KDOT

RUSSELL SPRINGS — The Kansas Department of Transportation will host a public meeting regarding the upcoming construction and closure of K-25 south of Russell Springs for a bridge replacement project this spring. The meeting will take place on Thursday, Jan. 10, from noon to 2 p.m. at the Logan County Road Shop, 519 Armstrong, Russell Springs.

KDOT engineers will outline the construction phasing, provide details on the official state detour and answer questions regarding access to county roads. Construction is slated to begin in February and be completed by mid-October. Traffic will be detoured using U.S. 40, U.S. 83 and K-96.

The meeting location is ADA accessible. Persons in need of a sign language interpreter, an assistive listening device, large print or Braille material, or other accommodations to participate in this meeting should notify Lisa Mussman at (785) 877-3315 or [email protected].

KDA

MANHATTAN. — The Kansas Department of Agriculture–Division of Conservation announces the Riparian Quality Enhancement Initiative (RQEI) to provide financial assistance for the enhancement of riparian areas. This initiative will be made available to designated areas within the Delaware River, Stranger Creek, Little Arkansas River in western Kansas and Rock Creek Watersheds. Riparian areas are the vegetation and habitats along rivers and streams.

This initiative will support practices that provide new alternative water sources, increase riparian fencing, and enhance the riparian area. Projects will receive 80 percent cost share, with a limit that varies based on the type of project; funding will be through the Riparian and Wetland Protection Program. The streams that have been targeted for this initiative were selected because they are labeled as Total Maximum Daily Loading (TMDL) for E. coli or fecal coliform bacteria by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

All areas that are part of a producer’s grazing system are eligible for cost share — pasture, range and cropland — so long as livestock have access to the riparian area for water or shelter.

Interested producers should consult with their Conservation District or the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to submit a project proposal. All applications for the RQEI will be due by Feb. 15, 2019, and successful applicants will be notified by March 15, 2019.

For a full list of practices that can be included in the RQEI initiative, a map of the targeted watersheds, and additional program guidance, along with a link to contact information for Kansas Conservation Districts, go to agriculture.ks.gov/Riparian.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Business conditions improved last month in nine Midwest and Plains states despite shortages of skilled workers, according to a monthly survey report issued Wednesday.

The Mid-America Business Conditions Index rose to 55.2 in December from 54.1 in November, the report said. The October reading was 54.9. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth.

“The regional economy continues to expand at a positive pace,” said Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey. “However, as in recent months, shortages of skilled workers remain an impediment to even stronger growth. Furthermore, supply managers are reporting negative impacts from tariffs and trade skirmishes.”

The December employment index sank to 50.0 from 57.5 in November.

“Overall manufacturing employment growth in the region over the past 12 months has been very healthy at 2.3 percent, compared (with) a lower 2.2 percent for the U.S,” Goss said. “I expect this gap to close in the months ahead as regional job growth slows faster than national manufacturing job growth.”

The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100, with a score above 50 suggesting growth. A score below that suggests decline. The survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and South Dakota.

Looking ahead six months, the December index for economic optimism fell to a still solid 54.1 from November’s 55.5.

“However, I expect business confidence to depend heavily on the Fed’s interest rate policies and trade talks with China,” Goss said. More than 43 percent of supply managers who responded to the survey expected profits for their companies to improve in 2019, he said.

The regional trade numbers turned sharply lower last month. The index for new export orders slumped to 48.1 from November’s 51.8, and the import index plummeted to 41.1 from 54.3 in November.

“Despite higher tariffs on imported goods, healthy regional growth boosted imports for the month,” Goss said.

OLATHE — MidAmerica Nazarene University recently announced its President’s, Dean’s List and Honor Roll for the fall 2018 semester. A total of 418 students qualified for one of the honors.

All students in traditional programs carrying 12 semester hours or more with a term GPA from 3.2 to 4.0 may qualify for one of these academic honors. Neutral credit hours are excluded from the calculation and reduce the course load used to figure the honor. The President’s List is a 4.0 grade point average for the semester; Dean’s List ranges from 3.5 to 3.99; and the Honor Roll is 3.2 to 3.49.

