Continuing Ed Courses at PJC-Sulphur Springs in January
Several classes are available from the Paris Junior College – Sulphur Springs Center Continuing Education Department in January.
To sign up, or for more information, call 903-454-9333. Unless otherwise noted, classes will be held at the Center at 1137 Loop 301 East in Sulphur Springs.
The Initial Basic Life Support for Health Care Providers class on lifesaving skills for respiratory and cardiac emergencies will meet from noon to 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 6. The American Heart Association certifies the class.
Computer Essentials Level I is designed for the person with very limited computer training. The student will learn the basic computers tasks, using windows, proper mouse and keyboard techniques, computer lingo and “buzz” words. The class will meet Friday, Jan. 20, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
A Nurse Aide class will be offered from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, Jan. 30-Feb. 14, and the clinical meets Mondays through Thursdays, Feb. 15-27, also from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The class offers preparation for entry level nursing assistants.
AgriLife Pasture Management Program Planned in Overton, February 17
OVERTON – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will hold an East Texas Pasture Management Program Feb. 17 in Overton.
The program begins with registration at 12:30 p.m. at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center, 1710 N. Farm-to-Market Road 3053.
Cost is $25 per person if preregistered by Feb. 15 or $35 the day of the event. Register online at https://agriliferegister.tamu.
Five Texas Department of Agriculture pesticide applicator continuing education units including one laws and regulations, one integrated pest management and three general will be available.
“One advantage to this program is that it provides five CEUs for a half-day course,” said Vanessa Corriher-Olson, AgriLife Extension forage specialist in Overton. “And there is some pertinent information regarding pesticide use, especially for pastures and hay production.”
Topics and speakers include:
– Does storage of pesticides impact efficacy? and How to properly dispose of empty containers and old pesticides – Dr. Mark Matocha, AgriLife Extension agriculture and environmental safety specialist, College Station.
– Adjuvants for pesticide use – Matocha.
– Using herbicides under trees: Is it possible? – Dr. Chad Cummings, Dow AgroSciences field research scientist.
– Effective weed control with weed identification, proper timing and herbicide selection – Corriher-Olson.
– Save money by understanding active ingredients, residual control and herbicide cost – Dr. Jason Banta, AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialist, Overton.
A compact disc with herbicide price comparison information updated for 2017 will be provided to help attendees make more economical choices when it comes to selecting herbicides, Corriher-Olson said.
PJC-Sulphur Springs Center Spring 2017 Registration Continues
REGISTERING EARLY Justin Gunderson of Sulphur Springs, left, takes advantage of the holiday break to register for spring classes at the PJC-Sulphur Springs Center. Gunderson, a returning student, is being assisted by Advisor Carey Gable. Registration continues at the campus during regular office hours. The traditional Spring on-campus registration will be held at the Sulphur Springs campus from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 11. For more information call 903-885-1232.
Meal-a-Day Needs Cooks and Wednesday Driver
City Postpones Closure of Portion of Texas Street; Seeks Grant to Rework Sunset Street
A vote on a request to close a portion of Texas Street by the Hopkins County Fire Marshall Andy Endsley and County Judge Robert Newsom presented Tuesday evening during the Sulphur Springs City Council January meeting was postponed until February.
The agenda item request would have closed a portion of Texas Street between UPS and the County Fire Station. The request for closure, which would be paid for by TxDOT, is motivated by a desire to decrease the speed of traffic in front of the fire station. Both Endsley and Newsom pointed out that traffic going north on FM 2297/Arbala Road/League Street often uses Texas Street as a shortcut to the service road and I-30 entrance ramp. Using a photo of the location, Endsley pointed out the section of the street that needed to be closed. The county has cleared the brush and trees on property surrounding the area. The county also owns a section of the land between UPS and the fire station. That segment of land will be cleared soon. Endsley also noted the county is planning flashing light signage at the fire station to alert motorists when fire trucks begin response to emergency situations.
Councilman Craig Johnson made the motion to postpone noting that the property behind the fire station is being developed and the developer, Wayne Cooper, could not be present to speak to the item. Cooper is planning a parallel street to the service road. The street would be built 200 feet from the service road and would connect to Texas Street.
City Attorney Jim McElroy noted the need for a resolution to close that section of street due to the fact that a resolution is typical procedure for such closings.
