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Perhaps the biggest news to come from the annual joint meeting between the Hesston City Council, USD 460 and Hesston Recreation and Community Education on March 27 was the announcement from Hesston City Administrator Gary Emry of his impending retirement and the movement of Jason Thrasher from City Clerk to City Administrator. The transition came during a time of succession within the City government including the hiring of Anthony Swartzendruber as Director of Finance. Source: Harvey County Now

Changes could be coming to EMS response in rural parts of the state. A house bill headed to the governor's desk would change the number of trained medical providers required to be in ambulances. One key part of House Bill 2280 affects counties with a population of less than 30,000 people. They'd be required to have one person trained as an EMT or paramedic, with the ambulance driver only required to be trained in CPR. This is being done to make EMS staffing more flexible for smaller communities, but some say it raises concerns about the quality of patient care in [...]

Abilene will be teeming with treasure hunters this weekend as hundreds of geocachers from across the country descend on the city for MOGA 2025 — the Midwest Open Geocaching Adventure — hosted by the Flint Hills Geocachers. Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game where participants use GPS-enabled devices to locate hidden containers, known as geocaches, which typically include a logbook and occasionally small trinkets. Source: KSN-TV

As a legal battle continues over water rights in central Kansas, two communities involved are celebrating a $15.8 million grant that could help them. Hays and Russell are getting the Build Kansas Grant to help pipe water 70 miles from a ranch in Edwards County. The two towns bought the R9 Ranch in the 1990s. The ranch includes billions of gallons of irrigation water rights that could supply Hays and Russell for up to 75 years. In 2016, the towns applied for the right to transfer the water. However, Edwards County and the Water Protection Association of Central Kansas (Water PACK), [...]

With the severe weather early this morning, many in Baxter Springs spent today cleaning up damage. The west side of Baxter Springs saw downed power lines, fallen trees, and damaged homes. One Baxter Springs resident's mobile home was blown nearly two feet off its foundation. The man was thankfully unharmed, and was able to reach out to his family for support. They told us how the Baxter Springs community has come together in the storm's aftermath. Source: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

Pittsburg city leaders are working with the school district to promote safety and health. "This would provide us a safer opportunity for our students," said Tom Stegman, Pittsburg USD 250 chief operations officer. Twentieth and Rouse streets. one of the busiest intersections in the city of Pittsburg. is just up the road from Meadowlark Elementary School. Currently, there are no sidewalks in the area. Source: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

Topeka is offering to pay half of the cost to fix your sidewalks. While some people tell 27 News they think the city should be in charge of the cost of sidewalks, it's actually the property owners' responsibility. The 50-50 Sidewalk Repair Program was re-introduced this year to help people with the cost of repairs. Some neighborhoods went a step further and applied for the Topeka Dreams grant. This grant allows people to receive even more money from the city to make repairs. Source: KSNT 27 News

What exactly a mini-golf entertainment concept planned for near 95th Street and Metcalf Avenue will look like now is uncertain after an Overland Park committee declined to advance the developer’s application for public incentives. Bob Johnson, a Polsinelli attorney representing the owners behind Tap Ins at the Greenhouse, told the committee this week that some city support is necessary to ensure the full vision for the project comes to fruition. Notably, Johnson said escalating construction costs created by the Trump administration’s tariffs and uncertainty with labor costs in the construction workforce amid the White House’s immigration crackdowns are creating headwinds for [...]

A federal judge has granted a preliminary injunction to a woman who sued the Gardner Edgerton School District after she was barred from district facilities following an incident in which she sent photos of signage on a teacher’s classroom to the prominent social media account Libs of TikTok. The judge’s order allows Carrie Schmidt, a mother of two children in the Gardner Edgerton district, to once again attend school events and set foot on school property without administrators’ express permission. Schmidt was banned from entering school facilities after an incident on Feb. 3 in which she took photos of a Gardner [...]

The community of Eskridge in northeast Kansas worked to save a cat that had been stuck in a tree for hours on Wednesday. The Wabaunsee County Sheriff's Office posted about the rescue on Facebook. They said the cat was 43 feet high and in the tree for 14 hours. The office and Eskride firefighters devised a plan, and Evergy sent a lineman, Mark Tomlinson, who used his truck to bring the feisty cat down. Source: KSN-TV