It will be a multi-step process, but the Junction City Commission has given the okay for a public hearing before the Planning Board on the rezoning that would be necessary for a proposed business – office park.
The site is on the south edge of the city, west of US 77 and a planned VA clinic.
David Yearout, Planning and Zoning Director, said could include general office buildings. “Would be what I think was originally intended for the Tom Neal Industrial Park, it’s tech buildings, labs, medical labs, research labs, just general office buildings.”
The Special Olympics Torch Run will pass through Fort Riley and Junction City on Thursday, June 2nd.
Fort Riley law enforcement officers will carry the torch beginning at noon at the Ogden Gate onto Huebner Road to Grant Avenue in Junction City.
From there Junction City police officers will run it through the city going west on Grant Avenue, crossing over Washington Street to Jefferson Street, south on Jefferson to 6th Street, and stopping at Heritage Park at 6th and Jefferson.
The torch will eventually pass through other counties on its way to the annual Summer Games of Special Olympics Kansas on June 3 in Wichita.
Barton County among the top 10 in 2015 oil production in Kansas.
LAWRENCE — Oil production fell sharply in Kansas during 2015 as oil prices continued to drop, although natural gas production fell only a fraction of 1 percent despite noticeable gas price declines, according to estimates from the Kansas Geological Survey at the University of Kansas, according to KU News Service.
Following a steady increase in oil production for the state as a whole from 2006 to 2014, production fell more than 8 percent to just below 45.5 million barrels in 2015 — down from 49.5 million barrels in 2014. At the same time, the number of oil and gas wells drilled in the state declined almost 64 percent, from 5,765 in 2014 to 2,080 in 2015.
“Kansas crude oil production began a dramatic downturn in October 2014 when monthly production was 4.4 million barrels,” said KGS geologist Lynn Watney. “Production in February 2016 was down to just over 3 million barrels — a decline that rivals the fall in late 1998 and 1999.”
“The current decline is another one for the record books, having impacted the industry, communities, states and countries alike,” he said.
The average monthly oil price fell to $39 per barrel in 2015 from $82 in 2014. As a result of the combined drop in production and price, the cumulative value of Kansas oil declined from $4 billion in 2014 to $1.8 billion in 2015.
Production in eight of the top-10 oil-producing counties fell. The two exceptions were Harper County, which led the state for the first time, and Finney County, which moved from fifth to third following a 6 percent rise in production.
Harper County rose from the state’s 33rd highest producer in 2010 to first in 2015 when annual production there rose to 3.4 million barrels. Most of the oil — and natural gas in the county is produced from the Mississippian limestone play using horizontal drilling with multistage hydraulic fracturing activities, popularly known as “fracking,”
“About 1,100 horizontal wells have been drilled in Kansas over several decades,” said KGS geologist David Newell. “However, 2010 marked the beginning of a new era in south-central Kansas where staged massive hydraulic fracturing was extensively used in long-reach horizontal wells.”
The focus of drilling in the play, colloquially known as the “Mississippi lime,” shifted from Barber County into Harper County in 2014. Barber County dropped from fourth in 2014 to ninth in 2015.
Ellis County, which has led the state in oil production in all but two years since 1966, dropped to second place as production there fell more than 10 percent, from 3.35 million barrels in 2014 to 3 million in 2015.
“Ellis County is a well-established producing area that now has many marginal wells,” Watney said. “Falling production levels there parallel the rate of the state’s production decline, which have brought production back to 2002 levels.”
Besides Harper, Ellis and Finney, the top-10 producing counties in 2015, in order, were Barton, Russell, Ness, Rooks, Haskell, Barber and Logan. Oil production was reported in 91 of the state’s 105 counties, with about 44 percent from the top 10.
Even though natural gas production in Kansas declined less than 1 percent — from about 288 billion cubic feet (bcf) in 2014 to 285 bcf in 2015 — production declines continued at a brisker pace in the state’s largest gas area, which is also one of the largest in the world.
“The Hugoton Gas Area in western Kansas, which accounts for a vast majority of the state’s gas production, has experienced a long-term, steady production decline of 7 percent a year since the late 1990s,” Watney said. “However, natural gas production from the Mississippian limestone play in Harper County increased to more than 30 bcf in 2015, up from about 5 bcf in 2011 just after the drilling boom hit the area.”
As Harper County moved up to first in the state in oil production, it also jumped from fifth to second in natural gas production, with an increase in natural gas production of 24 percent. Most of the wells in the Mississippian play produce both oil and gas.
