president says he is pleased with the decision and the organization is seeking nearly $137,000 from Roberts in a civil lawsuit.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) called on Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Chuck Hagel to define the campaign and authorization of military force in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) as 500 soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division headquarters – The Big Red One – of Fort Riley, Kan., prepare to deploy to Iraq.
Sen. Moran expressed concern about DoD’s plan to ensure the safety and security of Big Red One soldiers and other U.S. military forces when the roles, missions and objectives of the United States in Iraq are still being determined. In the absence of a defined operational campaign, U.S. military forces may not be appropriately recognized for their participation and service in these ongoing operations.
“When sending soldiers into harm’s way, a clear path and plan should be defined,” Sen. Moran said in the letter. “Their desire to serve should be matched by the Administration’s desire to define their roles and missions against a legal framework that authorizes their service in defense of our country.”
On Sept. 25, 2014, DoD announced that 500 Big Red One soldiers will deploy to Iraq in late October. According to the division, the soldiers will increase the United States’ capacity to target the Islamic State and coordinate activities of the U.S. military across Iraq as part of a one-year mission.
The TMP-Marian volleyball team picked up a three-set win over Ellis Tuesday (16-25, 25-22, 25-18).
Kaylor Gottschalk led the Monarchs with nine kills and Kayla Vitztum added eight. Bailey Hageman led the squad with 11 digs and Kendra Werth posted the best passing average at 2.83.
The Hays High girls’ golf team wraps up the Western Athletic Conference title after winning the Great Bend Invitational Tuesday at the Stoneridge Country Club. The Indians shoot a 189 and finish one stroke ahead of Garden City.
Lexie Schaben fired a 45 to finish second. Katie Brungardt was one shot back to finish third. Taylor DeBoer sixth and Elissa Jensen eighth.
Brungardt, Rhian Patterson, DeBoer and Schaben were all named First Team All-Conference. Hays coach Mark Watts is the WAC Coach of the Year.
Hays High Results
Lexie Schaben 45 2nd place
Katie Brungardt 46 3rd place
Taylor DeBoer 48 6th place
Elissa Jensen 50 8th place
189 1st place
Rhian Patterson 50 10th place
Summer Smith 52 11th place
Team Results 1. Hays High 189 2. Garden City 190
3. Dodge City 228
4. Liberal 229
5. Great Bend 230
Top 10 Medalists 1. Danielle Gaspar Garden City 42 2. Lexie Schaben Hays High 45 3. Katie Brungardt Hays High 46 4. Lindsay Bradstreet Garden City 46
5. Whitney Winter Dodge City 48 6. Taylor DeBoer Hays High 48 7. Hannah Leiker Garden City 49 8. Elissa Jensen Hays High 50 9. Kacee Kasselman Great Bend 50 10. Rhian Patterson Hays High 50
For too many years the Kansas economy was static with a significant number of people leaving Kansas and a smaller number moving into the state. It was time to address the static economy and move forward with a new aggressive approach to provide Kansans a brighter future.
One strategy was to reduce the tax burden on Kansas families and businesses, particularly job creating small business. We have also been aggressive in retaining and attracting large businesses to our state.
We reduced tax rates for all income levels. Since 70 percent of Kansans use a standard deduction, instead of itemizing, we enlarged standard deductions for married filing jointly and single head of households. We retained the largest earned income tax credit in the region and provided a food sales tax credit. Kansas went from being the second highest income tax rate in the region to the second lowest.
While it will take time to realize the full results of this policy, along with other actions, there are several positive indicators of improvement.
Kansas has gone from a 6.8 percent unemployment rate in 2011 to a 4.9 rate as of August, one of the lowest in the nation and beating the national average of 5.9 percent, a good indicator of job growth. Kansas is second in the nation in job growth from new and expanding businesses, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In the last quarter of 2013, Kansas saw a large increase in our Gross Domestic Product, which surpassed the national average and all but one state in our region according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
According to the Kansas Business Conditions Index, produced by Creighton University Dr. Ernie Goss, a leading and respected source of economic analysis the Kansas economy expanded to a healthy and nine state regional high in September beating Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri and Oklahoma. Likewise, from August 2013 to August 2014, wages expanded to a healthy and regional high and are expected to remain healthy for the last quarter of 2014.
So many times multi-year projections are used to talk about state revenues. Projections more than a year in the future are like trying to predict the weather on any long range forecast; the projections are likely to be inaccurate. As an example, in 2012 when the tax policy was passed, it was projected at the end of fiscal year 2014 we would have a $242 million deficit. Two years later we ended fiscal year 2014 with $434 million cash on hand. A stunning $676 million positive swing in revenue!
We are only three months into fiscal year 2015 and we have taken in over $1.3 billion in state general fund tax receipts and are 1.7 percent or $23 million under estimates.
The Governor is committed to managing a fiscally responsible, efficient state government while funding our core responsibilities. Kansans now have more money in their pockets to spend, invest or save. We believe the private sector, including Kansas families, know best how to handle their hard earned income.
There are increasing precipitation chances beginning Thursday, and cooler temperatures heading into the weekend.
Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 78. East wind 6 to 13 mph. Tonight Mostly cloudy, with a low around 57. East southeast wind 5 to 9 mph becoming northeast after midnight. Thursday Scattered showers and thunderstorms after 8am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 67. Northeast wind 7 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. Thursday Night Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a low around 50. Northeast wind around 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Friday Showers likely. Cloudy, with a high near 52. Northeast wind 11 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Friday Night A 40 percent chance of showers. Cloudy, with a low around 44. Saturday Partly sunny, with a high near 60. Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 45. Sunday A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 66.
The Hays High boys soccer team falls 5-0 at Dodge City Tuesday. The Indians got off to a seemingly good start with several shots on goal in the first half but the Red Demons Isaac Palma took over, scoring four of Dodge City’s goals. The Red Demons broke the shutout on an own goal by the Indians when they failed to clear out the ball in the first half.
Hays is back at home Thursday to host Liberal at 1pm.
