HUTCHINSON, Kan. — After more than seven decades, Long’s clothing in Hutchinson closed its doors. The store on Main Street closed Wednesday after 73 years in business. Owner Bill Long says it has been great.
“We have really had a tremendous run, a lot of great people in over the years,” Long said. “So many people have stopped by to say thank you. People from 50 and 60 miles out have made an effort to come and say (they) really appreciate what we have meant to this whole area.”
The store survived economic downturns, internet sales and big box and chain stores. Long says he has seen a lot of change along Main Street in the years he has been in business.
“It used to be downtown Hutchinson was the retail center of western Kansas. We had people from Garden City that came in on regular shopping trips. It’s hard to imagine, but that was Hutchinson 50 years ago.”
Things have changed in the way people shop since the store opened as well. Long recalled about 15 years ago when he was told he would not stay in business unless he used internet sales. Long says he rejected that idea.
“There wasn’t anything we could do about that,” Long said. “But if I had taken my time and energy and used it to try and develop internet customers, they wouldn’t have been our customers anyway, they would have been internet customers. I was willing to bet that we had enough loyal customers.”
Long says he is grateful to all of those customers who helped them be a staple of Main Street for 73 years.
Nika gets some fun time with officer Cory Schmidt. Nika is a Belgian Malinois.
[ By ROD ZOOK ]
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Two Hutchinson police officers had a special request for new Police Chief Jeff Hooper. With help from Cause for Paws in Hutchinson, the request became a reality.
Officers James Sanders and Cory Schmidt man the two K9 units with the department. Their partners are Tank, a German Shepherd, and Nika, a Belgian Malinois. Sanders and Schmidt became interested in becoming K9 officers through two different avenues.
“Growing up in Newton, Kansas, I saw their K9 unit and it’s just something that always appealed to me,” Schmidt said. For Sanders, he found his love for working dogs and their service in the military. “My first experience with K9s would have been in the Marine Corps,” Sanders said. “I spent about 12 years doing combat arms, so I had the opportunity to see dogs work. It always interested me.”
The two dogs were specially trained overseas and then brought to the U.S. for their final training in the way the police department wanted. While each department has a different need for a K9 unit, the way the dogs are trained has changed in the past 20 years.
Tank gets some quick training from officer James Sanders. The dogs are constantly trained and kept active, which is their nature. Both animals are very energetic and have a high-work instinct.
“It used to be back in the ‘90s that you wanted the meanest, baddest dog that would just rip your arm off and there’s really no need for that,” Schmidt said. “Dogs have their primal instincts. If your dog’s trained to bite on command, all you have to do is say that word and it’ll flip that switch.”
Schmidt and Sanders say the dog’s ability to do its job and interact with the public were two major factors in their decisions to bring Tank and Nika onto the force. They wanted to be certain the dogs could be in the public eye. The dogs are with the officers 24-7 and are not only their partner on the job, they are also at home — that includes family members and other dogs. But it’s not that cut and dried.
“She’s a pet, but we don’t get to treat her just like any pet. There’s a fine balance there,” Schmidt said. “She gets to have her interaction time with our actual pet dogs, but it’s just not 24-7.”
The two officers also stressed that, while they are certainly great dogs, they are probably not the best house pets.
“It’s a good working dog, but probably not the dog you’re going to want as a house pet and, unfortunately, a lot of people are finding this out the hard way,” Sanders said. “They see these stories about these Belgian Malinois and German Shepherds and it looks cool to them. So they go out and they spend this money on this phenomenal dog, but what they don’t realize, it needs to be worked. So if you think you’re going to go out and buy one of these dogs and it’s going to be your lap dog, really what it’s going to do is tear apart your couch. They are designed to work.”
The patrol cars for the K9 unit are specially designed with environmental controls to keep the dogs safe. Each vehicle costs around $60,000.
Tank and Nika are in constant training to keep their skills honed. Whether it’s at home or someplace around the city, it’s a never-ending process.
“We want to keep them on their heels so they give the best effort possible,” Schmidt noted. “We use Carey Park a lot to make it more difficult for tracking and stuff.” The dogs are trained in buildings, cars and open spaces where many different situations exist.
