Wayne Byers Show – Evening – May 14

CSi Weather…

.TONIGHT…Partly cloudy. Lows in the upper 40s. East winds 5 to 10 mph.

.WEDNESDAY…Mostly sunny. Slight chance of rain showers in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. Southeast winds 5 to 15 mph shifting to the south 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon.

.WEDNESDAY NIGHT…Mostly cloudy. A 40 percent chance of rain

showers and thunderstorms in the evening. Lows in the lower 50s.

South winds 10 to 15 mph shifting to the west after midnight.

.THURSDAY…Partly sunny. Highs in the mid 60s. North winds

around 15 mph.

.THURSDAY NIGHT…Mostly cloudy. Lows in the mid 40s.

.FRIDAY…Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of rain showers.

Highs in the lower 60s.

.FRIDAY NIGHT…Cloudy with a 60 percent chance of rain showers.

Lows around 50.

.SATURDAY…Cloudy with a 70 percent chance of rain showers.

Highs in the lower 60s.

.SATURDAY NIGHT…Cloudy with rain showers likely. Lows in the

mid 40s. Chance of showers 50 percent.

.SUNDAY…Rain showers likely. Highs in the mid 50s. Chance of

showers 50 percent.

.SUNDAY NIGHT…Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of rain

showers. Lows around 40.

.MONDAY…Mostly cloudy.  Chance of rain showers.  High 55 to 60.

 

 

A few severe storms capable of hail will be possible Wednesday

overnight into early Thursday.

Chances for a widespread soaking rains over the weekend and early

next week are increasing. Specific amounts and locations are too

uncertain to determine at this point.

 

 

Valley City (CSi)  The Valley City Commission met in Special Session Tuesday morning at 7-O’Clock at City Hall.  All members were present.

 

RESOLUTION

Commissioners, considered a Resolution accepting Bid and Awarding Contract for Storm Sewer Improvement District No. 50. City Administrator David Schelkoph said during a heavy rain event, excessive drainage occurs and runs downhill affecting other areas, and causes erosion.

He said four bids were received, with the low bid coming in over the estimated by $168,000, due to boring costs. Square foot costs were broken down, and compared to a similar project six years ago.

Further, it was determined to charge affected property owners 32 cents per square foot a 35 percent assessment, installing an adequate size pipe, south of the I-94 right of way conveyed to 8^th Avenue and then on to the Sheyenne River.

He noted that starting in 2020 the city will pick up dollars from the “Prairie Dog Bill,” passed by the state legislature, for infrastructure, that will offset some of the costs.  He asked the City Commission to meet to discuss further uses for those dollars.

Commissioner Bishop pointed out that dollars from the Prairie Dog Bill are not guaranteed.

 

With that in mind, Commissioner Magnuson said this project has been looked at over the past five, years, and holding off the project for awhile longer should not be a problem, until the state infrastructure dollars in hand.

Schelkoph said money for the project could come from “shuffling” other funds, adding this is a good time to start the project, pointing out water drainage degrading the area and costing the city more expenses.

 

On Tuesday the City Commissioners voted 4-1 to approve the Resolution to accept the low bid and award the contract, with Commissioner Bishop voting against.

 

New Business

Considered was the request from the South Central Adult Services for $20,000 to support the Transit Program.  Administrator Schelkoph said the city funding would have to come from the Public Works Department budget.  Mayor Carlsrud said he would like to see the Transit program adjust its rates before earmarking city funds.  Barnes County has earmarked funding to support the service.

The City Commissioners unanimously voted not to approve the request.

 

Commissioners considered options for Valley Recycling Contract.  No action was taken pending additional information.  It was noted that the business remains open, and may be expanded in the future pending additional funding. The City is asking resident to be sure to separate garbage from recycling items when set the materials out for collection.

The City Commission, approved the Emergency Repair of Standpipe Water Tower that was ice damaged last winter, in the amount of $52,500. City Administrator Schelkoph said the cost to the city is $8,000 after insurance coverage.  He added that the tower is 105 feet high, and takes special equipment for repairing.  He says the city need to address a permanent solution to the on-going problem.

The meeting was shown live on CSi Cable 68, followed by replays.

 

Jamestown  (CSi)  The Jamestown Stutsman Development Corporation  (JSDC)  Board of Directors, met in regular monthly session, Monday.

On Tuesday’s Wayne Byers Show on CSi Cable 2, JSDC, Business Development Director Corry Shevlin said the board has renewed a partnership with Train ND at a cost of $45,000 per year, with access to Stutsman County and the surrounding area.

Train ND provides workforce training programs to businesses in cooperation with the Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce and has provided training for over 400 individuals in the past year.

On another topic, the JSDC has approved restarting The Business Development Center, on a limited bases., as an  employee will work one or two days per week at each location on a set schedule.

The Center will be operated by the North Dakota State University Research and Technology Park, which . is in the process of hiring staff for its Business Development Center, separate from the existing Fargo Small Business Development Center, as the two agencies will coordinate services.

 

Oakes  (NDHP) –   The North Dakota Highway Patrol reports, a Texas man died Monday when his  vehicle rolled about 11:45-a.m.,  two and a half miles south of Oakes.

61 year-old man from Crystal City, Texas man was  northboudn on 111th Avenue Southeast, located south of Highway 11.  The man lost control of his 2001 GMC Yukon on the gravel road, leaving the east side of the roadway and when he over-corrected.

The vehicle then rolled into the west ditch.

He was taken to CHI Oakes Hospital for medical treatment where he expired.

The crash remains under investigation by the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

Assisting at the scene were the Dickey County Sheriff’s Office, Oakes Police Department, and Oakes Fire and Rescue.

 

Washington  (Sen. Hoeven’s Office)  Senator John Hoeven, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, released the following statement today after the President said that the Administration is planning to provide $15 billion in agriculture aid to help producers during trade negotiations. Hoeven has been making the case to the Administration, including the White House and USDA, for another round of Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments as well as additional agriculture assistance.

“We appreciate the Administration’s recognition of the challenges in farm country and their commitment to provide agriculture assistance. As chairman of the Agriculture Appropriations Committee, I’ve been making the case to the Administration, both at USDA and the White House, that our producers need another round of MFP as well as other ag assistance,” said Hoeven. “We worked to provide the authority necessary to use tariff revenue to provide agriculture aid, since our ag industry has been targeted by retaliatory tariffs. At the same time, supporting our agriculture industry will send a clear message to China that the U.S. is going to do what it takes to get better trade deals.”

In addition to his efforts to provide agriculture assistance, Hoeven also worked to help manufacturers, securing a commitment from U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to set up a product exclusion process for the third round of tariffs, which recently went from 10 to 25 percent. The exclusion process enables manufacturers to request that a specific product be excluded from the increased duties, especially when the product is not available elsewhere or if it will cause severe economic harm.

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — When President Donald Trump began talking about tariffs in 2017, Upper Midwest soybean farmer Jamie Beyer suspected that her crop could become a weapon. Two years later, she and her family are watching the commodity markets on an hourly basis as an escalating trade war between the U.S. and China creates turmoil in rural America.

“It’s hard to concentrate on planting when you’re constantly checking your phone to see if another (Trump) tweet has prompted a dip in the market,” said Beyer, of Wheaton, Minnesota. Beyer’s family farms about 3,500 acres in Minnesota and South Dakota and she figures it has lost about $230,000 because of the trade war.

These are days of “a little bit of panic” among farmers, she said, and the anxiety is spreading to the agricultural lending industry. One economist said the farm sector might face its greatest downturn in three decades.

Soybean prices plunged early this week to a 10-year low after Trump’s decision late last week to impose punitive duties on $200 billion of imports from China and China’s retaliatory tariff hikes Monday on $60 billion of American goods. U.S. officials then listed $300 billion more of Chinese goods for possible tariff hikes, and China on Tuesday vowed to “fight to the finish.”

