A month after members of the community and artists gathered to enjoy and purchase art, the Bourbon County Arts Council is again holding an Art Walk on Friday at the Liberty Theatre Courtyard, from 5 to 8 p.m.

The downtown Fort Scott event is still accepting artist entries to set up their wares at no cost, providing an opportunity for artists to show and sell their art. Those interested in registering as an artist can contact Deb Anderson of the BCAC at 620-224-8650 or [email protected] for a registration form.

The event is also free to the public, with some appetizers and drinks provided by Crooners as well as the chance to see and purchase numerous different forms of art, including photography, paintings, crafts, pottery and ceramics and a variety of others.

A project whose planning stages began years ago came a step closer to having visible results with a groundbreaking ceremony held Thursday morning for the new Bourbon County Law Enforcement Center.

On April 7, 2015, the public’s vote gave the county approval to move forward with their plan to construct a new building to serve as the Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office as well as the county’s detention center.

“It’s a special day for the county,” commission chair Barbara Albright said, saying the new center will provide more space as well as a safer environment and improved conditions for the inmates and the staff.

With work beginning soon on clearing and beginning construction on the property located just east of the Briggs Auto Group off Highway 69, the commissioners stated they hope it will be complete in about a year.

“It’s been a long journey,” commissioner Lynne Oharah said. “It’s going to be a good project for the community and I’m excited to see the ground start moving and the land get cleared.”

Commissioner Harold Coleman admitted it was a long and often difficult process to get to this point—facing hurdles such as getting the project approved by the county citizens, finding suitable property and deciding on the building design—but that work was well worth it as they begin to see work being done on the new law enforcement center.

Sheriff Bill Martin expressed his appreciation to the county and city officials as well as the citizens for making the new center a reality. Martin pointed out that a lot of the hard work was completed by his own staff and leadership.

Lindsay Madison, executive director of the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce, said during the ceremony that there are numerous projects going on around the city of Fort Scott, and that the new center is another key project that will build up the infrastructure of the county for years and generations to come.

“We are leaving a footprint on our history,” Madison said of those projects, including the new law enforcement center.

County, city and sheriff’s office leaders participated in the groundbreaking ceremony as did representatives from the architecture and engineering firms that took part in the planning and design process of the center.

With the budget hearing for the new fiscal year coming later this summer, the Bourbon County Commission began accepting proposed budgets from individual departments during their meeting Tuesday.

With the general fund being tight in Bourbon County in recent years, with carryover often being used up the following year, and other expenses such as courthouse security changes approaching, the commissioners expressed appreciation to the department heads they met with Tuesday when many of them came with budgets unchanged or lower from previous years.

“Thank you for being frugal on your budget,” commission chairman Barb Albright said to emergency management director Will Wallis when he presented a budget that was lower than the previous year.

The emergency preparedness budget requested $66,464, which included line items such as wages, phones, maintenance, office supplies and other fees and dues. A second emergency budget consists of a $17,000 grant from the government that is also used to pay for some equipment and other items such as the Code Red weather alert system.

Eric Bailey of the Local Environmental Protection Program presented two proposed budgets, one that totaled the same as the previous year while the second added an extra $20,000 for the purchase of a new vehicle, since the current one has needed a significant amount of maintenance work done to keep it operational and has about 136,000 miles on it. With a new vehicle included, the proposed budget totaled $64,821.

Rhonda Cole and Judge Mark Ward of the district court proposed a budget of $242,293, with no increase over the previous year’s budget. The commissioners expressed their surprise and appreciation that the courts were able to keep the budget the same despite heavy case loads in recent months.

Tim Cunningham of Tri-Valley Developmental Services also presented a proposed budget to the county commission, requesting $55,000, down from the almost $55,500 they received the previous year. From their total, more than $5 million budget, Cunningham said cuts in their number of employees and other changes decreased their budget by about $.5 million.

“You have always been good to us,” Cunningham thanked the commissioners, while the commission expressed their positive opinions concerning the importance of the services Tri-Valley provides.

