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Painting a landmark for Goodland

The 24-by-32-foot replica of a Vincent Van Gogh sunflower painting by Canadian artist Cameron Cross has been getting noticed. People pull off I-70 to look at the giant painting and to take photos of the 80-foot easel near the intersection of Cherry Ave. and Business U.S. 24. The painting was erected over four years ago through a special project at a total cost of $150,000. The Sunflower USA non-profit corporation received an attraction grant from the State of Kansas to help with the project. This is one of three large Van Gogh sunflower paintings in the world with one in Altoona, Canada and Emerald City, Australia. Cameron Cross plans to build paintings in South Africa, Argentina, Norway and Thailand.

Citywide cleanup scheduled for Saturday (May 10) morning

Goodland Chamber of Commerce Beautification committee members and volunteers will scoure the city Saturday morning to pick up trash. Items to be picked up are to be put out on the curb by 8:30 a.m. Call (785) 899-7130 or (785) 821-4694 to volunteer to help. Volunteers are to gather between 8 and 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the vacant lot across the street west of Rasure Lumber Do-It Center at Sixth and Caldwell. Teams will be assigned sections of the city and will fan out collecting from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Goodland Wal-Mart will be collecting recyclables on Saturday, May 10, in containers at the back door of the building. The containers are for clear plastice bottles, prescription bottles, plastic hangars, aluminum and tin cans, shredded paper and paperback books with the cover torn off. Wal-Mart in cooperation with NIKE corporation will be collecting old athletic shoes for recycling. The shoes should not have any cleats or metal. NIKE will grind up the shoes and use the material to surface playgrounds.

At-large commissioner voting bill gutted by legislature The bill (HB2307) passed both houses of the legislature unanimously on Saturday, but it does not include the language about the at-large voting for Sherman County commissioners. The legislature suspended the rules on Saturday afternoon and used the bill number and substituted another election bill. The Sherman County citiznes will not be voting on the at-large issue this year.		Replacing home in commercial zone raises questions The city Planning Commission may decide a question about whether homes in commercial zones may be replaced under zoning rules at a hearing at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the City Administration Building. The City Commission referred the question to the planning group after the April 7 meeting, when commissioners recommended the planning commission consider modifying commercial zoning rules to allow a house in a commercial zone to be replaced. At the center of the question is a home owned by Shelly and Brandon Terry at 1624 Texas. Steve Criswell, city building inspector, said under the existing ordinance, a house can be expanded or repaired if it is damaged, but not replaced. He said the owners want to move in another manufactured home.

City approves registration program for work-site utility vehicles Small, imported trucks will be allowed to drive on Goodland streets under a city ordinance passed Monday that requires the owner to have a driver's license, insurance and title, and register with the police department. The ordinance passed 4-1 with Commissioner Josh Dechant voting against. Dechant said he thought there were too many hoops for drivers to jump through. City Attorney Jeff Mason said he wrote the ordinance after reading those adopted by other cities and a model ordinance from the League of Kansas Municipalities. These imported work-site utility vehicles are a small two-seat mini-pickup with right-hand drive and standard transmissions.		Celebrating National Tourism Week Visitors to the state Travel Information Center west of Goodland on Saturday will be in for a surprise or two, as the center will offer free food and gifts, along with prize drawings. The center, on I-70 eastbound at mile marker 7 between Kanorado and Goodland, will hold "A Taste of Kansas" from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday to commemorate National Tourism Week from May 10-18. The center will give out bottled water and sunflower seed packets until supplies run out, said supervisor Mona Carver, and visitors can take the seeds home to plant their own sunflower patch.

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County named for Civil War General

Painting a landmark for Goodland

Citywide cleanup scheduled for Saturday (May 10) morning