The dogs would not have been possible if not for donations made by Cause for Paws in Hutchinson. The funds not only provide for the dogs, but the equipment necessary to have them on patrol. That includes special K9 vehicles with special environmental controls to keep the dogs safe and housed. The dogs were funded through the memory of longtime Cause for Paws board member Charles Buckaloo.
“It’s pricey. You have to have specialized vehicles for these dogs and they can be very expensive. You’re looking at over $60,000 for a vehicle,” Sanders said. “You have the dog price, the training price — and they continue on training — and veterinarian care and so forth.”
Tank takes a rare pause for a closeup. While the dogs are used for drug detection, they’re also part of the image of the Hutchinson Police Department and must be able to interact with the public.
The dogs are trained to detect narcotics and have earned their pay in the first year on the force. Between the two units, more than 90 arrests have been made. That includes 385 grams of meth, 92 grams of marijuana, 21 grams of cocaine and 10 grams of heroin. They’ve also made two arrests for felons in possession of a firearm.
The officers say they get kind of a mixed reaction when the dogs find drugs, noting it’s hard for anyone to hate a dog. They also say they get excited when their dogs have success at their job. “It’s like your kid hitting a home run,” Schmidt said.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Superior Boiler announced that Nick LeJeune has been named vice president, sales and marketing for Superior Holding and that Don Whitman has been named vice president, general manager of the company’s Richmond, Virginia-based industrial water tube division.
Nick LeJeuneDon Whitman
LeJeune will lead the sales and marketing initiatives for all Superior Holding businesses, which manufacture products in both Hutchinson and Richmond. He joined Superior in mid-2018 as president and general manager of the water tube boiler division. He will relocate from Richmond to Hutchinson.
Whitman, who also has an extensive background in the boiler industry, has worked for the past 28 years helping lead another industry company in a capacity similar to his new role with Superior. He will be responsible for the Richmond facility’s day-to-day operations, including complete profit-and-loss management oversight.
“Superior is thrilled to see Nick step into an expanded role and to have an industry professional of Don’s caliber join our team,” Superior Boiler President and CEO Doug Wright said. “Nick did an excellent job of managing our Richmond operations since joining our team and we’re excited about his ability to now develop the best possible sales channels for Superior Boiler. Don is a great addition and we anticipate he will provide leadership that helps us continue to execute on our strategic plans.”
Superior Holding is the parent company of Hutchinson, Kansas-based Superior Boiler and Virginia-based Superior Boiler, LLC. Superior Boiler employs approximately 150 people at its Hutchinson, Oklahoma City and Richmond locations.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson and most of central and southcentral Kansas will see a mixed bag of winter weather throughout the day.
Areas of snow and freezing precipitation will fall, creating slick travel conditions. Motorists are urged to use caution when driving, especially on bridges and overpasses. The weather is expected to move out of the area later today, but the cold weather will remain.
URGENT – WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Wichita KS
405 AM CDT Wed Oct 30 2019
Russell-Lincoln-Barton-Ellsworth-Saline-Rice-McPherson-Marion-
Chase-Reno-Harvey-Butler-Greenwood-Kingman-Sedgwick-Harper-
Including the cities of Russell, Lincoln, Sylvan Grove,
Great Bend, Ellsworth, Wilson, Salina, Lyons, Sterling,
McPherson, Hillsboro, Marion, Peabody, Cottonwood Falls,
Strong City, Hutchinson, Newton, El Dorado, Augusta, Andover,
Rose Hill, Eureka, Madison, Kingman, Derby, Haysville, Bel Aire,
Park City, Valley Center, Wichita, Anthony, Harper, and Attica
405 AM CDT Wed Oct 30 2019
…WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS
EVENING…
* WHAT…A trace to around 3 inches of snow with some freezing
drizzle also possible.
* WHERE…The higher snow totals are expected over central Kansas,
especially for areas along and north of Interstate 70. Areas
generally south of Highway 50 will have the best chance to see
some freezing drizzle that may make elevated surfaces slick.
* WHEN…through 7 pm Wednesday.
* IMPACTS…Plan on slippery road conditions especially on
elevated surfaces such as bridges and overpasses. The hazardous
conditions could impact the morning or evening commute.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
Slow down and use caution while traveling.
