Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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The Kimball City Council conducted six public hearings at its Tuesday, April 16, meeting. The hearings were to subdivide and rezone three specific areas destined for new housing. The Lighthouse subdivision, owned by Clean Harbors, Inc., located west of Highway 71 and south of Kimball’s Ninth Street, was re-platted and rezoned to include a mix of single-family and multifamily districts. The only comment received was from council candidate Austin Garner. He said that “there was a missed opportunity” because a park and a walking trail shoul...
Deb Hays and David Craig of Kimball have formed a unique family bond with their two foreign exchange students, Matias Sokas from Norway and Francesco Cagnoni from Italy, both seniors at Kimball Jr./Sr. High School. Suffering from the empty nest syndrome and a tranquil household, the couple previously sponsored foreign students and decided to renew their experience. The program's rewards are plentiful, but the primary goal is "getting to know the students themselves" and their culture and traditi...
On Thursday, April 18, Michael Hammond, Jr., 42 from Moorcroft, Wyoming, sought treatment at the Kimball Health Services emergency room for a stab wound to the face. Medical and hospital staff are required by law to report gunshot and stab wounds to the authorities, and the Kimball County Sheriff's Office responded to the hospital after being notified. After an investigation and questioning of Hammond, it was determined that the stabbing had not occurred in Nebraska but happened in Campbell...
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen declared a disaster declaration for Kimball, Banner, Cheyenne, Garden, Morrill and Scotts Bluff counties after the April 6-7 high winds and blizzard conditions. The damage to the affected counties is expected to exceed $5.4 million. Region 22 Emergency Management Director Tim Newman said that Scotts Bluff and Banner counties experienced "some minor cosmetic damages like roofing materials." According to Newman, "This declaration will only be for public agencies such as...
Senior Braylon Miller, a standout among Kimball's art students, showcased his exceptional works and creativity at the recent Kimball Art Show. The event was proof to the artistic abilities of students from kindergarten to high school. Art teacher Mr. Mark Jefferis explained, "The art show provides us with the opportunity to show students that we are proud of their work and to share with the community the artistic abilities of students at Kimball Public Schools." Braylon's artwork from this year...
In a unanimous vote, the Kimball School Board amended teacher Christine Lewis’s employment contract from full- to quarter-time employment in a hearing conducted after the regular board meeting on Monday evening, April 8. The board deliberated during in executive session and returned from the executive session to approve the contract amendment. Superintendent Trevor Anderson presented the administration’s case to amend the contract due to the loss of distance learning students in Spanish 1 and...
Track season is well underway, and the practices are paying off as Longhorns are setting plenty of personal records. Kimball pole vaulters took first and second at the Western Trails Conference meet at Mitchell. Battling back and forth for top placings at meets are sophomores Trevor Fuss and Peter Russell. Fuss took first with a personal record of 14'4", while Russell PR-ed with 13'7" for second place. Another Kimball duo, Derek Russell and Wyatt Cords scored points and personal records in the d...
Thirty-year-old Stevn Graupensperger was confined to the Kimball County Jail in December of last year. He was twice arrested for possession of methamphetamine in four weeks. His life was out of control, and he knew it. Using meth was his excuse to cope with losses, heartbreaks and difficulties. Graupensperger mentality was "pity-poor me," or "I just wanted to escape because I didn't feel comfortable in my skin." He was "fair-warned before any ingestion" of the power of meth, "but I thought I...
The Tuesday, April 2, the Kimball City Council meeting began with Kim Baliman providing an update on the 2025 Kimball High School All-Class Reunion. The last All-Class Reunion was held in 2015. The 2025 event is scheduled for July 4, 5 and 6. The organizers’ goal is to have 500 people in attendance for a parade, wine tasting, a craft and car show in the park, and various other events. The 2025 reunion is in honor of Karen Robinson and Harry McNees. In other business, the UNL traffic follow-up study was again on the agenda. The street d...
Sheriff Dave Hottell met with the Kimball County Commissioners to report on the first quarter 2024. He reported that 911 calls have decreased from 442 to 284 this quarter, although service calls for the sheriff’s office have increased from 370 in the first quarter of 2023 to 504 this quarter. Arrests increased from 38 in the first quarter of last year to 44 in the first quarter of 2024. Meanwhile, VIN inspections have almost tripled from 450 in the first quarter of last year to 1,230 in the first quarter of this year. Hottell introduced his s...
For the past two years the Kimball FFA Food Science team has been disappointed, but the disappointment disappeared this year as they brought home the state championship. The team consists of seniors Grace Anderson, Carlee Murdoch, Hayden Sours and Julia Winstrom. Julia expressed their two-year disappointment with, "The past two years, we have come up short on this championship. We worked hard and gave it our all last year, and unfortunately, we came up short by 7 points. It was heartbreaking."...
Leota Kant, 86, was arraigned in Kimball District Court on Tuesday morning on the offense of attempt of a class 1/1A/1/B/1/C/1/D felony and use of a firearm to commit a felony. Both Kant and her attorney, Stuart Dornan, appeared by Zoom for the proceedings. Kant’s attorney entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity for her, stating that she was evaluated on Nov 29, 2023, and it was determined that she suffers from dementia. Due to her vulnerability, Ms. Kant is safely housed in an assisted living facility at this time. Special p...
