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The city of Haysville, in partnership with the Red Cross and local agencies, will offer free smoke alarm installation from noon to 4 p.m on Oct. 4. The event is part of the Sound the Alarm: Save a Life initiative put on by the Red Cross. Smoke alarms are provided by the Red Cross, with installation by volunteers and event partners, which include the city of Haysville, USD 261, Haysville Chamber of Commerce, Sedgwick County Fire District 1 and Wichita Fire Department. Read more: www.derbyinformer.com

No smoking in public parks. That’s the message that Halstead City Council approved Monday night after a presentation from STAND of Harvey County. Senior Piper Morgan of Halstead High School said they want to introduce tobacco-free parks in Halstead to make sure the youth don’t see that tobacco is something that is normalized and that a lot of people use. “And it makes sure that it’s setting a clear standard that smoking and using tobacco products is not OK,” Morgan said. Read more: Harvey County Now

Shawnee is looking at ways to eliminate or reduce noise from passing trains near a subdivision in the northern part of the city after residents complained. In a committee meeting Monday, the Shawnee City Council discussed options to control noises created by trains at a crossing in the 4400 block of Lakecrest Drive. Residents in the nearby Riverview subdivision requested the city look into creating a quiet zone at the crossing because noises from the train and crossing bells are negatively affecting them. Read more: Johnson County Post

The city of Merriam is turning 75 years old next month. Like other northeast Johnson County cities that have reached 75 years of incorporation, Merriam is making a big to do of it. The city plans to celebrate its 75th anniversary with a four-hour party on Oct. 23 at the Merriam Marketplace, 5740 Merriam Drive. Read more: Johnson County Post

Spring Hill’s new police chief, James “Jim” Sutterby, wants to build on the legacy of the last chief — and long-term, he’s looking to add a new accreditation, bring on new officers and update the department’s technology. Sutterby began his tenure as chief on June 23, after 34 years with the Overland Park Police Department. He took over for former chief Cindy Henson, who became the first woman to serve as undersheriff in Johnson County. Read more: Johnson County Post

With nearly 40 years of local government experience, Mike Scanlon has spent much of his career working to connect people in the Kansas City metro area via trail systems. Scanlon, who was the city administrator in Mission for nearly 10 years and a chief financial officer in Merriam for another seven, helped connect Johnson Countians with his work on the Streamway Park trail systems. He went on to connect communities in Colorado before coming back and continuing that work in Osawatomie, Kansas. He’s now an executive director for Kansas Trails Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to connecting trails across the state. Less [...]

For Kayla Elam, providing in-home child care is something of a family business. Her mother offered the service in their family home when she was growing up, and still has an in-home child care business in Shawnee to this day, which her younger sister also works at. Her twin sister offers in-home child care in Gardner, too. It was hard work, complicated by a number of factors. For one thing, parents didn’t always want to pay her or couldn’t pay on time, and it’s expensive to offer the service to begin with. There were also behavioral issues that parents didn’t want [...]

The City of Galena provides an update in regards to an odor that arose last fall. The city says landfill operators have begun applying layers of lime to the area of the landfill where the odor was detected. Galena city officials say using lime amendment as a treatment for it mitigation of hydrogen sulfide gas emissions has been successful, according to studies and trials. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com -

Zach Daniel will serve as the next city manager after the City Commission voted Monday night to offer him the job following an executive session. Daniel, who was previously assistant manager, has been serving as the interim city manager the past few months. “I’m very grateful for the opportunity, super excited to continue to work with the commission, the department heads,” Daniel said. “We’ve got a lot of really exciting things on the horizon, and I feel grateful to be a part of that.” Read more: The Eudora Times

South Hutchinson City Council rezoned three parcels outside of the city for an Evergy natural gas-powered electricity generation plant Monday. Evergy Director of External Affairs Chase Blasi told the City Council that demand for electricity is increasing at a rate not seen since the 1950s, when electric appliances like refrigerators were becoming commonplace. The current increase in demand is being driven by artificial intelligence and data centers, he said. Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune