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Dropping out: Democrat Dubas quits governor’s race. — Page A5
Rollover
Two injured in one-vehicle
collision on U.S. 281.
Page A5
SERVING THE COMMUNITY FOR MORE THAN 100 YEARS
16 pages
Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2013
http://www.hastingstribune.com
Home delivered 33 cents Newsstands 75 cents
AGP finalizing plans for $100M expansion
COUNCIL GIVES INITIAL
APPROVAL TO DEAL;
BPW TO CONSIDER IT
WEDNESDAY
LAURA BERNERO
[email protected]
In a few years, Ag Processing
Inc. will be increasing its
already substantial contribution to Hastings and Adams
County utilities and property
tax values with a proposed
$100 million expansion of its
soy processing facility in
Hastings, should an agreement
with city and utility officials be
finalized this week.
At the regular meeting of the
Hastings City Council Monday,
the council met in closed session to discuss a proposed economic development agreement
with AGP, which will bring
substantial increases in
employment and industry to
the community.
Dave Rippe, executive director of the Hastings Economic
Development Corp., presented
Please see AGP/page A3
Council approves utility rate increases
LAURA BERNERO
[email protected]
Rates for electricity, water and sanitary sewer
use will all increase in 2014 following final
approval Monday by the Hastings City
Council.
Water rates will increase 12 percent, which
will help compensate for nitrate and uranium
treatment projects that will be conducted on
the city’s water wells to comply with purification standards.
Electric rates will increase 5 percent, the first
Please see UTILITY/page A3
Championship celebration
NATI HARNIK/AP
Nebraska Auditor Mike Foley presents his state audit report
during a news conference in Lincoln Monday. Foley said
some recipients in the State Disability Program and in the
Assistance to the Aged, Blind and Disabled Program got payments even though they were living in state facilities and had
no living expenses.
Scottsbluff woman
arrested after audit
of state program
GRANT SCHULTE
The Associated Press
LINCOLN — A Scottsbluff
woman who served as a legal
guardian to more than 600
people throughout Nebraska
faces a felony theft charge after
an audit found evidence that
she misused state assistance
payments to buy herself
Christmas and birthday presents, Auditor Mike Foley said
Monday.
The announcement came
after Judith Widener, the president of the Safe Haven, Inc.,
was arrested and booked into
the Scotts Bluff County Jail.
She was being held Monday
afternoon on a $500,000 bond.
Widener is accused of collecting payments that were intend-
LAURA BEAHM/
Tribune
ed for the court-appointed
wards, even though some were
dead or no longer in her care,
according to a sworn statement
filed by the Nebraska State
Patrol. The State Patrol and
local law enforcement began
investigating Widener after
auditors discovered the questionable payments.
While the total amount misspent isn’t yet known, state
investigators subpoenaed
Widener’s bank records and
found a complex array of credit
cards and more than 40 bank
accounts with more than
$600,000, Foley said. Auditors
pulled a small sample of transactions from Widener’s bank
Above: The Exeter-Milligan
Timberwolves receive their
Class D-1 championship trophy after
defeating
Hemingford
20-18
Monday at
Memorial
Stadium in
Lincoln.
Left: Taylor
May (4)
raises his
helmet
toward the crowd while
celebrating with Dustin
Axline (1) and Devin
Sheffield (27). Inset: May
bites his gold medal.
Please see AUDIT/page A3
FACES OF TRIBLAND: Bob and Beth Stark
Couple ‘volunteers for the Lord’
SHAY BURK
[email protected]
AMY ROH/Tribune
Bob and Beth Stark of Inland are volunteers at the Grand Island branch of
the Orphan Grain Train.
Lo:
8
Hi:
36
CHIEFS MASCOT HURT
Art by Spencer Wentworth,
10, Franklin Public School
and hygiene products that also are
taken to disaster sites and other
places.
Bob first volunteered with the
Orphan Grain Train in 2000 when he
helped to deliver and assemble particle board round houses to people living in southern Texas and northern
Mexico.
It only took a few visits to the
impoverished area for the couple to
realize the real needs there — everything from shelter to clothing and
even school supplies for the children.
“We found out in Mexico if a child
does not have a notebook and one
Please see STARK/page A3
Nation
Weather
Clear
and cold
tonight.
Mostly
sunny
Wednesday.
When Bob Stark retired from farming and moved to Inland with his
wife Beth three years ago, he had no
hobbies to speak of.
“I don’t hunt. I don’t fish. I don’t
play golf, smoke or drink. What else is
there,” he asked. “Work for the Lord.”
And that’s exactly what Bob and
Beth decided to do with their retirement.
The couple first became aware of
the Orphan Grain Train in 1998 during a district church meeting in York.
Orphan Grain Train, which started
in Norfolk in 1992, is a Christian vol-
unteer network that donates material
items to needy people in United States
and around the world.
“We’re volunteers for the Lord, basically,” Bob said of the organization.
The organization responds to disasters with trailers equipped with showers, laundry facilities, cabins, kitchens
and even a church. The Starks have
been everywhere from Greenburg,
Kan., and the Hurricane Katrina-ravaged Southeast to Wayne after the
recent tornado there.
In addition to the facilities, the bulk
of what Bob and Beth are associated
with are the donated items like clothing, kitchen items, school supplies
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A
man who has performed as the
Kansas City Chiefs’ mascot for
more than two decades is in stable condition after a weekend
accident at Arrowhead Stadium.
His attorney said Monday the
injuries appear to have been
caused by human error.
Dan Meers has played KC
Wolf since the mascot’s inception in 1989. He was seriously
injured Saturday while rehearsing a zip line routine ahead of
Inside
Sunday’s game against the San
Diego Chargers. No details about
the injury have been released.
Attorney Tim Dollar says
Meers’ injuries appear to have
been caused from how an outside
company secured the riggings.
The Associated Press
Agri/Business
Classified
Comics
Entertainment
A7
B6
B4
B5
Food
Obituaries
Opinion
Public Notices
B8
A2
A4
B6
VOL. 109, NO. 49 ©2013,
THE SEATON PUBLISHING CO., INC. HASTINGS, NEBRASKA
HASTINGS TRIBUNE
Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2013
A3
AGP: $100 million expansion would add 20 full-time jobs
Continued from page A1
the details of AGP’s expansion
and the city’s role in the project, which have been in the
works since earlier this fall.
“For nearly 20 years, AGP
and our greater community
have been partners in mutual
success,” Rippe said. “The city,
Hastings Utilities and Adams
County have committed to fostering a competitive business
climate and mutual partnerships with area industries, and
AGP has responded by being a
good corporate citizen.”
In an Aug. 6 news release,
AGP announced its intent to
expand its soy processing facility pending negotiations with
city and county officials regarding economic development,
utility rates and regulatory considerations.
Now that those discussions
are under way, the company
has announced its intent to
have the expansion of its soy
processing facility online by
fall of 2016.
“The availability and quality
of the soybeans in the Hastings
area make it an excellent location to increase and improve
our soybean processing capacity,” said Cal Meyer, group vice
president for Processing,
Refined Oils, and Renewables
in a news release from AGP this
morning.
“AGP continues to invest in
areas that enhance our longterm competitiveness and our
overall processing platform. We
have had many years of positive operating experience and
market conditions at this location, and a strong connection
to the community through our
employees. Our team is in
place to execute a very good
plan and we are excited to
move forward on this important project for the Company’s
growth and long-term sustainability,” said Keith Spackler,
AGP’s chief executive officer, in
the same release.
In return for AGP’s nine-figure investment, Hastings
Utilities and the city and county have negotiated utility
incentives and a delayed
annexation of the AGP property in order to offset the
amount of city taxes the facility will be responsible for.
“If you’re investing $100 million, you’re going to need
some assurances that that longterm investment is protected
and will be reciprocated with
community support. Those are
the details that we have been
working through for the past
month or so,” Rippe said.
The expanded facility will
add an estimated 20 full-time
jobs to AGP’s existing 100
employees in Hastings, and
hundreds of seasonal and temporary workers will be
employed during the construction of the facility, which Rippe
estimated will take two years.
The project will offset some
of the loss incurred when AGP
closed its corn processing facility in Hastings this summer,
which affected 43 local jobs.
The new soybean processing
capacity will use a significant
component of the former corn
processing infrastructure, such
as boiler, railroad track and
storage assets.
Rippe said that the closure of
the ethanol plant was independent of AGP’s choice to
expand its soy processing facility and that Hastings was among
several communities that AGP
considered for the expansion.
AGP’s planned expansion
also will have a significant
impact on utility sales. AGP is
HU’s largest customer for electricity, sewer and water services. Following the expansion,
AGP has promised to increase
its electric usage by at least 35
percent, taking AGP’s usage
from roughly 10 percent of
HU’s overall electrical load to
nearly 13 percent. The expansion will guarantee a 3.3 per-
cent increase in overall retail
electrical sales for HU, which
will benefit the rate structure
for the entire community.
“At the same time we are
talking about utility rates going
up, we also have a large expansion coming online that could
help to level some of that out,”
Rippe said.
The Board of Public Works
has been discussing its contribution to the AGP agreement
in executive session for several
weeks and will consider its
final approval of the project at
its regular meeting Wednesday.
Their signatures are required
before AGP can proceed.
“It will be a very positive
impact for the community,”
said HU Manager Marv
Schultes. “The closing of AGP’s
ethanol plant in Hastings was a
big hit, but now we will see
part of that redeemed, which
will benefit all parties.”
“In today’s market of recruiting
industry, we have to have a lot of
give and take,” said Councilman
Phil Odom. “I am concerned that
we try to treat all industries in
our community equally and fairly and, on the other hand, we
have to be able to make adjustments when a large investment
comes to town.”
“I want to publicly thank Mr.
Rippe, members of the Board of
Public Works and staff for their
involvement and work on this.
I think the project will be a
great contribution to the city of
Hastings,” said Councilman
Michael Krings.
AGP is a soybean processing,
vegetable oil refining, and
grain marketing cooperative
owned by more than 300 local
and regional cooperatives and
does business in several states.
Its main emphasis is on soybean processing and the company operates a soybean processing plant, vegetable oil
refinery and an AminoPlus production facility at its industrial
complex in Hastings.
Utility: City Council
gives final approval
to rate increases
Continued from page A1
increase in that category since
2008.
An 8 percent increase in sanitary sewer rates already was
approved by the council in
2011 and will go into effect in
January. Those increases will
help pay for the $10.4 million
upgrade that is nearing completion at the city’s Pollution
Control Facility and which is
required to meet tighter ammonia discharge requirements
imposed by the Environmental
Protection Agency. Sanitary
sewer rates for residential customers are determined based
on the average of a customer’s
January, February and March
water usage.
The council voted unanimously Monday to approve the
electric and water rate ordinances and also gave final
approval to the HU 2014 budget.
The HU budget proposal also
included a pledge of up to
$30,000 to the Hastings Area
Chamber of Commerce, an
annual donation designated to
support the chamber’s retail
and economic development
efforts.
“I want to thank the staff of
the city and Hastings Utilities
for their continued hard work
on the budget,” said
Councilman Everett Goebel.
“The five-person Board of
Public Works really did spend a
lot of time on this budget, as
well as all the staff at Hastings
Utilities. A number of qualified
opinions worked long and hard
to ensure the budget was correct and efficient.”
At its meeting Monday, the
council also:
u Rejected bids on the Highland
Park Pavilion project. The project’s
committee is looking at ways to
redesign the project and raise additional funds for the construction of
the structure.
u Heard a proclamation by the
mayor recognizing November as
National Family Caregivers Month in
Hastings and nationwide. A dozen
family caregivers were present to
receive a certificate of recognition
and the council thanked the individuals for their diligent and often
unrecognized service.
u Recognized the Hastings
Retired Teachers Association and
their volunteer service to the city.
The association tallied the hours
volunteered by its members at over
28,000 in the past year.
Audit: Woman arrested
for misusing state
assistance payments
Continued from page A1
records and identified more
than $35,000 that she appeared
to have taken, he said.
Her accounting records
revealed that she gave herself
$500 Christmas and birthday
gifts from the money at her disposal, and she also was involved
with casino gambling, he said.
Foley blamed the Nebraska
Department of Health and
Human Services for poor management and oversight of the
assistance programs. The two
programs in question are the
State Disability Program and
Assistance to the Aged, Blind or
Disabled. Both provide cash
payments to cover food, clothing, shelter, and medical
expenses for people who are
unable to care for themselves.
“Once again, the citizens of
Nebraska have seen their hardearned tax dollars squandered
by the state’s largest agency of
government,” Foley said.
“Clearly, the people who pay the
bills have been disserved again.”
Widener made an appearance in court on Monday, but
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an attorney wasn’t listed in
online court records. A woman
who answered the phone
Monday at Safe Haven, Inc., a
Gering-based nonprofit,
declined to comment.
