Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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With the Nov. 5 election in the books two years after he was appointed to the Banner County Commissioner, Don Lease was elected in his own right to a four-year term. He had 314 votes, 10 write-in votes and 65 undervotes (undervotes are the number of ballots left blank on that issue). Banner County School Board had three seats open and three individuals vying for those seats. Jacob Knaub and John-Robert J. Faden tallied up 277 votes each, and Laura Baker had 252. There also were 10 write-in votes and 318 undervotes. All three individuals will...
Eldon Cramer and the American Legion Post 36 Color Guard presented the colors and the 13 point flag ceremony during the Veterans Day program at Banner County School. National Honor Society students and sponsors Kaitlin Knaub and Kinsey Groves assisted, and Mical Cooper organized the musical numbers....
Kimball Public Schools Food Service Director Danessa Terrill praised local groups and community members for the generous donations to pay off previous lunch debts. The lunch debt fund received significant contributions from the Knights of Columbus, the Red Knights and the Masonic Lodge. Other donations came from an account that Terrill set up in honor of former employee Vicki Kaczar; they received $750 from that account, which paid for milk and seconds on food items for children. Terrill shared with the board on Monday evening, October 14, that...
A number of mayoral appointments were made Sept. 24 at the Kimball City Council meeting. Mike Downey was appointed to the Planning Commission, Tammy Land to the Board of Public Works, and Jodel “Jody” Keeler to the Housing Authority Board. In other business, Police Chief Jose Ruiz presented a mutual aid agreement with the City of Sidney Police Department, which was approved by the council. This agreement allows Kimball officers to assist in Sidney when necessary, particularly in executing search or arrest warrants. Sidney officer also will ass...
After a solid win by the Longhorn girls varsity basketball team, Kimball Public Schools dedicated the gym court to Tom and Karen Southard. The dedication took place on Dec. 5, 2021, just short of a year since Tom's passing on Dec. 6, 2020. Karen was joined by her family, including daughter and son-in-law, Shelly and Rick Olson, son and daughter-in-law, Doug and Kim Southard, grandchildren and great-grandchildren for the dedication. Longtime game announcer Greg Robinson shared thoughts from the K...
The Kimball School Board approved two projects for the high school during its most recent regular meeting June 15. First, an LED lighting project and renovation project on the junior high/senior high walls were approved and will begin shortly. Mohr Ranch and Construction received the bid to remove 5780 square feet of carpet in the hallways and texture drywall, prime, and paint the walls for a total of $18,500. In addition, Strauch Electric received the bid to remove old lighting fixtures and install new LED lighting in various classrooms. Two...
The Kimball County commissioners heard a financial update from the Veterans Service Office assistant, Darcee Wheeland on Tuesday, May 3, at their regular semimonthly meeting. According to Wheeland’s records, Kimball County veterans or spouses received $34,395 in April from Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) compensation, VA pensions, retired military funding, or VIP Program Care. About 350 veterans live in the county. Christy Warner, the transit administrator, reported that the service is busy and has hired three new drivers and an i...
Since March 17, 2020, the Kimball senior center has been closed to the public and only providing curbside service. Now the Kimball Senior Center at 107 S. Oak Street is open again for business for regular sit down meals. Lunchtime meals are served inside at 11:30 a.m. Monday through Friday, but curbside service still exists. The senior center menu is featured in every edition of the Observer and appears on Page A6 this week. Call ahead for meals at 308-235-4505....
A local citizen posed this question to the Observer: Who is responsible for cleaning up the alleys? Here is what the Observer found out about the alley situation. The city has a 20-foot easement in the alleys, 10 feet from the center on each side. The Street Department and Katie Potterf, the community service officer are responsible for helping to keep the alleyway clear for trash pickup and the city utilities department. Jim Shoup, head of the street department, said there is a lot of encroachm...
The City of Kimball is looking to fill a vacancy on the Kimball City Council as a result of the resignation of council President Kim Baliman. Baliman’s letter of resignation was made available to the public on a table at the April 20 council meeting. She referred to matters surrounding the mayoral recall petition as among the factors in her decision. As for the vacancy, residents wishing to submit their name must do so by 4:30 p.m. May 14. Letters must include the applicant’s name, address, phone number, email address, reasons for interest in f...
On Monday, following the April 20 Kimball City Council meeting, Mayor Keith Prunty said he was "very pleased with the courtesy shown by everyone" regarding a proposal to rezone Ridgewood Trailer Park. He said that with a positive attitude like that, "things can be accomplished." The council had directed the Porters, the project developers, and city officials to work together and look for some common ground for revamping the old Ridgewood Trailer Park. Prunty said the plans have been revised and...
Nebraska Coffee has outgrown its location on Highway 30 and will expand and move to a recently purchased downtown building near the underpass. Owner Hannah Snyder shared with the Observer some pertinent information about her new venture. "We won't have just one drive-through window," she said. "We'll have two." During the worst of the COVID-19 crisis, Snyder realized that she needed more room, and there was no way in its present location to expand or grow. So she began looking for a building, an...
The Kimball County Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, April 20, with much of their meeting consumed by discussion of road department equipment. According to Randy Bymer, road superintendent, road grader operators were out on Friday after the last significant snow. They were only out until it got “sloppy,” Bymer said, “and it got sloppy fast.” Bymer notified the commissioners that fixing the county’s 1982 John Deere loader was getting more difficult because parts are hard to find for that unit. Also, the 1977 belly dump has the s...
