New hospital among top stories of 2019

An announcement that Cloud County Health Center is moving forward with plans to construct a new hospital in Concordia with no local tax support was among the top stories in 2019.
Cloud County Health Center (CCHC) administrator David Garnas made that announcement during a public event at Broadway Plaza on July 15 that the hospital plans to construct a 74,000-square foot, 14-bed facility to be located on College Drive east of U.S. Highway 81.
The preliminary cost estimate for the new hospital is $43,437,000.
Garnas started that CCHC will be seeking financing through the United States Department of Agriculture to fund construction of the new facility.
CCHC has been working on finalizing the financing, and an announcement is expected sometime in January.
Two days after the announcement was made on the plan to move forward on the new facility, the Concordia city commission approved a development agreement with CCHC for the property on College Drive where it will be located.
Under the College Drive Park Land Pricing Policy, CCHC qualifies for free land for the development.
The ongoing efforts by Unified School District 333 and the board of education to explore possible facility improvements and construction, and snow have also made headlines this year.
A month after voting to publish a notice of intent to use an alternative method for construction services, the USD 333 board of education approved the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) process for needs assessment and possible future improvement projects.
In April, the school board approved partnering with McCownGordon Construction, Manhattan, in the CMAR process.
The board of education voted to hire HTK Architects to work with McCownGordon on possible improvements which could include work at the Concordia Junior-Senior High School, Concordia Middle School, Concordia Elementary School and USD 333 Service Center.
A community vision team was established to help develop concepts.
The board of education met earlier this month with the Concordia city commission to discuss a possible partnership on funding options.
During a study session, the possibility of the city placing a sales tax initiative on a ballot with a school bond issue was discussed.
The sales tax increase would help offset a portion of the property tax needed to fund facility improvements.
Once the school district has a plan for improvements in place, it can formally request that the city commission pass a resolution to place the sales tax increase question on a ballot.
The weather was in the news throughout much of last winter as the snow piled up.
Concordia experienced its third wettest winter on record with 46.9 inches of  snow. That was 29 inches above normal.
The harsh weather took a toll on the Concordia streets as they were littered with potholes.
The Blade-Empire will take a look back at some of the top stories of 2019.

January
Kim Reynolds took over as the CloudCorp executive director. She replaced Ashley Hutchinson, who has served in the position since January 2013. Hutchinson accepted a position with Citizens National Bank. Reynolds has worked 17 years in higher education...A fire caused heat and smoke damage at NCK Mats & More...Cloud County Community College celebrated the completion of the Sun Power Solar Farm that is located on the hill south of the college. It consists of up to 300 kilowatts of solar panels. Construction of the farm was made possible by grants of $150,000 from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation and $100,833 from the United States Department of Agriculture. It will be used as a training tool for students in the renewable energy program and will save the college an estimated $40,000-$42,000 a year in electrical costs...The city of Concordia partnered with Cloud County Co-op Elevator Association and Concordia Terminal LLC on a project to improve the intersection at Lincoln and First Street. The improvements include a wider turning radius to accommodate heavy, slow moving agriculture truck traffic. Cloud County Coop Elevator Association and Concordia Terminal LLC offered to contribute 70 percent of the project's estimated cost of $313,000...Cloud County Community College received a $100,000 grant from the Sunderland Foundation for the construction of a new agriculture facility that will provide space for the precision ag equipment and livestock.
February
The Community Foundation for Cloud County hosted its fifth Strategic Doing meeting at the Nazareth Motherhouse...The Unified School District 333 board of education approved the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) process for needs assessment and possible future improvement projects. The CMAR provides professional services and acts as a consultant to the district in the design development and construction phases of possible facility improvements.
