Haysville Online

The Haysville Times
By Patricia Barkley

The Haysville City Council discussed further clarification of the City’s nuisance codes at their October 11 meeting. Three nuisance abatement hearings were held, prompting the debate. Some explanation was offered in regard to a previous discussion about the difference between a nuisance violation and a zoning violation. Coordinator Angela Millspaugh stated that a nuisance violation dealt specifically with how a property was maintained and related to the health and welfare section of the City’s codes.
A representative for the owner of the first property under nuisance abatement was present at the meeting. Ron Cowhick came to the hearing in the place of Steve Dale, owner of 205 Cain Dr., which had been cited for storing inoperable vehicles and miscellaneous debris. The vehicles had been moved, but some of the debris, wood and mulch, was used during Dale Investments’ day-to-day business and could not easily be moved.
The relevant ordinance did not have specific rules for particular types of materials, so there was some debate over what needed to be done with the wood and mulch. Normal debris must be stored eighteen inches off the ground, but it made little sense to Cowhick to “put mulch on top of concrete. You’re gonna have dirt on it then.”
Both materials are processed by the company for sale, and the mulch is also used for landscaping on the property. Cowhick stated that it would take the entire winter season to process all of the wood currently piled on the property. Although Councilman Ken Hampton voiced some concern over the proximity of the woodpile to some local gas containers, the main point of the discussion was the lack of specific definitions in the ordinance itself.
“The point of the ordinance was to take care of junk, not items used in the day-to-day operation of a business,” said Councilman Bill Youngers. “Some of the things we deal with wouldn’t be code violations…There’s a gray area we’re not addressing.”
The issue of a conditional use permit was suggested, but the matter was finally tabled to give the City time to check on specific definitions and perhaps clarify the vagaries of the nuisance ordinance.
The second hearing was for the property at 427 E. 71st St. S. The code violations there included debris, weeds, and an unsafe structure. Most of the debris has been moved onto trailers or otherwise stored off the ground, and the inoperable vehicles, high weeds, and unsafe structure are now gone. However, there was still some question about the storage of the debris on a flat trailer, haphazardly stacked. Councilman Mike Streets suggested that since the owner had obviously made an effort to clean up, the Council should give him more time to fully comply. Youngers, however, felt that since the owner, Ronald Kohecny, had requested a hearing and then not attended, the Council should pass the resolution to finish cleaning up the property. Finally, the issue was tabled for another two weeks, with Youngers opposed.
The third hearing was for 7470 S. Broadway, and the owners, Alan and Alice Kissack were not in attendance. Code Enforcement Officer Cale Topinka had, however, been in touch with Alan, and subsequently, some of the high weeds had been removed. The inoperable vehicles remained, though, and there was some question about the operation of a business without a license. Topinka stated that there hadn’t been much of a change in the maintenance of the property, so the Council passed the abatement resolution unanimously.
A fourth hearing that had been scheduled for the first meeting in October but had been accidentally left off of the agenda for the evening was tabled for another two weeks. The property was 523 E. 71st St. S., owned by Arthur Pirner.
An annexation ordinance was unanimously approved by the Council, bringing a rough triangle of land into the city limits on the east side of 10th St., south of Grand Ave. and east of the railroad tracks. The area is referred to as the Timber Creek Estates Addition and will not include road right-of-way for the section of 10th St. that it borders.
The Council accepted the resignation of Community Development Director Rick Rekoske, effective October 19, 2005.
A consent for the annexation of Suncrest 2nd Addition was also approved, and the low bidder, Bryant and Bryant Construction, for the Old Oak-Nelson Hike/Bike Trail was accepted. Additionally, a workshop was set for 6 PM, November 14, to discuss trash hauler requirements.
Vern Lippoldt was appointed to the Planning Commission in an at-large position. The Commission is still looking for members in Wards I and II, and new members are also needed for the Park Board and the Tree Board.
A revision to the City’s zoning ordinance for an Historic District Overlay was discussed at the meeting. After approval from three different committees had been obtained, the overlay was sent on to the Council. The ordinance specifies the general appearance of the Historic District in order to maintain its old-fashioned atmosphere. Youngers suggested that it might be too restricting in its list of businesses that were not allowed in the area. However, Hampton suggested that it needed to be more specific in certain other matters. For instance, building paints are required to comply with standards used in the 1890-1910 era, but specific colors are not listed in the ordinance. Youngers agreed, “After the years of work that have gone into this, there shouldn’t be any vagaries. [A builder] should know what to do when he starts.”
Councilman Steve Crum disagreed, saying, “The Planning Commission weeds out these things for us and studies them. If they think this is good, I’m comfortable with that.”
The matter was put to a vote. The first motion was to send the ordinance back to the Planning Commission with requests for revisions. Crum, Keith Pierce, Joe Holub, and Pat Ewert voted against this motion, splitting the vote. Mayor Bruce Armstrong broke the tie by also voting against it. The next motion made was to pass the ordinance. Hampton, Youngers, Streets, and Rob Wilkerson were opposed to this motion, but Armstrong broke the tie again and voted in favor of it, passing the overlay.

