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Author: Becky Kiser

Midwest Energy How$mart Receives $1 Million USDA Loan

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Midwest Energy received a $1 million loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Economic Loan and Grant (REDLG) Program Aug. 2, to increase energy efficiency in the homes and businesses of the cooperative’s customer-owners through its award-winning How$mart® Program.

The loan, announced by Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager, was one of 21 loans and grants totaling $13 million to support job creation efforts, business development and strengthen economic growth in rural communities in 12 states.

“The REDLG loan will allow us to expand the How$mart Program to many more of our 91,000 electric and natural gas customers,” stated Earnie Lehman, President and General Manager at Hays-based Midwest Energy.  “This loan reduces costs and saves energy for our customer-owners, and brings work to dozens of plumbing, heating and general contractors in central and western Kansas that perform the How$mart upgrades.”

Midwest Energy’s How$mart Program provides low-interest loans to eligible customers for energy efficiency improvements such as insulation, air sealing and new heating and cooling systems.   Participating customers repay the funds through energy savings on their monthly Midwest Energy bills.

The average How$mart participant saves roughly $53 per month on their utility bill while reducing their carbon footprint.

 

New Banners Displayed on North Vine Street

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Have you noticed the new banners gracing the light poles on Vine Street in Hays from 27th Street north to I-70?

Two, two-sided banners, manufactured by Thomas Sign Company of Manhattan, were installed August 3 on each pole.

The design was selected last year by the Hays Beautification Committee in a contest sponsored by the Convention and Visitors Bureau.  The brick color and wheat designs coordinate with the city’s wayfinding signage.

Director Jana Jordan says each banner costs about 72 dollars, paid from the CVB budget.

The next installation phase, in 2013,  will be from I-70 north to 48th Street.

See more tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

Chip Sealing Underway on Some Hays Streets

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Some Hays streets are undergoing chip sealing this week.

Assistant Public Works Director John Braun says the project is scheduled to progress across Hays from east to west ending Saturday in the southwest part of town, covering about 7.5 miles of asphalt streets.

Chip seal involves the spray application of emulsified asphalt oil to the street surface followed by a thin layer of rock chips, which are embedded into the oil by a rubber-tired roller.  Regularly applied chip seals extend the life of asphalt streets.

B and H Paving of Scott City bid $360,000 for the project.

The Hays City Commission approved the expenditure of $1.2 million dollars for the maintenance of city streets this year.

Find out more tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

 

Victoria May Implement Water Conservation Plan

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Nearby cities have already done it.

Russell, Ellis and Hays have all recently implemented their towns’ water conservation plans because of the state’s severe drought.

Although the 100-plus degrees days are fewer, there’s been very little rain this summer and water resources are dwindling.

Russell is already in the third stage of its conservation plan, which involves restricting outside watering to one day a week   Hays water customers are asked to voluntarily cut back their use as part of the Stage 1 plan.  The Ellis Water Conservation Plan status remains at Stage 2 – Water Warning.

Victoria mayor Curt Unrein announced Saturday during the Herzogfest that a “Water Watch” will likely be issued this week for his community.

“We’ve been noticing severe drops in the city’s water wells because of the drought.  I don’t like to do it, but we have to take care of life and be able to fight fires,”  said Unrein.

See more tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

Rupp Steps Down from Herzogfest After 30 Years

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It started as a one-day merchants sidewalk sale in downtown Victoria 30 years ago.

Since then, the annual Herzogfest has grown into a weekend community celebration and moved to Honey Braun Park.  And all these years, it’s been a free event, and Rick Rupp has been the chairman.

Rupp announced during Saturday morning’s opening ceremony that he is stepping down from the position.

President Marge Rome says she’ll likely still call on Rupp for advice as the festival moves forward.  “We’re also looking for new committee volunteers,” she adds.

According to Rupp, the two main directives of the Herzogfest Board of Directors are to honor and celebrate the local German heritage, and to provide a free community celebration focusing on family-oriented fun.  “We couldn’t do it without the support of all our sponsors, who provide in-kind donations as well as that all-important cash,” says Rupp.

Find out more about the Victoria Herzogfest tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

 

LIEAP Helps With Summer Utility Bills

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The federally funded Low Income Energy Assistance Program, administered by the Kansas Department for Children and Families, will provide a supplemental benefit to those already participating in the program to help with summer utility bills.

The payments are made to the participants’ utility providers, not to beneficiaries.

LIEAP provides an annual payment to help people in qualifying households pay winter heating bills. Individuals with disabilities, elderly persons and families with children are the primary groups assisted. In the winter of 2012, nearly 54,000 Kansas households received an average benefit of $182.

This year, funding is available to provide an additional payment for energy costs incurred during the summer.

Individuals who applied and received the benefit during the regular application period will automatically be issued a supplemental benefit of about $340, bringing the average benefit for the year to more than $522.

Funding for LIEAP is provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Community Service.

Western Kansas Part of $5.45 million Federal Highway Grant

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The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has announced $5.45 million in 2012 discretionary funding grants for five projects in Kansas.

Two projects will go toward supporting the national scenic byways program in the state, including the Western Vistas Historic Byway Wayside and Interpretive Signs. The 102-mile Byway runs from Weskan north to Oakley, then south to Scott City.

This $70,400 project will design and construct a wayside and parking area along the Western Vistas Historic Byway with informational signs showing historic and scenic sites, museums, recreational sites, byway activities, and other points of interest.

Also included are improvements at the Fort Larned National Historic Site.  The $1 million project will construct a new bridge to improve public safety, a new parking area to accommodate the new bridge location, and a new main entrance road to the park.

