TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court has ruled that a state law stripping public school teachers of guaranteed tenure does not violate the state or federal constitution.
The court issued a unanimous ruling Friday against two veteran teachers who sued their Butler County school district after it did not renew their contracts in 2015.
The Republican-controlled Legislature enacted the law ending guaranteed tenure in 2014 through a measure that also boosted spending on public schools.
Before the change, teachers with three or more years in the classroom had a right to have the non-renewal of their contracts reviewed by an independent hearing officer. Local school boards now set each district’s policy.
The Supreme Court rejected the teachers’ argument that tenure represented a property right that lawmakers could not modify or take away.
Mike Mahorney, 59, died Thu., June 14, 2018, at Citizens Medical Center, Colby, Kansas.
He was born June 14, 1959 in Colby and was a retired shop foreman for a fire extinguisher company.
Mahorney is survived by his sons Mike Rohr and Brett Mahorney; step-brother Dennis Mahorney, Hutchinson; sisters Melody Higgins of Riverton, Wyoming and Tanya Grubb of Colby; and his step-sister Kim Urbanek, Plainville.
He was predeceased by his mother Dorreen in 1977 and father J.D. in 2001.
A memorial service will take place Monday, June 18 at Kersenbrock Funeral Chapel, 745 S. Country Club Drive, Colby.
There will be no visitation as cremation has been chosen. A private inurnment will take place at a later date.
Memorials may be made in Mike Mahorney’s name in care of the Kersenbrock Funeral Chapel.
Condolences are available online at kersenbrockfuneralchapelcom.
Hays city commissioners voted unanimously Thursday night to approve a charter ordinance that will increase the transient guest tax (TGT) rate 2 percent to fund improvements to the north Vine Street traffic corridor, estimated at more than $7.6 million.
The TGT is currently at 5 percent and is added to each customer bill for stays in Hays motels. The monies fund the Convention and Visitors Bureau budget and are used for the promotion of Hays.
“City staff suggested a significant part of the project could be funded with transient guest tax dollars, due to the fact the improvements would make it better for visitors, pedestrians, people that are staying in the area, and not just for people that live here,” said Hays City Manager Toby Dougherty.
The Hays 5 percent TGT is lower than most of its peer cities in Kansas. Johnson County’s rate is 9 percent.
The charter ordinance can be challenged within a 61-day period by a petition of more than 10 percent of voters who voted in the last city election. If a valid petition is presented, the ordinance will be put to a vote of Hays residents.
Final publication of the ordinance will be June 25. The protest period will then begin, ending August 25. If there is no protest petition, the Kansas Department of Revenue will be notified August 27, with the new rate implemented October 1.
The city hopes to receive some federal funding for the roundabout project through a TIGER grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Vine Street is also a federal highway, U.S. Highway 183.
“If the grant is large enough, I’m sure our finance director (Kim Rupp) could look at the possibility of the city self-financing the project and get the interest off the grant, which would be beneficial for us as well,” Dougherty said.
Admitting he is “not a fan of roundabouts,” Vice Mayor Henry Schwaller still supported the TGT increase.
“We do need to resolve the intersection and 32nd and 33rd. It is the most dangerous intersection in the city and we’ve neglected it for a long time,” said Schwaller.
“We know one option that was really simple but we cannot pursue today, was about $1.8 million. So regardless of how we pursue this – we don’t even know what the engineering is going to look like — we will need at least $2 million to fix just that one intersection. It’s important that we do it and that’s why I support this tax.”
Commissioner Sandy Jacobs agreed with Schwaller, noting the earlier option came out of the city’s 20-year comprehensive plan. “I’m sorry we didn’t do that then but we didn’t, and now we’re moving forward.”
“I really appreciate staff’s recommendation on this. I think it’s an outstanding way to finance something that doesn’t call for us to raise taxes in other ways,” she added.
The 2 percent TGT increase is projected to raise $6.2 million over 20 years.
Outgoing commissioner Chris Dinkel called it a “creative approach.”
“We’ve known that the north Vine corridor has needed help for a long time…The idea of putting roundabouts throughout this corridor to help with access to businesses with this creative way of funding it doesn’t require us to raise taxes on the city. It doesn’t put other projects in jeopardy.”
(Click to enlarge)
Mayor James Meier noted the city’s sales tax revenues, which make up most of the General Fund, have been stagnant the past five years, while Transient Guest Tax receipts have increased.
“It’s been growing steadily,” Dougherty confirmed, “and in some places significantly outpacing the sales tax which has been very flat the past three years.”
