Thursday, August 11, 2022
Locally owned since 1867
Airport flush with sewer options By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register
Tapping into the City of Iola’s sewer system could be the most economical solution for infrastructure improvements at the Allen County Regional Airport, but county commissioners still appear reluctant to take that route. Bruce Boettcher with BG Consultants gave commissioners cost estimates for five sewer options. Originally, BG engineers assumed the most logical solution was to tap into Iola’s sewer system. It’s closest and has the most capacity for future growth. But city codes require any entity that wants to use its sewer system to voluntarily See COUNTY | Page A3
257 plans very slight tax hike By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register
The USD 257 budget will include a slight tax rate increase, mostly because the district is receiving less state aid. At Monday night’s meeting, school board members reviewed next year’s budget, which calls for raising the mill levy from 68.8 to 68.9. A public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. Sept. 12 to finalize the budget. That means the owner of a $100,000 home can expect to pay $792 in taxes to support the school district next year. Of that amount, about $270 will go to pay for the school bond issue for new schools. Most of the district’s funding is based on enrollment numbers, which have historically declined year after year. It’s not yet known if a new elementary school will help attract new students. Superintendent Stacey Fager said enrollment is difficult to preSee DISTRICT | Page A3
iolaregister.com
Allen soccer hopes for national bid
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Tool helps officers investigate missing indigenous people PAGE A4 Bruce Boettcher with BG Consultants, at left, and Jonathon Goering with Thrive Allen County speak to county commissioners, from left, Bruce Symes, David Lee and Jerry Daniels about sewer options for the Allen County Regional Airport. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS
Biden signs burn pit legislation PAGE A6
First wave of Allen students arrive By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
The first wave of students has arrived at Allen Community College, with many more on the way. Fall classes are slated to begin Aug. 22, with 120 student-athletes involved in men’s and women’s soccer, cross country and volleyball on campus. The rest of the on-campus students arrive the weekend of Aug. 20. College staffers have been working around-the-clock to ensure classes begin without a hitch, ACC President Bruce Moses told college trustees Tuesday. “I think a lot of times, people miss out on how much work goes on in the summer by the staff in preparation for getting students enrolled and admitted,” Moses said. Moses, who took over the college presidency July 1, lauded the personnel for their effort. “They’ve all been great,” he said. “I really couldn’t have had a better start to my presidency. There’s a lot of things you just don't see, things that are going on internally.” As of Monday afternoon, 1,691 full-time equivalent
Marc Pierre, a member of the Allen Community College men’s soccer team returns a volley during a pingpong game against women’s soccer player Emma Hacklin Tuesday evening in the ACC Student Activities Building. They are among the first batch of student-athletes to arrive at the Allen campus prior to the start of fall classes Aug. 22. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN (FTE) students had enrolled, a slight increase over the same time period in 2021, noted Vice President for Student Affairs Cynthia Jacobson. That number is certain to grow as late-enrolling students get registered. “I was really hoping that number would reach 1,700 by
the start of the meeting,” she said. As students return, the college will remain vigilant when it comes to stemming any outbreaks of COVID-19, Jacobson noted. Over the past month, two employees have tested positive, and another quarantined
because of possible exposure. Of the 120 athletes who have arrived, one (who lives off-campus) tested positive and ended up quarantining off campus. The college received a batch of free COVID tests, enough for all ACC athletes as See ACC | Page A4
City will target levees with remote-controlled mower By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register
A new remote-controlled mower should make it easier for Iola city crews to mow along the Riverside Park levees, Iola City Council members agreed Monday. Council members approved the purchase of a TK-52XP mower from Red Equipment LLC, Independence, Mo., for $53,000. Not only was the bid the lowest of three, but the remote-controlled mower Vol. 124, No. 219 Iola, KS $1.00
should make it easier — and safer — to mow around the park levees, Parks Superintendent Berkley Kerr said. That’s because the mower is manned via remote control. Up to now, the city used a riding mower with a slope deck. There are several other benefits, Kerr noted. The apparatus utilizes rubber tracks, not tires, and is designed to handle any slope of up to 50 degrees. It also comes with a winch system to extricate the mower from pretty
much any kind of rough environs. “The flat tires alone are a big deal to me,” Kerr said, noting the riding mower was prone to flats. “And it will mow wet areas,” he added. The mower is a 2021 demo model, which is $2,000 less expensive than a 2022 model also bid by Red Equipment. The demo model has less than 7 hours of use, Kerr noted. The warranty for the demo is the same as it would have been for the new one.
The bid passed, 6-0, with members Nickolas Kinder and Joel Wicoff absent. THE CITY will return about $78,000 in unused Community Development Block Grant funds in order to close out the grant. The CDBG CV-3 grant was implemented by the Department of Commerce to assist local businesses in Iola negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nine businesses received funding. Eight received
$7,500, and a ninth received $12,000. “We weren’t able to find enough business to expend all of those funds,” explained Jonathon Goering of Thrive Allen County, which helped administer the grant. THE CONSTRUCTION portion of the Missouri Pacific walking trail from near Iola High School to the new Iola Elementary School site is essentially complete. All that remains are to See COUNCIL | Page A4
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