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Thursday, June 20, 2019 www.wamegotimes.com Vol. 132 • No. 25Page 2

RECORDObituaries,

Senior Menu

Page 4COmmunity

Pott. County, School Briefs

Page 3OPiniOn

A Fighting Chance for Local Newspapers

Page 5-6CLASSiFiEDS

Legals, Help Wanted

Page 7HiStORy

Four legged chicken hatched in Louisville

Page 8 SPORtS

New Raider receives K-State offer

The TimesP o T T a w a T o m i e C o u n T y , K S

New Raider receives

K-State offerPAGE 8

Cale Prater The Times––––––––––––

Michelle Johnson of Go Social Marketing and Mary Jo Hanner of Blue Barn Farm attended the June 13 Westmoreland City Council meeting to represent the Chamber of Commerce, and to unveil their ideas for a Westmoreland signage and beautification project.

According to Johnson, who chairs the Chamber Beau-tification Committee along with Hanner and council member Jim Moore, the goals of the project are to in-form locals and visitors what Westmoreland has to offer, beautify downtown and specific landmark locations, and to inform those traveling on Highway 99 and encour-age them to stop and explore. Hanner stressed that they were not asking for financial help at this time, but rather seeking the council’s blessing to pursue the project.

The committee has pinpointed four specific areas to focus their efforts. First, Hanner explained they would like to see a restroom sign or decal on the washrooms at the Oregon Trail Park on Highway 99. Additionally, a brochure holder/map/information wall could be added to inform guests of other Westmoreland attractions that they may want to visit. The estimated cost is $400-$500.

Next, the committee would like to see signage on the north side of the restroom at the RV Park pointing to the pay station building. They also recommend sprucing up the pay station building with some paint and landscap-ing/flower boxes, and adding a brochure stand, essen-tially making it an official Westmoreland information Kiosk. Approximate cost: $300-$400.

The final two suggestions are specifically related to Main Street, and include a large metal archway to span above the street near the turn off from Highway 99, and black metal wrought iron posts and scrolled metal street signs to match the archway. The committee admits this would be a major endeavor and could cost upwards of $20,000, but they feel it would be worth it.

To fund the proposal, the committee would like to pool resources from individual and business donations, Westmoreland Chamber, Pottawatomie County EcoDe-vo, and the City of Westmoreland. They are also con-sidering fund raising efforts for the larger projects.

Alison Peck The Times

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The St. George City Council discussed the feasibility of a city wide sales tax at the regular meeting June 13.

A general sales tax, which doesn’t pinpoint a specific purpose, is one an option and the tax can be assessed at up to two per-cent, as explained by city attorney, Bernard Irvine. An alternative is a special sales tax, earmarked for specific purposes, which could be assessed at up to one percent. Special sales taxes automatically sunset in ten years. Either of these actions would need to be approved by voters of the city, in the form of a resolution, which would most likely be on the No-vember ballot this year, unless the council decides to approve a special elec-tion. The tax issue was tabled while additional information is gathered.

Special Meeting MinuteS

The minutes of the special meeting on June 3 were approved, in which the council addressed specifically the issues of the city’s contractual obligation and the fiscal ramifications of giving approval to plat the final lots in River View Hills. A motion was made to

send plot plans to Brian Foster at BG Consultants for recommendations.property SurveyJustin Kuzila, commu-

nity development planner, from the Flint Hills Re-gional Council explained that they will be assessing all homes in Pottawat-omie County, beginning with St. George this summer. They have re-ceived a grant from HUD through the Minnesota Housing Partnership to assess the housing needs in Pott County, including Blue Township. Blue and St. George townships have seen 80 percent of the growth in the area the last 20 years and the study will evaluate this trend.

In a phone call after the meeting, Kuzila said the surveyors would not be on any private prop-erty, remaining on city right-of-way, and that St. George was scheduled for the beginning of July. He also added that it was a general survey, and no in-dividual addresses would be attached to the data.

Drainage iSSueThe drainage issues

on Lockett Lane and Chapman Road were discussed, along with the time, money, liability, manpower and traffic work zone control in regards to the city.

Westmoreland considers signage and beautification project

St. George considers city wide sales tax

The Westmoreland City Council approved this new logo for apparel to be worn by city employees and elected officials.

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Beth DayThe Times

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WESTMORELAND — Cody Lamia-Beck, Wamego, on Friday pleaded no contest and was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Jacob Bouck, also of Wamego.

Attorneys presented the plea agreement to Pottawat-omie County District Court Judge Jeff Elder who, after hearing evidence provided by County Attorney Sherri Schuck, found Lamia-Beck guilty.

Bouck’s body had been found floating face down in the Kansas River west of Wamego on Dec. 24, 2018. According to Schuck, when law enforcement officers turned over the body, wounds to the neck were clearly vis-ible, and the coroner would later confirm the cause of death “was actually one of the stabs in the neck that severed the carotid artery.”

Schuck told the court of-ficials that law enforcement did not immediately identify the body, “although they be-lieved from previous contact it might be Jacob Bouck be-cause he was reported miss-ing by his family around the 21st of December. They were able to confirm it was Jacob in the river by fingerprints and personal scarring.”

Evidence collected in-cluded two knives, one with a broken tip, a homemade hatchet and clear footprints, according to Schuck. DNA would later link the knife with the broken tip to both

Bouck and Lamia-Beck.The events of that night

revolved around a bonfire that had been held at Bouck’s trailer with a group of four to five people.

“(At) some point, about midnight-ish, they left,” Schuck said. “And the defen-dant and Jacob were still at the residence.”