The TGT was flat last year, according to Dougherty, the first full year the former Ambassador Hotel was closed. During that time, the Butterfield Inn, now Best Western Plus, was also closed for a significant time to repair water damage.
“TownePlace Suites is now open,” Dougherty noted. “Another hotel is getting ready to be constructed and another is in the planning stage, so we think the TGT is going to keep going up.”
The city is considering a plan approved by the Kansas Department of Transportation to install Vine Street traffic roundabouts at 32nd/33rd, 37th and 41st Streets. Engineering and design is underway.
TOPEKA (AP) — The Sierra Club has filed a lawsuit against the Kansas Department of Health and Environment challenging permits for a pork facility expansion.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the lawsuit filed Thursday alleges permits issued for the expansion of a Phillips County hog production facility violate state law and set a dangerous precedent by undermining protections for surface water.
The department has decided to allow farmer Terry Nelson to subdivide his existing swine breeding operation into two limited-liability companies, Husky Hogs and Prairie Dog Pork.
The lawsuit accuses the department of authorizing Nelson to elude limits on the number of animals that could be confined in buildings within 250 feet (76.2 meters) of surface water.
The agency declined to comment to the newspaper citing pending litigation.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Supreme Court has postponed a decision on whether the state can execute a man convicted of kidnapping, raping and strangling a 19-year-old college student.
Thurber-photo KDOC
The high court on Friday upheld the capital murder conviction of Justin Eugene Thurber but returned his case to a lower court for another review of whether he’s developmentally disabled.
The U.S. Supreme Court has deemed it unconstitutional to execute defendants with even mild developmental disabilities.
Thurber was sentenced to lethal injection for the January 2007 killing of Jodi Sanderholm. She was a pre-pharmacy student and dance team member at Cowley College.
Jodi Sanderholm-courtesy photo
The trial judge rejected the defense’s request for a hearing on whether Thurber is developmentally disabled, ruling that the defense hadn’t presented enough evidence to warrant it.
James “Jim” Dean Sanders, age 74, passed away June 15, 2018 at Hays Medical Center. He was born the son of Elmer and Freda Marie (Leikam) Sanders on August 17, 1943 in Hays, KS.
Jim enjoyed fishing, playing pool and pinball. He was an excellent leatherman and created beautiful pieces of art with leather.
He is survived by his daughter, Sandy Pollman of McPherson, KS; three brothers, Joe Sanders of Florida, John Sanders of Hays & Jeff and his wife Tammy of Hays; two sisters, Janet and her husband Leonard of Texas & Judy and her husband Ramon of Russell as well as four grandchildren & six great-grandchildren.
Jim is preceded in death by his parents; and a son, James Marsh.
A private family service will be held at a later date. To share a memory or to leave condolences, please visit Jim’s memorial webpage at www.keithleyfuneralchapels.com or can be made via email at [email protected].
Arrangements are in care of Brock’s-Keithley Funeral Chapel & Crematory, 2509 Vine St., Hays, KS 67601.
UPDATE: The pipeline fire in rural Harvey County is contained but will burn for several hours, according to Harvey County Emergency Services. ‘
There are no injuries reported and officials have not determined a cause of the explosion and fire.
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HARVEY COUNTY —— No injuries are reported in a gas pipeline explosion and fire in Harvey County.
Pipeline fire Friday morning in rural Harvey County -image courtesy KWCH
Just before 8a.m., crews responded to the pipeline fire near West Dutch Avenue and Nor Hertzler Road, west of Hesston, according to the Harvey County Emergency Management.
Authorities asked the public to avoid the area.
The gas line belongs to Southern Star Central Gas Pipeline. Company spokesman Rob Southard says everyone is safe and that the gas supply has been shut off. He says crews will wait until the excess gas in the line burns off before repairing it.
He says the cause of the fire is under investigation. He says there was no excavation work being done in the area beforehand.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are inviting the public to attend their annual regional convention at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska. The three-day event will take place Friday, July 6, Saturday, July 7, and Sunday, July 8, 2018. The program begins each day at 9:20 a.m. and is free of charge.
The three-day program consists of 54 presentations that will include talks, audio dramas, interviews, and short videos. Additionally, a feature film entitled The Story of Jonah—A Lesson in Courage and Mercy will be shown on the final day of the convention program at 1:50 p.m. Each day, the morning and afternoon sessions will be introduced by music videos prepared specifically for the convention.
“Be Courageous!” is the theme of the convention. People of all ages are dealing with more anxieties and fears than ever before. It takes courage to face these pressures. Practical advice that is contained in the Bible will be featured.
