Lawrence Journal-World 010915

Page 1

Guttering (A Division of Nieder Contracting,

Inc.)

842-0094

HOME INSURANCE Kurt Goeser, State Farm Insurance

843-0003

Tom Pollard, Farmers Insurance

843-7511

Jamie Lowe, Prairie Land Insurance

hometown

LAWRENCE Your area real estate

B

resource

.com

Advertising supplement

JANUARY 9, 2015

Mortgage Rates Fall to New Lows

WASHINGTON —

The average for a

meant to keep longterm rates low.

spot for the financial markets last year. The decline in The 10-year note mortgage rates also has new lows, with the traded at 1.97 percent A year ago, the come as bond yields benchmark 30-year rate Wednesday, down from 30-year mortgage stood have marking its lowest level hit record low 2.17 percent a week at 4.51 percent and the levels. since May 2013. Mortgage rates earlier. It recovered 15-year mortgage at often follow the yield to trade at 2 percent The mortgage giant 3.56 percent. Mortgag e on the 10-year Treasur y Thursda Freddie Mac says the y morning. rates have remained note, which has fallen nationwide average To calculate average low even though below 2 percent. Bond for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage rates, Freddie the Federal Reserve yields rise as prices mortgage fell to 3.73 Mac surveys lenders in October ended fall. percent this week from across the country at its monthly bond Bond prices were an 3.87 percent last week. the beginning of each purchases, which were unexpected strong week. The average 15-year mortgage slid to 3.05 percent from 3.15 percent last week.

LAWRENCE: CITY SERVIC

ES

www.lawrenceks.org

Fire & Medical Departme

nt

www.lawrenceks.org/police

Department of Utilities

www.lawrenceks.org/utilities

Lawrence Transit System

75 cents

www.lawrencetransit.org

Municipal Court

www.lawrenceks.org/legal

Animal Control

Terravest Custom Homes & Remodeling

a five-year adjustablerate mortgage fell to 2.98 percent from 3.01 percent. The fee was

hometownlawrence.com

equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

unchanged at 0.5 point. For a one-year ARM,

The average fee for a 30-year mortgage was 0.6 point, unchanged

www.lprd.org

Westar Energy

843-2182

$300,000

L A W R E NC E

slipped to 2.39 percent from 2.40 percent. The from last week. The fee fee held at 0.4 point. for a 15-year mortgag e declined to 0.5 point The Associated Press from 0.6 point. contributed to this The average rate on report.

®

Offered by: Kc Jones 785.840.5340

830-7000

KcJones@ReeceNichols.com

830-7400

OPEN SUNDAY 2:00-4:00PM

832-7878

LJWorld.com

864-4644

832-6190

FRIDAY • JANUARY 9 • 2015

832-3450

www.westarenergy.com

691-6088

the average rate

832-7509

Parks and Recreation

Rueschhoff Locksmith & Security

Awesome 4 bedroom/3 bath/3 car side entry Fritzel-built premier subdivision - Meadowlark! Kitchen features ranch home in Eudora’s lots of counter-top space. Hearth room off kitchen custom cabinets, center island, Awesome Master Suite with double sinks, jetted with eat-in area. Formal dining. tub, large shower and walk-in closet. 2 bedrooms and a full bath in the basement PLUS 32x16 bonus room which could be 4th bedroom, theater room or an additional family area. You choose! Sprinkler and security systems too! Stop by and check it out. MLS #134703

Showcase Home

832-3000

www.lawrenceks.org/fire_m edical

Police Department

749-1855

Journal-World

Home & City Services

City of Lawrence

doesn’t include extra

fees, known as points, which most borrowe rs must pay to get the lowest rates. One point

2201 Country Drive, Eudora

SEE INSIDE FOR GREAT REAL ESTATE BUYS! Natural Breeze Remodeling

HOME SECURITY SYSTEMS

hometownlawrence Average U.S. mortgag e rates started the year by dipping to

856-3020

HOME REMODELING

Grand jury investigating Brownback loans

Black Hills Energy (Gas)

www.blackhillsenergy.com

AUCTIONEERS

Bill Fair Real Estate Auctions

of Nieder Contracting, Inc.)

HOME INSURANCE

Kurt Goeser, State Farm Insurance Tom Pollard, Farmers Insurance Jamie Lowe, Prairie Land

888-890-5554

887-6900

GUTTERING

Jayhawk Guttering (A Division

800-383-1183

842-0094

843-0003

843-7511

Insurance

HOME REMODELING

856-3020

By The Associated Press

Natural Breeze Remodeling Terravest Custom Homes

749-1855

& Remodeling

HOME SECURITY SYSTE

691-6088

MS

2201 Country Drive, Eud

ora

A federal grand jury is looking into loans made to Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s re-election campaign and has ordered the state’s ethics chief to testify next week as part of its investigation, according to a subpoena obtained by The Associated Press. Carol Williams, the executive director of the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, was summoned to appear be-