March
Cloud County Community College launched CloudFrastructure, an effort to expand the broadband infrastructure in the area. The college will be partnering with members of the local technology sector to explore ways to bring scalable optical broadband infrastructure to the area...The Unified School District 333 board of education approved the launch of 1-to-1 Chromebook which provides Dell Chromebooks to students in grades 7-12. The district purchased 646 Chromebooks off state contract through Dell at a cost of $181,579...Cloud County Health Center, the Concordia Chamber of Commerce and CloudCorp were working together to provide emergency aid to Nebraska communities impacted by historic flooding...Bruno Rehbein, city of Concordia building inspector, informed the city commission that he had issued a building permit for Dollar Tree. A few months earlier the city commission had approved signing an agreement with Ridge Investment Group, Chesterfield, Mo., for the sale of property owned by the city in the South Development. The building permit issued to Ashley Construction, Chesterfield, was for a 10,000 square foot Dollar Tree store at 145 East College Dr.
April
The Unified School District 333 board of education approved partnering with McCownGordon Construction, Manhattan, in the Construction Manager at Risk process. McCownGordon will provide professional services and act as a consultant to the district in the design development and construction phases of a possible bond project...The Unified School District board of education approved the hiring of Jordan Echer as the Concordia High School football coach and Alison Widen as the high school volleyball coach...The Cloud County Community College board of trustees approved the appointment of Pedro Leite to the position of vice president for student affairs. Leite has been serving as the interim vice president since September 2018.
May
The Cloud County Health Center board of trustees approved moving forward with plans for the construction of a new modern medical facility. Hospital administrator David Garnas presented the findings of the master site and facility plan to hospital staff. The construction of a 74,000 square foot facility located on College Drive was being proposed...As part of a college-wide restructure for organizational alignment, Cloud County Community College reduced the number of administrative positions. The number of vice presidents at the college was reduced from three to two with the creation of a new position, vice president of academic affairs and student success...The city of Concordia was notified that it had been awarded a $6.95 million supplemental appropriation award from the Federal Aviation Administration Airport Improvement Program. The grant funds will be used for the construction of a longer and wider runway and taxiway rehabilitation and construction at Blosser Municipal Airport...The Cloud County Community College men's track and field team won its first NJCAA Outdoor championship. Scoring in 10 events, the Thunderbirds won the meet, held at Hobbs, N.M., with 88 points. Dennis Kiptoo was an individual champion in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.
June
Mindy Joye, PA-C joined the staff at Cloud County Health Center. She is providing care in the emergency department...The Concordia city commission approved authorizing city manager Amy Lange to enter into a contract with Professional Engineering Consultants, PA for professional services for the wastewater treatment plant Phase 2 improvements. In 2015, the city commission authorized improvements to the treatment plant, with the work to be done in two phases. APAC-Kansas completed Phase 1 in August 2018. The preliminary estimated cost for Phase 2 is around $3 million...The Concordia Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony at the 81 Connection Bus Stop at West Seventh Street for the launch of the KANcycle bike-sharing program. The program, with a $160,000 contribution from Blue Cross and Blue Shield, was started by OCCK Transportation and Zagster, Inc. Two racks of bicycles with five bicycles each are located at the 81 Connection bus stops of West Seventh and on the campus of Cloud County Community College. Riders can join KANcycle by signing up for the annual membership or pay-as-you-go.
July
A water emergency was declared for the city of Concordia. A glitch in the electrical power caused a brief pump outage at water well #21. An increased demand while the well was out of service resulted in significant consumption of reserve water in both water towers that was not replaced at the same rate. Thus, pressure loss was experienced by many Concordia residents. The water emergency was lifted the next day...Cloud County Health Center unveiled its plan to build a new 74,000 square foot, 14-bed modern medical facility on College Drive east of U.S. Highway 81 with no local tax support. Financing through the United State Department of Agriculture will be sought to fund construction of the new hospital. Preliminary cost estimate for the facility was $43,437,000. Hospital administrator David Garnas made the announcement during a public event at the Broadway Plaza...Two days after Cloud County Health Center announced plans for the construction of a new hospital, the Concordia city commission approved a development agreement for property in College Drive Park for the new facility. Under the College Drive Park Land Pricing Policy approved in 2017, Cloud County Health Center qualifies for free land for the development...NextEra Energy Resources, LLC donated a wind turbine nacelle to the Cloud County Community College renewable energy program. The nacelle, weighing approximately 180,000 pounds, was delivered to the college campus. It will provide students with hands-on training using the equipment.

