Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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Clearwater's newest business offers a variety of hair and beauty services to give client's a new look. Visitors to Roots by Jaci, located at the intersection of Main and Nebraska streets, in Clearwater, may also want to check out boutique clothing shoes and jewelry available for sale. The business opened June 8. Owner Jaci Bruhn said she grew up watching her mom, Sue Burtwistle, work in the industry. "I followed in her footsteps. It's just something I always wanted to do," Bruhn said. A...
NOTICE OF BIDS Roofing, Antelope County Courthouse Annex The Antelope County Board of Commissioners will accept sealed bids for reroofing of the Antelope County Courthouse Annex, which is located at 501 M Street, Neligh, being a part of Antelope County Courthouse Complex. Bids will be accepted until 10 a.m., on July 13, 2021, and shall be submitted in a sealed envelope with the wording “Bid for Roofing” in the lower left-hand corner. Bids may be addressed to the Antelope County Clerk, 501 Main Street, PO Box 26, Neligh, NE 68756-0026 or dro...
SUBMITTED ARTICLE O'Neill Community Foundation Fund and Holt County Economic Development Fund welcome Emily Morrow and Katie Hawk home for the summer to help local leadership further their missions. Morrow and Hawk are both students at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. Morrow graduated from UNL in May with a dual degree in advertising and public relations and broadcasting. Hawk will begin her sophomore year in the fall at UNL studying business management. Both began their duties in May a...
JOHNATHAN HLADIK Policy director Center for Rural Affairs Small business entrepreneurship is a key source of job creation for rural counties. These businesses generate economic activity that can multiply throughout the community. But, they also face many challenges, including difficulty in accessing capital and acquiring training for business planning and financial management. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program aims to address these challenges. R...
I’m not sure who first said this, but it’s true: You can’t have a million-dollar dream on a minimum wage work ethic. I know it’s true. Teaching and freelancing both required a high level of energy, with long and unpredictable hours. The news cycle, along with business owner responsibilities, exist 24/7, and like my father-in-law told me, “You work twice as hard when you’re responsible to earn your own living.” P.S. I’m not a millionaire … not yet (wink, wink) … and my million-dollar drea...
Oh, to be on the edge of 17 again, ready to explore the world, ready to turn the page and start a new chapter of life. One of my parents told me, at the time, I thought I knew everything, that my worldly experiences offered a depth of knowledge unrivaled by my peers. So wait, Mom and Dad. Sarcasm noted. I didn’t know everything? Wow. Admit it, you, too, thought you knew it all when you graduated and couldn’t wait to leave the nest to fly on your own. Life at 17 doesn’t offer the same conce...
KIM PRESTON Rural Enterprise Assistance Project director Center for Rural Affairs You have a great idea for a new small business. Congratulations! Now, what do you do to turn that idea into a legitimate business? To celebrate National Small Business Week, May 5 to 11, here is a checklist with step-by-step actions to get you started. 1. Choose and register your business name. Check with the secretary of state's office where you plan to set up shop. 2. Decide on a legal structure: Sole proprietorship, LLC, partnership, s corporation, etc. You...
A 10-county road trip, featuring more than 140 small businesses, including 11 Antelope County locations, begins Saturday and continues through Sept. 30.. The 2021 Best of the Backroad Tour of Northeast Nebraska, sponsored by News Channel Nebraska and Giant Gear, combines travel, adventure and unique small-town charm and hospitality. The tour features four Summerland-area sites, including the Sidebar, in Clearwater; Corner Hardware & More and the Orchard Historical Society, in Orchard and Royal...
Plans to develop single-family housing units, in Clearwater, are one step closer to reality. Clearwater Community Development Group, LLC, broke ground on property located at Sixth and Iowa streets, March 23. Group members, including Jeremy Sanne, Bill Thiele, Curt Thiele and Walt Aschoff outlined plans to a gathering of approximately 30 community members at a March 28 meeting. Bill Thiele said the group has tapped into Aschoff's experience with construction and development in communities across...
A couple topics are brewing in my mind and, since it’s Tuesday, and I’ve been attempting to construct on outline for this week’s column, I’ll probably split it into two sections. See, this is what happens when I procrastinate, -er, utilize my collegiate debate skills to fine-tune a creative argument. *** A recent National Public Radio segment got me thinking. I want to break up with Facebook, personally and professionally. The segment talked about tensions between the social network and Austral...
JOHNATHAN HLADIK Policy director Center for Rural Affairs The past 12 months have not been easy for small businesses. Communities have lost longtime staples, as well as opportunities for future growth, as entrepreneurs were forced to delay planned investments. As business and community leaders work to recover, it is important that every tool, including the Microenterprise Tax Credit, remains available. From hair salons and restaurants to grocery and hardware stores, more than 80% of the state’s businesses fall into the microenterprise category....
How do you measure a year? According to “Seasons of Love,” from the Broadway hit “Rent,” in 525,600 minutes, you measure life “in daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee, in inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. You measure life, “In truths that she learned, or in times that he cried. In bridges he burned, or the way that she died.” In the past year, many of us have, undoubtedly, measured life in a few of these ways. One day, life is smooth (or perhaps a little bumpy) sailin...
