Today A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 89. East southeast wind 6 to 9 mph.
In addition to locally heavy rain chances late this afternoon and evening, a few thunderstorms could produce large hail and damaging winds. pic.twitter.com/i2abBIhNoa
After another round of cuts, the Ellis County Commission moved forward with its 2019 budget at Monday’s commission meeting.
At last week’s meeting, the county commissioners sent the budget back to staff and called for an additional 1 percent cut in general fund spending. That was after already directing staff to keep 2019 budget requests similar to 2018.
According to County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes, all but three departments submitted a budget that contained the reduction while the rest were close to the 1 percent mark.
County Commissioner Barb Wasinger read a prepared statement and called on the county to take action now.
“Each and every elected official and department head needs to change how they operate,” she said. “I know that department heads have started working on this, but it was also made abundantly clear that this is not a popular idea with elected officials or employees.”
Wasinger also said it is necessary to get control of spending now and not place the burden on future commissions.
“We were elected by the taxpayers of Ellis County to make hard decisions when it comes to spending and that’s what we need to do now and in the future,” she said.
Watch Wasinger’s full statement below
In her prepared statement, Wasinger also address a letter sent to Smith-Hanes and the commission from County Attorney Tom Drees. Wasinger called the letter a threat.
“I believe this thinly veiled threat of legal action is unappreciated, unwise and in very poor taste,” said Wasinger. “Particularly with a requested budget of $924,787, which has risen steadily every year from his budget of 2015.”
In an interview after the meeting, Drees said the letter was not a threat but instead an attempt to inform the commission that his office might not be able to come in at the proposed budget level.
“I was simply pointing out that the statute requires the county to ‘adequately fund the county attorney,’ ” said Drees. “This was not a threat, veiled or otherwise, as to legal action. I was simply advising them that at this 1 percent cut it’s a very real possibility I will come in over budget.”
According to Drees, his budget was cut by just less than $15,000 from his original request. That request contained an additional request of $38,000 to bring his assistant county attorney’s to the mid-level on the pay scale.
One of the goals the commission laid out in the beginning of the budget process was to bring all employees to the mid-level, but the $38,000 request was cut from the proposed budget in the first budget meeting by the commission.
According to Drees, many county attorneys offices in counties comparable to Ellis County have larger budgets and more staff.
In fiscal year 2017, Ellis County ranked 15th in the state in the number of criminal and civil prosecutions or settlements but ranked 21st in population.
Commissioner Dean Haselhorst and Marcy McClelland said they agreed with Wasinger’s statement.
Haselhorst also said they may have to look at the commission taking a 2 percent pay cut in the future.
But because both Wasinger and McClelland are involved in political races, he did not want to implement changes to could affect future commissioners without their involvement.
The budget that will be published for the public and subject of a public meeting Aug. 6 is $22.1 million and does not contain a mill levy increase for the general fund or Fire District No. 1.
In other business, the commission:
• Approved the purchase of natural gas for November 2019 through March 2020 and November 2020 and March 2021 for the price of $3.20 from Secure Energy. The commission locked in the price of $3.57 for the 2018-2019 winter months.
• Approved County Counselor Bill Jeter to continue with an upcoming tax foreclosure sale. He said they currently have 20 properties eligible for sale this year.
• Signed a letter of support for the city of Hays for a BUILD Grant for improved for the north Vine Street corridor.
WICHITA – Michael D. Golightley, 34, Larned, Kan., is charged with seven counts of damaging a protected computer and one count of threatening to damage a protected computer. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in March 2017 in Ellis County, Kan.
According to a July 17 news release from U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister in the District of Kansas, the indictment alleges Golightley hired an entity known as DDosCity to carry out a series of denial-of-service attacks against computers served by an internet service provider called Nex-Tech.
Nex-Tech provided backup and monitoring Service for Ellis County’s Emergency Medical Service administrative voice lines, Russell County’s hospital voice lines, the Quinter hospital’s voice lines, the Grove County Sheriff’s administrative voice lines, the Russell County Sheriff’s administrative voice lines and the administrative voice lines for the police and fire departments of Russell County.
