Despite a burn ban in Ellis County, open fires continue to be reported in the county.
Ellis County Rural Fire Director/Chief Dick Klaus said today that a couple of small bonfires or campfires have been reported between Sunday and Wednesday.
He reminded residents those fires, however small, are in violation of the burn ban, which went into effect earlier this month and will remain until there is appreciable precipitation.
“Any kind of open burn is illegal,” he said.
The Hays Police Department responded to 8 animal calls and 16 traffic stops Tuesday, March 24, 2015 according to the HPD Activity Log.
Disturbance – General–500 block W 7th St, Hays; 2:36 AM
Burglary/residence–1500 block Elm St, Hays; 4:52 AM
Disturbance – Noise–1000 block Reservation Rd, Hays; 8:31 AM
Theft (general)–2300 block Walnut St, Hays; 3/16/15 4 PM; 11 PM
Warrant Service (Fail to Appear)–500 block E 14th St, Hays; 10 AM
Warrant Service (Fail to Appear)–3600 block Vine St, Hays; 11:25 AM
Found/Lost Property–200 block E 9th St, Ellis; 1:08 PM
Animal At Large–15th and Ash; 2:48 PM
Warrant Service (Fail to Appear)–1200 block Fort St, Hays; 4:01 PM
Unwanted Person–300 block E 13th St, Hays; 4:02 PM
Assist – Other (not MV)–700 block E 6th St, Hays; 4:02 PM
Theft (general)–300 block W 10th, Hays; 6:23 PM
MV Accident-Hit and Run–1400 block Golf Course St, Hays; 5 PM; 6 PM
Driving While Suspended/Revoked; 2700 block Vine St, Hays; 8:27 PM
Assist – Other (not MV); Wichita; 6/1/14
The Hays Police Department responded to 5 animal calls and 34 traffic stops Wednesday, March 25, 2015 according to the HPD Activity Log.
Drug Offenses–2500 block Vine St, Hays; 1:33 AM
Criminal Damage to Property–100 block W 9th St, Hays; 1 AM; 6:45 AM
Burglary/business–200 block W 9th St, Hays; 1 AM; 7 AM
Found/Lost Property–41st and Hall, Hays; 8:13 AM
Civil Dispute–800 block Milner St, Hays; 9:19 AM
Juvenile Complaint–1000 block Fort St, Hays; 9:46 AM
Abandoned Vehicle–300 block W 21st St, Hays; 11:44 AM
Probation/Parole Violation–1700 block Milner St, Hays; 12:03 PM
Harassment (All Other)–Hays; 1:27 PM
Welfare Check–200 block E 13th, Hays; 3:06 PM
Probation/Parole Violation–1000 block Fort St, Hays; 4:22 PM
Lost Animals ONLY–200 block E 20th St, Hays; 5:32 PM
Animal Call–400 block E 12th St, Hays; 6:46 PM
Driving Under the Influence–200 block E 14th St, Hays; 7:49 PM
Overdose–1400 block E 29th St, Hays; 8:28 PM
Driving Under the Influence–2400 block Vine St, Hays; 8:46 PM
Found/Lost Property–3400 block Vine St, Hays; 9 PM
Theft (general)–500 block E 16th St, Hays; 3/23/15; 3/25/15
Suspicious Activity–700 block E 7th St, Hays; 11 PM
By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post
Ellis County is expected to be forced to do more with less — that is the opinion of one Ellis County commissioner as the county deals with a projected cut in funds because of the drop in oil prices.
With the county expecting to see a large drop in in oil and gas production taxes, Ellis County could be facing a deficit of close to $2 million in the 2016 budget.
Commissioner Dean Haselhorst presented the commission with an oilfield economic report at a special meeting Wednesday afternoon.
Haselhorst, a production foreman for Argent Energy, told the commission and a group of county employees the oil industry has seen a 70-percent reduction in revenues with no reduction to lifting costs.
Lifting costs are the costs to get a barrel of oil or gas to get it out of the ground.
Haselhorst said after a quick survey of surrounding counties he estimates approximately 400 people have been laid off in oil field services and he said if the low prices continue that number will rise.
He also said area businesses are telling him they are starting to feel the effects because people are not buying new vehicles, equipment, and goods and services.
Haselhorst said even the company he works for has had to cut back on hours and, while he is still working 40 hours a week, he is down to just two days in the field. He said he used to work up to six days a week in the field.