A peak attendance of 6,000 is anticipated.
On Thursday, July 5, volunteers from Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and South Dakota will be preparing the Pinnacle Bank Arena for our many visitors. Chairs will be arranged on the arena floor, a stage with large wall monitors will be assembled, and a baptism pool will be set up. Also, audio and video equipment will be connected to the Pinnacle Bank Arena system, enabling everyone to hear and see the program clearly.
All sessions are open to the public and free of charge.
Additional information and a program of the entire event can be found at www.jw.org.
The stage door to Disney’s “Aladdin” on Broadway, says “A wish on a lamp.”
It wasn’t a wish, but hard work that made Hays native Jacob Gutierrez’s dream come true as he made his Broadway debut in ‘Aladdin’ on May 25. Jacob, 28, son of Mario and Karen Gutierrez, has been cast in the ensemble of “Aladdin.”
“That night when I went on, it was quite overwhelming, and I have to admit there were moments when I completely blacked out. It was all fine because it is in your body, but I remember being in the middle of ‘Prince Ali,’ waving these fans thinking, ‘Where am I?’ There are lights on you. During the opening number, there is this huge men’s dance break, and I looked to my left and saw this guy who is in my cast, Josh, whose costume is purple and Stanley in his yellow costume and I thought ‘What is happening right now? Is this really happening?’ ”
After the performance, Gutierrez talked to his fellow cast members, and they all said the same things happened to them on their debut nights.
“It is pretty overwhelming,” Gutierrez said. “Beyond that, you have a house full of 1,700 people you are looking out at, and every seat is filled. It is a lot. If anything, it is just over stimulating because all of your senses are so elevated because of everything.”
Gutierrez said the musical is very demanding.
“I am in every single group number,” he said. “I am dancing. I am dancing. I am dancing. There is a lot of choreography. It is a very grand show, so every single production number is large and there are many moving parts.”
Gutierrez wears 12 costumes in the show with multiple quick changes. During the opening of Act II during a parade scene, the creators wanted the illusion of 150 people out of 20-member ensemble cast. So every ensemble member in that number has five costume changes.
“That number alone I think I am wearing four pairs of pants all underneath each other that are all quick rigged,” he said. “They switch out my shirts and vest and coats and my hats and my turbans. It is busy. To say I am just in the ensemble isn’t even a thing because the ensemble is such a huge part of the show that we are doing just as much as everyone else is doing in the entire show.”
Gutierrez said his family has been very supportive of his work. He was excited to initially let each of them know he had been cast on Broadway. For someone who had majored in musical theater in college, Broadway is the pinnacle, he said.
“For me, it is a milestone. It is not even the end goal. As actors, your goal is always longevity. You always want to be doing something and putting your hands in different material and different things in commercials or TV shows or musicals on Broadway or national tours or traveling in something.
“The amazing thing is performance can take you many places, and it isn’t linear. It is not like a conventional path. It is very unique to you and unique to what you have to offer the world and the entertainment industry.”
Gutierrez has been involved in music and theater since he was young. He spent three years after college playing Aladdin in a slightly different version of the musical on Disney cruise ships.
He also recently performed in an episode of “A Crime to Remember,” which aired on the Investigation Discovery channel in March. However, he said being cast on Broadway has been the realization of a lifelong dream.
Gutierrez had auditioned for a different part in Aladdin two years ago and did not get the part. He decided to give it another shot.
He went to a large union audition in March, not knowing in what he might be cast. “Aladdin” has several companies touring right now, and Gutierrez initially had a callback for the national tour. He had to go through a series of callbacks, including a recorded audition for Tony-award-winning director Casey Nicholaw, who recently appeared on the Tony’s for his work on “Mean Girls.”
On a Friday, Gutierrez’s agent received word the “Aladdin’s” company had openings and Jacob was in the mix for a part.
“That was torture,” he said. “It was the weekend and everything shut down on Saturday and Sunday. I was out of town. Life goes on. You have to keep going, but I couldn’t help to keep thinking about it. When casting says, ‘Could he be available in a week if we need him?’ your mind starts going down the path— ‘I wonder what it is?’ ‘I wonder what they are looking at?'”
His agent did not call until Tuesday.
“She said I have some good and bad news. I said, ‘OK, what is the bad news?’ She said the bad news is that you didn’t get the ‘Aladdin’ tour. I said, ‘OK, that’s fine.’ I had been in for so many things over those few weeks it could have been anything that the good news was. I didn’t know what she was going to say. She said the good news is you are making your Broadway debut in the same show.”