Rueschhoff Locksmith &

Security

843-2182

fore the grand jury Wednesday in Topeka, $300,000 according to documents the AP obtained through an open records request. She also was or- Brownback dered to provide documents pertaining to loans Brownback’s campaign received in 2013 and 2014. The subpoena doesn’t say

Awesome 4 bedroom/3 bath/3 premier subdivision - Meadowcar side entry Fritzel-built ranch home in Eudora’s lark! Kitchen features custom lots of counter-top space. Hearth cabinets, room off kitchen with eat-in area. center island, Awesome Master Suite with double Formal dining. closet. 2 bedrooms and a full bath sinks, jetted tub, large shower and walk-in could be 4th bedroom, theater in the basement PLUS 32x16 bonus room which Sprinkler and security systems room or an additional family area. You choose! too! Stop by and check it out. MLS #134703

which specific loans are being investigated, but the only loans listed on campaign disclosure reports for those years are one Colyer from Brownback himself and others from Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer. Colyer loaned Brownback’s campaign $500,000 in August — the third such loan

the governor’s running mate made to their re-election bid — according to the last disclosure report, filed days before the November general election. Such large loans by candidates to campaigns are uncommon in Kansas, and the pattern of repaying one within days is a highly unusual move that has generated unanswered questions about where Colyer obtained such a large amount of cash. “The campaign followed all

Synthetic ice requires attitude adjustment, skaters are finding By Caitlin Doornbos Twitter: @CaitlinDoornbos

I

went ice-skating — or maybe I went ice-scooting — at the Lawrence Plaza Skate Rink Monday. After a letter to the editor and several members of the public criticized the new ice-skating rink, at 707 Vermont St. between the library and the parking garage, I was assigned to go see what all the fuss is about. So I bragged to my colleagues that I grew up ice skating, that I can do a few tricks, that I’m practically Michelle Kwan. This assignment was going to be a piece of cake. Then I fell — hard — twice during my first lap. “Skating” on the synthetic ice was a bit like sliding in socks on a heavily waxed gym floor. You move, but not very far. And if you try to skate like you would on real ice, you end up on the ground, like I did. Ice rink employee Sydney Studer said she also grew up ice skating. She said at Lawrence Parks and Recreation’s employee orientation to introduce staff to the rink she asked, “Is it finished?” “Everyone who goes from ice skating (to the synthetic ice) is a little disappointed you can’t really glide,” Studer said, “but it’s a great way to get outside in the winter.” Studer said first-time skaters, especially children, love the rink. And you can’t beat the price at $3 per skate rental. Mike Yoder/Journal-World Photo “You can stay for 20 minutes or you can stay for an NATHAN DREWRY, OF LAWRENCE, helps his daughter with a skating move earlier this hour,” Studer said. “That beats week at the Library Plaza Skate Rink on Vermont Street. The rink’s synthetic ice means the rink can be used even in warm weather, but some skaters are finding the Please see SKATING, page 4A surface difficult to glide on.

INSIDE

Sunny Business Classified Comics Deaths

High: 19

Low: 4

Today’s forecast, page 6A

2A 5C-8C 10C 2A

Events listings Horoscope Movies Opinion

4A, 2C Puzzles 9C Sports 4A Television 5A

9C 1C-4C 6A, 2C

Vol.157/No.9 22 pages

Join us at Facebook.com/LJWorld and Twitter.com/LJWorld

Wilson Service Company Procrastinators’ Special! 1/2 OFF Furnace Cleaning and Inspection

$

45

(Originally $129)

Redeem Online

This Print advertisement is not redeemable for advertised deal. Get your deals voucher online at Lawrencedeals.com

applicable laws and ethics regulations and this investigation has no merit,” Brownback’s press secretary Eileen Hawley said in a statement Thursday afternoon. “It is a common practice for candidates to make loans to their campaigns and any loans were done in compliance with Kansas law and ethics regulations.” “Governor Brownback’s focus is on doing the people’s Please see LOANS, page 3A

LEGISLATURE

Medicaid expansion to get early hearing By Peter Hancock Twitter: @LJWpqhancock

The chances may be slim that Kansas will expand its Medicaid program this year, but at least one Lawrence-area legislator says he is going to try. Rep. Tom Sloan, chairman of the House Vision 2020 Committee and the only Republican in the Sloan Lawrence legislative delegation, said Thursday that he plans to begin holding hearings early in the session on the consequences of not expanding Medicaid. The 2015 session begins Monday. Sloan said the purpose of the hearings will be “to identify what a Kansas solution might look like.” Please see MEDICAID, page 6A

City sets listening sessions about police HQ vote By Chad Lawhorn Twitter: @clawhorn_ljw

Lawrence city commissioners want to hear what went wrong with their proposal to build a $28 million police headquarters, which was defeated by voters in November. Commissioners have scheduled two listening sessions this month to hear from residents about why voters rejected a proposed 0.2 percent sales tax that would have funded a police headquarters on a site near the Kansas Turnpike. “I just want to find out how we can do this project in a way that will make people feel comfortable,” Mayor Mike Amyx said. “Obviously, the things we proposed, at least for the majority of the voters, weren’t quite right.” Please see POLICE, page 2A


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.