The indictment alleges Golightley sent an e-mail to Nex-Tech stating: “Take down my ad again when my description doesn’t violate copyright (and) I will violate this site by bringing it offline.”
If convicted, he faces up to five years and a fine up to $250,000 on each of the counts. The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan Metzger is prosecuting.
Midwest Energy is reporting that dozens of businesses in Hays and Colby have received scam calls, telling the business their bill is overdue and instructing them to purchase a money card to pay their bill.
“We never tell a customer to use a money card to pay a bill,” said Mike Morley, Director of Corporate Communications for Midwest Energy. “In fact, we don’t even accept money cards as payment. We accept cash, check, credit card, and bank draft for payment, but not money cards or gift cards.”
Anyone receiving a suspected scam call should report it to Midwest Energy at 1-800-222-3121.
SadikovOVERLAND PARK — The Overland Park Orchestra is pleased to announce that Shokhrukh “Shah” Sadikov will be its new Music Director and Conductor beginning with the 2018-2019 Orchestra Season. Mr. Sadikov is currently Assistant Professor of Violin and Viola at Fort Hays State University in Hays, where he is also Music Director of the Hays Symphony Orchestra. In addition, Mr. Sadikov co-founded and became the CEO and conductor of a non-for-profit arts organization, NAVO (navoarts.com), whose mission is to create unique programs that challenge, entertain, and enrich the lives of underserved communities in the Midwest.
Much in demand as performer, conductor and teacher, Mr. Sadikov’s upcoming schedule includes engagements conducting the National Symphony Orchestra and Turkiston Chamber Orchestra in his native Uzbekistan, an invitation to conduct the Orquestra Sinfonica de Piracicaba in Brazil, and Shenyang Symphony in China, as well as an opera debut at Navoi National Opera Theater in Uzbekistan. He has studied and performed around the world, including holding a Conducting Fellowship at the Aspen Music Festival and School in the summer of 2017, and performing at festivals in Portsmouth, NH, Washington, ME, Sarasota, FL Killington, VT, and Moscow, Russia.
About his position with the Overland Park Orchestra Mr. Sadikov said, “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to lead this wonderful orchestra with such enthusiastic musicians. I look forward to many years of fruitful work together while presenting amazing concerts to our audiences. “
The Overland Park Orchestra is a non-profit all-volunteer orchestra, sponsored in part by the City of Overland Park. Since its inception in 1973, it has performed free concerts of orchestral music for the public in a variety of settings and with a variety of programs, including an annual Halloween Concert featuring a children’s costume parade. In recent years, the orchestra has provided music for the American Youth Ballet’s annual production of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Ballet and has been a part of the Overland Park Fall Festival and events at the Overland Park Arboretum. For information on becoming a member, contact David Clark, 913-268-7376 and see the website, www.oporchestra.com.
James Funkhouser, who led the Overland Park Orchestra for 37 years, stepped down at the end of the 2017-1018 season, with a final concert in May.
The Fort Hays State University Foundation has announced that Jason Ball will be joining the staff as a director of development.
As one of the Foundation’s directors of development, Ball will be responsible for raising endowment, capital, and other financial support to meet the funding needs of the university. Fort Hays State is in the midst of the largest fundraising campaign in school history – the Journey campaign – with a goal of raising $100 million in support of scholarships, academics, student life and athletics.
“Being a third generation Tiger, FHSU has had a great impact on my life. Through joining the Foundation team, I will be able to give back and enable future generations the same great opportunities I have had,” said Ball.
He earned both his undergraduate and MBA degrees from Fort Hays State, and he was a member of the Tiger men’s basketball team from 2010 to 2014. Since graduating, he has stayed active with the university by being a member of the Tiger Athletic Auction Committee. He also chaired the FHSU Foundation’s annual Community Campaign this year after serving as a volunteer for four years.