Gutierrez was home and started screaming. His roommate thought something was wrong and ran out of his room to ask him if he was OK.
When it rains, it pours, Gutierrez said. In the next 24 hours, he booked two more out-of-town shows he had to turn down to take the “Aladdin” part.
“You can go through seasons of dry spells where you audition a lot and are getting close to a lot of things, but the timing or the stars don’t align in that way. You can go months without doing something. When you do get calls that you have an offer, it is so exciting no matter what it is. The fact that I had three in the matter of a day, it was just crazy. It was also a testament to hard work paying off.”
Once he was cast, he had about two and a half weeks to rehearse and learn the complex choreography before he made his debut. He had one dress rehearsal or “put in” with the entire cast before he went on.
He was supposed to debut the night after his dress rehearsal. After rehearsal, he ran down the street to grab a double order of Chinese food. He received a call from the stage manager that the show had cast members out and he was needed that night. He rushed back to the theater to prepare and called his family, who was supposed to see him the next night.
They were able to find tickets and saw his Broadway debut from the fifth and sixth row of the theater.
“It is fast and furious and you really have to be on your game, because there are so many moving parts, ” he said.
Gutierrez credited his early musical education at Hays High School for setting him on a path toward performance.
Gutierrez played saxophone and piano. When he was entering his freshman year, he was going to drop band so he could pursue sports. However, the band teacher, Craig Manteuffel, called him and encouraged him to stay in band. He did.
“Honestly, I credit so much to that moment,” Gutierrez said, “because had I quit music at that point, it would have never opened the door for the choir I joined my sophomore year and moving forward. Looking back to when I was 13 or 14, that was a really pivotal moment in continuing my arts pursuant, because that was what opened up everything else.”
Gutierrez attended Oklahoma City University and moved to New York to pursue is acting dream when he was 22.
Almost all struggling performers have what they call a survival job— a job that supports them but also allows them to audition during the day. Gutierrez said he was very lucky his survival job was working for Mercedes-Benz. He traveled around the country to trade shows teaching people everything there is to know about the vehicles. It was a good job, but it cut into his audition time.
For now Gutierrez is on a rigorous schedule, and he said being on Broadway has been a lifestyle change.
He does eight shows a week plus rehearsals.
“It is really learning to take care of yourself physically,” he said. “When you do repetitive things over and over that are very physically taxing, you have to learn how to take care of your body. For me that’s chiropractic, massage or acupuncture or things that help with soft tissue release or getting physical therapy for little strains that happen here or there. More often than not, it is inevitable, because we are putting our bodies through such extreme circumstances.
“Oftentimes, theater performers or dancers are referred to as professional athletes and that could not be more true. No, I am not on a football field or on a basketball court or playing a sport, but dancing on a steel stage in 12 pounds of costumes eight times a week for three hours a night every night is very much an Olympic sport. It is very grueling on the body if you don’t take care of yourself.”
Gutierrez also said he tries to tend to his mental and spiritual self, and stays centered through his church family in New York.
“It is a whole body, whole world thing,” he said. “You have to be taking care of yourself as a whole person.”
If you are going to be in New York, check out the show’s website here.
Five families living just outside the Hays city limits east of 27th and Canterbury will soon have access to city water.
Because of failing private water wells, they requested to become city customers and will pay $62,328 for extension of water service on east 27th.
“They’re still experiencing declining water levels,” Director of Water Resources Jeff Crispin told city commissioners Thursday night.
The commission approved the sole bid of $54,284 for the project from M&D of Hays.
Cost to each of the five property owners for the three-inch water line is $12,465.60, which includes design/engineering and easements. Crispin said the city has already received the five payments and pre-annexation agreements have been signed.
The water line extension will connect at the south end to an existing dead end line at NCK Tech, 2205 Wheatland Ave.
As a bonus, the water quality at the college will improve.
“We haven’t had any issues with water quality at NCK Tech,” Crispin said. “But connecting the line as part of this project will allow us to do a loop. The service that goes north into the school is a line that stops right there, a dead end line. You always want the water to be looped. That way the water is continuously flowing through that area, providing improved water quality.”
The city has to occasionally flush the dead end line to ensure the sewer doesn’t become stagnant, said Toby Dougherty, city manager. “That’s resulted in wasted water,” he added.
The Ellis County Commission continued working on its 2019 budget in a special meeting Thursday morning at the Ellis County Courthouse.
Despite being halfway through 2018, it appears that the county will have some difficult decisions to make when it comes to 2019. County Administrator Phillip Smith, in a budget preview earlier this month, told the commission the county faces a budget deficit of approximately $645,000 if it does not increase the mill levy.