The Haysville Times
By Angie Gumm

Don’t let anyone tell you that Campus Colts don’t go far, and if they try to, tell them about Dr. Terrill Ray (above, left).
This summer, Ray, who graduated from Campus in 1986, received a Meritorious Honor Award from the U.S. Department of State for his work on the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty, and the proposed Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty.
As an employee of the Arms Control Bureau of the Department of State, Ray uses his science background to help the U.S. make sound policies about nuclear weapons.
He works with the International Monitoring System (IMS), which is a kind of seismograph, or as Ray said a “CAT Scan that detects seismic waves.” The difference is that the IMS has to determine if the waves it detects are the results of nuclear testing.
Continue reading “Haysville Native Awarded”

he Haysville Times
By Barb Walters

No one likes being told what to do with their own property, but communities must set standards for what they will tolerate within their borders. The city of Haysville has established ordinances to determine boundaries for what is allowed with regard to weeds, scrap, trash, and the like. Often, property owners get by with going past the line until citizens begin complaining about problems.
Such was the case when Code Enforcement Officer Cale Topinka went out to inspect a nuisance complaint. Upon discovering that some Haysville properties did indeed need cleaning up, it was decided to do a thorough inspection across Haysville.
“We felt we didn’t want to single out a few owners,” explained Topinka. “We wanted the ordinances enforced fairly. Some places have been out of code for quite some time.”
Some businesses that were given violation notices felt they were unwarranted due to the more secluded nature of their property. Topinka explained that all property owners had to follow the same rules as everyone else, regardless of where in the city they happened to be located.
A violation notice is not a ticket and does not carry a fine. It does, however, require the owner to clean up the area within ten days or appeal to the city council. Otherwise, the violation goes to the court system. The area can then be cleaned up by the city, with the bill for the job going to the property owner.
Cindi Curry, of All American Aqua Systems, was once on the receiving end of a violation notice. She explained that it was resolved some time ago through a visit to the city council. She expressed her displeasure with the ordinance and said it was a shame that citizens had to go through a difficult process to get the issue resolved.
“None of these ordinances are new,” stated Haysville Mayor Bruce Armstrong. “Previously, we only did abatements from complaints. We have become proactive and are making sure of equal treatment for all people.” He went on to explain that developers and others coming into town have noticed the problem and have questioned the less aggressive approach the city had been taking in handling the nuisances.
Some businesses take the ordinances to heart to avoid such problems. Gene Tiede of Tiede’s Line Construction says his business has recently spent $300,000 on expansion, including a new office and aesthetic fencing to make sure the business complied with the ordinances.

The Haysville Times
By Angie Gumm

The Haysville Fall Festival just keeps growing. This year, the newly organized Haysville Community Library Foundation is hosting a Fall Festival Walk after the parade.
For $10, walkers will get a Haysville Library rubber wristband, and they will get a goody bag full of treats from local businesses, as well as a free book and book marks.
“We’ll be geared up for a couple hundred people,” said George Snider, of the Foundation, who said the group is not sure how many to expect in the walk’s first year. “We’re extending a welcome to anyone who comes to the festival.”
Besides the obvious health benefits, walkers will feel good that they’re helping the library. The foundation bought the carpet, paint and curtains for the children’s room in the library, and so far, they have spent $3,000 on books for young adults. They also seek donations and grants to make the library a better place and provide more services to the community.
Besides the $10, walkers need to have a Fall Festival button, which can be purchased at banks and convenience stores around the city or at the Fall Festival. Registration starts Saturday, October 15, at 10 a.m. at the library. For more information call George Snider at 524-0809.