As the investigation de-veloped, “it was determined the defendant Cody Lamia-Beck may actually have been the last person to see him,” Schuck said. After the DNA results, he became a “strong person of interest.”

After being arrested on a separate charge, the defen-dant was interviewed by detectives.

“Mr. Beck essentially denied having anything to do with this,” Schuck said. “Then he stated he was framed and set up by another individual. He then invoked and said he didn’t want to talk to anyone, so law enforcement ended the interview.

“Mr. Beck would later con-tact law enforcement and ask to speak with them again,” she continued.

“During that interview he would admit the DNA could be his, and he implicated (the other person) falsely.” Schuck said at that interview, Lamia-Beck also described how they had met at the bon-fire, left, gone to his home, and then down to the river where he killed Bouck.

Sentencing for Lamia-Beck is set for 9 a.m. July 19. He is in custody of the Pot-tawatomie County Sheriff’s Office.

Sarah GaynerThe Times

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The years of waiting for a new church have almost come to an end for the members of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) in St. Marys.

The Immaculata Church kickoff event, which had been highly antici-pated for the past months, took place Saturday, June 15 at the St. Mary’s Academy and College (SMAC). The crowd was buzzing with excitement at the prospect of finally having concrete plans for a new church. Some of the attendees had been waiting 40 years for the occasion.

“We’ve been working now for over two years to give (this) to you tonight,” said Father Patrick Rutledge, Rector of St. Mary’s Academy and College (SMAC). “I wanted to wait to give this to you until we were finally at a point that we could see this proj-ect to term.”

In 1907, the Jesuits in St. Marys laid

the cornerstone for a church that they named the Immaculata, in honor of the Immaculate Conception, a title reserved for the Mother of God. In 1977, the SSPX acquired the property from the Jesuits. The very next year, the church which had witnessed the ordination of a thousand priests, was destroyed by fire. Ever since, it has been in the hearts and minds of the SSPX in St. Marys to rebuild what they had lost so suddenly at their start.

Over the years several attempts had been made at spearheading the project and were jestingly dubbed versions 1.0, 2.0, and so on. They were not completely unsuccessful as they did generate some funds and allowed the present project committee to learn from the mistakes of the past.

This time would be different. The SSPX in St. Marys has grown to over 4,000 members and increases every year. The necessity for a larger church is undeniable. Fortunately, the com-munity now has the funds to begin building and the ability to raise the remaining funds.

“Dealing with a church of this size we have to do a balancing act,” Fr. Rutledge stated. He said the church needed to be beautiful; “something fitting for the worship of God and something worthy of Our Lady,” but they also needed to follow the means they have.

The church is designed in the Romanesque style. According to the presented plans, the church will have 66,000 square feet of space. Seating for 1,550 people and 500 parking spaces will be available. The lower level will house a parish hall, class-rooms, offices, and meeting spaces. Two spiraling bell towers topping 111 feet will be positioned either side of the main entrance. A statue of Our Lady will stand at the top of the cupola (main dome). As the high-est point in St. Marys she will be, as Fr. Rutledge said, “looking over her town, protecting her town.”

David Heit, the lead architect for the project who specializes in church de-sign and long-range master planning,

Beth DayThe Times

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The Wamego Area Chamber of Com-merce welcomed summer with a program from The Flint Hills Shakespeare Festival and the We Grow Wamego: The Early Learning Project at the monthly meeting on Monday.

Ben Moats from St. Marys gave a pre-sentation on the Flint Hills Shakespeare Festival, which is held every September, which is celebrating its 10th year.

Moats quoted an article which said only 47 percent of people who earn bachelor’s degrees in Kansas were still here five years later. “Even worse, only 45 percent of those earning Masters and a measly third of those with doctorate degrees were employed in Kansas a year after graduating. This was, and continues to

be a big problem for Kansas.”He said reasons were state economy’s

inability to offer job income and quality of life opportunities. “I think we need to create not only the economic environ-ment, but also the cultural environment for our youth, young people and families to stay in Kansas and want to build their own families here.

“Wamego I think understands this very well,” he continued. “When you invest in very important endeavors like The Co-lumbian Theatre, the fireworks show, the OZtoberFest, Oz Museum, many other things you do here, you really and truly invest in your future. And our region, along with St. Marys, is included. Thank you and please continue that great work.

“That brings me to the Flint Hills Shakespeare Festival, which also un-derstands this in the exact same way,” he said. “In order to retain our youth, we need to partner with businesses and

patrons to improve our rural quality of life by providing cultural experiences that will enrich their lives close at home. The mission of the Flint Hills Shakespeare Festival is to provide an outdoor Shake-spearian Theatre and artisanal village, using mostly local talent; supporting families, by offering family-friendly en-tertainment; and to create a rural outdoor classical venue that will serve the region, especially in the future as we grow.”

Moats asked the members to consider becoming Sponsors of the Festival.

Terri Dow, Central Elementary School principal, introduced the members to the We Grow Wamego: The Early Learning Project.

“Why early childhood?” She asked. “In the school district we’re looking at early childhood because that’s one of the state’s goals, kindergarten readiness. In

Lamia-Beck Pleads to Second-Degree Murder

‘Our Lady’ to watch over St. Marys

Quality of life issues occupy Chamber meeting

Cody Lamia-Beck Jacob Dillon Bouck

courtesy photo Rendering of the interior view of the Immaculata Church.

courtesy photo Exterior rendering of the Immaculata Church, present-ed at the kickoff event Saturday, June 15 in St. Marys.

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