Director Jim Harris of the road and bridge department also presented a budget proposal, with the key difference from previous years being a three percent wage increase. Areas and their requests within the department included: $152,598 for noxious weed; $217,426 for bridge and culvert; $20,585 for special bridge; $225,019 for the landfill; $26,931 for Elm Creek; $2,197,773 for road and bridge; and $1,018,124 for the road and bridge sales tax.

County Clerk Kendell Mason requested $98,462 for her department as well as $90,450 for the election budget, both numbers very similar to the previous fiscal year’s budgets.

Further departments will continue to present proposed budgets to the commissioners so the commission can approve the numbers in a budget hearing, scheduled for the end of August, so those requests can then be submitted to Certified Public Accountant Terry Sercer, who will form the budget before the fiscal year begins January 1.

Bourbon County participated in the nationwide and even international Relay for Life event Saturday evening at the Fort Scott Community College, raising more than $20,000 locally for the American Cancer Society.

“This is an amazing gathering,” organizer Allison Daly said in the opening ceremony, saying the reason they come is to finish the fight against cancer by remembering cancer victims, celebrating the survivors and thanking caregivers.

The event began with guest speaker Patsy Smith, a Fort Scott native and fifth-year cancer survivor , despite her diagnosis of a rare cancer in her appendix.

“I’m really feeling very blessed to be here,” Smith said, adding she was especially pleased when she learned they would honor caregivers as well as those with cancer. “Through this journey, that is both physical and mental, I have never walked alone.”

Smith said cancer is a disease that affects entire families, not just the individual, and it takes that family or a strong support group to help the victim both physically through the cancer treatment as well as mentally when they become discouraged.

The relay kicked off with a cannon fired by Velocity Tactics and then a lap for the survivors followed by a lap honoring those caregivers.

Local businesses, organizations and families formed teams to raise money and participate in the overnight relay event, including FSCC, Mercy Hospital, Future Farmers of America, FirstSource and area churches among others. The groups also sold food items, raffle tickets or other items around the track to continue to raise funding.

Other festivities included bounce houses, a luminary ceremony, performance by Signing of the Divine and music provided by a DJ. Calendars are also for sale.

Leaders, volunteers and participants in the upcoming Relay for Life shared information about the event during the Thursday morning Chamber Coffee, inviting people to participate in Saturday’s event held in honor of cancer victims and survivors.

“It’s an opportunity for everyone,” survivor lead Janderon Harrison said. “Because all of us have been touched by cancer in some way or in some form in our lives, either directly through a loved one or ourselves, or friends and other people we may know.”

The relay will be held Saturday in the Arnold Arena parking lot at Fort Scott Community College, from 6 p.m. until midnight, beginning with a survivor lap followed by a caregiver lap before other individuals and teams join in. Festivities will also include features such as a cannon fired by Velocity Tactics, bounce houses and games for children, a DJ and information distributed on health and cancer prevention.

Harrison explained the event is an overnight one because cancer never sleeps, and the relay serves as an opportunity to celebrate survivors and remember those lost while raising awareness, bringing those impacted by cancer together and collecting funds for research against the many forms of cancer.

The weekend events will begin with a survivor dinner Thursday evening at 6 p.m., hosted at the First Presbyterian Church. There is still room available for cancer survivors as well as caregivers interested in attending the dinner.

The Relay for Life team is also selling calendars for $12 each and luminary bags in honor of those lost to cancer in the last year for $5 each. A luminary ceremony will be held at 9:15 p.m. Saturday followed by a performance by Signing of the Divine.

Teams as well as individuals are invited to participate in the Relay for Life. Some teams already formed represent families, local businesses, organizations and others such as FSCC and Mercy Hospital.

After the recent passing of a state house bill, which allows city, county and state employees to carry concealed weapons while they are on the job in the community, the Bourbon County Commission and other Kansas county leaders have less than a month to prepare for such a change to employee policy.

The bill will come into effect on July 1, allowing government employees to carry weapons while they are on duty outside the public buildings, such as in vehicles and when visiting sites around the county, in addition to being allowed to carry within public buildings.