The latest road conditions for the state you are calling from can
be obtained by calling 5-1-1.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — For those expecting to see construction activity along North Main Street this week, things are in a bit of a delay.
According to Hutchinson Public Works, Vogts Parga Construction now says it will start work on the next phase of the project on Nov. 4. Work on the infrastructure portion of the project was to begin three days ago, but was delayed.
Work on the waterline will begin at 13th Avenue and move south to 5th. The work will be done mostly on the west side of Main Street and there will be some traffic control necessary in the work areas.
Once the utilities are in, the entire street will be milled and overlayed. The project is expected to be finished in late spring or early summer.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Advance voting continues ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
As of Tuesday morning, the Reno County Clerk’s Office reports 685 ballots cast with another 636 absentee ballots mailed out. If you have an absentee ballot, it must be postmarked by Nov. 5 and in the clerk’s office by Nov. 8.
If you want to return the ballot in person, it must be done by the end of voting at 7 p.m. That ballot must be turned into the clerk’s office and cannot be dropped off at a voting site.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Archer Daniels Midland hopes for more treats than tricks when it releases quarterly earnings reports before the bell Halloween morning.
The company is trying to rebound from a sluggish start to the fiscal year, which saw earnings of $235 million or $0.60 per share in the second quarter, compared to $566 million and $1.02 the same period last year.
Flooding ate into the company’s profits and several segments of the company continued to struggle in the market. During the last quarterly report, ADM said it was consolidating several segments and offering early retirement to employees in both the U.S. and Canada.
ADM employs about 60 workers at its Hutchinson elevators and carries a total valuation in the county of more than $2.35 million. ADM is the 14th largest property taxpayer in Reno County.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson USD 308 School Board will take action on a new agreement with the district’s teachers during tonight’s agenda session.
The new contract calls for a 3.2% increase in base salary for teachers to $39,807. It also provides step and horizontal step pay scale increases. The total cost of the new salary package is $891,194. The new contract also provides a set time for lunch breaks and makes revisions to the sick leave pool.
Also tonight, the board will seek approval of its agreement with HutchCC and the Career and Technical Education Academy. The agreement allows USD 308 students and neighboring districts to gain college credit for the classes operated under this agreement.
College tuition is paid by the Kansas Board of Regents. HutchCC compensates USD 308 for providing the instructors and facilities for the specified programming.
Tonight’s meeting of the USD 308 School Board begins at 6 p.m. in the school district offices at 1520 N. Plum.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A portion of the Hutchinson Correctional Facility was evacuated Monday morning after a gas line break. According to Prison Spokesperson Jordan Bell, a maintenance crew was repairing a water main break when they struck an adjacent gas line.
The Hutchinson Fire Department responded and helped monitor the area to make sure gas hadn’t collected in any buildings.
The incident forced the prison to evacuate the east yard, which is mostly a maintenance area. A few inmates were working in the area at the time, but most of the evacuees were staff. The break did not affect the cell block area of the prison, although the facility is without hot water.
The were no injuries reported. The evacuation lasted only a short time until the area was secured.
Updated Oct. 28 at 9:52 a.m.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Fire crews are still at the prison monitoring the area of the gas line break. Any evacuations are over and entry into the buildings is being allowed at the discretion of the prison.
The fire department is on standby at the prison while the area of the break is secured. No injuries have been reported. There’s no word on who was evacuated during the incident or where on the prison grounds the break occurred.
Original Story
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson Fire Department has responded to the Hutchinson Correctional Facility for a gas leak.
According to Reno County 911, a work crew hit a gas line just before 9:30 a.m.
That area of the prison has been cleared. No other details are available and there are no reports of injuries at this time.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — KWBW’s Project Concern is about to begin once again. The annual Thanksgiving fundraiser helps provide food for those in need during the holiday.
Sign up for both Project Concern and Christmas assistance begins Monday at the Salvation Army at 700 N. Walnut.
Sign up hours are 9 a.m. until noon and 1 until 3:30 p.m. on Monday, 9 a.m. until 12 noon Tuesday and Friday, and from 1 p.m. until 7 p.m. on Thursday.
Sign up for Project Concern runs through Nov. 22 while sign up for the Christmas season lasts until Dec. 6th.