The trade war that began last summer has already hurt farmers, despite $11 billion in relief payments that were doled out last year by the federal government. The personal income of farmers declined by $11.8 billion through the first three months of 2019, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. A similar pace of decline is expected in the coming months, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.

“The domestic stress caused by the administration’s trade policy is nowhere more evident than in the agricultural sector,” said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at the consultant RSM. “Should the current policy pathway not be changed, the farm sector is going to experience the greatest downturn since the late 1980s, driven by widespread bankruptcies and consolidation.”

 

In sports…

 

 

In world and national news…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An adviser to Iran President Hassan Rouhani says President Donald Trump is moving toward war with Iran instead of trying to reach a deal.

Hessamoddin Ashena said in a tweet Tuesday: “You wanted a better deal with Iran. Looks like you are going to get a war instead.”

The Trump administration sent the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and a bomber squadron to the region in response to unspecified threats by Iran against American interests.

Ashena believes Trump is being misled by U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton. He says: “That’s what happens when you listen to the mustache,” referring to Bolton’s bushy mustache.

 

 

WASHINGTON (AP) — A senior officer in the U.S.-led military coalition combating the Islamic State says there is no increased threat from Iranian-backed forces in Iraq or Syria.

British Maj. Gen. Chris Ghika (gee-ka), speaking from coalition headquarters in Baghdad, made the remark Tuesday to reporters at the Pentagon in a videoconference.

Ghika said Iranian-backed forces in Iraq and Syria are among numerous sources of security threats to coalition troops, but he said that threat has not increased recently.

His comment follows assertions by Trump administration officials that they have detected signs that Iranian or Iranian-backed proxies were preparing for possible attacks against American interests in the Mideast. The administration cited the threats as the reason for expediting the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group and other military resources to the region.

 

 

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota seeks to trace a direct line from clergy sex abuse victims to the Vatican. The suit pursues damages for three brothers who were abused by a Catholic priest over three years, roughly between 2009 and 2012.

Previous efforts to sue the Vatican over U.S. clergy abuse have failed. Because it has the status of a foreign nation, the Vatican is generally exempt from civil lawsuits filed in the United States.

The attorney for the brothers said he believes the new suit has a better chance of succeeding because he’s made a more complete effort to document Vatican authority over Catholic clerics.

 

 

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is downplaying the escalating trade dispute between the U.S. and China as nothing more than “a little squabble” between friends.

Trump says the U.S. has been treated unfairly by China “for many, many decades” and says he thinks things will “turn out extremely well” because, “We’re in a very strong position.”

As for who is winning the dispute, Trump tells reporters as he leaves for a trip to Louisiana that, “We always win.”

Trade talks between the two countries have broken down, with U.S. officials listing $300 billion more in Chinese goods for possible tariff hikes and Beijing vowing Tuesday to “fight to the finish” in an escalating trade battle that is fueling fears about damage to global economic growth.

Trump says that the two countries were close to a deal, but says China “broke it.”

NEW YORK (AP) — Tim Conway, the impish second banana to Carol Burnett who won four Emmy Awards on her TV variety show, starred aboard “McHale’s Navy” and later voiced the role of Barnacle Boy for “Spongebob Squarepants,” has died. He was 85.

Conway died Tuesday morning in a Los Angeles care facility, according to Howard Bragman, who heads LaBrea Media. Conway’s wife, Charlene Fusco, and a daughter, Jackie, were at his side. The cause was a disorder in which there is an excess of fluid on the brain, Bragman said.

Burnett said in a statement Tuesday that she was heartbroken. “He was one in a million, not only as a brilliant comedian but as a loving human being. I cherish the times we had together both on the screen and off. He’ll be in my heart forever.”

Tributes also came from across the comedy world, including from Conan O’Brien, who said “no one made me laugh harder than Tim Conway” and Kathy Griffin, who called him “a wildly talented, comedy giant.” Al Roker tweeted out a link to Conway playing a hysterically incompetent dentist.

A native of Ohio, Conway credited his Midwestern roots for putting him on the right path to laughs, with his deadpan expression and innocent, simple-minded demeanor.