As it pertains to the county, Haselhorst said the county might be forced to ask more of its employees.
“Hiring more employees is simply a(n) expense that we can’t afford, I feel at this time,” Haslehorst added. “We all need to look at ways to cut.”
He also said that even if the price of oil goes up soon it will still take time for the county to rebound.
The possibility of using the oil and gas depletion fund to fill a purposed shortfall but County Administrator Greg Sund said that one the county spends the $3.1 million in the fund they will never get that money back.
The commission also agreed it would continue with the recent policy that every department must justify, to the commission, the need to fill the position.
Currently, there are four open positions in the Public Works Department, including two mechanics.
Public Works said it spent $38,739 in outside labor.
Sund estimates it costs between $50,000 and $60,000 to hire a new employee, which includes salary, benefits and KPERS.
Sund said they may have to look into hiring a contractor to complete some of the mechanic work.
The county is expected to get a first look at the oil and gas figures for 2015 in May.
WASHINGTON, DC – As the Senate begins consideration of S. Con. Res. 11, the Budget Resolution, U.S. Senator Pat Roberts offered several amendments on health care, taxes and national security.
“The federal budget needs to be cut in real terms, not just reductions in the rate of spending,” Roberts said. “The budget we will consider will balance over the next 10 years, ending the trillion dollar deficit the President has rung up during his tenure. This is the only way we succeed in fixing our financial house and the only way to reduce the taxes paid by hardworking Americans.”
Roberts spoke on the Senate floor about two key amendments he introduced to the Budget Resolution. Video here.
Roberts Amendment 462 repeals a portion of Obamacare that prohibits people from using their medical savings account funds to buy over-the-counter medications. This is similar to a bi-partisan, bicameral bill Senator Roberts introduced earlier this month.
“This provision of Obamacare restricts Americans’ choice and flexibility in how they manage their health care expenses and adds yet another burden on physicians,” Roberts said. “It should be repealed, and folks should be allowed to spend the funds in these accounts as they see fit.”
Roberts Amendment 352 blocks bonuses and performance awards from being given to federal employees who owe back taxes. In January, Senator Roberts introduced a similar bill.
“We learned just this week, that — according to the Internal Revenue Service — as of September 2014, 304,000 federal employees owe $3.5 billion in federal taxes,” Roberts said. “During this time of budgetary restraint, the government should not spend scarce taxpayer dollars giving bonuses to federal employees unwilling to pay their tax bill.”
Other Roberts amendments include the following:
Amendment 354: To ensure U.S. Military forces have the necessary resources to meet global threats without undue risk to the warfighter.
Amendment 540: Blocks the federal use of Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) from being used to deny treatment to a patient. Senator Roberts has been an outspoken opponent of CER and health care rationing.
Amedment 353: To provide lethal aid to Ukraine to fight Russian aggression.
By JIM MCLEAN
The recent legislative hearings on Medicaid expansion brought representatives from dozens of powerful groups to the Kansas Statehouse.
Lobbyists representing hospitals, doctors and some big businesses pleaded with members of the House Health and Human Services Committee to approve an expansion proposal one day. The next day representatives of conservative, anti-tax organizations urged committee members to continue to say ‘no’ to expansion, despite the billions of additional federal dollars it would inject into the Kansas economy.
But the hearings also attracted scores of everyday citizens. They included those who need the coverage that expansion would provide and others opposed to extending benefits to non-disabled adults.
Mary Weber is a single mother of three who works as a para-professional in the Wichita school district. She helps students with disabilities keep up in the classroom.
Weber’s children qualify for Medicaid – known in Kansas as KanCare – but she doesn’t. Adults with dependent children must earn less than one-third of the federal poverty level to be eligible for KanCare. That translates into about $8,000 a year for Weber’s family of four.
At the same time, Weber’s annual income isn’t enough to qualify her for federal subsidies that would all but cover premiums for private coverage purchased in the Affordable Care Act marketplace. She’s caught in what has come to be known as the Medicaid expansion gap.
“I make too much for Medicaid and not enough for the ACA (tax credits),” Weber said.
Weber had health problems that sent her to the hospital last year. The care she received cost about $1,200 and she couldn’t pay the bill.
“For a single mom, that’s a lot,” she said. “I ended up having to pay for part of it, but the hospital wrote off a big chunk of it.”
The need for such write-offs has been lessened in states that have expanded their Medicaid programs to cover adults earning up to a third more than the federal poverty level – about $16,000 for individuals and nearly $33,000 for families of four.