Beach Foundation Gives $100,000 to Heartland Community Foundation

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“Wow!”  That was the reaction of Mendi Alexander, chairman of the Heartland Community Foundation, when she learned that the Ross and Marianna Beach Foundation, Inc. has awarded HCF $100,000 to establish four new funds.

During a Thursday morning news conference at the Hays Welcome Center, Alexander announced the  earnings from the invested donation will be used to establish four new funds within the HCF.

“First Care Clinic, Heartland Community Theater, Hays Arts Council and the Hays Beautification Committee will have their needs supported for years to come,” she said.

Ross and Mariana Beach lived in Hays for many years.  Ross Beach passed away in 2010.  “The family tradition of supporting good and worth causes…is being continued by Marianna and her three daughters, ” said Alexander.

According to HCF Executive Director Bob Lowen, the Beach gift will be matched with a $35,000 donation from the Kansas Health Foundation, making a total donation of $135,000.  “We now have reached $1 million dollars in endowed funds for HCF, ” he said.

The Heartland Community Foundation was founded in 2007 as an affiliate of the Greater Salina Community Foundation  and supports 24 programs and projects in Ellis, Trego and Rooks counties.

See more tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

Primary Election Balloting Underway

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Tuesday is primary election day in Kansas.

This is the first statewide election for which voters are required to show photo ID.

At the Hays American Legion, polling place Judge Pat Staab said early this morning,  “It’s  a little slow, but everyone coming in before 8a.m. remembered to bring their photo identification.”

The sole contested race in Ellis County is County Commission 2nd District on the Democratic side with candidates Alan Gabel and Dennis Pfannenstiel, both of Hays.

Polls are open in Ellis County until 7p.m.

Secretary of State Kris Kobach predicts an 18% voter turnout statewide.

See more tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

NASCAR’s Schrader and Bowyer in Hays to Race

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NASCAR’s Ken Schrader talks with fans at Montana Mike’s “Eat, Meet & Greet” over the noon hour prior to competing in tonight’s Modified Mania at RPM Speedway in Hays.

Two NASCAR drivers are in Hays for the event, sponsored by Federated Auto Parts, featuring Schrader and Clint Bowyer, a native of Emporia.

Schrader, a seasoned veteran who competes at various NASCAR events around the country, as well as special dirt track events, drives the #9 Federated Auto Parts IMCA modified. Bowyer drives the #15 Crawford Supply IMCA BMS modified, and is currently tenth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings.

The pits and grandstands will open at 4:30 p.m., hot laps will be at 6:00, with racing getting underway at 7:30.

Livestock Producers Ask EPA to Reduce Ethanol in Gasoline

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(Reuters) – Hard-hit livestock and poultry producers petitioned the government on Monday to reduce or cancel the required use of ethanol in gasoline for a year, asking for “a little help” to ride out the worst drought in 56 years.

The request for a first-ever waiver from the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s mandate, which in essence requires that more than a third of the U.S. corn harvest be converted into ethanol, comes as grain prices have surged to record highs, driving up feed costs and squeezing profits for producers.

“We are having trouble buying corn… it’s really putting a burden on our operations and many others across the nation,” says J.D. Alexander, president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, whose Nebraska feedlot is about half full of cattle. “It’s time to wean the ethanol industry and let it stand on its own.”

The EPA has not granted a waiver since the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) was enacted in 2007. The policy has enjoyed years of staunch bipartisan support, boosting income for U.S. farmers and helping reduce the country’s dependence on foreign oil. But it is now coming under renewed attack.

Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for the Renewable Fuels Association, said the move by the  beef, chicken, pork and turkey trade groups “is not an official waiver request — and did not trigger EPA to begin the process.”

The only groups that can petition the EPA for a waiver are oil refineries or blenders, a state or the EPA itself.

Corn prices have risen 60 percent over the past six weeks.

About 35 percent of the U.S. corn supply is now used to produce ethanol — about the same amount that is used as animal feed, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department.

Two-thirds of the country is suffering from moderate to exceptional drought.

(Additional reporting by Christine Stebbins in Chicago.; Editing by Dale Hudson, Bob Burgdorfer and Andrew Hay)

Concept Car Donated to Chrysler Home and Museum in Ellis

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Walter P. Chrysler’s boyhood home in Ellis has a new display, thanks to the Chrysler Corporation.

The Detroit car company, founded in 1925 by Chrysler, has donated a 3/8-scale model of the new Chrysler 700C concept vehicle to the museum.

Museum Director and Manager Dena Patee says the car’s innovative design has touch pads instead of the traditional dashboard and  door latches.  “They call it a ‘people mover.’  It’s still in the concept stages, ” she says, and no, it’s not for sale yet, not anywhere.

The Chrysler home and museum is open for tours, and Patee says plans are underway for several events this fall.

See the story tonight on Street Beat Eagle Community TV Channel 14.

New Help as CP25 CRP Land Approved for Haying Due to Drought

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WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, Wednesday announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture will allow haying of Conservation Reserve Program lands designated “CP25” for the first time ever in response to historic drought. Grazing of CP25 lands was previously approved.

“Many producers were unable to graze these lands due to lack of fencing, access to water and other factors. This action will bring immediate relief to livestock producers across the country, ” said Roberts.

Senator Roberts called for releasing all Conservation Reserve Program acres for emergency haying and grazing in a letter he wrote, signed by Republicans on the Senate Agriculture Committee, to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack.

The letter also highlighted several ways Sec. Vilsack and the Obama administration can help producers, including approving a limited irrigation crop insurance policy, keeping producers apprised of crop insurance rules, providing guidance to producers and elevators, keeping producers informed of crop contaminates, directing crop adjusters to areas most in need, possibly reimbursing transportation of livestock to new grazing locations and getting water to livestock.

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