SOUTH HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A major road going east out of Haven will be closed for an extended period of time starting Monday.

Reno County Public Works announced that Arlington Road from the east edge of Haven will be closed east to Victory Road for a bridge replacement project.

The county will replace the 90-foot span over Gar Creek.

Weather permitting, the work should be completed in about three months.

If you have any questions or need additional information about this project or others, contact Reno County Public Works at 620-694-2976.

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Dick Strano was a great athlete, coach and businessman who touched many lives in the sports world. It was little surprise Wednesday when the old Sport Shack business on Main Street, which he owned and ran for 38 years, was filled to capacity as friends, family, coaches and players took time to remember him.

Dick Westphal and his jewelry store were just a few doors down from the Sport Shack. Westphal talked about how people came from all over to buy sporting goods from the Sport Shack:

Family friend and longtime Sport Shack employee Greg Munds shared the immense respect coaches, players, and customers had for Strano.

Strano was a successful coach and businessman, but he was also a great athlete in his hometown of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Longtime area basketball coach Phil Anderson recalled the time former Detroit Pistons hall of fame coach Chuck Daly — during an interview on ESPN — talked about one of the toughest players he ever coached:

Pastor Matt Stafford, who was coached by Strano, officiated the ceremony and also took time to sing the popular sports song “Put Me In Coach”. Dick Strano died March 8 at the age of 73. Memorials may be made to the Dick Strano Fund, which will be used to benefit a variety of youth athletic programs throughout Reno County.

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Another round of funding has been approved for the rail line served by Amtrak’s SW Chief.

The Tiger Grant will go for rehabilitating track, giving the route that passes through southeast Colorado another shot in the arm as advocates try to bolster the train line’s uncertain future.

The money, $16 million from a Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant, means about three-quarters of the money needed for track upgrades for the Chicago-to-Los Angeles route have been secured.

It’s a sigh of relief for the Southwest Chief’s main proponents, who were fearful about the prospect of securing federal dollars under a White House that has signaled a distaste for long-distance rail. It was four years ago that Amtrak and BNSF threatened to move the train off the current line and on to the main Transcon route through Oklahoma and Texas. The move would have eliminated service to Hutchinson, Garden City and Dodge City, along with southeast Colorado and northern New Mexico. Cities, counties and states along the route have been chipping in to match funds for the grant, including Hutchinson, which has regularly provided matching funds for the grants.

While the funding is good news, it may be a moot point since the Trump administration is proposing cuts in Amtrak’s budget for the lines.

CLAREMORE, Okla. — RCB Holding Company (RCBHC) is expanding its presence in Kansas with the acquisition of Central Bank and Trust Co. According to RCBHC and pending regulatory approval, the sale is expected to be finalized in the second quarter of 2018. All six locations in Hutchinson and Wichita are included in the transaction and will continue to operate as CB&T until late first quarter 2019.

RCB Holding Company is the parent company of RCB Bank, a $2.8 billion community bank with over 700 employees and 52 locations in Oklahoma and Kansas. RCB Bank was founded in 1936 in Claremore, Oklahoma.

Central Bank and Trust Co. has $323 million in assets and 73 employees, according to the Dec. 31, 2017, call report.

CB&T President and CEO Earl McVicker will continue with RCB Bank in a capacity as chairman of the RCB Bank Kansas Market Board.

With the addition of Central Bank and Trust, RCB Holding Company’s two banks will expand to 58 locations across Oklahoma and Kansas, and $3.1 billion in assets.

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The interim GM of the Kansas State Fair says a hearing Wednesday before the Senate Committee on Assessment and Taxation on the bill that would allow the fair to collect the sales tax that it generates for all fair and non-fair activities went well.

Bob Moeder commented after the hearing and says it went as he hoped:

Moeder says the committee inquired about the fair’s ability to generate enough money so that it would not have to ask Topeka for more money toward capital projects:

The revenue would be deposited in the fair’s capital improvements fund. Legislators came up with the proposal at the urging of the fair as a way to generate needed capital for maintenance and improvements to the grounds.

The money would replace what is a $300,000 a year infusion of cash that the state is supposed to put into the fair’s capital improvement fund — but rarely does. The state is about $1.6 million behind in that fund. Moeder says, conservatively, the sales tax could generate roughly $300,000 to $500,000 in capital improvement funds each year.

The committee is set to vote on the matter Thursday morning. A yes vote would send the bill onto the Senate floor.

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson City Council approved an agreement with Siemens for making modifications to the railroad spur that leads into its facility during Tuesday’s agenda session.

The wind turbine maker wants to install a derailleur on the lead track that would prevent accidental intrusion of rail cars onto its side track. The company actually uses both the main spur and its siding for staging cars. The agreement also makes sure the city has access to the main spur line if another company were to locate in the industrial park.

The agreement is needed to clear the city of any responsibility if an accident occurs. Also Tuesday, the council approved a bid from APAC-Kansas for a major storm sewer project along Maple, between 10th and 12th Avenues. Total cost of the project is $689,320.

And after much discussion, the council agreed on a request from Hutchinson USD 308 to waive fees for use of the Sports Arena. The city recently implemented the fees as a way to recoup some of the costs associated with running the arena during major events. The school district wants those fees waived for the spring graduation ceremonies.

The council agreed to those same terms for Buhler USD 313.