Stevens County continued to lead the state in production, with a nearly 1 percent increase in 2015 following an 11 percent decline in 2014. Most of the natural gas there is produced from the Hugoton Gas Area. Grant County, which had a 6 percent increase, was third.
The other top-10 natural gas producing counties, in order, were Barber, Kearny, Haskell, Finney, Morton, Stanton and Seward. All had decreased production except Stanton, which had a slight increase. Gas production was reported in 55 of the state’s 105 counties, and about 74 percent was in the top-10 producing counties.
Production in southeastern Kansas, where natural gas is produced mainly from shallow coal beds, continued to decline. Coal bed methane (CBM) accounted for 9.1 percent of natural gas production in Kansas in 2015. Peak CBM production, in 2008, was about 49 bcf compared with just under 26 bcf in 2015.
The average monthly price of natural gas in 2015 was $2.63 per thousand cubic feet (mcf), and the cumulative value in Kansas was $755 million. In comparison, the average monthly price in 2014 was $3.92 per mcf, and the cumulative value in Kansas was $1.3 billion.
“Although natural gas and oil production in Kansas are virtually equivalent with regard to their energy content, the income generated from natural gas is presently only a fraction of that from oil,” Newell said.
While conditions will be dry this morning, expect increasing clouds by this afternoon as some scattered light rain showers should start to develop this afternoon through tonight and exit by Friday morning. While temperatures will still be cooler than normal today with highs in the upper 60s/near 70 degrees, a warming trend is expected into the weekend with highs reaching into the upper 70s to low 80s by Sat. and Sun. A more active weather pattern is expected during the Sun through Thu time-frame, with several chances for thunderstorms across the outlook area. At this time, the best chances for thunderstorms looks to be from Sunday night through Mon. night, and again on Tue. night. Some strong to severe storms will be possible during this period, so make sure to stay tuned to future forecast updates!
Today: Partly sunny. Highs in the upper 60s. Southeast winds 5 to 15 mph.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain showers. Lows in the lower 50s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph.
Friday: Mostly cloudy. Highs in the lower 70s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph.
Friday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 50s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday: Partly sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. Southeast winds 5 to 15 mph.
Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy in the evening then becoming partly cloudy. Lows around 60.
Sunday: Partly sunny. Highs around 80.
Sunday Night: Showers and thunderstorms likely. Lows in the lower 60s. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.
Monday: Partly sunny with a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70s.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy with a 50 percent chance of rain showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the upper 50s.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny with a 40 percent chance of rain showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 80s.
Tuesday Night And Wednesday: Partly cloudy. A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the lower 60s. Highs in the lower 80s.
Numerous local organization and memorial scholarships were presented to Junction City High School seniors Wednesday evening.
The Robert ( Rob ) J. Smith Memorial College Scholarship, $500, was presented to Kathryn Westerhaus. That scholarship is named after the late Rob Smith, who lost his life in an automobile accident in May of 1987. His parents Jerry and Marlene Smith present the scholarship each year to a JCHS student.
Other scholarships included:
–Ladies Reading Club Scholarship to Kathryn Westerhaus, $500
–Louis Rago Memorial Football Scholarship, $500, to David Graham
–Paul B. and Clara B. Gwin 4-H Scholarship, $450, to Danielle Shane
–Plankinton Foundation Billy Upham Vocational Scholarship, $3,000, to Kaitlyn Fernandez
–Ruby Stevens Scholarship, $1,000 each, to Kaiser Kim and Ricardo Erans
–Becky & Ron Bramlage Scholarships, $1,000 each, to Paige Dacus, Tracey Freeman, Trey Reynolds, Madison Roether, and Diamond Roundtree.
–Charles & Kathy Volland Service Learning Scholarship, $500 to Ryan Boland
–Charlie Fiffe Memorial Scholarship, $1,000 to Paige Dacus
–Geary Community Schools Foundation Scholarship, $2,000 total, to Keaton Petite, Kathryn Westerhaus, and Reagan Wood
–John & Elaine Rucker Scholarship in honor of H.D. Karns, $1,000 to Ryan Boland
–Gaylord & Josephine Munson Memorial Scholarship, $500 each, Deshon Brooks, Jordan-Nicole Heath, Kealee Rains, Ann Marie Sosa.
–Geary Community Hospital Auxiliary Scholarship, $1,000 Trey Reynolds, $500, to Natalie Wells
–Hoover-Koken Foundation GraNts, $27,500 total, renewable, to Jordan Biggs, Alycia Cardamone, Ricardo Erans, Traecy Freeman, Jennifer Knight, Kaiser Kim, Christien Ozores, Keaton Petite, Trey Reynolds, Madison Roether, Kathryn Westerhaus, Reagan Wood.
