Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
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For the second year in a row, the Kimball Food Pantry was the real winner at the Kimball Jr/Sr High School Supermarket Sweep contest on Friday. Eight teams composed of two shoppers each scoured the Main Street Market for 70 specific, high-demand items ranging from 3 pounds of Joyfully Grown Gala Apples to Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies in a 13.1 ounce package. The students had to obtain the correct brand, correct items, and the correct amount of all 70 items. The 70 items from each duo of...
Plans for the 2025 Longhorn All-Class Reunion are being solidified with the dates set for July 3-6, 2025. The reunion committee is on a special mission to find the oldest living graduate of KCHS, with a keen focus on the graduates of 1957, 1958, and 1960. Your presence is not just desired, but it’s crucial to make this event truly memorable. With an influx of individuals hitting the town of Kimball, the All-School Reunion committee is asking for residents with extra rooms to offer up a place for alumni to stay. The Kimball Public School F...
Former Kimball City Councilman and former Mayor Greg Robinson was appointed by current Mayor John Morrison to fill a council seat left vacant by the resignation of Don Muench. Robinson’s appointment was approved at the Oct. 15, 2024 meeting by the council in a 3-0 vote, and the former Larsen’s Jewelry Store owner will assume his duties in November. Morrison said in December there would be two new council members with no experience, and he felt he needed to appoint someone with experience. An executive session completed the council meeting. How...
LeRoy Batt, 81, of Pine Bluffs, WY., died peacefully on Monday, October 14, 2024, at Kimball County Manor. Cremation will take place, with memorial services to be held on Saturday, October 26, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. at the Cantrell Funeral Home in Kimball, followed by a reception and lunch at the Pine Bluffs Senior Center. Friends may visit www.cantrellfh.com to view his Tribute Wall and leave condolences and stories for the family. Memorials may be given in LeRoy's memory to the Pine Bluffs Senior...
Budgets for area governmental entities have been approved by their boards and submitted to the state. Here’s how the budget numbers break down for the city of Kimball, comparing the 2023-24 and 2024-25 budgets. Property Tax Request: $533,102.24 in 2023-24 and $743,113.56 in 2024-25. Valuations: $147,439,939.00 in 2023-24 and $179,818,174.00 in 2024-25. Municipal Levy: 0.361572 in 2023-24 and 0.413258 in 2024-25. Value Attributable to Growth: $2,081,295.00 in 2023-24 and $2,172,301.00 in 2024-25. Real Growth Percentage: 1.68 in 2023-24 and 0...
Kimball’s annual Farmer’s Day celebration is set to promote the spirit of community and dedication to growth and agriculture with a lineup of distinguished dignitaries. This year’s celebration, always a special event for locals, will honor several pillars of the community whose contributions have left a lasting impact. Paul and Jacque Whiting, selected as Grand Marshals for the parade, have played a vital role in Kimball’s development over the past 25 years. Paul, a senior-level manager at Clean Harbors, has been a driving force behind communi...
Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. – the permitted hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facility 5 miles south of Kimball on Highway 71 – has filed a Class 1 Permit Modification Request with the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy. The purpose for the permit modification is to revise several Part B Permit Application sections in order to address clerical errors and provide additional clarification of wording where needed. Those sections are: • C-1 Chemical and Physical Waste Characterization. • C-2 Waste Analysi...
Clean Harbors, Inc. is on track to have a big September and October to celebrate its expansion projects. The projects include housing developments, workforce housing, an apartment complex and a new incinerator. The most significant undertaking, the new $215 million rotary kiln incinerator, is set to commence operations in mid-October. Originally estimated at $185 million in 2019, the project's budget has experienced a 10% to 11% cost increase due to inflation, additional features and design...
Amber Sweetland, director of Kimball Public Library, addressed the Kimball County Commissioners at their regular meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 6. Sweetland requested $20,000 of county funds for the library, while last year the request was $17,000. Sweetland explained many of the programs that the library offers, from the summer reading program to the Makerspace program. The director explained that funding has become a challenge for the library due to the defeat of the city sales tax proposition. She said the library, which is run by the city, lost...
Ordinance #830, which updated the city code relating to Unsafe Buildings and Property Maintenance, generated some strong opinions at the Kimball City Council meeting on Tuesday, July 16. The new ordinance attempts to link the unsafe buildings and nuisance codes. The new ordinance addresses unsafe structures and property maintenance. It also sets minimum standards for what constitutes a safe home. City Attorney Matt Turman explained that the government cannot deprive someone of life, liberty and property without due process. The ordinance and co...
Kimball-Banner County Fair goers will notice a new pavilion constructed this past weekend by members of the Ag Society and volunteers from Clean Harbors. The pavilion will be used for the free hamburger feed and as the beer garden during the rodeo. Below: Elizabeth Perry poses with her Clover Kid project, a Hereford bucket calf named Fire Blue Crystal that she'll be showing at the Kimball-Banner County Fair....