In other action, the council authorized the submission of a grant request to fund a rework of Sunset Street between Connally and Houston Streets. The complete rework will cost $275,000. The work will replace water and sewer and place curbing along the street for the first time.
The city will purchase a tractor from Farm Country for $73,000. The tractor will be used to mow the city lake dam and airport property. Bids for two backhoes were rejected and the city will utilize the buy board to purchase the backhoes.
GHS Software Increases 2016 Revenue for City Municipal Court Even Though Fewer Citations Written
Municipal Court revenue for the City of Sulphur Springs has increased 52.91% even though citations written decreased 12.56% when comparing 2016 to 2015. The increase can be credited to new software put in place as 2016 began.
Dave Graves of Graves/Humphries/Stahl, LTD reminded the city council Tuesday evening during their January, 2016 session that his company had promised to return their fees to the city if the revenue had not increased. The refund will not be made as revenue increased a total net revenue of $296,019.50 in 2016. Much of the increase is credited to an increase of 568.82% in delinquent cases closed. There were 1244 delinquent cased closed in 2016 compared to 186 cases in 2015.
Graves, along with Casey Osborn, sales representative for the company, noted that their company and the municipal judges are pleased with the numbers. They asked the council to consider renewing the contract again when it expires in October, 2017. City Manager Marc Maxwell responded that the city would give a positive recommendation for the services the software had rendered to the city.
City Manager’s Report: Bill Bradford Road Closed Again, Locust Street Rework Underway
Tuesday evening Sulphur Springs City Manager Marc Maxwell told the City Council in regular session that Bill Bradford Road is closed again, now that the holiday season is over. Opening the road did benefit businesses along the roadway but slowed the pace of construction. Since the holiday season has ended and the road is closed, the pace of progress on the roadway should pick up once again.
He also noted to the council that the Davis/Tomlinson Parking area has been completed.
The Capital Construction Division is about 50% done replacing the water main from Bellview Street to the KCS railroad tracks on Locust Street. The sewer main has already been replaced. We recently hired a contractor to bore under the railroad for water and sewer improvements, and we expect that to happen this month. Atmos is currently replacing the gas main.
Also in his report:
CLAIMS – We did not have any workers’ compensation claims or liability claims in December.
WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT – Total suspended solids (TSS) came in at 3.14 mg/L, well within the limit of 15 mg/L.
REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES – Finance Director Peter Karstens will not present a year-to-date summary of revenues and expenditures this month since this is the first workday of the month and we don’t have any numbers to share yet.
Elsewhere around the city, employees:
- Sold 980 gallons of AvGas and 6,000 gallons of JetA fuel.
- Checked out 2,243 items from the library.
- Responded to 142 fire/rescue calls including 3 structure fires.
- Performed preventative maintenance on 84 fire hydrants.
- Replaced 14 street signs.
- Responded to 136 animal control calls, achieving an adoption rate of 34%.
- Made 2 arrests in the special crimes unit.
- Recorded 68 offences, made 51 arrests, wrote 568 citations and responded to 39 accidents.
- Performed preventative maintenance/repairs on several items at the water treatment plant and wastewater treatment plant.
- Repaired 16 water main ruptures.
- Replaced 10 water meters.
- Unstopped 38 sewer mains.
- Repaired 13 sewer mains.
- Washed 75,000 feet of sewer mains.
- Smoke-tested 3 segments of sewer mains.
- Flushed 36 dead-end water mains.
- Inspected water towers and clear wells.
- Replaced motors on #2, #3, and #5 Lake Sulphur Springs water pumps.
- Continued to pump from Lake Sulphur Springs rather than Cooper Lake while divers clean out the intake structure.
- Conducted 22 building inspections, 12 electrical inspections, 20 plumbing inspections and issued 14 building permits.
- Patched 157 potholes.
- Replaced 3 stop signs.
- Held Christmas festivities on Celebration Plaza.
Wildcats Hold Mavericks to 18 in First Three Quarters to Earn Second District Win
Wildcats 72, Marshall 40
The Wildcats’ basketball team used a productive offense and a stingy defense to overwhelm Marshall, 72-40 in a district game at Wildcats Gym Tuesday night.
