The coordinator of the Sundown Salute fundraiser Mudd Bogg. Eric Boland, said it was a good event on Saturday.

The amount of money raised to support the Fourth of July celebration, Sundown Salute, is not yet known. but Boland estimated there were about 150 drivers and 400-500 spectators at the Mudd Bogg site in the 1000 block of Grant Avenue. In this event drivers of modified trucks are clocked as they take them through a 200-foot long mud pit.

Boland talked about his favorite exciting entry, pointing to a 3,000 horsepower vehicle by Glen Eickelberry, Palco. “It was loud, it even hurt my ears, it was that loud.” Boland said it was a new event for some people, who had never attended Mudd Bogg before, and they liked it.

Boland plans to continue the Mudd Bogg next year, but he would like to grow the event with bigger sponsors and added cash prizes for the drivers. That in turn could attract more drivers and trucks. He also wants to change dates, possibly moving to a different weekend when there are not so many activities occurring in the community. Right now he is considering a mid-June time frame.

Junction City will be a busy place on Saturday and Sunday.

The lineup on Saturday includes commencement exercises for Saint Xavier High School at 2 p.m. and for Junction City High School at 7 p.m.

The Mudd Bogg fundraiser for Sundown Salute is scheduled from 1 p.m. until about 10 p.m. in the 1000 block of Grant Avenue. Admission will be $10 for adults while children 10 and under will be admitted free.

The Cyber Bowling for Muscular Dystrophy sponsored by the Junction City Firefighters and Junction City Bowl is scheduled from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m.at Junction City Bowl. The charge to play will be $5 per bowler.

Run for the Wall stops in Junction City on Sunday afternoon. The CVB has estimated more than 770 riders will travel off I-70 up South Washington Street to Heritage Park, where there will be a ceremony about 5 p.m. The riders are making a cross country trip to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C.  They will spend the night in Junction City and then travel on east on Monday.

Memories at the Museum: First Responders of Geary County will be Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Geary County Historical Museum. Local emergency responders — firefighters, paramedics, law enforcement, dispatchers & more — and their loved ones are invited to share memories about their time serving Geary County, and to tell how things have changed.

 

Topeka – The Kanas Corporation Commission (KCC) will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, May 22 to receive input from Westar Energy customers on the company’s rate change request.  The public hearing will begin at 6 p.m. at the Washburn Institute of Technology, Main Conference Center, Building A, located at 5724 SW Huntoon in Topeka.

 

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about the proposed rate change, ask questions and make comments to KCC Commissioners. Members of the public can attend in person or watch a live broadcast of the hearing on the Commission’s website: www.kcc.ks.gov. For those unable to watch live, a recording of the hearing will be available on the Commission’s website beginning May 30.

The application, filed by Westar in February, requests a $1.56 million dollar rate decrease effective September 2018 and a $54.2 million dollar rate increase in February 2019 for the company’s retail rate customers.  Combined, the adjustments would increase prices by $52.6 million. If approved, residential customers with average monthly consumption of 900 kilowatt hours of electricity will see a monthly increase of $5.91 per month. The request also includes updated tariffs for customers who installed their own source of electric power after October 28, 2015. A complete copy of Westar Energy’s Application and supporting testimony is available on the Commission’s website.

The Commission will accept public comments through 5 p.m. CDT, July 18, 2018. There are three convenient ways to submit a comment:

1. Go to the KCC website (www.kcc.ks.gov) and click on the “Your Opinion Matters” link to

       enter a comment.

2)   Send a written letter to the Kansas Corporation Commission, Office of Public Affairs and

      Consumer Protection, 1500 SW Arrowhead Road, Topeka, KS 66604‑4027. Be sure to

      reference Docket No. 18‑WSEE‑328-RTS.

3)  Call the Commission’s Public Affairs office at 1‑800‑662‑0027 or 785-271‑3140.

The Commission’s decision on the request is due on or before September 27, 2018.

The Goody’s Store at 437 East Chestnut in Junction City will be closing this summer, but the location will be transformed into a Gordmans store outlet.

JCPost.com checked with the Goody’s store and were informed their closing sale is under way now. They will be open until June 30th. The new Gordmans will open in August.

Gordmans sells items ranging from women’s clothing and home decor to cooking utensils.

May 15, 2018

USD 475 Summer Lunch Program

The Petersens are an award-winning bluegrass band in their eighth season of shows at the Little Opry Theatre in the Branson IMAX Entertainment Complex. In 2015, the band received international attention when banjo player, Ellen Petersen, competed in the singing reality TV show, “American Idol,” and placed in the top 48. The family has toured throughout the United States, Canada, and recently completed their second international tour to Ireland in July. Audiences will be entertained as the band performs bluegrass standards, gospel favorites, and are sure to laugh at the sibling humor on stage.

The Petersens are bringing their act to Abilene on Saturday, June 23, at the Emmanuel Church, 1300 0N. Vine. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the show begins at 7 p.m.

Click HERE for ticket details or call (785) 628-0467. This event is brought to you by Chapman-based BDS Productions and Eagle Communications.

By By STEPHEN KORANDA

Public universities in Kansas are proposing tuition hikes significantly lower than some of the larger increases seen in recent years. The schools presented the plans to the Kansas Board of Regents this week.

The increases in tuition and fees for in-state, undergraduate students range from 1.2 percent at Kansas State University to 3 percent at the University of Kansas.

Those numbers are smaller than some past increases. Over the last decade, annual tuition hikes have sometimes run as high as 9 percent.

“In recent years, the universities sustained reductions to their State General Fund appropriations,” a summary from the Board of Regents said. “Tuition increases, although not intended to make up for those reductions, have clearly served to mitigate the financial dilemma created by the budget cuts.”

Higher education in Kansas had to absorb a $30 million cut in 2016 put in place by then-Gov. Sam Brownback to help balance the state budget.

Lawmakers changed course on taxes last year by reversing many of the state’s 2012 tax cuts. They’ve also been restoring some of the higher education spending reductions.

After adding $15 million in higher education funding this year, lawmakers have now restored around $24 million of the $30 million cut.

In its explanation to the board, K-State said the funding increases over the last two years helped limit the tuition hike.

“This is the smallest tuition increase the university has requested since before 1989,” the explanation for K-State said.

If the increases are approved, the cost of in-state tuition and fees for a 15-credit-hour semester would range from $5,573.95 at KU and $5,191.50 at K-State down to $3,379.08 at Emporia State University.

The tuition increase at KU is slightly more than requested last year, even with the increase in state funding. KU spokeswoman Erinn Barcomb-Peterson said the increase is necessary to keep up with rising costs for employee health care and facilities.

“The proposed rate hikes won’t even cover all of that,” she said. “What we’re really looking at is a rapid increase in fixed costs.”

KU’s proposal does not include raises for workers.

Barcomb-Peterson said part of the facility cost is bringing online a new science building that will offer additional educational and research opportunities.

“It’s always about balancing affordability and quality,” Barcomb-Peterson said. “We want a KU education to be affordable for our students and families, but we also need to provide the level of education that people are going to expect from a research university like KU.”

In its summary, the Board of Regents said even after the funding boost, total state support will be $72 million below where it was in 2009.

 

 

Stephen Koranda is Statehouse reporter for KPR a partner in the Kansas News Service. Follow him on Twitter @kprkoranda.