Following are MNU students named to the President’s List, Dean’s List and Honor Roll, listed by hometown:

Hays
Jeanie Balzer, Dean’s List

Palco
Emily E Roy, Dean’s List

Paradise
Jayden L Newbold, Dean’s List

MidAmerica Nazarene University is a private, Christian, liberal arts university of more than 1870 students. Offering 40 plus traditional undergraduate majors, the university is also known for its accelerated professional and graduate programs. Study abroad as well as service-learning experiences are encouraged through MNU’s Go Global and ServiceCorps programs. The campus is located on 105 acres in Olathe, Kansas. More information may be found at www.mnu.edu.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Vermont’s population is among the smallest in the U.S., but a study from United Van Lines indicates people are moving to the New England state.

Kansas had the fifth-highest percentage of outbound moves, the study found.

The suburban St. Louis-based moving company on Wednesday released its 42nd annual National Movers Study, which tracks customers’ state-to-state migration patterns.

Vermont has the second-smallest population among states, exceeding only Wyoming. Yet Vermont saw the highest percentage of inbound moves in 2018.

Four Western states filled out the top 5: Oregon, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona.

New Jersey had highest percentage of outbound moves, followed by Illinois, Connecticut, New York and Kansas.

The study showed that Americans continue to move west and south. The Mountain West and South regions saw high percentages of inbound moves. The Northeast and Midwest had high percentages of outbound moves.

WALLETHUB

With the U.S. government closed for business for the 21^st time since 1976, this time with a partial shutdown, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on the States Most & Least Affected by the 2019 Government Shutdown to add some hard data to all the rhetoric.

According to the study, Kansas is the seventh least affected state by the partial shutdown.

Area entities that are closed include Fort Larned National Historic Site, Larned, and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home in Abilene.

WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia in terms of five key metrics, ranging from each state’s share of federal jobs to federal contract dollars per capita to the share of families receiving food stamps.

Impact of the Government Shutdown on Kansas (1=Most Affected, 25=Avg.):

• 26^th – Share of Federal Jobs
• 42^nd – Federal Contract Dollars Per Capita
• 33^rd – Real Estate as a Percentage of GSP
• 46^th – % of Families Receiving SNAP (Food Stamps)

To view the full report, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/government-shutdown-report/1111/

Thursday Sunny, with a high near 46. West northwest wind 6 to 9 mph.

Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 24. West northwest wind around 7 mph.

Friday Sunny, with a high near 52. West northwest wind 7 to 9 mph.
Friday NightClear, with a low around 25. West southwest wind around 7 mph.

SaturdaySunny, with a high near 53.

Saturday NightPartly cloudy, with a low around 27.

SundayMostly cloudy, with a high near 47.

CONCORDIA — The CloudCorp executive board has announced the hiring of Kim Reynolds as CloudCorp executive director.

Reynolds joins CloudCorp with over 17 years of experience in higher education specifically related to recruitment, retention and fundraising. She holds a bachelor of science in business administration from Kansas State University and a master’s of liberal studies in organizational leadership from Fort Hays State University. Reynolds’ primary responsibilities will be recruitment of new businesses, retaining current businesses and assisting businesses during expansion.

“Kim has been part of the community for 20 years. In looking at her professional experience, we feel Kim brings a skill set to the position the CloudCorp executive board was looking for,” said Tim Parker, president of CloudCorp. “She has proven herself as someone who is good at relationship building and networking. With her longevity in and around the county and state, she has resources and contacts that will set her up for success.”

Reynolds replaces former Executive Director, Ashley Hutchinson.

“I am excited about this new opportunity. Ashley did an amazing job in her tenure at CloudCorp,” Reynolds said. “My goal is to continue and build on what she has put into motion. I look forward to helping the citizens of Cloud County through the advancement of economic opportunities.”

Reynolds is married to J.T., president of Concordia Technologies LLC and has three daughters. Peyton is a Freshman at KU, Kendall is a sophomore at Concordia Jr./Sr. High School and Breckyn is in fourth grade at Concordia Elementary School.

— CloudCorp

By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

The new year starts strong with a jam-packed January filled with lots to do and see in Hays.

Melissa Dixon, executive director of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, highlights just a few of the activities.

For an updated events calendar, check the Hays CVB website at www.visithays.com.

The Community Events flyer is now available on the website’s front page for downloading and printing.

 

HPL

Fines will no longer be charged for overdue items at the Hays Public Library. The board in December voted unanimously to eliminate the fees.