WASHINGTON – Congressman Tim Huelskamp voted Wednesday for the National Defense Authorization Act of 2017, which passed the House of Representatives 247-177.
“Ensuring our men and women at Fort Riley have the tools and support necessary to defend our country is vital. This bill rejects President Obama’s indiscriminate cuts to our military and makes strategic decisions to ensure our soldiers have the necessary equipment, training, and support.
“I was pleased to halt Obama’s drawdown in military strength and maintain a strong, active Army both at Fort Riley and elsewhere.
“Despite Obama’s budget request to reduce the projected military pay raise, this legislation keeps in place a 2.1% pay raise. Our armed forces, particularly the enlisted soldiers stationed at Fort Riley, deserve to receive the pay raise they are entitled to by law.
“I have worked with members of the Kansas delegation over the last six months to fight the White House plans to transfer terrorists at Guantanamo Bay to Fort Leavenworth. For the safety and security of our country, we cannot allow these dangerous terrorists to be transferred to Kansas or elsewhere on the mainland. As I have done every year in Congress, I supported language forbidding the closing Guantanamo Bay.
“Additionally, I was proud to support the Second Amendment rights of our soldiers and their families and make it simpler for military spouses to purchase firearms. Important religious freedom protections are also included in the bill to defend faith-based organizations who serve our military men and women.”
Joseph Korey Kyser Jr. receiving his scholarship award.
Scholarships valued at $2.6 million were presented to the Class of 2016 at Junction City High School Thursday evening during the Senior Awards Night ceremony.
Two of the scholarships were appointments to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Both carried a value of $350,000. They were presented to Joseph Korey Kyser Jr. and Christopher Emmanuelle Hogue.
Christopher Emmanuel Hogue on the right receiving his award. The other student on the left side of the picture, Jace Taliaferro was honored with a preparatory scholarship to the Marion Military Institute General Bruce K. Holloway Service Academy preparatory Scholarship and a West Point Association of Graduates scholarship.
In addition to doing well in his academic work and involvement in school activities Hogue had to meet a series of requirements to be accepted into the U.S. Military Academy. “I had to make sure that I’m healthy. I had to do a fitness assessment, a good score on my ACT, and interview with 12 experienced people in the military, and I had to interview with Congressman Tim Huelskamp.” Hogue plans to major in computer science at West Point, and join the cyber team there.
Kyser said the scholarship means everything to him. “It means everything to me. Free college is a plus but nothing compares to being able to go to one of the best military colleges in the nation and get to serve my country.”
Numerous other major military scholarships were presented to JCHS students. Some of those included $45,000 Kansas State University Army ROTC scholarships to Andrew Beamer and Jacob Sticca, $100,000 Virginia Military Institute Army ROTC scholarship to Miguel Espinosa, $118,000 University of Southern Alabama Army ROTC scholarship to Gary Panion, Navy Advanced Electronic Field Scholarship valued at $80,000 to Nathan Burgoyne, and a Navy Nuclear Program scholarship valued at $80,000 to Jaden Krienert.
Many other scholarships were presented. Some of those included:
–$36,000 Kansas State University Henry J. Putnam scholarship to Nicholas Arneson
–$104,400 Berea College Tuition Promise scholarship to Robert Long
–University of Iowa Academic Success, Advantage Iowa, and University of Iowa Old Gold scholarships with a combined value of $144,000.
–Nebraska Wesleyan University Academic / Athletic scholarships calculated at $110,000 for David Graham and Angeleau Scott where they will both compete in football and tennis.
–Bethany College Academic / Athletic scholarships valued at $64,000 to Kristopher Quidachay and Reginald Topps
–Methodist University Presidential scholarship, $72,000 to Abigail Weisler
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas’ state universities are calling for tuition increases of up to 5 percent, at least for now.
The schools submitted their tuition proposals Wednesday to the governing Kansas Board of Regents. But those came before Gov. Sam Brownback signed a budget bill Wednesday afternoon that cuts higher education funding by 4 percent — one percent more than the universities had expected.
Kansas State University, Wichita State, Fort Hays State and Pittsburg State each propose a 5 percent increase for the academic year that begins this fall. The University of Kansas and Emporia State seek a 4 percent rise.
The regents will vote on the proposals next month.
Regents spokeswoman Breeze Richardson says Wednesday’s proposals are likely to be adjusted given Brownback’s budget action.
It will be a multi-step process, but the Junction City Commission has given the okay for a public hearing before the Planning Board on the rezoning that would be necessary for a proposed business – office park.
