Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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William Serrano was meant to appear in district court on Tuesday, March 1, via Zoom, but there was difficulty with the Department of Corrections. Serrano was represented by his attorney from the Nebraska Commission on Public Advocacy, Kelly Breen. Serrano's next court date is set for 2:30 p.m. May 3 in district court. Serrano was scheduled for an arraignment on Tuesday, but Breen filed an oral motion called a Plea in Abatement. Breen has also requested the transcripts from the preliminary hearing in county court. Plea in Abatement is defined...
A reader sent the Observer a letter asking “what is this Consumption Tax? How does it work? All that is ever in the paper is from those who are pushing. They do not explain anything about it.” Here is what the Observer learned. This is the second year that Sen. Steve Erdman from Bayard has introduced the Consumption Tax. It failed last year on General File, but Erdman re-introduced it. Erdman told the Observer that if it can get through the three rounds of debate and receive 30 votes on Final Reading, then it will be placed on the ballot in...
"How many people in the world do you know that have got to announce the games of the sixth-leading scorer in NCAA basketball history, Mike Daum. I got to announce all of his home games. So I have got to see some fantastic kids and some fantastic athletes." – Greg Robinson Long-time Kimball High School sports announcer Greg Robinson has decided to hang up his microphone. No doubt he will still be in the stands to cheer on the Longhorns, but he hasn't quite pinpointed where he will sit after y...
The Kimball School Board met in special session on Monday Feb. 21, to listen to the final presentation from president Jacob Hurla of Community Building Solutions. After the presentation, the board unanimously approved a $2.8 million improvement package for the Jr./Sr. High and Mary Lynch schools. The improvements will replace heating units and add cooling capacity to both facilities, as well as air purification units. Other improvements include LED lighting at Mary Lynch and new windows and doors at the Jr./ Sr. High School. According to... Full story
Clean Harbors submitted the winning bid of $1,000 to purchase two lots combined (Parcels 530018519 and 530018527) across from the Kimball County Manor at the most recent Kimball City Council meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 15. The Clean Harbors proposal would “develop much needed multi-unit housing to support our need to attract 100 new workers to Kimball in 2023 and 2024.” The Clean Harbors proposal is for an 8-unit, 7,000-square-foot multifamily building with units of 2 bedrooms, 2 baths of approximately 875 square foot each. Brian Johnson from Joh...
A full house of fishermen and Oliver Lake enthusiasts crowed into the Kimball County Transit building meeting room to get an update on the history, current happenings, and future plans for the popular recreational site. South Platte Natural Resource General Manager Galen Wittrock introduced the Oliver Reservoir Advisory Committee and then talked budget. The Oliver operating budget is $78,537, and the donations box has netted over $21,000 the past year. Wittrock explained that donations work...
As a candidate for governor, Brett Lindstrom stopped by Kimball on Saturday to meet and greet. With this trip from Kimball back to the eastern part of the state, the Republican will have visited and campaigned in all 93 counties. Lindstrom has represented District 18, which is in northwest Omaha, in the Nebraska Unicameral for the past eight years. Lindstrom has been on the Banking, Commerce, and Revenue Committee and was instrumental in ending the tax on Social Security, which has been phased in and will end in 2023. Recently, Lindstrom chose...
The Kimball County Commissioners on Tuesday, Feb. 15, ratified the date for the hearing of the One and Six Year Road Improvement Plan. This public hearing is held to receive public input and comment on the plan. The hearing will be at March 1. The board also ratified terms for the bids for chip sealing 6.1 miles of asphalt roads. The bid will need to be received by 4 p.m. Feb. 28 and will be opened on March 1 at 9:30 a.m. Meanwhile, previous information had been received on the last discussion items that the commissioners approved, including...
A preliminary hearing for William Shane Serrano was held in Kimball County Court on Feb. 11 at 1:30 p.m. with County Judge Randin Roland presiding. Serrano appeared for the hearing with his state-appointed attorney Kelly Breen and Stacy Bach, the Kimball County public defender. Appearing in an orange jumpsuit printed with Kimball County Sheriff Department, Serrano was returned from Scotts Bluff County Detention Center to Kimball County for the preliminary hearing. The prosecution was represented by Special Deputy Kimball Attorney Douglas...
"My name is Eddie, I'm in eighth grade, and I am under a lot of pressure." Eddie Duran spoke those words shortly before he correctly spelled the winning word, "columns," in the 2022 Kimball Public Schools spelling bee. "I spelled it, got it correct and I won," he said. Fourth grader Ben Anderson captured second place. Eddie said when he signed up for the spelling bee, "I had no intention of winning." But win he did – and he received a chocolate bar and a trophy. "It was my ever first trophy," h... Full story
The Kimball School Board received and accepted three resignations effective at the end of the 2021-22 school year. Resignations were received from athletic director Ken Smith and teachers Francis Carolyn Montgomery and Jeffrey Hoatson. Ken Smith's letter reflected on his 29 years with the district and ended his letter with, "I feel that at this time Kimball Public Schools is heading in a very positive direction and I want to wish you (Mr. Anderson) and the rest of the school system success in...
The Supreme Court lifted an injunction that blocked the COVID-19 vaccine mandate and allowed it to go into effect in 24 states in facilities that accept funding from Medicare and Medicaid – and Nebraska is one of the states. According to Jalene Carpenter from Nebraska Health Care Association, the vaccine mandate for facilities that accept Medicare and Medicaid has been reinstated in Nebraska. These facilities include Kimball Health Services and Kimball County Manor. Beginning Monday, Feb. 14, individuals who have not received their vaccine a...