How do you recall a recall? Kimball County Clerk Cathy Sibal said she has received a phone call from one of the petitioners looking to recall Mayor Keith Prunty inquiring about withdrawing her recall petition – but it appears the only way to stop the process is to let it move forward. Nothing in the recall statutes addresses withdrawing a petitioner’s recall forms. A spokesperson in the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office told the Observer that “once the recall petition is filed, no one can stop it, it is official.” Even though the individua...
In February 1963, 16 trailers were brought in and parked in the area east of the Sunnyview Addition in Kimball, the start of what would be known as Boeing's Trailer City. According to the Feb. 14, 1963, Western Nebraska Observer, 150 trailers would eventually house missile families. The area would be complete with streetlights, fire hydrants, and telephone lines. Missile families would call this their home for the next few years. After the late '60s, the trailer park held far fewer than 150 trai...
Kimball's Japanese Restaurant, Ondori Ramen, does not yet have an opening date set, according to owner Edi Yanto. He told the Observer that he is still not sure when that day will come, but he will let everyone know. The planned restaurant is located at 114 S. Chestnut Street. From a quick tour of the building, it appears that things are progressing. Electricity for the kitchen is almost complete. Overhead hoods still need to be installed and the drop ceiling in the kitchen area needs to be put...
Details in the Kimball Public Schools treasurer’s report in April 2021 show a significant increase in total available funds from the previous year. The information was presented at last week’s school board meeting. The district shows $2.8 million in total available funds now, compared to $1.63 million in April 2020. The balance remaining after expenses depicts a similar story as in April 2020 – $2.28 million remains after expenses, while in April 2020, $1.04 million was the bottom line after costs. Further information on the treas...
After a lengthy absence, a trap shooting club has returned to the Kimball area. Spearheading the renewal of trapshooting was Brittany Cook, but she is quick to give credit to many others that helped get the event going. "Kelly Garrett was so helpful in pointing me in the right directions and to the right people to get everything lined up," Brittany said. "Jeremy Williams worked with us and got (support from) the Park and Rec board. The school worked with us to allow us to use the name (Kimball...
Forget calling it the old Shopko building. The new name is Kimball Ace Hardware, according to owner Jeff Lepp. Lepp spent about 40 minutes telling the Observer about his new store in Kimball. "We have extraordinary plans for this location," he said. Lepp likes the Ace Hardware brand because most of the stores are independently owned and operated. The store will be a work in progress, especially the first year, due to multiple problems with trucking, vendors, supply chain, signage, licensing,...
The Kimball County Commissioners met on Feb. 2 at 9 a.m. in the Kimball County Courthouse. Randy Bymer, County Highway superintendent, discussed grading and gravel operations on the county roads. According to Bymer, many areas are suffering from washboard roads and this is due to the dry conditions, although they are trying to control them and address some of the complaints. Bymer has had some issues with the GPS units, which have recently been placed on all road graders and some county pickups. The GPS units track where the grader is on a...
On Dec. 30, the Kimball County Manor became one of the first nursing homes in the area to have residents and staff get the COVID-19 vaccination. According to Director of Nursing Sarah Stull, 31 out of 41 nursing home residents took the shot while 13 out of 15 individuals in the assisted living also received the vaccination. Staff were also vaccinated with 12 taking the vaccination, but 12 to 15 more have signed up to receive their first dose in 21 days when the others receive their second shot....
At 3 pounds, 13 ounces, the tiny newborn Rayah Dye was sent home from a Denver hospital on hospice. Rayah's mom, Tiffani, said the medical personnel repeatedly told her and her husband that Rayah "would never live" and therefore "we were not prepared to bring her home at all." They had no car seat, no clothes for the baby, no diapers, not even a blanket. Tiffani admits that emotionally "they had completely detached themselves from her," but that wouldn't last. Hospice wasn't a total surprise to...
This article includes responses to an Observer questionnaire from the six candidates seeking four seats, including that of departing Lynn Vogel, on the Kimball School Board in the Nov. 3 general election. The order of their responses is presented alphabetically, according to the first letter of each candidate's last name. The candidates are: Jennifer Griebel Albert Hargreaves Lanny Little Heather Norberg Tom O'Brien Chauncey Pedersen This full article can be read in the Observer print edition or by subscribing to the Observer online digital...
Pouring concrete at the Kimball Area Foundation Fund Walking Trail are David Atkins, left, and Americorps volunteer, Ezic Redmonds from Sacramento, Calif. AmeriCorps and local volunteers worked to spruce up the trail. Atkins and Redmonds were setting the base for memorial benches while others worked to clean up parts of the trail and put a rock entrance at the dog park....
The Air Force announced that F.E. Warren AFB, Wyo., will begin military construction in 2023 to replace the 50-year-old Minuteman III ICBMs in Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming. The second installation will be in Malmstrom AFB, Mont., followed by Minot AFB, N.D., in 2026 and 2029, respectively. Congress has already appropriated $90 billion for the replacement of the old missiles and the installation of the new missiles at the three missile bases. According to the release, "Using infrastructure at...