Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Sorted by date Results 126 - 150 of 293
Whoever wins the bid for the former Ewing School property will own all of it - two school buildings, a vacant tract which sits catty-corner to the former high school and a football field. Summerland Board of Education members voted 6-0, during its Aug. 16 meeting, to take bids on the property and authorized Superintendent Kyle Finke to work with legal counsel to finalize the bid process. The motion followed a 40-minute executive session. A legal notice for the property sale is listed on Page 8...
Should ballots cast in Antelope County elections be counted by hand instead of by machine? Members of the Antelope County Patriots filled the Antelope County commissioners' meeting room, Aug 9, to discuss those questions and other election procedures. Sheryl Baker approached the board and yielded her time to Professor David Clements, of New Mexico, and Connie Reinke with the Nebraska Voter Accuracy Project. Clements introduced himself as a former law professor at New Mexico State University, a...
Orchard village trustees discussed concerns about buckling gym floors and heating and cooling systems during a special meeting held July 25, at 6 p.m., at the former school site. Edges of the floor have been buckling from humidity, due to asbestos tiles below. In the past, Tony Tabbert, the school’s janitor, cut the floor, flipped tiles to relieve pressure, then glued it back down. Trustees discussed blocking edges of the gym for laser tag during Orchard Celebration Days, to prevent people f...
ORDINANCE NO. 439 VILLAGE OF EWING An ordinance of the Village of Ewing, Nebraska, adopting zoning regulations, a zoning map and an extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction map for the Village of Ewing, Nebraska, pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. §19-901, providing when said ordinance shall become effective and repealing all ordinances in conflict herewith. Be it ordained by the chairman and board of trustees of the Village of Ewing Nebraska. Section 1. There is hereby zoning regulations for the Village of Ewing, Nebraska, which shall be designated as...
The Village of Ewing will not be the new owners of the former Ewing School site. One item - discussion of Ewing school property - appeared on the agenda for a special meeting, held Friday, July 22, at 8 a.m., at the Ewing city hall. Village Chairman James Ramold told trustees he, along with trustee Kane Fry, met with Summerland School superintendent, Kyle Finke, earlier in the week. "They rejected all the offers at their (school board) last meeting. It sounds like the school board wants to...
Antelope County will continue to provide an opportunity for in-person voting at countywide precincts and offer mail-in ballots as an option, following a vote of Antelope County Commissioners, Tuesday morning. The motion, made by Dean Smith, and seconded by Carolyn Pederson, followed nearly 45 minutes of discussion with Antelope County residents regarding election integrity. Antelope County Patriots member Sheryl Baker told commissioners while she and other group members have "total confidence"...
GENERAL ELECTION NOTICE & OFFICES TO BE FILLED BY ELECTION AND FILING DEADLINES I, Lisa Payne, Antelope County Clerk/Election Commissioner, hereby give notice of the offices to be filled by election that will appear on the 2022 General Election Ballot to be held November 8, 2022, in Antelope County, Nebraska, as per State Statute 32-601. Notice is also given that the filing deadline for such offices are: July 15, 2022, for incumbents and Aug. 1, 2022. for non-incumbents. An incumbent is anyone serving in an elective office, even if they are...
Summerland Superintendent Kyle Finke will receive a $2,760 pay hike. Summerland Board of Education members approved the 2% increase during its June 14 meeting. The vote came following a recommendation from the board's Negotiations Committee. Finke's current contract is in effect through June 30, 2023....
Should the Village of Ewing purchase the former Ewing School? The question will be posed to Ewing residents, Sunday, June 5, during a 4 p.m. town hall meeting in the school's gym. Trustees broached the topic earlier this month during the group's May 9 meeting, when Trustees Dustin Wright and Kane Fry opened discussion on turning the school into a community center. According to Wright, younger adults in the community support the idea. Fry said he has had conversations about a potential purchase...
Holt County Supervisors faced a light agenda when they met in regular session, May 16, at the Holt County Courthouse in O’Neill. Several members of the Holt County Planning and Zoning Commissioner were reappointed for three-year terms, following a unanimous vote by supervisors. Individuals reappointed included Keith May, District 2; Mary Kaczor, District 4; Kevin DeKay, District 5 and Frank Heying, District 6. They will each serve through Dec. 31, 2024. Summit Carbon Solutions representatives Er...
Voter turnout in the May 10 primary election was more than 40% in Holt and Antelope counties. Summerland Board of Education A summary report from Antelope County Clerk Lisa Payne shows 49.68% of voters cast ballots in Royal; 46.63% voted in Clearwater and 46.39% made their way to the polls in Orchard. Holt County Clerk Cathy Pavel confirmed 41% of registered voters visited the polls. Summerland Board of Education Three seats are up for election for the Summerland School Board of Education. Six...
Is it good or bad that between 40 and 50% of voters turned out for the May primary election? While the number seems above average for a mid-term election, it’s still concerning that more than half of our state’s residents did not vote. When you consider options voters have to check the box before or on election day, whether via an early-voting ballot or at the poll, the number is disheartening. According to the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office, 396,000 Nebraskans voted. Overall, that...
