Geary County Clerk Rebecca Bossemeyer has announced that all County offices, except the Transfer Station will be closed on Monday, January 16th in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, January 17th.
Category: Local
Governor wants a $15K college degree available in Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -Gov. Sam Brownback is challenging universities in Kansas to allow students to earn a bachelor’s degree and pay only $15,000 in total costs.
Brownback issued the challenge in his annual State of the State address Tuesday evening. He said Kansas residents deserve affordable college educations.
He also said his budget proposals would finance 50 student scholarships for the first university to meet the challenge. He did not provide more details.
The least expensive state university is Fort Hays. A full-time undergraduate student from Kansas pays $2,442 in tuition and required fees. That would be $19,535 over four years.
Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine questioned whether the idea is workable and said he is concerned about lowering academic standards for an inexpensive degree. The Emporia Republican’s district includes Emporia State University.
3 flown to a hospital after car flips end over end off I-70 ramp
GEARY COUNTY – Three people were injured in an accident just before 7:30p.m. on Tuesday in Geary County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2013 Nissan passenger driven by Timothy Joseph Musil, 38, was westbound on Interstate 70 at a high rate of speed when it attempted to exit at Humboldt Creek Road.
The vehicle entered the ramp at too great of speed and could not negotiate the curve.
The vehicle entered the north ditch and tumbled end over end 3 times.
An emergency medical team flew Musil and passengers Brandi Marie Clark, 33, Oskaloosa, and Michael Gideon Mahoney, 34, Topeka, to a hospital in Topeka.
They were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.
Possible Ice Storm in the Forecast this Weekend
The National Weather Service in Topeka has released information predicting a high probability of prolonged freezing rain beginning Friday, January 13th and continuing through Sunday, January 15th.
The NWS indicates high confidence in the probability of a winter storm, potentially a significant ice storm; there is moderate confidence in the exact location and the amount of ice accumulation.
There will be four segments in the upcoming storm:
- Freezing rain Friday night: Primarily along and SE of the KS turnpike. The freezing should last throughout the night and into Saturday morning.
- A brief dry period is possible during the afternoon hours on Saturday.
- Another round of freezing rain Saturday night into Sunday. This round may cause significant ice accumulations on roads, trees and power lines.
- Temperatures are forecast to warm above freezing Sunday night, with 1-2 inches of liquid rain expected. If temperatures remain below freezing, another round of significant icing would occur.
There is still some uncertainty with precipitation types and amounts. Rain is likely Sunday and Monday (January 16th and 17th); some areas will still be cold enough for a wintry mix.
Check back with JC Post this week for updates on the possible winter storm.
Demolition Day: Former Mayor Mick McCallister Keeps Promise
Tuesday morning Corvias Military Housing began the first phase of demolition of the overstock of 588 homes on Fort Riley.
Mick McCallister, City Commissioner, said that a few years ago it was determined between the Department of the Army, Fort Riley and the community that there was an overstock of housing on the installation.
“So they decided they were going to bring those homes down to get back in to the Housing Market Analysis of 3827 which was agreed upon in 2012; that partnership has come to fruition and the promise was made to the community to keep the inventory at the 3827 level,” said McCallister.
Inventory reduction is beginning this week with the first 253 homes to be demolished in the Warner/Peterson Heights area of Fort Riley. The 1949 through 1951 Capehart homes are on the schedule to be removed after negotiations with the Army and Community over the course of the last two years has come to fruition.
“There is approximately 10 to 11 thousand soldiers that seek housing off the installation, and a third of that is on post and two-thirds of that is housed in the communities outside the gate,” said McCallister. “Those folks outside the gate, property owners and property managers have a certain amount of stock that they continue to build and continue to rent to soldiers off the installation; the number is important, economically, for both Junction City and Manhattan to house that other two-thirds outside the gate.”
Junction City Mayor Phyllis Fitzgerald was invited by Corvias Military Housing to join in on the demolition by operating the excavator to begin the demolition.
“A promise made is a promise kept,” said McCallister.
County Commission Chairman Addresses Community Questions
The Geary County Commission reorganized and took some new actions on Monday.
Before the terms of former Commissioners Florence Whitebread and Larry Hicks ended at noon, they authorized the hiring of Steve Opat as the County Counselor.
Opat served as the County Commission’s legal counsel during his tenure as County Attorney. In recent years, the job of legal counsel to the Commission was turned over to Lloyd Graham who also handled juvenile cases in the Prosecutor’s office.
Opat decided not to seek re-election as County Attorney in 2016 – Krista Blaisdell took the Oath of Office on Monday, January 9th officially beginning work as the new County Attorney.
After this was reported on air on 1420 KJCK, community members expressed concern about why the County Attorney would no legal serve as legal counsel to the Commission.
Geary County Commission Chair Ben Bennett has provided JC Post with information regarding the County’s decision to hire full time legal counsel.