The legislature has wrapped up most committee hearings, and began half-day floor debate this week. Full-day floor debate will begin next week. In the meantime, committees are voting on which bills will be moved on to general file. By the time you read this, most priority designations will have been announced. The determination by individual senators, committees and the speaker as to which bills get a priority designation is extremely important, as bills without a priority designation will...
The Center for Rural Affairs is now offering home ownership and home improvement loans in rural Nebraska. Loans between $5,000 and $100,000 are available for the purchase of a home, owner occupied rehabilitation or renovation or emergency repair to property. “Rural areas tend to have fewer quality housing options available compared to urban communities,” said Kim Preston, Center for Rural Affairs’ Rural Enterprise Assistance Project director. “Small towns suffer from low home vacancy rates, aging housing stock, insufficient rehabil...
PROCEEDINGS SUMMERLAND PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD OF EDUCATION February 15, 2021 Summerland Public School Board of Education held a regular meeting, Monday, Feb. 15, at 12 p.m., at the Ewing site. President Ed Nordby called the meeting, which was published in the February 10, 2021, newspaper, to order at 12 p.m. The Nebraska Open Meetings Act was noted in the room by Nordby. Roll call. Present: Candice Hoke, Marty Kerkman, Ed Nordby, Nate Schwager, Steven Thiele, Jeremy Wagner. All board members were present. Possible motion on board member absence....
“If you’re going to talk the talk, you better be able to walk the walk.” A superintendent I worked for said this phrase during monthly faculty meetings too many times to count. I’ve been thinking a lot that quote - and how he leveraged the phrase to spur people to action. Since the November election, I’ve listened to grumbling about everything from political candidates’ qualifications to an overabundance of government overreach to a general dissatisfaction with public policy. Most conversatio...
PROCEEDINGS Village of Clearwate rBoard of Trustees Feb. 8, 2021 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met in regular session Monday, Feb. 8, at 7 p.m., in the fire hall meeting room. Meeting opened at 7:01 p.m. Notice of meeting was given in advance by publication in Summerland Advocate-Messenger and notice was given to council persons prior to meeting. Public was informed of location of Open Meeting Act poster. Present: Kevin Filsinger, Steve Stearns, Kelly Kerkman, Mike Klabenes, Steve Hankla. Others present: Lauren...
I’m guilty ... and I imagine you are, too. I’m guilty of spending dollars outside the community, sharing my wealth with box stores and high-dollar chains, instead of investing in mom and pop establishments. Granted, I don’t do it all the time, but if I happen to be in Norfolk or Lincoln, I’ll stop and pick up items I may need soon. I’ve written it before, but it bears repeating. Spending locally makes dollars and sense. (Yes, that’s a play on words.) Let’s use my shopping example mentioned abo...
Martin Luther King, Jr., said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” I was reminded of the quote during Sunday’s town hall meeting in Orchard. The quote isn’t specific to our local communities. No, it’s a question worth asking no matter where you call home. But, the premise of King’s words - the notion that volunteering and making an impact in another person’s life - is what sticks out. Sunday’s meeting reinforced the meaning. It’s one of the great...
JOHNATHAN HLADIK Policy director Center for Rural Affairs As they continue to face challenges caused by the coronavirus pandemic, rural small businesses and communities with loans through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development program find themselves on the outside once again. Provisions of the Rural Equal Aid Act, a measure with bipartisan support in the House and Senate, were left out of the latest round of stimulus funding approved Monday by Congress. Our elected officials have again let these rural entrepreneurs down and h...
An economic development program, designed to assist Clearwater businesses through COVID-19, will end Dec. 31. The Village of Clearwater LB840 Emergency Commercial Grant Program was established this summer and offered grants of $750 to businesses affected by the pandemic. Businesses with a net income of less than $75,000, per 2019 income taxes, are eligible to apply. Grant applications are scored on four categories: closed/reduced service due to directed health measures; length of time in...
PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER BOARD OF TRUSTEES DECEMBER 2020 The Board of Trustees of the Village of Clearwater met in regular session Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, at 7 p.m., in the Fire Hall meeting room. Regular meeting was opened at 7:02 p.m. Notice of meeting was given in advance by publication in Summerland Advocate-Messenger and notice was given to chairman and village board members prior to meeting. Public was informed of location of Open Meeting Act poster. Present: Jay Snider, Kevin Filsinger, Steve Stearns and Paul Horman. Absent:...
For almost 50 years, the Center for Rural Affairs has been a leading force in standing up for the family farmer and rancher, small business owner and rural communities. We look forward to working with former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack; President-Elect Joe Biden; and the new USDA leadership as they listen to and work with rural Americans. On Dec. 10, Vilsack was officially nominated for the next secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. All Cabinet appointees, including Secretary of...
The coronavirus pandemic has laid much of the American economy on its back - but a bright spot made the disaster less crippling than it might have been. That is the Paycheck Protection Program, which funneled money to workers through small businesses. More than five million small businesses took the PPP loans, representing 50 million jobs, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Congress in June. It persuaded small businesses to keep people on the payroll instead of laying them off. That helped...
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused many events to be canceled this year, but it does not take away the opportunity to shop local during the holiday season. Communities across the country have found innovative ways to keep both business owners and customers safe. For example, the Valley County Chamber in Ord, made its annual Snowball Drop a virtual event. Starting in early November, the Chamber posted questions about local businesses on their social media. Every community member who responds to a...