The Haysville Times
By Patricia Barkley

Katherine McCartney

This year’s Kansas State Fair was a very special event for one Haysville girl. Eighteen-year-old Katherine McCartney won a red ribbon for a dress that she designed and sewed herself. She made the dress for the volunteer work that she does at Wichita’s Old Cowtown Museum. She didn’t originally plan to enter it into a contest. McCartney has been volunteering at Cowtown since she was about seven, first through the Girl Scouts and later on her own. According to her mother, she has always had a talent for sewing outfits. She enjoys making her clothes for Cowtown and starts by looking through books of patterns for ideas. She roughly sketches out her designs before she gets started on the sewing.
The dress that won McCartney the second place ribbon at the Fair is lavender and includes all of the pieces that typically made up a dress in the 1800s. She made each piece herself, including underclothing, bustle, corset, underskirt, and overskirt. It was her first completely historically accurate outfit. Her mother suggested she enter it at the Fair. There was an application to fill out, including a description of the outfit, and the dress was set out on a dummy to be judged. The red ribbon was for the Lady’s Best Dress division; the other part of the prize was a six-dollar check.
“It was an honor just winning,” said McCartney. “I was so excited.”
McCartney participates in numerous skits performed at Cowtown, including “Calamity at Cowtown” in November, for which she’ll be playing one of the lead roles as a mail-order bride. There are dances as well, and she is part of a horsemanship group. She has also played the violin for two years now.
McCartney’s next sewing project will be an old-fashioned reception dress, which she will wear for her high school graduation in spring of 2006. She has been homeschooled since first grade. The ceremony will take place at Cowtown, where they will be re-enacting an 1879 graduation, and all the student participants will give speeches and perform some talent, just the way it was done in the 19th century. She expects to design the new dress with a train and a high neckline, and she hopes to enter it in the next State Fair.

The Haysville Times
By CJ Cross

During the week of September 12, four vehicles were broken into. Three of them belonged to Bruce Bliss of Shira in Southhampton Estates.
The damage to his vehicles included broken glass, broken locks, and stolen stereos. The last vehicle broken into was said to have an alarm that scared the thieves off, and they then ran to their gold compact vehicle, according to neighbors, who said they had seen the getaway car when they were awakened at 3 a.m. by the car alarm.
The fourth vehicle that was broken into the same week was a 1995 Grand AM and was owned by one of the employees of Klassy Kuts. The car was sitting in front of her home in Haysville at the time. She stated that the dash was torn up, and the door locks and windows were all broken.
There were no witnesses in the area this time. Also there are no leads currently, other than the description of the getaway vehicle from Bliss’ neighbors. It is a small, golden-colored, compact car.
At last contact, the Haysville Police Department was looking into the thefts to see if they had been reported and how the problem can be resolved.
Bruce Bliss did comment that due to gas prices, police officers are only allowed to put 50 miles on their cars per shift before they are required to park them. He will be attending the next Council meeting to investigate this further and to discuss with the Council whether this is a good way to maintain the safety of our properties and families.

The Haysville Times
By Angie Gumm

At first glance the preliminary data for the District’s State Assessments paints a weird picture. After not making satisfactory progress for two years in a row, U.S.D. 261 was placed on improvement for reading. It also faced its first year of getting an unsatisfactory in math.
The scores, however, are a jumble of highs and lows that district patrons probably wouldn’t expect.
Freeman Elementary, for instance, had the lowest reading score in the district with only 47.1% of its test takers receiving a satisfactory. The same school had the highest scores in the district in math with 91.7% making satisfactory achievement. Over half of the test takers reached an “Exemplary” level, 20% more than any other school in the district. Continue reading “School Discrepancies in Assessment Scores”

The Haysville Times
By Jeri Shepherd

That time of year has arrived! It is time to pull out the boxes of stuff from the attic and go through what has been hiding in the back of your closet all year to gear up for the 25th Annual City Wide Garage Sale. On August 13 and 14 Haysville streets will be lined with people eager to take what you don’t want or need off your hands.
This Haysville tradition began in 1980 when the Friends of the Library wanted to find a way to raise funds for the library. The Friends of the Library has been around even before the library was here in town. Each year they sell permits and do advertising in the Wichita Eagle and county newspapers to bring people to town.
This is actually the original city garage sale. After Haysville’s first sale with just 50 – 60 homes people from other cities caught on to the idea and took it to their town. A couple of years ago, Haysville had one of the biggest years with around 460 homes.
Calls start coming into the library during February, about when the garage sale will be taking place so people can see if they will be in town.
Permits are still on sale at the library and will be until the day before the sale. For just six dollars you can put your stuff into the sale for the whole week. Without the permit, you will be shut down. So bring your walking shoes and bottled water to join in on the fun you may just find something you did not know you needed.

The Haysville Times
By Angie Gumm
Just when it seemed like Haysville’s annexation battle was over, Bruce Armstrong, for the first time in his mayoral career, used his power of veto to overturn the will of the Council.
“As Mayor, I am charged with considering the effects Ordinances have on the total city, as is the Council in considering this ordinance,” Armstrong wrote in a letter sent to the Council last Friday. “…it is my opinion that the public will suffer loss and the future growth of Haysville will be jeopardized if this Ordinance is enacted.”
The Mayor was referring to Ordinance No. 880 passed on July 15, which vacated the land of the 17 families who were unilaterally annexed in October of 2003.
Since October the families have continually protested the annexation through various methods, including using an attorney and working with state officials to change the Kansas law allowing unilateral annexation.
Continue reading “Mayor Uses Veto to Stop De-Annexation”