Foley said Widener’s wards
were scattered all over the
state, including 112 that were
in Lancaster County — more
than 400 miles away from her
home and office. Twenty were
identified in Douglas County,
on the other side of the state.
Foley said that, when confronted, Widener confessed to
both auditors and law enforcement that she knowingly misappropriated the money.
He also said officials with the
state Department of Health and
Human Services received warnings from both the U.S. Social
Security Administration and
the Veterans Administration,
who raised questions about her
dealings with state wards. A
judge had also forbidden
Widener from being named to
any more legal guardianship
relationships in Lancaster
County, he said.
AMY ROH/Tribune
Bob Stark moves a pallet of boxes filled with quilts and blankets that are ready to be shipped while volunteering at the
Orphan Grain Train Central Nebraska Division warehouse Nov. 8 in Grand Island.
Stark: Couple aboard Orphan Grain Train
Continued from page A1
pencil or two, he or she cannot
attend school,” Beth said.
So the couple started collecting donated clothing from
garage sales and other donations in the garage at their
farm outside of Inland, eventually spilling the collection over
into a large barn.
They then would spend their
own money to box up the
items and drive them the 900
miles to El Paso, Texas, where
they would be given to a mission to help the people there.
In 2010, the Orphan Grain
Train opened a Central
Nebraska Division in Grand
Island where a warehouse was
built to serve as the storage and
distribution center that previously was run out of the Stark’s
garage and barn.
Now in Grand Island, the
couple helps to oversee the
sorting, packing and shipping
of donations
In all, there are about 15 lead
volunteers who help at the
Grand Island office regularly to
oversee the 100 volunteers who
come through their doors each
month to sort clothes by age
and type and pack the boxes
that are
shipped or
personally
delivered
around the
globe.
In all,
Editor’s note:
Beth
said
This is part of an
the
Central
ongoing series
that profiles peo- Nebraska
Division has
ple within
Tribland. To subshipped or
mit ideas, call
delivered
402-461-1257 or
more than
email tribune
42,000
@hastingstriboxes of
bune.com.
donated
items since it
opened May 5, 2010.
Shipments this year have
gone to Texas, Latvia,
Lithuania, Montana, the
Philippines and Liberia.
While the Starks continue to
oversee and help with operations in Grand Island, they still
make regular trips to Texas.
“We’ve made over 40 trips
down to El Paso in those 10,
11, 12 years,” Beth said.
The couple just completed
their second trip for the year a
couple of weeks ago.
When asked why they do it,
the answer is simple.
“Because of the love of the
Lord,” Beth said. “He has saved
us and he has forgiven us. He
died on the cross for us and
that’s why we do it.”
That’s the same answer Beth
said she and Bob give to anyone who asks the same question as they give out the donated items.
One time while in Mexico,
the couple and others were
handing out the small bars of
soap given away at motels
when they saw a group of older
boys come back again and
again for the bars.
“Bob says to the interpreter,
‘This isn’t candy. This is soap.’
The interpreter said, ‘The boys
know that.’ ”
Soap is something those families couldn’t afford and for the
boys to bring home extra soap
to their mothers gives them
extra bonus points or recognition.
“You just can’t believe it,
“Beth said. “We’ve seen kids
run around without any
clothes on.”
When the Starks celebrated
their 50th wedding anniversary
this summer, they asked friends
and family not to give gifts but
if they felt the need, Beth asked
that they make a donation to
the Orphan Grain Train.
“At our age, we don’t need
any more knick-knacks to hang
on the wall,” Beth said. “But it
was amazing that we got
$1,500.”
The couple has used that
money to make two trips to El
Paso since that time.
When asked if they’ll ever
retire, Bob is quick to mention
that the word retire is never
found in the Bible, while Beth
takes it a different direction.
“Our philosophy is we’re
here today,” she said. “We’re
not guaranteed tomorrow.”
High court will take up new health law dispute
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The
Supreme Court has agreed to referee another dispute over
President Barack Obama’s health
care law, whether businesses can
use religious objections to escape
a requirement to cover birth
control for employees.
The justices said Tuesday
they will take up an issue that
has divided the lower courts in
the face of roughly 40 lawsuits
from for-profit companies asking to be spared from having to
cover some or all forms of contraception.
The court will consider two
cases. One involves Hobby
Lobby Inc., an Oklahoma Citybased arts and crafts chain with
13,000 full-time employees.
Tom Choquette
Mike Uridil