Lincolnite

Looks like the State Theatre has officially opened, with 300 and Grindhouse the first two offerings. I don't think I will be able to get there for a while, so if any of you are up for writing a couple paragraphs (or more?) about it, let me know.

The scaled down version of the a proposed Lancaster County Event Center expansion plan, at $8 million, will probably have a better chance of seeing light than the original $20 million proposal. The new proposal does not include the addition of an arena. Apparently the Event Center is pretty much booked solid throughout the year. That's good news. But what's this?

Commissioner Ray Stevens noted that even though projections show net operating revenue could triple after the expansion, the facility would still show a net loss after accounting for depreciation. (emphasis added)

I would like to know more about the numbers, especially considering that the Event Center cost about three times as much to build as originally forecast. Rhetorical question: Why is it that governments are so awful at predicting the costs associated with building and maintaining these sorts of facilities? Event centers, arenas, ballparks ... they all suffer from the exact same problem. What gives?

If you need an excuse to wear that tacky Hawaiian shirt around town, why not be a tourist in your own hometown? This summer's campaign encourages you to visit:

1. Lincoln Children's Zoo
2. Nebraska State Historical Society Museum
3. Pioneers Park Nature Center
4. Lincoln Children's Museum
5. Wyuka
6. Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery
7. Nebraska State Museum (aka Morrill Hall aka Elephant Hall)
8. Larsen Tractor Test and Power Museum
9. State Capitol
10. National Museum of Roller Skating
11. American Historical Society of Germans from Russia
12. Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center

Go ahead and print out a passport (PDF) and get started. Collect 7 stamps and be eligible for (unspecified) prizes.

Hey cool, I (almost) saw this happen!

At 5:38 p.m., a trooper saw a motorcyclist popping wheelies near 27th Street and Old Cheney Road, said spokeswoman Deb Collins. When the trooper tried to stop the man, he fled, resulting in a short chase that included the assistance of a State Patrol helicopter, Collins said.

I saw the trooper driving strangely at 48th and Highway 2 just minutes later, and just before 7:00 I saw a patrol car parked in the median near 27th and Pine Lake Road. I was confused about why the State Patrol seemed to be doing traffic work in the city. One thing about this bugs me: why the helicopter? Since when does a doofus on a bike require the trouble and expense of a helicopter search? Yeah, I know, the biker ran away from the cops. But what were the odds that a helicopter search would find the guy? Surely pretty low in this sort of a situation. Assuming there wasn't reason to believe the biker was linked to a more serious crime, I'm inclined to call the helicopter search a waste. Indeed, it was citizens on the ground who cracked the case:

After troopers ended the pursuit, the patrol started receiving calls from neighbors in the area who said the knew where the bike and driver were, Collins said. The motorcycle was later found at a home on Birch Creek Drive, and around 7:30 p.m., police arrested the driver at his home on Coronado Drive, Collins said. Timothy Wright, 19, was arrested and jailed on suspicion of speeding and fleeing to avoid arrest, Collins said. Wright does not have motorcycle license, she said.

I have to wonder if Wright's neighbors weren't tickled to finally nail a neighborhood menace.

The fun Paleo-Future blog recently featured a 1901 story from the Lincoln Evening News on the 600 mph train of the future. Hmph, over a hundred years later and we're still relying on a slightly less elegant form of transit.

Lincoln Stars head coach Steve Johnson called it quits to go back home to Grand Forks. Johnson was the team's only coach in its successful 11 year history. Somebody has some big shoes to fill.

Man, nothing makes you feel like a crappy dad like leaving your kid in a crying heap at the front door in order to catch the bus. I was a little slow getting ready this morning, so when 6:51 rolled around I had to get moving. I said goodbye to The Missus and Robbie, but Robbie grabbed onto my pant leg. It was cute, so I let him hold onto it all the way to the front door. But when I saw that the bus was sitting right in front of the house, I had to get moving. I removed Robbie's hand, patted him on the head, and ran to the bus to the sound of pure toddler disappointment. It's some consolation to know that he forgot about the incident within minutes. But only a tiny bit.

