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January
The city of Carbondale celebrated turning on the tap of a new water
treatment plant with a ribbon cutting Jan. 5. After completion of
piping to the city, the $2.3 million plant was expected to remove
taste and odor Carbondale water users had endured for years. Plant
operator Kevin Richardson told the crowd the city would never have
bad water again.
Scranton City Council suspended the city’s police chief until
a termination hearing could be held.
The state announced a plan to widen state Highway 31 east of Osage
City had been ditched. Kansas Department of Transportation district
engineer Clay Adams told county commissioners the highway was no
longer under consideration for a practical design shoulder study.
Adams said it had been determined the highway’s 60-foot right-of-way
was too narrow to add necessary shoulder width and allow room for
ditches.
Overbrook utility customers were dealt an increase in water and
sewer rates after the town’s city council voted to increase
the cost of the services by eight percent. The increase, already
written into the budget, came as a three-year, state-ordered project
to improve the city’s water treatment system neared completion.
Osage City police investigated burglaries of two businesses from
which little was taken. The break-ins were followed by seven overnight
vehicle burglaries. While part of the stolen property was recovered,
Osage City Police Chief Fred Nech urged citizens to lock their houses
and vehicles.
The president of the Lyndon Chamber of Commerce announced the Chamber
was null and void, but later said it was in reorganization. Terri
Dobbs said she was working to reinstate the organization’s
tax identification number and reorganize it as a non-profit entity.
An annual officers’ election was canceled, with plans to hold
the election in February.
Carl Meyer was named chairman of the Osage County Commission.
Ramona Morgan, Chewelah, Wash., accused of striking and killing
two road workers in Douglas County, Sept. 11, 2007, requested a
reduced bond for crimes she was charged with in Osage County. She
was apprehended in Osage County after allegedly fleeing and attempting
to elude police officers.
Scranton’s police chief, Robert Doepp, resigned after a 45-minute
executive session of the Scranton City Council. The action followed
Doepp’s earlier suspension. No reason was given for his resignation.
The city of Lyndon held its annual town hall meeting with over 60
citizens present. Council members touted the town’s progress
while citizens questioned city employees’ actions regarding
police matters.
An Osage City woman was ordered to serve 30 days in jail, 18 months
probation, and pay restitution for taking money from an organization
that serves disabled persons. Mary Holloway, appearing in district
court, apologized for stealing $42,000 from Resource Center for
Independent Living, where she worked as a bookkeeper.
Restroom graffiti at Osage City High School put the school district
on alert. Police and parents were notified of the graffiti, described
as a possible threat. Area law enforcement walked the schools’
halls and provided extra patrol, but school functions continued
as scheduled. The graffiti followed an incident last year that put
the school on lockdown; an Osage City teenager had been arrested
in that incident.
Martha A. Butterfield, 72, Osage City, was killed after her car
collided with an out-of-control truck and trailer on Dragoon Creek
bridge on U.S. Highway 75. The truck’s driver was uninjured.
Icy roads were blamed for the accident.
Osage City cell phone customers were notified of possible improvement
of service after the city council agreed to allow installation of
cell phone equipment on the city’s water tower. The equipment
was expected to serve Sprint customers or customers of companies
that have reciprocating agreements with Sprint. The project was
expected to be completed in six months.
February
Lyndon Chamber of Commerce announced new officers had been elected
Jan. 18: Rick Johnson, president; Kathy Allen, vice president; Julie
Stutzman, secretary, and Teresa Fitch, treasurer.
Burlingame USD 454 Superintendent Donald Blome announced his resignation,
effective June 30.
A four-car wreck, involving eight high school students, occurred
one half mile west of Santa Fe Trail High School, leaving one person
injured and the highway littered with taillights and broken glass.
The wreck happened after three cars stopped for a funeral procession
and a fourth car crashed into the third, causing a chain reaction.
USD 421 Lyndon schools were awarded accreditation by North Central
Accreditation, the highest possible accreditation in a 30-state
area.