After July 1, 2017, another law will be enforced which allows the public to carry concealed weapons inside those public buildings as well. The only way the county could prevent employees or the public from carrying weapons inside those public buildings would be if they could guarantee the safety of the building by providing security that would prevent anyone from carrying a weapon inside.

The commissioners in a meeting with department heads Tuesday morning expressed their desire to prevent any weapons from being carried into the courthouse, just as the third floor is weapons-free because of the location of the courtroom.

But in order to make sure that floor and possibly the entire courthouse remains secure against weapons, the county would have to provide security through guards, whether deputies or other contracted security officers, as well as equipment such as wands, metal detectors or x-ray equipment.

“I think there are some good options out there, we’re kind of relieved to know,” commission chairman Barbara Albright said, saying at first they had thought they would have to purchase complete metal detectors and other equipment when personnel with wands would be sufficient and cost the county less.

But Shane Walker, involved in emergency management as well as information and technology, said the equipment is not what will cost the county the most to provide the security, but the additional employees’ salaries and benefits. To secure the entire courthouse, Walker said the manpower and the equipment and changes to make sure the single entrance is accessible to everyone could add up to more than $350,000 initially.

“There’s nothing that we can put into place in 30 days,” Walker said.

Walker said he has heard that other counties also are struggling to find the budget money needed to make changes to make sure their administrative buildings and courthouses are secure.

“Money’s an issue,” County Attorney Justin Meeks said, referring to that fact as the 1,000 pound gorilla in the room and saying they may have to consider cuts in departments or raising mill levies.

But because the only change coming this July is allowing employees to carry while on duty outside the building and are allowed to carry in the building already, the commission said they do not have to decide on a plan of action in immediate weeks. The commission did agree to consider forming a committee to continue looking at options as they prepare for when the public would be allowed to bring weapons into the courthouse.

“I don’t believe our risk changes July 1,” tax assessor Rhonda Dunn said, but expressed her concern for the time when any visitor to the courthouse could potentially be carrying a weapon legally.

During their meeting on May 10, the Bourbon County Commission discussed recent gun control changes and other bills passing through the state legislature that could bring changes to how public buildings handle security.

In recent weeks, the Kansas State Senate and House of Representatives have discussed and approved House Bill 2502, which includes allowing employees in public buildings—defined in the bill as “any portion of state or municipal building that is open to and accessible to the public,” though school buildings may be exempt—to carry weapons while on the job outside the building and in the community if they have their concealed carry permit.

This law would be added to others passed in just the past few years that allow visitors and employees to carry concealed weapons in public buildings if that building does not provide its own security such as through metal detectors or continuous armed security.

Bourbon County Commissioners knew they would need to provide such security if they wanted to prevent the carrying of weapons in the courthouse, but initially had until July 2017 to make a decision on that security. A decision may have to be made sooner if this current bill passes as it could be enforced as early as July 1, if signed by the governor.

“It will be something you’ll have to make a decision on in the future,” County Attorney Justin Meeks told the commissioners during that meeting May 10.

Commission Chairman Barbara Albright described the decision they face as an expensive one, since providing their own security would include adding employees as well as technology and equipment, whether they decide to add an armed guard or metal detectors.

Further detail on the house bill and other aspects it includes, such as allowing air guns on school campuses, can be seen at http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2015_16/measures/documents/summary_hb_2502_2016.pdf

During their meeting Tuesday morning, the Bourbon County Commission met with Drywood and Scott township members who gave an update on what has occurred within the Garland Fire District in recent months.

Scott Township clerk Don Banwart and Drywood Township trustee Darrel Bloomfield gave information on issues they said they have faced with the fire department of unincorporated Garland in recent months and even years.

“The situation in Garland has deteriorated,” Banwart said.

First created in 1968 by the county commission and a vote, the Garland Fire Department has responded to calls around the small town and the surrounding area since that time.

As townships lines were drawn in Bourbon County, it was determined that the district includes areas in the Scott and Drywood townships, leading to the Garland fire board including representatives from the two townships. As a result, a hierarchy of authority was created, with the fire board answering to the township boards that then are beneath the county commission if needed.