Libraries across Kansas and the nation are taking the same action due to the fact that the mission of a library is to provide access to literature and other resources, and fines stifle that access. When patrons owe fines, many times they simply stop going to the library. Fines have been found to significantly impact library usage for children and low-income patrons.

“Overdue fines have a limited impact on patrons actually returning items on time and is counterproductive to HPL’s purpose of providing access to information and resources,” said Board Chair Katherine Wolfe.

Over the past two years, the overdue fines that have been paid amount to less than 1 percent of the library’s annual budget.

“When evaluating if to eliminate overdue fines, it became obvious staff time spent on dealing with overdue fines has a poor return on investment,” said Hays Public Library Director Brandon Hines. “Assisting patrons, maintaining the collection, and improving the vast number of services we offer is a much more impactful and efficient use of staff time.”

There will still be a consequence to patrons not returning items. When a patron has five overdue items or one item that is more than 20 days overdue, their account will be blocked. This means that person will no longer be able to check out items until the items are returned.

While the library is softening its stance on overdue fines, a stricter approach will be taken on items long overdue. The library board has also directed staff to secure the services of a debt collections company. The specialized collections company works solely with libraries and will help the library recover fees for items that are considered lost, which means they are overdue by at least 30 days. After 45 days the collections process will be instituted if a patron has a minimum of $50 in lost items. While many libraries in Kansas and the across the country utilize this service, the Hays Public Library has never utilized a collections company to recover the cost of items not returned by patrons.

The library board and staff believe this new policy will increase the number of patrons able to take advantage of all the resources the library has to offer.

— Submitted

The Hays Police Department responded to 2 animal calls and conducted 19 traffic stops Fri., Dec. 21, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Suspicious Activity–4300 block Vine St, Hays; 2:45 PM; 2:50 PM
Suspicious Activity–300 block W 11th St, Hays; 7:29 PM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–1000 block Reservation Rd, Hays; 7:40 PM
Civil Dispute–1000 block Reservation Rd, Hays; 8:22 PM
Disturbance – Noise–700 block E 6th St, Hays; 11:43 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 2 animal calls and conducted 47 traffic stops Sat., Dec. 22, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