If the commission raised the mill levy 5/8 of a mill, the most allowed under the tax lid, the budget is still about $400,000 short.
Before the eight department heads presented their budget requests to the commission on Thursday, Commissioner Barb Wasinger said she is not in favor of an increase in the mill levy.
“I think that with the budget in the millions of dollars such as we have, there should be a way that we can cut our budget down to fit and not raise the mill levy,” Wasinger said. “Be fiscally responsible. I think we can do that easily.
“So I will not vote for an increase in any mill levy.”
Among those presenting their budget requests Thursday was Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees.
Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees
Drees told the commission he is asking for an increase of $38,000, with $29,000 of that bringing salaries for assistant county attorneys to the midrange average for salaries in Kansas.
“I know that the county has done an outstanding job getting employees up to midrange. We need to share in that also,” said Drees.
According numbers presented Thursday by Drees, his office ranked 15 in the number of criminal convictions and civil adjudications in the state in 2017. Ellis County ranks 21st in population.
Drees also presented a statewide comparison of the total number of staff working in each county office and salary comparison.
In fiscal year 2017, Ellis County had five attorneys and six support staff members. Among five counties in similar size to Ellis County, only Harvey County had fewer staff members with 9.5.
Lyon and Finney counties have 19 total staff members. Ford County has 18.
Drees said that Ellis County compares well with Lyon County. Both counties have a four-year institution, a major highway runs through each county and the population is similar. According to Drees, the Lyon County attorney has a budget of $1.9 million while Ellis County budgets $900,000 for the county attorney.
Commissioner Dean Haselhorst said, “That goes to show you’re more efficient.”
Drees also said salaries within the county attorney’s office are below other comparable counties.
According to Drees, the average mid-range salary in comparable counties is about $69,425. Ellis County’s mid-range number is $62,000, about $7,000 difference.
“We’ve held the line on budget … and that’s a good thing,” Drees said. “But we also have to be fair to our employees.”
The rest of the departments that presented on Thursday kept their requests close to their prior year’s request.
County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes also presented the county with some good news on Thursday saying that the insurance rates were less than anticipated. He said the weighted average for the county was about 7 percent.
Register of Deeds – 2019 Request: $232,833
Increase of $20,599 from 2018 budget
Sheriff – 2019 Request: $3,825,548
Increase of $40,677 from 2018 budget
Sheriff Ed Harbin said they trimmed approximately $145,000 because they have reduced the number of inmates housed out of county. They are working with the county attorney and the Hays Police Department to reduce the offenders who commit small crimes out of jail.
Courts – 2019 Request: $390,545
Same request of last year
Drug Court – 2019 Request: $30,000
Court officials are preparing to establish a drug court in Ellis County that will serve lower level drug offenders
It will be funded through matching grants but the requested $30,000 will help with startup
Judge Glenn Braun said they had 159 felony drug conviction in Ellis County last year and while not all of them could have gone through Drug Court a large number could have.
Information Technology – 2019 Request: $673,274
Increase of $12,926 from 2018 budget
IT Director Mike Leiker said they are going to be looking at adding a security analyst position in the future. They have set aside money for that position and have pending retirement and plan to reorganize once that retirement takes place.
Health Department – 2019 Request: $618,031
Increase of $86,314 from 2018 budget
Had a $55,208 increase in salaries with the addition of an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN)
Director of Health Services Kerry McCue told the commission that they are not going the number of patients at the Health Department that they would like to see. McCue said with the addition of an inhouse biller and increased awareness of the services the APRN offers they will see an increase in revenue.
EMS – 2019 Request: $3,109,119
Increase of $172,521 increase from 2018 budget
The salary increases were from negotiations
Emergency Management – 2019 Request: $78,503
Increase of $3,318 from 2018 budget
Communication Center – 2019 Request: $101,500
Decrease of $640 from 2018 budget
Rural Fire – 2019 Request: $591,890
Increase of $4,286 from 2018 budget
Next Generation 911 – 2019 Request: $208,500
Increase of $47,925 from 2018 budget
NG 911 funds come from taxes on cell phone bills. Director of Fire and Emergency Management Darin Myers told the commission that they have collected $215,000 to $220,000 each of the last few years.
NG 911 funds can only be spent to support the 911 infrastructure.
The rest of the of the county department heads will present their budget requests in a special meeting on June 28th.
The court issued a unanimous ruling Friday against two veteran teachers who sued their Butler County school district after it did not renew their contracts in 2015.