But many Kansas hospitals have seen their “charity care” numbers climb at the same time that they are dealing with reductions in Medicare payments.
Weber said she understands that Medicaid expansion is a politically charged issue because of its connection to Obamacare. But from her perspective, the politics are blinding legislators to the fact that expansion could provide coverage to about 150,000 Kansans, most of whom are now uninsured.
Weber stuttered as she searched for a respectful way of expressing her frustration. But after a few stops and starts she gave up and said what was on her mind.
“It’s a bunch of crap,” she said. “That Medicaid expansion would give a lot of us who do work and who are trying to make a living the health insurance we need.”
Walter Cunningham also has strong opinions on the issue. He was one of several people who attended the hearings wearing green T-shirts that said “Light the Fire of Freedom in Kansas” on the front and “Ideas Don’t Work Unless You Do” on the back. The shirts were supplied by Americans for Prosperity Kansas, a conservative group with ties to Wichita’s Koch brothers that lobbies for smaller government.
Cunningham, also from Wichita, said welfare benefits make people too dependent on the government. He cited his adult daughter as an example.
“I have a daughter who chose obesity and chose to smoke to the point where she ended up losing a part of her leg (to diabetes),” Cunningham said. “She’s now on kidney dialysis. She has no insurance. So she’s plaguing the system.”
His daughter receives about $1,000 a month in Social Security disability benefits, Cunningham said.
“I told her not to take any of the money and ‘you can come die with us because that’s what you’re going to end up doing,’” he said. “So, the government – Social Security and Medicare – have given her a cushion, which she did not deserve.”
The lobbyists for AFP and conservative think-tanks who spoke against expansion weren’t as blunt as Cunningham but there were echoes of his objections in their testimony.
“Medicaid expansion, in my opinion, is morally indefensible because it puts able-bodied folks in line ahead of the disabled. The arguably not-needy ahead of the truly needy,” said Dean Clancy, a Washington, D.C., veteran of conservative causes who now works for the Florida-based Foundation for Government Accountability.
The disabled Kansans on Medicaid waiver waiting lists that Clancy referred to actually are receiving medical care. However, they are waiting for Medicaid support services to help them live independently.
Eliminating the waiting lists appears to be a prerequisite for Republican Gov. Sam Brownback, though it would add hundreds of millions of dollars to the state’s share of expansion costs.
That reality appears to make it even less likely that Kansas lawmakers will seriously consider a bill backed by the Kansas Hospital Association that requires the Brownback administration to craft an expansion proposal and negotiate its approval with federal officials.
The chairman of the HHS committee, Wichita Republican Dan Hawkins, has said he has no immediate plans to schedule a vote on the bill.
Jim McLean is executive editor of KHI News Service in Topeka, a partner in the Heartland Health Monitor team.
FHSU University Relations
Fort Hays State University’s Dr. David Fitzhugh, assistant professor of health and human performance, has won the 2015 Athletic Trainer Service Award from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association.
The prestigious national award recognizes NATA members for their exceptional and unique contributions to the athletic training profession.
Fitzhugh, director of the Athletic Training Education Program and coordinator of EMS education at Fort Hays State, is a native of New Mexico. He received his master’s degree in health and human performance from FHSU in 1997, then returned to his alma mater 10 years later, following stints at universities in Kentucky and Arkansas.
Fitzhugh will be recognized at the 2015 NATA Convention in St. Louis in June.
Helen Hillman, 94, died March 25, 2015 at Trego County Long Term Care. She was born January 9, 1921, to parents Otis and Hazel (Zimmerman) Sproul, on a farm near Edmond, Kansas. She attended Edmond High School, and then completed a teaching course at Lenora High School. She attended Fort Hays State University. She taught school in the rural schools of Norton County.
Helen married Kenneth Hillman on December 21, 1942 at De Ridder, Louisiana. He preceded her in death in 1987. In her life, she was a telephone operator, a teacher and a nurse’s aide at Trego County Long Term Care before retiring in Ogallah, Kansas in 1990. Helen was a member of the Ogallah Christian Church, the Ogallah Friendly Dozen, the Trego County AARP, and was an active 4-H youth leader for many years.
Survivors include one son, Stanley Hillman and his wife Sheryl of Ransom; two daughters, Karen and husband Ronald Deutscher of WaKeeney, and Lisa and husband Marvin Whipple of Pawnee Rock. She had seven grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents; a brother Lloyd Sproul; and a sister Ruth McMulkin.