But most recently, Banwart and Bloomfield said townships have not been made aware of the state of the fire district concerning such information as how many board members or firefighters there are, who the treasurer is or how the money is being used. When those details and an audit were requested, the fire board refused.

Banwart said the department has also responded to emergency calls in an untimely manner of late, sometimes arriving with few volunteers or not at all, resulting in the Scott Township firefighters often responding. To resolve that risk, the townships made official their request to Fort Scott Fire Chief Paul Ballou that the Scott Township department always respond to Garland emergencies.

Enforcing a statute that states the townships have the right to form the fire board, citing insubordination of the current board as their reason for doing so, Banwart said the joint townships voted to make changes to the board by presenting new electors who would represent township members who do not live in the Garland district and so can not serve on the board directly. Some of the board positions are currently open since such electors have not been appointed while others have served beyond the three-year terms of elected township members they represented.

But prior to the meeting held Monday evening, when names of electors would have been proposed, Banwart said they received a restraining order that stated the actions to change the fire board were causing confusion and disorder.

Banwart said their goal is to have transparency between the fire board and townships, adding they have heard from numerous residents from within the Garland Fire District that have concerns about how it is run and how the taxpayers’ money is being spent.

“All that we want is for things to run smoothly and for people to get what they’re paying for,” Bloomfield said.

County Commissioners said they did not think they should step in with action at this time, but thanked Banwart and Bloomfield for the information and expressed their desire to be kept up to date on further issues.

During a legislative breakfast hosted at Mercy Hospital Saturday morning, two state senators and two state representatives answered questions from members of the Fort Scott community on a number of topics.

“I’m always glad to come up here and participate in this forum,” Representative Adam Lusker said.

With Mark McCoy serving as moderator, the politicians answered questions from the floor as well as questions and comments that had been emailed in advance. Topics ranged from slot machines at dog and horse racing tracks to energy rates and state resources, but much of the time was spent discussing a property tax lid and state education funding.

The panel, which included Lusker with Rep. Marty Read, Sen. Jake LaTurner and Sen. Caryn Tyson, discussed a bill which ould allow property tax rates to be voted on by the citizens if the city or county leaders decide to increase the rates beyond that allowed by inflation and other exemptions.

The panelists pointed out that such a change would grant more rights to the citizens while making the market more competitive in bringing landowners and businesses to the county and the state, since Missouri rates are consistently lower than those in Kansas.

City and county leaders in attendance at the breakfast panel expressed their disagreement with the proposal since it would add restrictions on the leaders voted in by the citizens to represent them, and whom the citizens could vote out of office if they do not properly represent them. Another comment from the audience pointed out that such a change would force the community to pay for an election.

“I don’t think it ties their hands at all,” LaTurner said of the proposed bill and how it affects elected officials, while Tyson said it will help prevent high rates, such as agricultural property rates that went up an average of 15 percent in Bourbon County this year and as much as 40 percent in other areas.

Another key topic, referred to as the second elephant in the room, was education and house bills that have raised concerns for those involved in the schools.

One area concerned a senate bill passed in 2012 that provided a reimbursement for high school students completing technical college courses and even a $1,000 incentive to the students’ high schools. However, that incentive has been taken away as the budget decreases from more than $1 million to about $50,000 in the 2016-2017 year, only covering the testing done during the college courses.

Tyson explained the larger budget and incentives had been designed to only be temporary as the program kicked off. Area educators expressed their concern at that fact as area schools and colleges strive to start up such a program but need that financial support.

The panelists also discussed Kansas House bill 2741, which would prevent state education funding from being used for administrative, maintenance, construction, repairs, extra-curricular activities and food service costs. Tyson and LaTurner both pointed out this bill has not had a hearing yet and they doubt it will advance any further.

Tyson also pointed out that education funding from the state was last cut in 2009 and has only increased from there, although its distribution has left some areas with cuts.

City Manager Dave Martin expressed his appreciation to the four panelists for their representation of Bourbon County and for being willing to speak and work with local leaders, despite any differences in opinion.