44 – Traffic Stop–700 block E 6th St, Hays; 1:06 AM
Driving Under the Influence–500 block W 15th St, Hays; 1:54 AM
Suspicious Activity–400 block W 11th St, Hays; 2:12 AM
Drug Offenses–3400 block Vine St, Hays; 2:32 AM
Welfare Check–4000 block Vine St, Hays; 2:37 AM
Disorderly Conduct–2700 block Indian Trl, Hays; 3:38 AM
Miscellaneous Investigation–3400 block Vine St, Hays; 4:21 AM
Assist – Other (not MV)–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 1:19 PM; 1:26 PM
Lost Animals ONLY–200 block E 12th St, Hays; 3:36 PM
Dead Animal Call–1300 block Lawrence Dr, Hays; 4:53:PM
Fire–1100 block E 27th St, Hays; 4:57 PM
Traffic/Driving Complaint–1100 block Centennial Blvd, Hays; 5:06 PM
Driving Under the Influence–1100 block Centennial Blvd, Hays; 5:25 PM
Criminal Damage to Property–100 block W 37th St, Hays; 6:30 AM; 3:30 PM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–3500 block 3501 Vine St, Hays; 7:50 PM
Disturbance – Fight–100 block E 5th St, Hays; 9:57 PM
Disturbance – General–500 block W 37th St, Hays; 10:46 PM
Suspicious Person–200 block E 7th St, Hays; 11:11 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 3 animal calls and conducted 12 traffic stops Sun., Dec. 23, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Animal At Large–2700 block E 17th St, Hays; 11:24 AM
Theft (general)–200 block E 7th St, Hays; 1:45 PM
Welfare Check–300 block W 33rd St, Hays; 5:08 PM
Theft (general)–300 block W 8th St, Hays; 4:30 PM; 7:40 PM
Burglary/residence–500 block E 16th St, Hays; 4 PM; 9 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 1 animal call and conducted 4 traffic stops Mon., Dec. 24, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Suspicious Person–200 block W 10th St, Hays; 12:21 AM
Battery – simple–200 block W 10th St, Hays; 12:50 AM; 1 AM
Abandoned Vehicle–2400 block Pine St, Hays; 10:35 AM
Abandoned Vehicle–1000 block E 15th St, Hays; 1:02 PM
Suspicious Person–400 block W 7th St, Hays; 1:15 PM
Theft (general)–200 block Ash St, Hays; 12/23 11 PM; 12/24 10:30 AM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–3700 block Vine St, Hays; 1:40 PM
Abandoned Vehicle–1100 block Country Club Dr, Hays; 3:45 PM
Lost Animals ONLY–500 block W 27th St, Hays; 4:11 PM
Civil Transport–2200 block Canterbury Dr, Hays; 4:57 PM
MV Accident /DUI–1800 block Walnut St, Hays; 5:12
MV Accident /DUI–1800 block Walnut St, Hays; 5:12
Suspicious Activity–2700 block Vine St, Hays; 8:07 PM
Found/Lost Property–300 block W 32nd, Hays; 11:34 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 1 animal call and conducted 3 traffic stops Tue., Dec. 25, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Assist – Other (not MV)–3200 block Vine St, Hays; 12:52 PM
Civil Dispute–400 block W 8th St, Hays; 6:13 PM
Theft (general)–2100 block General Custer Rd, Hays; 7:03 PM
Animal At Large–400 block W 16th St, Hays; 10:11 PM
Traffic/Driving Complaint–3800 block Vine St, Hays; 10:24 PM
Welfare Check–2700 block Epworth St, Hays; 11:41 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to _ animal calls and conducted _ traffic stops Wed., Dec. 26, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Driving While Suspended/Revoked–400 block Santa Fe St, Hays; 9:04 AM
Dead Animal Call–500 block W 8th St, Hays; 10:38 AM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–26th St and Vine St, Hays; 12:35 PM
Theft (general)–4300 block Vine St, Hays; 11 AM; 12:15 PM
Harassment, Telephone/FAX–1100 block E 8th St, Hays; 9 AM; 2 PM
Theft (general)–500 block W 17th St, Hays; 4:18 PM
Disturbance – General–3200 block Willow St, Hays; 8 PM
MV Accident-Hit and Run–1800 block Vine St, Hays; 5:35 PM
Welfare Check–1100 block Cody Ave, Hays; 5:59 PM
Suspicious Activity–2900 block Vine St, Hays; 6 PM
Civil Dispute–100 block W 12th St, Hays; 7:23 PM
Civil Dispute–2700 block Epworth St, Hays; 7:45 PM
Assist – Other (not MV)–2000 block Patio Dr, Hays; 9:26 PM

The Hays Police Department responded to 1 animal call and conducted 24 traffic stops Thu., Dec. 27, 2018, according to the HPD Activity Log.

Welfare Check–400 block E 19th St, Hays; 12:48 AM
Welfare Check–1400 block E 29th St, Hays; 3:17 AM
Assist – Other (not MV)–2900 block Canterbury Dr, Hays; 7:06 AM
Abandoned Vehicle–2300 block Lincoln Dr, Hays; 12:01 AM; 7:56 AM
Theft (general)–300 block W 16th St, Hays; 3:30 AM; 5 AM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–13th and Oak, Hays; 8:09 AM
Civil Dispute–400 block E 19th St, Hays; 9:24 AM; 9:30 PM
Missing Person–100 block 4th, Hays; 10:48 AM
Theft (general)–1600 block E 27th St, Hays; 10:59 AM
Suspicious Activity–400 block E 13th St, Hays; 2:15 AM; 2:40 AM
Welfare Check–1000 block E 15th St, Hays; 11:13 AM; 12 PM
MV Accident-Hit and Run–32nd and Vine, Hays; 12:08 PM
Found/Lost Property–2600 block Vine St, Hays; 3:07 PM
MV Accident-City Street/Alley–33rd and Country Lane, Hays; 3:06 PM
Drug Offenses–1500 block 40 Bypass Hwy, Hays; 4:52 PM; 5:54 PM
Suspicious Activity–2000 block E 21st St, Hays; 8:45 PM ; 8:55 PM
Criminal Trespass–1000 block E 17th St, Hays; 11:01 PM
Disturbance – General–200 block E 11th St, Hays; 11:22 PM