Deputy Chief Jeff Elliott says that 56 year old Daniel Newcomer and 46 year old Ellen Newcomer were charged with 13 counts of animal neglect. Two of those charges are felonies. The others are misdemeanors.

Elliott says the house where they lived in the zero block ofEast Linden Avenuewas red tagged and condemned. The house was destroyed earlier this week.

 He said the Newcomers kept 9 dogs, three cats and a pot bellied pig in the house.

 DeWald says there will be accumulation.

 He says he doesn’t anticipate this to become a weather pattern for February.

 Even though the temperatures won’t be in the 50s, 60s or 70s, DeWald says the temperatures will still be relatively normal for this time of year.

Fremontofficials have named Rian Harkins as thenew cityplanner, replacing Jeff Ray, who resigned in June after two years on the job.  In those two years, the positioned changed from the original city planner duties to also include supervisory duties for two of the city’s smaller departments.

The 38-year-old Harkin of Lincoln is expected to start on Feb. 13 with a salary of more than $62,000 and is expected to have only the city planner duties.

Fremont Mayor Scott Getzschman says Harkins really stood out among the candidates.

 The hire does not require city council approval.

 Harkins is aDavenport,Iowanative with a bachelor’s degree in community and regional planning fromIowaStateUniversity.

 Members of the Fremont City Council will decide on the matter when they meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the second floor council chambers of theFremontMunicipalBuildingat400 East Military Ave.A study session for the meeting will start at 6:45 p.m.

 The clock tower, which sits at theMilitary Avenueinterchange to U.S. Highway 275 near Splash Station and theFremontMiddle School, was built with the intention that it would become the city’s responsibility to maintain, saysFremontParksand Recreation Director John Schmitz.

 Members and staff of the Fremont Area Chamber of Commerce raised almost $150,000 for the 35-feet-tall brick and steel structure that was designed to remind residents of tower clock that once stood at the former Union Pacific Railroad depot inFremont.

 The clock tower was built on city-ownedJohnsonPark. Schmitz said it should take about $1,000 per year to maintain.

 Thursday, Waylon Fischer ofNorth Bendfiled for his candidacy as a Democrat, forcing Lux into a Democratic Primary battle.

 Terry Synovec and Tyler Hancock, who both live outside ofFremontin ruralDodgeCounty, will battle for the Republican nomination for the seat.

 Both primaries are May 15.

 The winners of the two primaries face off in the General Election in November.

 Lux was appointed in November to fulfill the term of Ken Walter, who moved out of state.. Walter beat Lux in 2008.

 Dodge County Clerk Fred Mytty says that all four of the current candidates applied to replace Walter after he resigned. Two others also applied, but Mytty says he doesn’t know if they will file to run.

 Incumbents of any office have until February 15 to file. All others have until March 1.

Most recently, the facility that was built in 1936 had also housed the city’s Parks and Recreation Department offices, but staff offices moved to the Fremont Municipal Building in October.

Parks and Recreation Department Director John Schmitz comments.

The renovation was a topic of discussion for the Fremont City Council’s first full council study session Tuesday night. Schmitz says they have an opportunity for a grant from the state department of economic development that could help pay for the project.

Schmitz says the preliminary 50-50 matching grant application for the project is due Feb. 15. He says early estimates indicate that the full renovation cost will be around $800,000. If this project is chosen, he says they will have until the end of March to complete the final grant application.

Langan says the park’s master plan is the next step.

 He says the master plan should be ready within the next few months.

To hear more of the interview with the GFDC executive director, check our website at KHUBradio.com soon.

 Dan Demuth is theFremont coordinator for DreamIt DoIt Nebraska.

 Demuth says the organization focuses to reduce the state’s hole in the labor market. Part of the problem that they face is that many high school students don’t have a clear understanding of today’s manufacturing.

 About 25 area manufacturing representatives attended a meeting recently in which Demuth outlined the program and how DreamIn DoIt locally partners with Metropolitan Community Collegeto offer a special course program that introduces high school students to the manufacturing industry.

 Anyone wanting more information about DreamIt DoIt, can go to the organization’s website at dreamit-doit.com/Nebraska or call Demuth at Christensen Lumber Co., (402) 721-3212, extension 145.

While the normal amount of snowfall for November and December is just more than 8 inches, we actually received more than 7 ½ inches of snow, according to information from the National Weather Service. So, Zapotocny says we aren’t far below the average, especially after receiving 6.3 inches of snow last month.

She says the average snowfall total for January is 6.3 inches and for February it’s 5.9 inches.  

As for overall precipitation for the year, Zapotocny refers to the Annual Climate Summary that was released recently on the National Weather Service’s website. 

But Zapotocny echoes what’s been on most people’s minds.  

Area residents can expect cooler temperatures the next couple of days. High temperatures Thursday and Friday are expected to be in the 20s – as much as 13 degrees below normal, Zapotocny says – with lows both nights in the low teens to just above 10 degrees, but she says the first half of January should close without any measurable snow as Saturday’s high temperature rebounds to more than 40 degrees.

 State Sen. Charlie Janssen ofFremontintroduced the bill in the 2011 session of the legislature, and the bill carried over to this year’s session.

 He says this wasn’t done on a whim, however. Other states have similar laws in place.

 Janssen is set to talk about this bill at a meeting of the Dodge County Republican Party at 6:45 p.m. today at Keene Memorial Library inFremont.