“It’s not normal for the County Attorney to be the County Counselor, we were one of the only ones left in the State that were still operating that way…they are two distinct duties and two distinct disciplines…[we] can appoint the County Counselor from any licensed attorney in the State that has a Kansas license and it does not have to be the County Attorney, and it isn’t the County Attorney in most of the 105 counties,” said Bennett.
Bennett will be a guest on JC Now on 1420 KJCK – The Talk of JC Thursday, January 12th at 7:20 am.
If you have questions for the County Commission Chairman leave them in the comments and they will be considered to be addressed on air Thursday.
Junction City High School JROTC Annual Chili Feed
The Junction City High School JROTC Blue Jay Battalion is hosting their annual chili feed on Saturday, January 21st.
It is being held at the Freshman Success Academy located at 300 W 9th Street in Junction City from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm.
Tickets are $5 per person for all you can eat chili.
2017 Friend of the Flint Hills Recipient – Symphony in the Flint Hills
Manhattan, KS, January 10, 2017 – The Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation has awarded the “Friend of the Flint Hills” to an individual, nongovernmental organization or public institution each spring since 2012. The award honors significant time, effort and resources devoted to the cause of conserving the Flint Hills of Kansas and northern Oklahoma. This year, the Foundation is pleased to announce that the 2017 recipient is the Symphony in the Flint Hills.
“The Symphony in the Flint Hills was chosen as the 2017 recipient because of the twelve year history of great concerts and educational programs that have brought significant attention to the treasures and pleasures of the Flint Hills,” said Bruce Snead, President of the Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation.
The Foundation is pleased to recognize all those who have created and supported the Symphony in the Flint Hills and their contributions to the Flint Hills with this award.
“It is difficult to overestimate the value and impact the Symphony has had in growing the appreciation and knowledge of our Flint Hills, not only here in Kansas but truly around the world,” said Snead.
Christy Davis, Executive Director, and Virginia Moxley, Board Chair, will accept the award at the annual invitation only Friend of the Flint Hills Recognition Event on April 15, 2017, at the Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan. To learn more, visit: https://flinthillsdiscovery.org/338/Spotlight
About the Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation: The Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation functions to advance the mission of the Flint Hills Discovery Center by providing support for its programs and initiatives, ensuring stewardship of the region’s tallgrass prairie. The Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, serves as an active local, regional and national advocate by creating opportunities to give to the Foundation and provide for the long- term financial success of the Flint Hills Discovery Center.
A ‘Once in a Lifetime Opportunity’: Superintendent talks Possible New High School Project
Two town hall meetings are scheduled this month to receive public input on the possible new high school project in Junction City.
Dr. Corbin Witt, USD 475 Superintendent, said that the time is now to act on a new school.
“This is year that the money is there, we know the money is there and we would have access,” said a confident Witt. “I specifically asked Dale Dennis, who is the Head of the Education Finance Department, ‘has the State of Kansas ever defaulted on a bond and interest payment’, and he said ‘the State of Kansas can’t because it’s a demand-item transfer’ – the Legislature doesn’t even get to vote or anything, it’s made before any other expenditures are made; he said, there’s really no chance that they wouldn’t pay for their portion of the bond and interest.”
Witt said that he understands there are concerns on whether or not State and Federal sources are reliable and he’s fully comfortable the assurance received from Dennis.
“Before this year, we used to get 69% State match and then the State dropped the percentage match on that [and so it went down to 48]; there’s some talk of going back and reinstating [that 69%] because they didn’t feel it was fair that the school districts that passed bond issues last year would get 20% more from the State than the ones who passed [bond issues] this year,” said Witt.
Witt said that if that w
ere to take place and the State paid for 69% of the project, that would make it more imperative to “move on this now”.
“We as an administrative team feel like this is something that we need to take to the voters now, because it would be irresponsible of us not to have this once in a lifetime opportunity give the community an opportunity to vote on it,” said Witt.
The first of two town hall meetings to make presentations to the community and receive public input is on Tuesday, January 17th in Settles Auditorium inside Junction City High School at 7:00 pm. Members of the community are invited to come at 6:00 pm for a tour of the facilities and infrastructure concerns.
The meeting will be video live-streamed on the District website and on JC Post the day of the event, as well as a live broadcast on the radio on AM station 1420 KJCK – The Talk of JC.
JC Post will have the viewing link for the live stream posted on the morning on January 17th.
The second town hall meeting is scheduled for Saturday, January 28th.
The JCHS Steering Committee will meet again on January 12th.
JCACC 2017 Annual Dinner
Tickets are still available for the Junction City Area Chamber of Commerce 2017 Annual Dinner.
The dinner will be on Thursday, January 26th at the Geary County Convention Center located at 310 Hammons Drive in Junction City.
Individual tickets are $50 each, a table of eight is $400. RSVP to the Chamber by January 20th by calling 762-2632 or emailing info@jcacc.org.