Update: 11:05 p.m.: Jim Pillen has won the Republican primary in the Nebraska governor's race. With 810 precincts reporting, Pillen received 72,197 votes. All election results are unofficial until verified by a county's canvassing board. 8:15 p.m. Nebraska polls closed at 8 p.m., May 10, and early results from across the state show Brett Lindstrom leading Jim Pillen, in the Republican race for Governor. Lindstrom currently has 20,987 votes, or 41%, while Pillen has received 29.1% - or 14,885 - o...
With the assistance of a neighboring farmer, Summerland FFA members will chart corn growth and yields on a test plot. Located north of the school, on land owned and farmed by the Napier family, the area was planted with 24 different seed varities, last Friday. Bob Napier said six different companies - Pioneer, Channel, Brevant, Golden Harvest, DeKalb and NC+ - are represented. Of the 24 varieties, 16 are new hybrids. Napier planted varieties with 103- to 112-day maturity rates. "That's how I...
Many major issues were dealt with this past week in the Legislature, with the most significant being the passage of LB 873. When fully implemented, LB 873 will result in almost $900 million in annual tax relief. The legislation sets a floor for the refundable income tax credit of $548 million in 2022 and $560.7 million in 2023. This guarantees an approximate 25% refund for property taxes paid to school districts. Additionally, a similar income tax credit will be implemented for property taxes pa...
The Legislature gave final approval to the budget bills. During the 90-day legislative session, the biennial budget is crafted. During the 60-day session, adjustments are made. This was a much more demanding task this year due to the increased revenue projections and the influx of federal money due to the pandemic. The budget was filibustered at every stage of debate, not because of what was in it, but due to possible amendments that could have been added. The budget sets aside $175 million for...
1. Every county has a U.S. Department of Agriculture Service Center that houses Farm Service Agency and National Resource Conservation Services. This is where farmers and landowners go to access their programs. As a renter, you can still work with these agencies. 2. With FSA and NRCS, you can access financial assistance through conservation programs, farming loans and disaster assistance. 3. What are farm numbers? As a farmer, renter or landowner, you need a farm number to access NRCS or FSA pro...
Holt County Supervisors voted unanimously to deny a perpetual easement application for Graham Crowe Ranch, LLC, during its March 16 meeting. Supervisor Doug Frahm was absent. After a Feb. 28 public hearing, supervisors voted to table a decision until the 16th. Prior to the vote, landowner Les Graham told supervisors, “I guess it’s one of those deals we feel we have the right to do it and it would be good for our ranch. I guess it’s up to you guys to make the decision whether we have the right to...
A new event center and lodge at Niobrara State Park, a new boat launch near the village of Niobrara and expanding the Weigand Marina at Lewis and Clark State Recreational Area, are one step closer to reality, as the Legislature gave first-round approval to LB 1023 on a 29-4 vote. LB 1023 carries out the recommendations of the State Tourism and Recreational Water Access and Resource Sustainability (STAR WARS) Special Committee, of which I am a member. The bill also includes funding for road...
The Legislature has passed the midway mark in this 60-day legislative session. The priority bill designation process is also complete. From this point on, generally only bills with priority status will be debated by the Legislature. Every senator gets to select one bill as their priority bill, every committee can pick two and the speaker is authorized to designate 25 bills as speaker priority bills. I selected LB 925 as my priority bill and it received first-round approval this past week on a...
The Legislature spent four hours this past week debating LB 906, which focuses on employer vaccine mandates. As amended by Health and Human Services Committee amendments, LB 906 would apply to businesses with one or more employees but would only pertain to the COVID-19 vaccine. LB 906 clarifies that if an employer requires employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, an exemption to the mandate is allowed for a medical reason, accompanied by a signed statement from their health care...
ORDINANCE NO. 2022-2 VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER AN ORDINANCE OF THE VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER, NEBRASKA TO AMEND THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN TO ADOPT A WORKFORCE HOUSING PLAN; TO REPEAL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; TO PROVIDE WHEN THIS ORDINANCE SHALL BE IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT; AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ORDINANCE IN PAMPHLET FORM. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CHAIRPERSON AND BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER, NEBRASKA: SECTION 1. That the Board of Trustees, has by Ordinance, adopted an Economic...
The University of Nebraska Board of Regents amended its policies on Feb. 11 in a first step to allowing alcohol sales at more athletic events, beginning with the Big Ten Wrestling Championships at Pinnacle Bank Arena on March 5 and 6. The regents voted 7-0 in favor of the changes. District 4 Regent Elizabeth O'Connor was not in attendance. "I think this makes a lot of sense and is a practical first step if we ever decide to go down the path of allowing alcohol at additional university athletic...
The public hearing on LB 1023 was held Thursday, Feb. 10 before the Natural Resources Committee. It reflects the work of the Statewide Tourism and Recreational Water Access and Resource Sustainability Special Committee and proposes to adopt the Lake Development Act and the Water Recreation Enhancement Act. I was appointed to serve on the STAR WARS Committee, stemming from the passage of LB 406, last year. In addition to recommendations to construct a 3,600-acre lake in or near Sarpy County and...
We have reached the one-third mark of this 60-day legislative session but still have a great deal of work to do. The various standing committees are busy holding public hearings on the 600 bills that were introduced in January. As of Feb. 3, public hearings have been conducted on 257 bills during the first three weeks of hearings, but 343 bills have yet to be heard during the next four weeks, before the public hearing process concludes and the Legislature begins to meet on the floor in full-day...