Former Kimball Chief of Police Andrew Bremer faces a May 7 arraignment. It stems from a citation issued to him on Jan. 31 from the Nebraska State Patrol citing four counts of official misconduct. Each of the charges has a maximum of six months imprisonment or a $1,000 fine or both, and there is no minimum. The complaint from Kimball County special prosecuting attorney Mirah J. Nickel cites that the incidents happened between September 16, 2022, and April 24, 2023. The charges center on “directing, encouraging, or instructing a trainee to act a...
On April 1, the Kimball Police were dispatched to a residence on the 500 block of Walnut Street in Kimball for a disturbance call. The investigation led to evidence of child abuse, and an arrest was made. Garret Goodwin, 25, was arrested and taken into custody and charged with one count of felony child abuse and one county of misdemeanor child abuse. In other Kimball police matters, Chief Jose Ruiz discussed some upcoming plans for the department. He said the plans reflect his goals of maintaining professionalism, building relationships within...
Mountain lion sightings have recently been reported in parts of Banner County and the northern part of the town of Sidney. With calving season in full bloom, the mountain lions are a concern for area ranchers. Sidney Police Chief Joe Aikens confirmed the mountain lion sighting in Sidney and cautioned people to be aware and keep an eye on small pets. Sam Wilson, a carnivore biologist for Nebraska Game and Parks said that mountain lion sightings increased gradually over the past 30 years as...
At the special Kimball City Council meeting on March 19, county resident Roger Kaczmarek spoke to the council about the city billing the monthly landfill fee to county residents. According to state statutes, county residents are charged a monthly landfill fee because dumping and burning is illegal. The Kimball Landfill is a city facility, but previously Kimball County had billed and collected the landfill fees from residents and then remitted a check to the city for those fees. In an...
On Tuesday morning, word came from KCTS Administrator Christy Warner that $212,000 of reimbursements had come through from the state to help KTCS meet its financial obligations. At the most recent Kimball County Commissioners meeting, Warner requested a loan of $210,000 to continue operating KCTS because reimbursements from the Nebraska Department of Transportation had been delayed. As of Tuesday, Warner said that KCTS will still receive a $15,000 transfer from the county to continue operating. In an effort to obtain more information about the...
After a two-day trial in Kimball County district court, a California man was found guilty on four felony charges. His bond continues, and he will be sentenced on May 7 at 2:30 p.m. In just under two hours, the jury of five women and seven men found Andrew Mendoza guilty of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, no drug tax stamp, and carrying a concealed weapon. The charges stemmed from a speeding incident on I-80 on Nov. 2, 2021, a case that didn’t reach t...
On Saturday evening the Kimball FFA hosted its annual labor auction along with the FFA Alumni sponsoring the meal and other events. According to FFA instructor Emily Sowards, more than 250 people took advantage of the event. Thirty-two students were auctioned off for eight hours of work each. The top selling students were Dakota Vrbas for $1,500 and Julia Winstrom reeling in $1,300. All the money remains in the FFA chapter. The students receive the benefits in the form of scholarships, contest...
Inmate Jordan Crews has a new set of charges to contend with from an incident on March 13 in the Kimball County Jail. The new charges include a 3A felony assault by a confined person-no weapon and misdemeanor criminal mischief. Crews was transferred to the Lincoln County Detention Center and is being held on a bond of $25,000. He is scheduled to appear March 27 for a Kimball County Court status of waiver of preliminary hearing. Crews is represented by Stacy Bach. Crews, 27, was arrested on March 9 during a Kimball drug bust and charged with pos...
Kimball County commissioners Rich Flores, and Carl Stander voted to approve, if necessary, on Tuesday, March 19, the transfer of $210,000 from the inheritance fund to the general fund to pay KCTS payroll and bills due to a holdup in state funding. The discussion prior to the vote focused on cutting transit services, such as shutting routes down. Administrator Christy Warner said, “Everything is connected,” and a public hearing must be held in order to shut services down. The financial operation of the KCTS has been crippled because rei...
Last week’s Observer article “A Look At Kimball Land Swap Plan” stirred some discussion among residents on the practicality of the land swap. Under the Kimball Rec land swap plan, four ballfields on 44 acres at the Rec Center would be exchanged for 4.5 acres that include the former Windbreak Restaurant and two golf sheds. The Windbreak Restaurant would be remodeled into a Four Winds Golf Course pro shop with a possible bar. The entity in charge of the land swap or conversion is the Park and Rec Executive Board. Residents have expressed inter...
See something. Say something. That was the message. The Kimball County Transit Service building was packed with local and state law enforcement, politicians, city and county employees, a group from Sidney, and citizens interested in learning about threat assessments and the need to report suspicious activity. Nebraskans are of the mindset to mind your own business, but speaker Lt. Monty Lovelace, director of the Nebraska Fusion Center, said those days are over. He said people need to be vigilant...
Keep Kimball Beautiful scored big again in the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy financial awards. In response to being awarded the money, Director Spud Rowley said, "The totes are coming to the alleyways." He said the totes are in high demand, and he is constantly being asked for alley totes for residents to place recyclables to be collected The Kimball facility, operational for 42 years and functioning out of the city building for the past 30 years, received three different grants...
Banner County FFA adviser Bill Gifford reported that 200 people were in attendance at the recent 2nd ever FFA auction. The FFA Boosters served the meal and feedback has been very positive on the event. Gifford said, "I think we collected nearly $20,000 in donations this year, and we were overwhelmed with that number. "We really are grateful to our community and the surrounding communities that supported us. It is very humbling to think that so many can be so generous in so many ways to support...