Osage County commissioners were notified by Lyndon City Administrator
Larry Thurston that a blockage was located in a sewer main just
outside the south door of the Osage County Courthouse. Thurston
said the blockage in the sewer under the courthouse was located
during preliminary inspections for Lyndon’s upcoming sewer
rehabilitation project.
City of Carbondale heard from its maintenance department the city
was now connected with new pipeline from the city’s water
treatment facility.
Republicans caucused in Osage City, with Arkansas Governor Mike
Huckabee chosen as the group’s presidential nominee. Osage
County Democrats gathered in Topeka and Emporia, with 73 percent
of Kansas Democrats caucusing for Sen. Barack Obama.
Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) cited the city of Burlingame
for leaks in gas pipelines. The KCC report indicated a major concern
was lost and unaccounted gas from July 2005 through June 2006. The
report also indicated the city’s gas line maps appeared to
be inaccurate.
For the second consecutive year, Daniel Jansen, a home-schooled
eighth-grader from Burlingame, won the Osage County Spelling Bee,
correctly spelling the winning word “mischief.”
After being in business for 45 years, Shirley Simmons served her
last meal to customers at Shirley’s Café. She was given
a fond farewell and a special proclamation by Overbrook Mayor Jack
Young, Feb. 15.
Following consideration of several drafts, Osage County commissioners
prepared to send a neighborhood revitalization plan to the Kansas
attorney general for legal review. Decisions by local government
entities to participate in the plan were required before a Feb.
20 deadline.
Osage City Council reviewed a plan that would allow wireless connectivity
in the city’s downtown. The council had earlier agreed to
seek proposals for a wireless system that would provide low-cost,
short range, broadband services for citizens and businesses.
Officials met to discuss the future of an old railroad bridge over
U.S. Highway 75 north of Lyndon. The bridge has become an irritant
to local officials who see the bridge as a safety hazard and an
obstruction to transportation commerce in the county. The bridge
still serves the Flint Hills Nature Trail being built by the Kanza
Rails-Trails Conservancy. The group hopes the trail will someday
be a segment of the 7,000-mile American Discovery Trail, which is
to go coast to coast.
Osage County Commission heard from the first of several energy contractors
who presented findings regarding upgrading efficiency of the Osage
County Courthouse’s energy systems. A preliminary estimate
of $1.1 million was given for lighting upgrades, heating and cooling
modifications, roofing repairs and window upgrades.
Jessica Alford, 27, was killed in a one-car accident near Michigan
Valley. Justin Robert Spencer, 24, was the driver of the vehicle
that went off the road and rolled numerous times.
USD 434 Santa Fe Trail announced next school year would be leaner,
with $322,000 cut from the budget by school board members. Cuts
included positions of assistant superintendent, maintenance director,
counselor, activity director, two teaching positions and other support
staff. A primary concern was reduced funding due to declining enrollment.
March
An Osage City drug store was missing about $18,000 in drugs after
being burglarized the early morning of March 1. An Osage City man
was arrested in the case, but no drugs were recovered during the
arrest.
USD 434 Santa Fe Trail Board of Education approved a plan to send
the district’s junior high students to one school. The board
decided the 2008-2009 school year would be used to prepare students
for the consolidation. The location of the junior high was to be
determined later.
Carbondale City Council heard a cost estimate of $375,000 to repair
the town’s existing pool, or $925,000 to build a new pool
and renovate the existing bathhouse. A pool committee recommended
building a new pool.
City of Melvern reversed a decision to suspend the city’s
bulk water vendor system. Bulk water users, some who use the water
to supply their rural homes, protested the decision. City council
members agreed to repair the vendor system and evaluate its effectiveness
at the end of the year.
Utilizing a $400,000 community development block grant and a $408,000
revolving loan from the Kansas Department of Health and Evironment,
the city of Lyndon is preparing to begin the second phase of a sewer
rehabilitation project. Officials also faced repairs of the city’s
wastewater treatment facility.
USD 454 Burlingame approved the employment of Allen Konicek as superintendent
of schools for the next two school years. He had served as principal
of Lincoln Junior High/High School for the last eight years.
