Marion County RECORD

Alco site to become farm store

A new farm and ranch store will open in Hillsboro in the late spring. The former Alco building is being renovated to house one of seven Bomgaars stores in Kansas.

Moving to small town teaches crime is everywhere

A Florence man is planning to buy a gun after an intruder broke through the back door of his home and walked into a bedroom where his 8-month-old granddaughter was sleeping. John Burstein, 51, was only toying with the idea a year after moving from California to settle in Kansas where his wife grew up.

Park bathrooms vandalized - again

The bathrooms at Marion Central Park are locked temporarily after vandals filled sinks and smeared walls with mud and destroyed soap dispensers. It’s a destructive mess city employees clean up all the time, city parks and recreation director Margo Yates said.

Wee-wee-weeing all the way home a bit too often

A rural Florence man’s pigs have hogged up so much of his deputies’ time, the sheriff took a report about the roving rooters to the county attorney’s office Friday. As recently as that same day, Stan Ammeter’s pigs were happily pigging out in a neighbor’s field.

County to pick up the pieces after heated dock fiasco

Although commissioners have held no public discussion of whether to sue a Kechi dock builder paid $101,950 to begin a $203,900 job he still has not completed, they did decide Monday to hire someone to pick up the deck pieces Ben Baxter has finished. The county gave a down payment to the owner of Ben’s Boat Docks in January 2020. The dock, which Baxter said would probably be finished by July 2020, is still nowhere near being complete.

Herbel, Mayfield continue to clash

Susan Robson’s apology to Ruth Herbel for a letter she sent her was a bright spot of civility during Marion’s city council meeting. The grace note was a counterpoint to terse exchanges between Herbel and city mayor David Mayfield.

Williams resigns; Regnier back as chief

Marion city councilmen appointed former fire chief Mike Regnier Monday to serve as interim fire chief following Friday’s resignation of Preston Williams. Despite firefighters’ support of Williams during weeks of conflict with city officials, he resigned Friday.

Bank to get new president

Former mayor to step down from Marion’s Central National Bank By PHYLLIS ZORN Staff writer Central National Bank president Todd Heitschmidt will step down from his duties at the end of the month.

Library seeks to preserve Florence history

“Preserving the past to enjoy the future.” The motto of Florence Public Library succinctly expresses the wide-ranging goals set by its board to not only preserve written history but also the historic building in which it is located.

Letter carrier gets million-mile award

Everybody loves the mailman, but not too many can claim they have had the same one for 30 years. Steve Jirak has served the people around Ramona and Tampa for that many years and more. He served as a substitute mail carrier for seven years before joining the service full-time.

Burned car's owner identified

The sheriff’s office and the Junction City police have identified a car found burned up March 3 on 350th Rd. just west of US-77. The Chrysler had been reported stolen in Junction City. Sheriff Rob Craft said a state trooper was able to locate vehicle identification numbers, and the sheriff’s office spoke with the Junction City police department.

Project hits rough spot

A project to replace water mains in Marion hit a wall on Elm St. when rock layers stymied workers’ drill bits. “They couldn’t control where the tip was going and it was beginning to wander,” engineer Darin Neufeld told the city council Monday.

Decision on raising electric rates delayed

Although Marion’s city council, like Hillsboro’s, felt sticker shock when they read the February electric bill from Kansas Power Pool, they are likewise postponing a decision on passing along a price increase to customers. At Monday’s city council meeting, council members unanimously approved using utility cash reserves to offset additional wholesale energy costs for the months of February, March, and April.

Vaccination clinics to expand

The number of COVID-19 cases once again trended downward in this past week, with only two new diagnoses reported by the county health department. That’s a drop from 14 cases the previous week. The health department reports a total of 1,023 cases since April, with six people still in isolation and three hospitalized. The number of deaths reported remains at 24.

Marion couple arrested in Hillsboro drug bust

Marion residents Janet and Kevin Geren, along with Salina resident Bruce Richardson, were arrested Monday night by Hillsboro police. Officer John Huebert said he spotted Kevin Geren’s van at D and Adam Sts. about 8:30 p.m. with no tag light and a broken windshield. He called for a sheriff’s department drug dog to be brought to Hillsboro. Methamphetamine, suspected heroin, THC, and drug paraphernalia reportedly were found in a backpack belonging to Richardson, Huebert said. Huebert said other charges could be filed against the three, all of whom have have been arrested previously on drug or domestic battery charges.

IN MEMORIAM:

IN MEMORIAM:

Accidents reported

Civil division cases

County jail arrests and bookings

Criminal division cases

Deeds recorded

Emergency dispatches

Municipal courts

Offenses reported

Police activity reports

New community garden taking root

An effort to develop a community garden has sprung up in Hillsboro. Hillsboro retiree Stan Thiessen and others have joined in a grassroots effort to plant the seeds of the idea and gauge the level of community interest in the proposal.

Free seeds, planters offered

Gardeners are calling 2021 the “Year of the Sunflower.” Marilyn Jones of Peabody hopes to boost the growing of sunflowers by offering free seed Saturday in downtown Peabody.

Hardware store shows off new line

Kevin and Nicole Suderman had been looking for an opportunity to expand their power mower business. When the 3,800-square-foot space that formerly housed The Lumberyard became available, they jumped at the chance.

Buffeted by government and power

Are Hillsboro and Marion residents taking a bath because the towns belong to Kansas Power Pool? Even before the power pool’s ongoing attempt to impose a massive rate increase because of a cold snap last month, electricity rates charged in towns belonging to the power pool statewide have been considerably above rates charged in towns served by private utilities.

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

CORRECTIONS:

LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

Card shower requested for 50th anniversary

The family of Hillsboro residents Wayne and Linda Friesen has requested a card shower to honor the couple’s 50th wedding anniversary. They were married April 2, 1971, at First Mennonite Church in Hillsboro.

Schools seek airy prom venues

Junior/senior proms are back this year in all of Marion County high schools, but they are moving to bigger venues where more air movement will be possible. Hillsboro’s prom will be April 17 in the commercial building at the county fairgrounds.

Seniors observe special days

The Marion senior center observed several special days in recent weeks: National Wear Red Day to raise awareness about heart disease, Barbie’s birthday March 9, and the anniversary of the founding of the Girl Scouts March 12. Several birthdays were observed as well. Included were the birthdays of Bea Kelsey, Jerry Kline, Dorothy Conyers, Rhonda Brenzikofer and Bunk Ludwig.

Senior center menus

MEMORIES:

Warrior run set for April 24

A 5k Warrior Run hosted by Marion High School’s lifetime fitness class is set for 8:30 a.m. April 24 at Marion Baseball Complex. Registration forms are due April 12 may be picked up at Marion High School office.

Students named honors scholars

Eighteen high school seniors from Marion County have been honored by the University of Kansas as part of the Kansas Honor Scholars Program. Students must be in the top 10% of their class.

Bowling results

Return to current issue