A second candidate has filed for a seat on the Hopkins County Memorial Hospital District Board of Directors. There are two seats up this time. Veterinarian David Black is now a candidate.

Earlier Suzanne Thomas Bankston filed. Incumbents Jan Chapman and Chad Young have indicated they will not be seeking another term.

Three incumbents only have filed so far for Sulphur Springs City Council: Craig Johnson, Clay Walker and Oscar Aguilar.

Incumbents Don Sapaugh and Jason Dietze have filed for their Sulphur Springs School Board seats along with challenger Leesa Toliver.

Filing will continue through March 5.

The deadline for getting the name of your Hopkins County veteran on the first etching for the Hopkins County Veterans’ Memorial is March 1.

Information is being collected at Pam Elliott’s gallery at 220 Connally, at the Shipping Zone on Gilmer, at the Chamber of Commerce office at Connally and Davis and at Tommy Allison’s law office on Rosemont.

More than 2,000 names are expected to be included in the first etching.

Sulphur Springs City Manager Marc Maxwell finally got an easement agreement with Hopkins County Tuesday that allows the city to do downtown improvement work on county property. The county approved it Friday and the city council on Tuesday.

Meanwhile work will continue on the interior of the square and on Main/College. Soon there will be a concrete pour with brickwork to follow.

Maxwell remains confident that the square and Main/College will be completed by the end of June.

Craig James, former college football star at SMU, a pro player with the New England Patriots and ESPN sports analyst, wants to be a Texas U.S Senator. James is one of five GOP candidates running for the seat being given up by Kay Bailey Hutchison. James was in Sulphur Springs Monday and he told KSST’s Bill Bradford that he was disappointed the President’s proposed budget didn’t address Medicare, Medicade or Social Security. James said he believes in limited government and low taxes.

KSST’s Good Morning Show featured lots of guests Tuesday as host Enola Gay talked with Kevin Gibson, the President of NETLA, and then later with five Cumby FFA students.

Gibson, from Martins Springs, showed animals from age nine all the way through high school and his organization, the Northeast Texas Livestock Association now puts on the Hopkins County Junior Market Livestock Show.

The five Cumby students will be showing animals in just about all the categories at the show, which begins Thursday

The Morningstar decision to close its’ Cultured Specialties plant on Jackson Street in Sulphur Springs will obviously impact 55 employees who will lose their jobs but the news will also negatively impact tax rolls of government entities next year.

Cathy Singleton, Chief Appraiser of the Hopkins County Appraisal District, ran some numbers after hearing the news Friday. She places the total taxable value of business personal property for Cultured Specialties at a little more than $3.215-million.

The tax impact for Hopkins County will be slightly over $18,000, for the hospital district a little more than $6,800, for the city of Sulphur Springs more than $14,000 and for the Sulphur Springs ISD almost $44,000.

The total losses of $82,755 are based on 2011 tax rates and 2011 taxable values. The losses will not affect budgets until the 2013 tax year.

While students in the Sulphur Springs ISD took Monday off for Presidents’ Day, teachers were busy with in-service activities. Administrator Betty Lawson attended a session for first and second grade teachers at Lamar Elementary School that dealt with technology use in the classroom.

Another session at the Admin Building featured training for third and fourth grade teachers on English Language Proficiency Standards. Presenting that session was Talisa Harris, a recent immigrant specialist for the district. The required training will aid teachers in including ELP standards into curriculum to accommodate English Language Learners in their classrooms.

Morningstar Foods today announced it will close its Cultured Specialties plant located at 500 Jackson Street in Sulphur Springs, Texas. Production will be phased out over the next few months, with production expected to end by May 24, 2012. Approximately 55 positions will be eliminated.

The company also operates a larger extended-shelf-life plant located at 300 E. Industrial Blvd in Sulphur Springs, which is not affected by this change.

"We regret the impact that this decision will have on our employees and our community. The decision to eliminate jobs in any part of our business is never an easy one. We operate in a highly competitive marketplace, so we must run our business in the most efficient way possible."

Plant History:

• The plant was first built in 1936 for the Carnation Company, the first industry in the city, which manufactured evaporated milk in various sizes. Carnation used the facility until December 1978.

• Borden Milk bought the facility in early 1979 and started revitalizing the production as a manufacturer of cottage cheese. Within a few years, the plant expanded production to sour cream, yogurt, half-and-half creamers, non-dairy creamers, orange and apple juice, aseptic juices and flavored milk. In 1997, the plant returned to producing only cultured dairy products, including cottage cheese and sour cream.

• In September 1999, the facility was sold to Suiza Foods, and the plant became part of the Morningstar Foods division.

• In May 2000, the plant became part of the Southwest region of Suiza Foods, changing its name to Sulphur Springs Cultured Specialties.

• In August 2008, the plant returned to the Morningstar division, producing sour cream and cottage cheese.