After two public hearings, the Kimball City Council voted to approve and adopt the new zoning ordinance and the new comprehensive plan at the June 18 meeting. John Shepherd from Marvin Planning said they had been working with the City of Kimball and the planning commission for over a year, updating the comprehensive plan and zoning regulations. Marvin Planning held a town hall meeting, conducted surveys and got people’s opinions to develop the plans. According to Shepherd, the comprehensive plan is the strategic plan for the city, and it is the...
Two bids were accepted by the Kimball City Council on June 18 for a chip seal project and concrete repair projects. Areas affected include the site of the new Clean Harbors apartments. The chip seal project includes parts of High School, Marion and Cedar streets, while the concrete repair projects include the 7th and Vista intersection, 6th Street pavement repair near Chestnut, and Evergreen pavement repairs near 8th Street. Timing was perfect for the 7th and Vista intersection project because the sewer and water lines for the Clean Harbor...
A construction bid from Anderson-Shaw Construction totaling $473,569 for two sewer extension projects on Nadine Street (a duplex) and 7th Street (Clean Harbors apartments) was denied by the City Council due to concerns about the cost at the June 4 Kimball City Council meeting. Olson Engineering, the city’s engineering firm, recommended that the council deny the bid for the sewer extensions. It was decided that the City of Kimball could handle the project internally at a much lower cost. Estimates of the costs for doing it internally were e...
Work began May 30 to set Clean Harbors apartments on their foundations across from Kimball County Manor in Kimball. Manor residents anxiously watched the progress and provided a variety of opinions on the process and method. Clean Harbors sponsored an ice cream social for their neighbors at the manor as the new apartments were put in place....
Plans are being made for the Kimball Longhorn All-School Reunion to occur next year after a decade absence. Set aside July 4, 5 and 6 of 2025 to renew old friendships and start new relationships. Chairperson Kim Baliman is thrilled to see the diverse representation from all age groups, ensuring that everyone's voice is heard and the event is a true reflection of our community. Events that have been considered are numerous and include a 4th of July parade, car show, wine tasting, softball tourney...
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...
Some of the new apartments for Clean Harbors Environmental Services employees have arrived and are waiting on the east side of Kimball for ground work to be completed at their final destination by Paul Reed Construction. These apartments will be located across the street from Kimball County Manor. Clean Harbors is involved with multiple developments in Kimball to accommodate employees being hired to meet its expansion needs....
Preparations are being made for the construction of apartments across the street from Kimball County Manor, top center, for employees of expanding Clean Harbors Environmental Services. The lots were leveled and infrastructure has been installed. The premanufactured units should be arriving soon, and expectations are that the 16 units will be ready for occupancy sometime in May. There are eight one-bedroom rentals, four two-bedroom units, and 4-three bedroom units planned....
New housing is taking shape in Kimball to accommodate new hires needed for the major Clean Harbors expansion. In addition to other residential growth that Clean Harbors is backing locally, the environmental services giant has contracted with a company to bring mobile homes into Kimball. Stahla's Trailer Park, above, is the sight of 25 such new mobile homes that are being set up and prepared as rentals....
Gov. Pillen arrived in Kimball for the Kimball Health Services hospital ribbon cutting on Monday, Feb 26, but he also tended to other business. The governor and his entourage landed on the newly resurfaced Kimball Municipal Airport runway 10/28 and found the landing was incredible. The resurfacing project recently received a 2023 Project of the Year award from the state. Before the ribbon cutting, Pillen met with KCTS staff and toured Kimball Public Schools. Pillen and members of his Department...
Kimball County Transit Service Administrator Christy Warner informed the Kimball County Commissioners at their Tuesday meeting that Gov. Jim Pillen and the Nebraska Department of Transportation Director Vicki Kramer will visit the transit service Feb. 26 from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Statistics for KCTS also were presented by Warner. Of 33,943 rides for the calendar year 2023, 61% were from Kimball County. Other numbers showed that 8,843 rides were educational and preschool, school or college; 3,690 rides were for employment; 2,086 were deliveries f...
After public hearings and agenda items, the Kimball City Council rezoned two properties from single family residential to multi-family residential for a planned Clean Harbors housing developent. At the public hearings, the council heard neighbors of the properties voice concerns about traffic, the number of apartments, and the stipulation that Clean Harbors open the apartments to the general public. The two rezoned tracts directly north of Kimball County Manor were re-plated to one tract. The...
The discussion on Gotti Park playground equipment and surfacing consumed a significant amount of time at the Kimball City Council meeting on Tuesday evening, Nov. 21. A variety of colors for the playground surfacing were discussed, but no decision was made. Concerns were raised about the heat retention and pricing of the surface. Other suggestions included matching the surface with the red, white and blue structure. A cost difference between the current funds and expenses for the playground...
Main Street Market hosted a wild and intense Supermarket Sweep on Friday, the brainchild of Kimball Jr/Sr High School Principal Danielle Reader to benefit the Kimball Food Pantry. Thirty-two students from Kimball Jr./High School raced, ran, searched and scoured the shelves for the 61 items on the shopping list. Reader explained that "Throughout the years, our school community, comprising both staff and students, has dedicated itself to various endeavors aimed at gathering essential food items...