Services will be held at the Ogallah Christian Church on Saturday, March 28, 2015 at 10:30 a.m., with burial following in the Ogallah Cemetery.
Visitation will be Saturday, from 9:30 a.m. to service time at the church in Ogallah.
Respecting the wishes of the deceased, in lieu of flowers or contributions, the family suggests completing a random act of kindness for a neighbor, friend or stranger.
Schmitt Funeral Home of WaKeeney is in charge of arrangements.
Alma Jean Sparkman, 78, Hays, died Tuesday, March 24, 2015 at the Via Christi Villages.
She was born January 16, 1937 in Zion, Illinois, the daughter of Albert E. and Julia J. (Kyndberg) Warren.
She received her BS degree in Elementary Education from Bob Jones University and her MS degree in Elementary Education from Fort Hays State University. While attending Bob Jones University she met her future husband and on June 4, 1959 she married Pastor Lynn L. Sparkman in Zion, Illinois.
Together, they founded High Plains Baptist Church in Hays, Kansas. She was an elementary school teacher, teaching multiple grades at High Plains Christian School for 20 years. She also did substitute teaching in USD 489. She was well-known for her hospitality, and she loved to cook and graciously welcome people into her home.
She was very active in community events and loved to travel to see her family, children, and grandchildren.
Survivors include three sons, David Sparkman and wife Carrie of Eden Prairie, MN, Jon Sparkman and wife Lisa of Pelham, NH, and Scot Sparkman and wife April of Keyes, Oklahoma, five brothers, Bill Warren and wife Sharran of Winthrop Harbor, IL, Jim Warren and wife JoNancy of Zion, IL, Charlie Warren and wife Dawn of Beach Park, IL, John Warren and wife Sue of Winthrop Harbor, IL, and Ron Warren and wife Wanda of Pleasant Prairie, WI, ten grandchildren, Zachary and wife Kate, Nicole, Lauren, Taylor, Joshua, Rebecca, Austin, Kaeleigh, Grant, and Grace.
She was preceded in death by her parents, and her husband who died on December 23, 2010.
Funeral services will be at 11:00 am on Saturday, March 28, 2015 at the High Plains Baptist Church, 2700 Canterbury Drive, Hays. Burial will be in the Mt. Allen Cemetery. Visitation will be on Friday from 4:30 until 6:30 pm at the Hays Memorial Chapel Funeral Home, 1906 Pine, and on Saturday from 10:00 am until service time at the church.
Memorials are suggested to the High Plains Baptist Church or to Arabic Bible Outreach Ministry, in care of the funeral home. Condolences may be left for the family at www.haysmemorial.com.
If your beloved Thin Lizzy vinyl albums are too warped and scratched to enjoy anymore, take heart: this week, you’ll be treated to newly-remastered, high-quality vinyl versions of the beloved Irish rock band’s first eight studio albums.
The discs, which will be pressed on 180-gram vinyl, will be released this Friday in conjunction with Universal Music’s ongoing Back to Black reissue campaign.
The LPs, which will come in sleeves replicating the original artwork, span from Thin Lizzy’s 1971 self-titled effort through 1977’s Bad Reputation, and include the band’s best-known album, 1976’s Jailbreak.
That record yielded two of the group’s best-known songs: the title track and “The Boys Are Back in Town,” the latter of which reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Thin Lizzy was led by charismatic singer, bassist and songwriter Phil Lynott, whose writing was influenced by such rock poets as Bob Dylan, Van Morrison and Bruce Springsteen and also sought musical inspiration from such harder rocking artists as Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck.
The band broke up in 1983, and Lynott passed away three years later at the age of 36 from complications of drug abuse.
Thin Lizzy re-formed in 1996 and has continued to tour on and off with various lineups featuring one or more members of the group’s Lynott-fronted incarnations.
Here’s the full list of Thin Lizzy albums that’ll be reissued on vinyl this Friday:
Thin Lizzy (1971)
Shades of a Blue Orphanage (1972)
Vagabonds of the Western World (1973)
Nightlife (1974)
Fighting (1975)
Jailbreak (1976)
Johnny the Fox (1976)
Bad Reputation (1977)
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FHSU University Relations
Students in the Massage Therapy Program at Fort Hays State University will offer four different massage clinics this spring.