In preparation for summer fun and recreation, area campers, fishermen, hunters and boaters will want to attend the Oliver Reservoir Recreation Area Information Meeting – Past, Present, and Future on Feb. 17 at the Kimball County Transit Service building. South Platte Natural Resources General Manager Galen Wittrock has released a tentative agenda for the 7 p.m. meeting. Wittrock will provide an overview, the goals and management practices for Oliver Reservoir. At the same time, Oliver R... Full story
The new owners of Flower Haven in Kimball, Joe and Andrea Harroun, spent the last year learning their new business and remodeling the store. "Everything takes time," Andrea explains. They have put in a new floor, updated the bathroom, painted, and still have many more improvements to make, but they are ready for one of their most important days of the year, Valentine's Day. The Harrouns have learned that other big days in the flower business are Mother's Day, Memorial Day, Christmas,...
To say Ed Nelson is a pilot is a bit of an understatement. Ed Nelson was recently inducted into Nebraska's Aviation Hall of Fame. Ironically, his father, Leonard, was inducted 20 years earlier. Nebraska's Aviation Hall of Fame was started in 1991 "with the intent of preserving the memory of Nebraskans who have made outstanding contributions to aviation, and to preserve the memory of their immeasurable contribution to our state and county." Nominees from all walks of life are welcome – e...
Just as fast as the COVID-19 cases rose in early January, the cases have decreased in the past weeks. On Tuesday, Panhandle Public Health District reported that Kimball County had four cases in the last seven days – down significantly from previous weeks. PPHD data for Kimball County shows 760 total positive cases with 12 deaths during the pandemic. Last week, the positivity rate was 10.7%, with 17 active hospitalizations in the Panhandle. Free, at-home COVID-19 tests are available by calling 8...
The manslaughter case of the State of Nebraska against William Serrano remains in Kimball County Court for now. Court documents show that a preliminary hearing is scheduled for Feb. 11. Serrano, 36, is charged with manslaughter, which is a 2A felony. He is accused of shooting his girlfriend, Tessa Ghering, 21, at their home in Kimball. Ghering died at the scene. Serrano remains in Scotts Bluff County Detention Center with bond set at $100,000. On Jan. 20, all parties appeared via telephone and/o... Full story
The Kimball County Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, Feb. 1. First on the agenda was County Road Superintendent Randy Bymer. He informed the commissioners that he set March 1 at 9:15 a.m. for the public hearing for the 1/6 Year Road Plan. Then Bymer reviewed and answered questions about the future chip seal project on county roads. To chip seal, one mile of a paved county road will cost about $26,000, including rock, contract labor, oil and hauling. The county has about 13 miles of paved roads. Chip sealing adds about 4-5 years...
The competitive side of Kimball Cobras Tumbling and Trampoline members comes with the talent and hardware to prove that they can do the flips. With two competitions under their belt, including meets at Gering and Lafayette, Colo., the girls have all brought home medals and proven themselves in their age group. The leader and most experienced gymnast of the Cobras is 11-year-old Breckyn Keifer. Breckyn is in her fifth year of gymnastics. For the two-hour practice, Breckyn spends much of her time...
Keith Jones of Kimball is "keeping his fingers crossed" in the hopes of receiving a kidney. The kidney can come from either a living donor or a cadaver (after death donation). Even though he is waiting for a transplant, Keith is not about to let the need for a kidney donation interfere with his daily life. After a lengthy diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes combined with high blood pressure, by August 2021, it was determined by doctors at UC Health in Denver, Anschutz Campus, that Keith needed a... Full story
In late September 2021, the Nebraska Legislature approved the redistricting of the Nebraska legislative districts, and Gov. Pete Rickets approved the map. The redistricting is a result of the 2020 census. Kimball and Banner counties, along with Scotts Bluff County, will become District 48, effective for the legislative elections of 2022. Kimball County had been part of District 47 and was represented by Sen. Steve Erdman. Erdman will no longer represent Kimball County. The field is forming to...
COVID-19 has made a comeback to the area in recent weeks. According to the Panhandle Unified Command's last briefing on Jan. 19, Kimball County had 28 cases over the past seven days. By Monday, Jan. 24, the number increased to 30 with 725 total confirmed cases of Covid. Jessica Davies from PPHD said, "The latest sequencing in the Panhandle shows 75% of new cases are the omicron variant. In Nebraska, 94% of new cases are omicron." The omicron virus is spreading more easily than the original...
The Kimball City Council convened at 6 p.m. Jan 18 for its regular meeting. The council voted to change the meeting date to once a month. Meetings will be on the third Tuesday for the next couple of months until there is more on their agenda. Kimball Library Director Amber Sweetland gave her annual report to the board highlighting youth and teen programs, active attendance at the library and computer usage. In addition, the library has 26 periodical and two newspaper subscriptions. Matt Shoup from the electric department gave a presentation on...
Candidates filing for political office in Kimball County started bright and early on Jan 5. Christy Warner filed for mayor and was the first person to file at 8:14 a.m. Other filings for mayor of Kimball included John A. Morrison. The mayoral position is a nonpartisan position and a four-year term. Other filings for the City of Kimball were Creg Pike for Kimball City Council, which is a four-year term. The incumbent filing period is from Jan. 5 to Feb. 15, while nonincumbents have from Jan. 5 until March 1 to file. At 8:16 a.m., Harry Gillway...
About 25 people attended the first Kimball City Council meeting of the year. Many businesses owners had been waiting for the new round of business improvement grants to be released at the beginning of the year. The following businesses – GRI, Dino's Pet Spa and Muench Electric, Woody's Liquor and Sporting Goods, Kimball State Bank, Karen's Kitchen, and Ondori Ramen – received more than $42,000 for business improvement grants. The business improvements included everything from new signs, refrigeration, lighting, flooring, ADA bathrooms, ele... Full story