All four encouraged residents in their districts to contact them with any questions, comments or concerns they might have on state or local issues.

Just a day after two Young Professionals League members received awards at the Chamber of Commerce dinner, the group of young business people continued their goal of assisting its members by holding a networking lunch during their monthly meeting Friday.

The April meeting gave attendees an opportunity to mingle with other young business members of the community to learn about their personal and professional lives through a group activity. Participants expressed their appreciation at the opportunity to get to know each other better and build those networking ties.

With the April meeting completing the first cycle of meetings, the YPL will begin the new quarter in May, with their meeting focusing on leadership building exercises before hearing from a guest speaker on a relevant topic the following month.

The YPL also holds a monthly social gathering the third Friday of each month. On April 15, young professionals will be gathering at Nate’s Place after working hours to socialize in a more relaxed setting.

Members are also encouraged to be involved in the community, such as by volunteering to help with the Beacon Soup Line in the fall or the High School Career Day. Community service hours outside of work can be turned in to the YPL, which will keep a tally of the total number of hours for the individuals and the group as a whole.

Young professionals interested in joining the organization are encouraged to attend the meetings or social events. Yearly dues are currently being accepted from both new and returning members.

With the arrival of spring, the Bourbon County Commission decided Tuesday to hold a spring cleaning event for the county, encouraging residents of Bourbon County to take their trash to the landfill at no cost on April 22-23.

County commissioners discussed with public works director Jim Harris the issue of trash and large items such as tires and even mattresses being abandoned along the sides of the road throughout the county. To try to counteract that problem, and in honor of Earth Day on April 22, Bourbon County residents will be able to drop items off for free at the dump.

Harris said the county used to work with the local schools on Earth Day when students would clean up areas of town, transporting the trash to the dump. But the county has not participated in recent years. Harris said emphasizing such an event might discourage residents from throwing items away on the side of the road instead.

Each day, Harris said employees of the road department have to spend time picking up trash when they should be working on the roads, costing the county and taxpayers money that could be put to better use.

All normal rules apply to the special event concerning dumping, such as not permitting paint, oil or batteries to be disposed of there. Other items such as tires, appliances and other objects, which normally are charged according to weight, will be accepted from residences, but not commercial businesses.

The landfill will be open Friday, April 22, all day and Saturday, April 23, until 2 p.m. The commissioners said they hope to hold such events more than once a year.

With the busiest of the tornado and storm season ahead, Bourbon County commissioners and attorney Justin Meeks discussed the need for tornado sirens in areas of the county during their meeting Tuesday.

Emergency Director Will Wallis informed the commission that the city of Fort Scott has nine sirens while other areas such as Bronson has two, Uniontown has two, and others such as Fulton and Mapleton have one in their areas. Other areas such as Redfield, Hiattville and likely Garland do not have sirens, as well as Lake Fort Scott.

“We live in a very volatile area when it comes to storms,” Meeks said.

After the death of John Scott in May of 2015, a memorial fund was set up in his honor to raise funding to purchase a tornado siren for the Lake Fort Scott area. About two-thirds of the needed $17,000 has been raised, and residents of the area asked if the county could provide the remaining approximate $5,000.

Because Lake Fort Scott and other areas such as Hiattville and Garland are unincorporated, they are unable to seek grants to pay for the sirens, such as other areas like Bronson, who recently paid for sirens with grants.

Commission Chairman Barbara Albright said the county has an opportunity to assist a community that has a safety issue, but Meeks pointed out that, by doing so, the county would be setting a precedent they would need to follow consistently in future years when requests come in.

Meeks said they could create a budget line item annually that could be used to help other communities in a similar way in future years, focusing on safety issues such as sirens as opposed to other projects that fit in the current, parks and recreation item.

“I have some mixed feelings about that,” commissioner Harold Coleman said, saying he does not like the idea that the rest of the county is helping pay for a tornado siren for one area.

With such a tight budget already, the commissioners decided not to commit to an action at the moment that would require a budget item of about $5,000 each year.

“Once you start down that road you have to be consistent,” Meeks said.