August
Cloud County Community College was named the best community college in the country by SmartAsset, a financial technology company. According to SmartAsset, Cloud County offers more than 335 courses every semester and has the highest graduation and transfer rate of any college...The Concordia Chamber of Commerce presented its annual awards during a ceremony at Broadway Plaza. Bob Steimel, director of the Community Foundation for Cloud County, received the Leon Gennette Award: Community Service Volunteer of the Year...Cloud County Health Center hosted a public meeting at City Hall to discuss the plan to construct a 74,000 square foot, 14-bed modern medical facility. The meeting was one of the necessary steps taken by Cloud County Health Center as part of the application for financing through the United States Department of Agriculture.
September
The Cloud County board of commissioners approved hiring Brent Gering to the newly established full-time position of Emergency Management Coordinator. Gering, who is originally from Concordia, had been working for the Dickinson County Sheriff's Department. The county board had voted in June to change the position from part-time to full-time...The Brown Grand Theatre, Inc. announces a capital campaign, “Seating the Next Generation,” to replace the 93-year-old seats in the historic theater. A concert by the Grammy-nominated rock band Great White officially launched the campaign. The goal is to have 477 new seats installed by September, 2020...Cloud County Health Center announced that certified family nurse practitioner Tiffany Naccarato, MSN, FNP-C, had joined the staff and will provide comprehensive care in the emergency department...Participants in the 6th Annual Fly Kansas Air Tour, sponsored by the Kansas Department of Transportation, landed at Blosser Municipal Airport in Concordia. The pilots spent the night in Concordia and were treated to a showing of the movie “The Aviator” at Broadway Plaza.
October
Concordia Unified School District 333 joined a growing list of school districts in Kansas to take legal action against Juul Laboratories, the maker of the most popular electronic cigarettes in the United States. The USD 333 board of education approved a resolution authorizing Wagstaff & Cartmell, LLP to initiate litigation and file suit against any appropriate parties to compensate the district for damages suffered by the district and its students as a result of the manufacture, marketing, sale and use of electronic cigarettes and vaping products, and to seek any other appropriate relief...The Concordia High School doubles team of Ciara Kearn and Macy McMillan ended a long drought by qualifying for the Class 3A state tennis championships. Kearn and McMillan advanced to state by placing sixth in the regional tournament. It had been more than 20 years since Concordia had any girls qualify for state...Cloud County Community College broke ground on its new agriculture facility.
November
Christy Hasch was re-elected to the Concordia city commission. Four candidates were vying for two seats on the commission. Hasch was the leading vote getter. Former commissioner Marsha Wentz was leading incumbent Sam Sacco 415-413 on election night. When the Cloud County board of commissioners canvassed the ballots, Wentz was declared the winner...The Cloud County board of commissioners approved the purchase of the Health Department building from Casselrock, Inc. at a cost of $86,531.85, using Wind Farm funds. In 2016, $50,000 in Meridian Way Wind Farm funds, provided by EDP Renewables, were awarded to the Health Department to purchase the building...The Cloud County Community College men's cross country team placed first in the NJCAA National Championships run at Albuquerque, N.M. Cloud County finished with 89 points. El Paso Community College was second with 110 points. Freshman Dais Malebana led Cloud County by placing 10th in 24:38.80...The Concordia city commission approved extending hours for the sales of cereal malt beverage within the city limits to 9 a.m.-midnight. The hours for the sales of cereal malt beverage had been set at 9 a.m.-11 p.m. after voters had approved allowing the sale of alcohol in Concordia on Sundays.
December
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation executed several search warrants in Concordia, including one at the Cloud County Law Enforcement Center. According to a KBI spokesperson, the search warrants are part of an ongoing investigation into alleged misconduct by employees of the Cloud County Sheriff's Office...Darrell Gallegos became the new owner of the Ford dealership in Concordia. Gallegos purchased Womack Ford Kawasaki. He changed the name to Farm Country Ford...The Concordia city commission and the Unified School District 333 board of education met for a study session to discuss funding options for possible facility improvements by the school district. Use of a sales tax increase to help fund school improvements was discussed. The sales tax would help offset the increase in property taxes that would result from a school bond issue.