Thursday, January 9, 2014
Basketball
Pages 8 and 16
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50 Cents Volume 145 Crews install a new waterline in Marina Park. Residents here will see new manholes, an 8-inch gravity sewer, 5,500 linear feet of 6-inch waterline, 12,500 linear feet of 3/4 inch service line and new fire hydrants. Courtesy Photo
Sewer extension nears completion By Justin Waybright justin@theputnamstandard.com
Aging sewer lines, water lines and septic tanks will soon be a thing of the past for residents across the county. Putnam PSD crews are more than 60 percent done with a project that will bring service to nearly 500 new customers in Putnam County. E.L. Robinson Engineering is the firm that is overseeing the project that entails the extension of more than 105,186 linear feet of sewer line throughout several areas of the county. About 43,983 linear feet of sewer line will serve 277 new customers along W.Va. 33, according to design documents. The Putnam PSD hopes to gain about 56 new customers along U.S. 60 with the extension of 11,245 linear feet of line.
Arctic weather blasts the county By Justin Waybright justin@theputnamstandard.com
Bone-chilling temperatures, breath-stealing winds and slick roads created a dangerous start to the week. More than 1,380 Appalachian Power customers in Putnam County were without electric Monday and 232 customers on Tuesday. The power outage caused the Putnam County Courthouse to close for part of the day on Monday. Putnam County was among the 53 county school systems that cancelled on Monday and Tuesday. Numerous school activities and events were cancelled including the Board of Education meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Jan. 21. Calls to 911 lit up phone lines regarding vehicle accidents and fires while the Putnam PSD received about 40 calls from residents experiencing frozen pipes. Frank Chapman, director of the Putnam County Office of Emergency Management, said for the most part the county weathered the cold temperatures.
Hurricane Middle School students Christian Hill, Lucas Torres, Maddie Pifer and Alex Torres enjoy a snow day. The four raced down the hill behind Main Street's First Baptist Church Friday afternoon. Arctic temperatures and wintry weather closed Putnam County schools for three days and created hazardous driving conditions. “We had several power outages in the area but just for a short duration,” he said. “Most of those outages were in the Red House area.” The Putnam County Emergency Operations Center was open all day Monday and Tuesday to help residents in need. The Na-
tional Guard Armory in Eleanor opened as a warming station for those needing assistance from Monday to Wednesday, until the arctic chill left the area. “Fortunately no one used the facility which was good,” he said. “We open warming areas as we have power outages and need
them.” Chapman said his crew was prepared for a busy 48 hours. "Ice was our biggest concern on highways, so we encouraged everybody to slow down and give yourself room," he said. "We enSEE ARCTIC ON PAGE 4
House and Senate members ready for 2014 session
SEE SEWER ON PAGE 6 By Justin Waybright justin@theputnamstandard.com
HOW TO REACH US PHONE: (304) 743-6731 FAX: (304) 562-6214
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The 2014 Legislative Session has just begun and local senators and delegates are bringing ideas they hope will improve the state and county. From the creation of jobs to the battle against the drug epidemic, policymakers are ready to make their voices heard. Sen. Mitch Carmichael (R) weighed in on some of the issues he will focus on during the 60-
day session. His ideas center on boosting the economy. "It's amazing to note that we have the lowest workforce participation rate in America there's a greater number not working than any other states," Carmichael said. "We need to allow the private sector to create jobs, we need tax reform to make the environment more business friendly, then we need to reform the components of our civil justice system." The senator continued, "It's time to put our people back to
work." Sen. Mike Hall (R) also places job creation high on his agenda. "I want to bring policies that will help make the economy even stronger for small businesses in particular," he said. "Regulations can sometimes be overreached - there is a piece of legislation that will help curb some silliness in those regulations." One such idea will be directed toward a business tax, involving equipment and inventory. Both Hall and Carmichael will sup-
port a bill to fix certain requirements imposed on businesses. "We have bills to reduce the tax on business inventory and equipment," Carmichael said. Hall added, "We want to keep close watch on bad regulations, and we still have taxes that need to be fixed, like the equipment and inventory tax. Our state doesn't have a taxpayer Bill of Rights, so I want to make sure we reduce ridiculous regulations, make our taxes fair and produce SEE SESSION ON PAGE 6
Inside This Week: PUTNAM CHAMBER NEWS- PAGE 2 EnAct’s NEW PROGRAMS - PAGE 3 WHS RECOGNIZES FORMER PLAYERS - PAGE 8
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