“I look forward to continuing the lasting relationships with those who have a passion for FHSU, while creating and developing future ones,” said Ball.
“Jason has a history of building authentic relationships, which combined with his accounting and financial knowledge, make him a great fit to help us achieve our mission,” said Jason Williby, president and CEO of the FHSU Foundation.
Established in 1945, the FHSU Foundation is committed to cultivating lasting relationships with alumni, friends, corporations and other organizations who have a passion for Fort Hays State and who want to continue its legacy of excellence. As an independent, non-profit organization, the Foundation’s donors have an impact on all facets of university life, and their support continues to translate into success for students and the FHSU learning environment.
To learn more about the FHSU Foundation and the Journey Campaign, visit https://foundation.fhsu.edu, call 785-628-5620 or email [email protected].
Van Doren pond, Cottonwood Lane, HaysChetola Creek in south Hays
Nearly 1.5 inches of rain was reported Tuesday morning in Hays as morning showers continued.
Reports from Hays ranged from 0.88 to 1.43 inches. There was a report from Victoria of 1.75 inches, while western Russell County had a report of 2.31 inches in the gauge.
The WaKeeney area saw rainfall ranging from 1.57 to 2.35 inches.
The rain was expected to subside Tuesday morning, although chances of showers and thunderstorms return Tuesday evening.
Employees of Maguire Iron begin work Monday to enclose Hays’ 1 million gallon water tower for remediation of lead paint.
By BECKY KISER Hays Post
Work to remediate the existing lead paint and then repaint the exterior of the one million gallon water tower in Hays began Sunday.
The tower next to Sternberg Museum, 3000 Sternberg Dr., was built in 1972 and recoated in 1997. According to city staff, the tower is flaking paint, an environmental concern, and requires a “full blast” to remove the paint and lead.
A low bid of $528,500 was awarded June 14 by the Hays city commission to Maguire Iron, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The bid also includes repainting of the 500,000 gallon water tower north of Hays on Highway 183. The north tower was built in 1994. The exterior paint, which does not contain lead, is fading and requires an overcoat.
The Sternberg tower will first be draped to keep lead dust contained. Workers will then sand down the tower, remove all the lead paint, contain it, remove it off-site, and finally, repaint the tower.
Engineers Bartlett & West will provide inspection services for both towers for $28,500.
The project will be paid from the Water Capital Reserve fund.
Fort Hays State University will pay for updating its Sternberg Museum of Natural History logo as part of the project. The “All America City” logo, added after Hays won that designation in 1996, will be removed.
Hays artist Dennis Schiel talked to the city commission March 1 about painting a historical mural on the Sternberg tower after it is repainted. He is in the process of soliciting funds for that project.
The Sternberg work is expected to take about six weeks to complete, depending on the weather. According to Jeff Crispin, director of water resources, crews may be working irregular hours and at night if wind conditions are not favorable during typical business hours.
Customers may notice changes in their water pressure system during the scope of the project, Crispin noted, which is to be completed by December 31.
Travis Stryker is with CAS Constructors which is reconstructing the Hays wastewater treatment plant. (Courtesy photos)
TOPEKA – Travis Stryker, executive vice president of CAS Constructors, Topeka, has again been recognized as an outstanding engineer.
The Kansas Society of Professional Engineers (KSPE) named Stryker as the 2018 Engineer of the Year at their annual meeting June 7 in Manhattan.
This is his second award from the KSPE, having won Young Engineer of the Year in 2013. Following in his father’s footsteps, Travis’s father, Charlie, founder of CAS Constructors back in 1985, was named Engineer of the Year in 2003. Obviously, quality engineering runs in the family.
CAS Constructors and Burns and McDonnell are building the upgrades to the Chetolah Creek Water Reclamation and Reuse Facility in Hays.
“We are very proud to work with Travis on this major project in the city of Hays and congratulate him for his well-deserved award,” said Jeff Crispin, director of water resources for the city.