Herb Friedman, a common presence on local television and radio commercials, has his say about the Time Warner mess in today's Journal Star. It's not a bad piece, but I came away feeling like the guy is a little dirty. Friedman proposes that "this is the stuff class actions are made of, and some customers might want to explore that option with counsel." That's probably true, but it seems to me it's a little unethical of Mr. Friedman not to mention his own interest in a class action lawsuit. Mr. Friedman criticizes Time Warner for not being upfront about Navigator; shouldn't he also be upfront about himself?

StarTran won't be adding bike racks to buses any time soon, sez maintenance superintendent Glenn Knust. One reason is that the added 18" would make the buses too long to fit in the garage. It's mind-boggling to think that there aren't 18" to spare in the garage, but hey, whatever. The second reason makes more sense: at 2,500 bucks a pop, the cost/benefit ratio is a little out of whack. At $1.25 per bus ride, that would mean the racks would have to generate 2,000 additional rider trips just to pay for a single bike rack. That isn't worth it. Not even close. But hold on a second. $2,500 per bike rack sounds obscene, doesn't it? After all, isn't a bike rack basically just a simple metal frame, perhaps with a couple straps? I would think a suitable bike rack could be constructed for about fifty bucks in parts, plus labor. Right? Can Lincoln's bike riding community explain to me where the extra $2,450 comes from? Hat tip: foxspit

Competent to stand trial? Ha! Ricky Turco isn't even competent to participate in society, as proven by his latest run-in with the police. The judge set bond at $500,000, five times higher than what the County Attorney requested. The Journal Star apparently got tired of policing the comments on Turco-related articles because they didn't allow comments about this most recent incident. That's probably smart of them. You know, Ricky Turco is obviously a maroon. That's pretty hard to dispute. But he surely isn't the only such maroon in town, just the most infamous one right now. I shudder to think that there are plenty of other Turco clones out there. Ugh.

It's about time the four peregrine falcon chicks at the capitol had names. Here are some of my suggestions:

1. North, South, East, and West, in honor of Nebraska's north-south/east-west road grid.
2. Lock, Stock, Smoking Barrel, and Smoking Barrel
3. Herbie, Little Red, Durango, and Louie
4. George, William, Ernie, and, uhh ... one of these guys
5. Blizzard, Twister, Windy, and Drought

Despite my inability to keep anything but the blog updated, Lincolnite continues to draw more and more visitors. The site now averages over 1,000 visitors per day. If you'll excuse the quick self-congratulations, I think that's pretty cool. Lincolnite is no Drudge Report, but we have a nice little community of regular and, uhh, "irregular" readers. I would publicly thank some of the regulars but I know I would miss somebody and I definitely don't want to offend. If you're wondering, yes, I do still have grand plans for this site. Time and money are, as always, the major constraints. A sane person might say "To hell with it! I'll just make it a blog and call it good". But I don't wanna, so I'm not going to do that. Instead, I'm going to keep chipping away at this thing until it approaches my vision. On the plus side, I think I will have some time this summer to devote to Lincolnite. I've given up baseball umpiring (for this year, anyway) so that gives me an opening. Also, I'm picking up some nice freelance web development work that's helping on the funding side of things. Anyway, thanks to everyone -- all 1,000+ of you -- who spend a little piece of your day around here. If at any time you have comments, questions, suggestions, or contributions, please let me know.

1. ...some of the most materialistic people and superficial people in the country it looks like it falls behind so many other core counties of metro areas.
2. ...distressed to learn that during their 24 hour shift Firefighters also require nourishment.
3. ...now armed against harmful chemicals from terrorists.
4. ...proud of their “state-of-the-art” downtown, too.
5. ...so friendly, chances are they'll quietly watch from afar and then offer their congratulations after your ceremony is over.
6. ...struggling with the fact that each household can expect to pay an addition $200 per year after the City and County spend every cent of extra property tax revenue generated by the recent property reevaluations.
7. ...doing things for the betterment of Lincoln.
8. ...bound to take advantage of the city's movie theatre abundance.
9. ...beautiful in their own special way
10. ...depending on the trails for commuting year-round, providing yet another reason for them to be cleared and navigable.

So sayeth Google.

The old Whittier Junior High on Vine Street has been semi-abandoned for a long time. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has plans -- or at least hopes -- for it, though, thanks to the Antelope Valley Project. Have you ever wondered what Whittier is like these days on the inside? Go ahead and take a tour.