The Wildcats held the Mavericks to just 18 points after three quarters of play. Post Victor Iwuakor was especially feisty with 8 blocks.
The Wildcats were led on offense by four double figure scorers: Keaston Willis with 17 points, Iwuakor with 15 points including one dunk, Ke’Ontae Dunn with 12 points and Michael Jefferson with 11 points. Ryan Humphries chipped in 7 points. The Wildcats had 6 three pointers.
The Wildcats led 19-4 after the first quarter, 33-10 at halftime and 59-18 after three quarters. Kris Dunn had 15 points and Corteze Hurd 14 points for Marshall. The Wildcats are now 2-0 in district play and 17-4 for the season. Marshall slips to 0-2 in district play and 11-8 overall.
The Wildcats will travel to Texas High Friday night for a district game.
Lady Cats Dominate Marshall 85-12
Lady Cats 85, Marshall 12
The Lady Cats’ basketball team mixed an explosion of offense with strong defense to take a lopsided 85-12 win at Marshall in a district game Tuesday night. Kaylee Jefferson scored 23 points to lead the Lady Cats. The victory improved the Lady Cats’ district record to 4-0. They are now 18-3 for the season. The Lady Cats were ranked #24 in the state in Class 5A in the latest poll from the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches. The Lady Cats will play Texas High in Wildcats Gym Friday night.
Game Day: Basketball and Soccer
Wildcats Basketball
Wildcats Basketball Coach Clark Cipoletta believes playing tough teams, like his team did in a Longview tournament last week, will pay dividends in the future. The Wildcats lost to Pro Vision of Houston and Houston Sam Houston, teams Coach Cipoletta says are two of the top ones in Texas and in the nation. Sam Houston is the #1 team in Class 6A in the state. The Wildcats also lost a game to Dallas Skyline, #2 in Class 6A, in a Royse City tournament. Coach Cipoletta says those types of games will make the Wildcats better and give them confidence moving forward letting them know that if they play their style of game with confidence, they can compete with anyone in the state. The Wildcats may need that confidence as they face defending district champion Marshall in Wildcats Gym Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. Coach Cipoletta says Marshall is like they always are, athletic and pressing all over the court. He says they are hard to prepare for. Coach Cipoletta says if they sense a weakness they will trap you. He says if players don’t come toward passes, especially lofted passes, Marshall will intercept them. Coach Cipoletta says his past teams have been able to stay with Marshall for a quarter or two. He says this year’s team is more capable to putting four quarters together for a win against the Mavericks. Coach Cipoletta says the Wildcats have had two straight excellent practices. The Wildcats season record is 16-4 after a 2-2 showing in a Longview tournament last week. We will bring you the varsity Marshall and Wildcats game on KSST Radio starting at around 7:30 p.m. We will also videotape the game for replay on Channel 18 TV on Suddenlink Cable at a later date.
Lady Cats Basketball
Lady Cats’ basketball resumes district play at Marshall Tuesday night. There will be a freshman game at 5 p.m., a JV game at around 6:15 p.m. and the varsity game at around 7:30 p.m. The Lady Cats ended 2016 on a positive note as they captured first place in an Idabel, Oklahoma tournament last week. They went 3-0 in the tournament and improved their season record to 17-3. During December, the Lady Cats went 3-0 in district play winning on the road at Greenville and at home against Hallsville and Pine Tree.
Soccer Game Day
Both the Wildcats and Lady Cats’ soccer teams will be having final tune up scrimmages Tuesday night to get ready for the regular season that gets underway in tournament games Thursday.
The Lady Cats will scrimmage old rival North Lamar at the SSHS High School Track Complex Soccer Field Tuesday night. The freshman Lady Cats play the Pantherettes at 5:30 p.m. and the varsity scrimmages North Lamar at around 7:15 p.m. It is the fourth scrimmage for the Lady Cats. They open the regular season Thursday in a Terrell tournament against South Garland and Hillcrest.
The Wildcats wrap up their scrimmage portion of the season at Royse City Tuesday night. The Wildcats JV takes on the Bulldogs at 5:30 p.m. with the varsity to follow at around 7 p.m. The Wildcats only other scrimmage was Saturday night’s Alumni Scrimmage. The Wildcats open the regular season Thursday in a Forney tournament against Garland Lakeview Centennial and Richardson J.J. Pearce.