To qualify for this award the nominated candidate must submit a packet of materials demonstrating engineering achievements within the previous 16 months, NSPE/KSPE Membership and Activities, participation and membership in Technical Societies and Civic Organizations. The candidate may then also include other special awards, recognition, published papers, career highlights, etc.
Stryker obtained his Bachelors of Science and Master’s of Science degrees from Kansas State University and has been an ardent supporter of the Construction Science Department within the Architectural Engineering Division of the University. He is and has been active in many civic organizations in Topeka, modeling his beliefs in giving back to the community. A recent list of voluntary activities is: TARC Foundation Board Treasurer, a long time provider of support to children and adults with developmental disabilities; the Kansas Children’s Discovery Center Board Chairman; the Topeka Active 20-30 Club member, a service organization whose mission is to provide assistance and funding to children’s causes; KSPE Topeka Chapter President; Kansas Water Environment Association Board Member and Young Professional Trustee.
I understand your compassion for LGBT peoples. No one likes to see people suffer, and people with same sex attraction suffer immensely. In the short term, we can alleviate a person’s immediate suffering by giving them license, but by doing so, in the long term, they will generally end up in loneliness, emptiness and a shell of the person they were created to be. It is possible to live joyful and fulfilling lives by having chaste relationships with people you love. ‘Courage’ is a group of Catholics who experience same-sex attractions and who are committed to helping one another to live chaste lives marked by prayer, fellowship and mutual support.
Your article is biased towards the inferred gay rights, over the constitutionally stated right of religious freedom. (That’s o.k., I’m biased in my opinion too). The adoption laws in Kansas, as they stand, do not give one side and edge over the other. As in other states, where anti-discrimination of LGBTQ laws were enacted, private adoption agencies like Catholic Charities have closed down rather than go against their faith or against the good of the children.
I do hope that you can find equal compassion in your heart for children that are being deliberately placed in a situation where they will not have either a father or a mother. I feel that placing them into an artificially constructed homosexual family is not for the good of the child, but rather, to fulfill the fantasy of a homosexual family, which naturally does not exist. Do you really need to experiment on children forty or fifty years for scientific proof, only to show that these children will suffer from such an arrangement? We already have data based on 50 years of easy divorce that shows children from single family households fare far poorer in all areas of life compared to children from a two parent family. Workers experienced with adoption, say it is not in the best interest or good of the child to be adopted into homosexual situations. I cite, the web article, Sexual diversity in the Netherlands – Holland Alumni network (a pro-gay network), summarizing the Health and well – being of LGB study by the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP), 2012, in English. The reason I use this study is because LGBT has been legal and accepted in the Netherlands for some fifty year, and I didn’t want to hear that the results were from the U.S. where there is bigotry and discrimination against LGBT. So, can you justify putting adopted children into this type of environment where there is: High rate of suicide.. The mental health of bisexuals is worse than that of homosexuals. A large number of bisexuals use drugs and suffer from psychological problems. Gay and bisexual men have a relatively greater risk of falling victim to sexual violence. Gay and bisexual men have an increased risk of STDs and HIV, despite their more frequent use of condoms. This is not in the study, but from my understanding, a homosexual marriage commitment means they stay with their partner, but partner infidelity is common and acceptable..
I also hope you consider the feelings and requests of birth mothers who give up their child to go to a family with a mother and father, because they can’t provide that environment. In states that made homosexual anti-discrimination laws, Catholic Charities had to shut down, denying an avenue for such women to be guaranteed their child is going to a home with a father and mother. Furthermore, Catholic Charities is the most affordable organization to provide adoption. All this would be gone: that which is in the child’s best interest, the mother’s desires for a mother/father family, and affordability for common families.
So, as the adoption laws stand in Kansas, both sides don’t get totally what they want. LGBTs can’t get service at every adoption agency, and religious groups can’t save every child from being adopted into a LGBT artificially constructed family.