Osage County commissioners learned from Kansas State Historical
Society that an energy renovation project at the courthouse would
not be impeded by the building’s inclusion on the National
Register of Historic Places.
After several months of fine-tuning the plan, Osage County officially
offered tax incentives to property owners who revitalize their neighborhoods.
Osage County Commission officially adopted the plan March 17, with
the last step of the process to be collection of signatures on inter-local
agreements with participating government entities.
Carbondale City Council learned plans were in the works to build
a Dollar General Store in town.
Osage City Council approved a resolution supporting a proposed passenger
train route from Oklahoma to Kansas City. If the grassroots effort
is successful, passengers might someday embark and disembark at
the city’s old train depot. The Northern Flyer Alliance was
meeting with city councils along the rail line seeking support for
a state transportation study of the route.
Receiving recommendations from four companies, Osage County commissioners
agreed to contract Trane Commercial Systems to develop a plan to
provide energy renovations in the Osage County Courthouse. Trane
estimated the county’s annual energy savings would be $21,000
with an approximately $1 million project.
April
High-speed straightline winds ripped the roof off the Lyndon High
School gymnasium. School staff covered the gym with tarps to protect
the gym floor. The near-70 mph winds tipped semi-trailers, knocked
over a garage in Osage City, broke windows and caused other minor
wind damage.
Aunt B’s Bakery, operated by Brenda Dorr, reopened one year
and a day after a downtown Burlingame fire damaged the building
housing the business.
County commissioners unanimously approved a lease for the old Vassar
schoolhouse that had been operated as a community center for almost
30 years. The lease put the responsibility of major repairs back
under the county’s oversight. The county-owned building had
been maintained throughout the years by the Vassar Community Service
Corporation, an organization established to care for the school
and grounds.
A federal judge sentenced Lisa Montgomery to death for strangling
a pregnant woman and cutting out her baby. Montgomery, formerly
of Melvern, told her family she had given birth to the child in
Topeka and told Melvern residents the child was hers.
Burlingame High School students preceded their prom with a mock
car crash. Following the prom, the school’s principal reported
there had been no incidents involving alcohol consumption at the
prom.
Bare Bones BBQ team, Liberty, Mo., took home the grand champion
banner and $2,500 from Osage City’s Smoke in the Spring barbecue
contest.
Steve Zarr, Lyndon, announced that he and his wife had invested
in property on the north edge of Lyndon with hopes of developing
a residential and commercial subdivision.
Roy Santin, Scranton, and his family were chosen as one of five
families included in Oprah’s Big Give project. With community
outpouring, and donations collected by Scranton Attendance Center
students, Santin, a quadraplegic, was given a new mobility chair
and a van fitted with a lift.
A road that was not a road, Vassar Drive, was the focus of a public
hearing to formally establish the road as public. The road had served
housing developments on the south shore of Pomoma Lake for many
years, but after residents’ complaints of lack of maintenance
on the road, it was determined the road was on private land.
Over 50 college students and sponsors from six colleges gathered
to work on a hiking and biking trail at Melvern.
Burlingame City Council agreed to hire Gas System Compliance, LLC,
to survey the city’s gas system.
The Osage County Herald-Chronicle’s Web site, http://www.ocherald.com,
was changed to a subscription-access system.
May
Lyndon City Council questioned the impact a proposed housing and
commercial subdivision would have on the city’s infrastructure.
USD 454 Santa Fe Trail Board of Education discussed the possibility
of a fourth bond issue election to fund needs at the district’s
high school. Three previous bond issues for facilities’ improvements
had failed.
County commissioners voted 2-1 to accept Vassar Drive into the county’s
public road system, with the stipulation it would become a township
road.
Osage County was visited by its third round of windstorms in just
over a month, with the latest storm producing the first confirmed
tornado in the county in four years. The tornado damaged a home
northeast of Lyndon. The tornado’s path ended near the Vassar
Cemetery; a nearby three-car garage was destroyed.
Carbondale City Council established a public building commission
as the first step toward constructing a new swimming pool. An ordinance
created the commission for the purpose of establishing facilities
of a revenue producing nature.