The cost for each one-hour massage, conducted by supervised students, is $25.
Clinics will be March 28, April 11, April 25 and May 9 in Cunningham Hall, room 122. Patrons are encouraged to wear casual clothing and park in the west parking lot.
The program is operated by the Department of Health and Human Performance in FHSU’s College of Health and Life Sciences. The program is 32 credit hours, with half of the classes online and the other half on campus.
To make an appointment, visit https://www.fhsu.edu/hhp/programs/Massage-Therapy/. The link is at the bottom of the page.
Find out more about the new FHSU Massage Therapy program with Ceena Owens, director and instructor, and Community Connections’ Mike Cooper.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Kansas City, Kansas, police are investigating the death of a man inside his home as a homicide.
Police say a woman who had a child with the man called police after finding him dead early Thursday.
Officer Amber Hickerson says the woman found the front door open and found the man, in his late 30s, dead from a gunshot wound.
Several shell casings were discovered around the body.
No further information was immediately available.
Kansas Department of Agriculture
MANHATTAN–The Kansas Department of Agriculture announced the results of the elections held for the five grain commodity commissions—corn, grain sorghum, soybeans, sunflowers and wheat in districts One, Two and Three in the western region of the state.
KDA provides oversight and administration to the annual election process for the five commodity commissions in Kansas. Deputy Secretary Chad Bontrager serves as a representative on each. “The commodity commissions play an important role in Kansas agriculture. Through check-off dollars, Kansas farmers invest in future research and market development activities.” Bontrager said. “Thanks and congratulations to these Kansas farmers, who give of their time and talents to serve the greater agriculture industry by being elected as a commodity commissioner.”
Kansas Corn Commission
District One: Brian Baalman is a corn farmer from Sheridan County. Currently, Baalman serves as a Kansas Corn Commissioner and as a member of Kansas Corn Growers Association. He has also served on the United States Meat Export Federation and U.S. Grains Council. Baalman assisted with the formation of Western Plains Energy in Oakley, Kansas.
District Two: Dennis McNinch is a corn, wheat and milo farmer from Ness County. Recently, he completed his first term as the Vice-Chair of the Kansas Corn Commission. McNinch has been an active member of the National Corn Growers Association and holds a bachelor’s degree from Southwestern College.
District Three: Steve Rome is a Stevens County corn producer. A member of Kansas Farm Bureau, Kansas Corn Growers Association, Kansas State University Agronomy Advisory Board and the Kansas State University Experiment Station Board, Rome works diligently to serve Kansas agriculture. He received his bachelor’s degree from Fort Hays State University.
Kansas Wheat Commission
District One: Brian Linin is a Sherman County wheat, corn and soy farmer. An active citizen of Goodland, Kansas he has served on various advisory boards such as: city commission, local church board, Oncology Board for the Children’s Hospital in Denver, Colorado and president of Goodland Ambassadors. Linin graduated from Kansas State University with Cum Laude Honors and continued on to Oklahoma State University where he received his master’s degree.
District Two: Ronald Suppes is a wheat and milo farmer from Lane County. He is a past chairman of the U.S. Wheat Associates Board. Other organizations he provides leadership to include Farmer Direct Foods board of directors, Kansas Agriculture Rural Leadership board of directors and Knights of Columbus.
District Three: Jason Ochs is farmer from Hamilton County. Ochs attended Garden City Community College and completed the Primary Leadership Development Course in the United States Army. He is a life member of the Disabled Veterans, American Legion and the National Rifle Association.
Kansas Grain Sorghum Commission
District One: Lonnie Wilson is a farmer and rancher from Thomas County. He is a member of Kansas Farm Bureau, Kansas Grain Sorghum Commission, Kansas Grain Sorghum Producers Association and the Farm Management Association.
District Two: Greg Graff is a farmer and rancher from Wichita County. He is a member of the Kansas corn, wheat and sorghum associations. Graff also serves on the Kansas Water Authority, Kansas Farm Bureau and the Knights of Columbus. He graduated from Kansas State University.
District Three: Michael OBrate is a corn, sorghum and wheat farmer from Gray County. NuLife Market Board, Kansas Wheat Growers and American Warrior Inc., are a few organizations that OBrate serves on as a member and leader.
Kansas Soybean Commission
District One: Kurt Maurath grows corn, wheat, soybeans, sunflowers, sorghum and has a cow/calf operation in Logan County. Maurath is a Kansas State University graduate. He is an active member of the Logan County Fair Board, Golden Prairie District Board, is an Oakley Christian Church Elder and a Logan County Farm Bureau Member.
