Local

Jan Schultz | Johnson Publications
Completion of the Chase County Veterans Memorial is expected this year. It was partially funded with $100,000 in community development sales tax dollars.

Jan Schultz | Johnson Publications
Imperial’s skatepark received $100,000 from the city sales tax community development fund, as well as numerous other donations from the community shown at the south edge of the structure.

Recent sales tax income a plus for future projects

Near records have been set from the latest two months of city sales tax income.

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Chase Co. records four new COVID cases

While Nebraska’s number of positive COVID-19 tests is dropping, the Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department (SWNPHD) is experiencing an uptick in theirs.

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Prosecutor drops charges against city police chief

Special Prosecutor Randy Fair of Ogalalla dropped misdemeanor charges earlier this month against Imperial Police Chief Ryan Wisnieski.

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Courtesy photo
Tom Shield of Kearney earned the grand champion award of $100 for his photograph, “Big Boy” as the winning entry in the hospital foundation’s “Images of Nebraska” photography contest.

Courtesy photos
The overall reserve grand champion was Miranda Spady with her photograph, top, “Cowboy @ Sunset.” The professional division was won by Megan Kelley with her entry, “Cousins and Watermelon.”

Hospital names winners in annual photo contest

The Chase County Hospital Foundation (CCHF) announced winners in its 11th annual “Images of Nebraska” photography contest.

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Traffic on Hwy. 6 through Imperial was backed up for awhile last Thursday while trucks hauling large wind turbine blades made their way around the corners at the coop office and at the Hwy. 6/61 junction to continue north on Hwy. 61 towards Grant. A spokesperson with the truck service said they transport a lot of wind turbine blades around the country, but said these were the longest they had ever moved at 236 feet. These blades were picked up on the Texas coast and have made their way across Texas, parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado. They are headed for a project near Milligan, Nebraska.

They key to turning corners is the triple-axle dolly near the end of the blade. The direction of the wheels is controlled by remote control, allowing the unit to change direction to maneuver around corners . The wheels then straighten back out for transport down the highway.

The trio of trucks and their blades headed north on Hwy. 61 but hit a snag when they came to the Hwy. 23/61 junction, three miles east of Grant. According to the spokesperson, the route design did not account for all of the light poles at the intersection, preventing them from making a right-hand turn to proceed east down Hwy. 23. As of Tuesday, they were still parked on the shoulder awaiting the necessary permitting and routing to continue to their destination.