County commissioners approved renovations and energy upgrades at
the Osage County Courthouse at an estimated cost of $1,077,685.
Representatives of Trane Comercial Systems, the contractor hired
to administer the project, said ductwork will be hidden in walls
and unused staircases to to maintain historical integrity of the
building. The contractor anticipated the heating system would be
in operation before heating season.
Justin Spencer was arrested in connection with a fatality wreck
that occurred in February near Michigan Valley.
Honored veterans flew on two flights to Washington, D.C., one in
April and another in May, to see the World War II Memorial. Lyndon
High School students have served as hosts for three trips this year.
Five people were arrested on drug and other charges after a raid
on a residence one mile east of Osage City. Dustin Moon, 22, was
formally charged in district court with manufacturing and possession
of methamphetamine.
An Osage County Sheriff’s Department patrol car rolled and
was destroyed as a deputy responded to a rollover accident in Quenemo.
The deputy, Bryan Johnson, was transported to a hospital where he
was treated and released. Other responders arrived in Quenemo to
find a car overturned on Walnut Street. The driver was uninjured
and arrested for driving under the influence. A passenger was transported
to a hospital where he was treated and released.
The Overbrook City Council met at the library; while there the council
considered the library’s budget and future improvements.
A Missouri man died after being struck by lightning at Pomona State
Park over Memorial weekend. Nathan Sullivan, 20, of Raymore, Mo.,
was found at daylight, but the lightning strike was thought to have
happened between 2 and 3 a.m. Three of Sullivan’s fellow campers
were also injured by lightning.
After 60 years of service to the American Legion, Harold Christesen,
Osage City, retired from all the organization’s duties.
June
Carbondale City Council considered citizens’ dissatisfaction
with a new water line and work that was promised but had not occurred.
The city attorney advised the council that legal action might be
warranted against the engineering firm if a deadline for completion
of work is not met.
The ongoing sewer rehabilitiation project was expected to begin
in the summer and be completed by year-end. The project will install
liners in over 7,300 feet of sewer, replace 1,325 feet of existing
lines, and repair over 100 manholes.
A dog rescue foundation near Melvern was subject of discussion by
county commissioners, who voted to send the foundation’s special
land use permit back to the planning and zoning board for review.
An owner of the foundation had been jailed for 18 felony counts
of giving a worthless check. County attorney Brandon Jones said
the charges stemmed from a July 2007 concert held at the rural location.
Local banks agreed to finance a loan to the county of $1,104,462
for energy renovations at the Osage County Courthouse. Lyndon State
Bank will serve as the lead bank for the financing. The bank’s
proposal offered a 4.125 percent interest rate.
Osage City’s aquatic center suffered a brief closure after
a main pump malfunctioned.
At Carbondale, Ron and Nancy Fike were honored for almost three
decades of service to the community and the positive impact they
have had on youth activities.
Burlingame City Council considered an upcoming $1.2 million water
project, with engineers announcing drawings for the project were
85-90 percent completed. The second phase of the project will replace
lines, valves and hydrants.
Carbondale City Council agreed to implement new electrical codes
that will allow residents to do electrical work in their own homes.
Osage County commissioners heard from Dale Schwieger, manager of
Eisenhower State Park, that the state intended to purchase 262 acres
near Melvern Lake, to be added to the state park system or become
a wildlife area. Plans for the property had not been set, but Kansas
Department of Wildlife and Parks was considering using the land
for a multi-purpose area. Part of the property contains an abandoned
rock quarry.
USD 420 Osage City considered refinancing some of the district’s
outstanding bonds as a way to cut costs.
The Osage County Herald-Chronicle published a 40-page special section
highlighting the Seven Wonders of Osage County. Chosen by students
of the county were: the county’s two federal reservoirs; the
Santa Fe Trail; Burlingame’s brick thoroughfare, Santa Fe
Avenue; the Osage City Depot; the Osage County Courthouse; the county’s
mostly buried coal mines; and Mineral Springs, formerly a health
spa located north of Carbondale.
July through December continued
in Part 2 |
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