Kansas Sunflower Commission
As there was no registered candidate, the Kansas Sunflower Commission will appoint a commissioner in each district.
Commissioners serve three-year terms and the terms begin April 1, 2015.
By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post
Six candidates vying for four open seats took the stage Tuesday night at the Hays USD 489 Candidate Forum attended by more than 100 people.
Twelve year school board veteran Greg Schwartz, current board member Sarah Rankin, and challengers Leslie Blagrave, Luke Oborny, Paul Adams and Miranda “Mandy” Fox introduced themselves and answered questions from a moderator and the audience.
The district’s budget and a proposed bond issue were the major topics of the forum, due to the state’s proposal to replace the school finance formula with block grants for two years while a new finance formula is developed.
Miranda Fox expressed concern how quickly the bill progressed but said the block grants can’t be used as an excuse to stand still and make forward progress.
“We are going to have to continue to adjust and in any industry people are having to look at doing more with less,” Fox said.
Leslie Blagrave acknowledged the current board for making “amazing strides” in balancing the budget.
“We are just going to have to roll with the punches and see what we get. It’s so up in the air right now, I wish we had more answers,” Blagrave said. “We are going to do the best we can and, as we always have, ensure our kids get a quality education.”
Current board member Sarah Rankin said it was the budget issue that moved her to seek a seat on the board when it opened last April. She said though the news may be “doom and gloom,” supporting the teachers is important.
“I want to make sure that we do support (the teachers) with whatever decisions we are making and try to weather through this budget problem. … We need to stay motivated and continue to move forward,” she said, adding some money on new technology should be spent, but it will be difficult to figure out what the number is.
Board member Greg Schwartz noted in the 12 years he has been on the board, it has only been in the last year and a half the district has had a balanced budget — something he said happened by making some difficult changes.
“The funding is not sufficient,” Schwartz said. “But it is our job to look at what we have and look at those areas we can carve out and adjust the budget,” adding the board needs to come up with funds for teacher education and in-services.
Adams said the first thing he would do is to identify what is essential and what is not by talking directly to staff and teachers.
“The school board will make that final decision,” he said. “I think (the decision) needs the information, its needs evidence, it needs the ideas from the people who it will most directly impact and who know what the impact will be on our students.”
Oborny agreed listening to the staff and the community is important.
“It is all of us pitching in together and tighten where we need to cut … a lot of transparency with both the community, with administrators and educators,” Orborny said.
All six candidates agreed a bond issue should be placed on the table at some point to fix repairs to old facilities that have been deferred for years.
Rankin said the board has reviewed spreading out the maintenance cost for aging school buildings over time, but said it is not possible.
“Our current buildings … they are just aging and it’s time,” she said.
Schwartz agreed, stating a bond issue has not been placed before Hays voters since 1979, but said a bond will not pass unless the community trusts the board.
“Only at the time we can show we have a budget that is long-range and has these dollars accounted for can you expect a community to jump on board with $10 million bond or a $100 million bond, which has been discussed,” he said.
Oborny agreed with Schwartz the community would not pass a bond today, though he knows “first-hand” building repairs are needed.
“Anytime you want to do an initiative, I am very big on the why. … We need to show the public what the problem is,” he said. “I think it is fair to say the community loves the children and their grandchildren and if you explain why we need this … I think the community would vote for that.”
Adams said improvements to facilities adds value to Hays.
“This is our home. This is where we live and, if you have a home, if you are going to increase its value, you are going to pay to do the remodel,” he said. “That is where we are at right now. … We need to make our value better for our students.”
Fox said if a bond was proposed and did not pass, it would be necessary to go back to the table and revisit and negotiate a plan the community can stand behind.
“We are obviously not going to get any extra funding dollars from the state at this point, so we are going to have to work together as a community to accomplish that,” Fox said.
Blagrave said the school’s buildings are in bad shape and a bond is needed.
“As long as we present to the public this is what the money is going to used for … I think the community will come together in the interest of our children to make sure their schools are safe.”
The city and school election is April 7, with advance voting available now at the Ellis County Administration Building, 718 Main St. from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday until noon April 6.
Watch the City of Hays/USD 489 candidate forum — sponsored by the American Democracy Project and Hays Area Chamber of Commerce — HERE.
