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Jackson County donates $30K toward library expansion project

info2024-08-12T10:41:03-05:00August 12th, 2024|

Fund-raising efforts to expand Beck Bookman Library received a boost on Monday after the Jackson County Commissioners presented a $30,000 check on behalf of the county to Amy Austin, library director. The donated funds were from the county’s tax on alcohol sales. “We think this is a great way to use that money,” Commissioner Keith Kelly said. So far, about $1 million of the $2.5 million fund-raising goal has been raised for the expansion project, which will allow the library to provide a free meeting space and private work/meeting rooms in the community, as well as make the building compliant with [...]

‘I get to keep my memories’: Tenant purchases home, former public housing unit

info2024-08-12T10:30:22-05:00August 12th, 2024|

Lawonder Markham’s home is her comfort place — it’s where she raised her daughter, where she took care of her mother until she died and where she’s lived since 2003. But she didn’t own her home until July. It used to be public housing. The city of Wichita announced plans in January of 2022 to sell its 352 single-family public housing units. Tenants were given the option to begin the process to purchase and own their home. Markham leaped at the opportunity to purchase her home. “I’ve been through a lot of stuff in this house. I don’t want to lose [...]

Kansas counted 2,800 homeless people this year. There are likely many more.

info2024-08-12T10:28:52-05:00August 12th, 2024|

Every year on a single night in January, hundreds of volunteers fan out in several communities across the state of Kansas to count every homeless person they encounter – on streets, in shelters, along rivers and within motel rooms. This year, organizers counted 2,815 homeless Kansans across the state, according to numbers released Wednesday by the Kansas Statewide Homeless Coalition. This is a 6.8% increase from last year’s total of 2,636. This tally, called the point-in-time count, is important for establishing a foundation for how prevalent homelessness is in communities across the country. But it’s data gathered on one night in [...]

Arma gears up for 78th annual VJ Day homecoming

info2024-08-12T10:19:43-05:00August 12th, 2024|

The community of Arma is preparing for its 78th annual Arma VJ Day Homecoming. The celebration is to remember and mark the end of World War II. The event is starting on Thursday, August 8 with activities including pickleball and golf tournaments, a parade, concert, car show and a dance. Source: KOAM News

City of Lawrence on latest count of unhoused people: ‘City is focused on knowing each person by name’

info2024-08-12T10:16:57-05:00August 12th, 2024|

In response to the latest point-in-time count of people experiencing homelessness in Douglas County, the City of Lawrence says employees are making individual connections with people, leading to “powerful milestones of impact.” The latest count of people experiencing homelessness in Douglas County show a total just slightly higher than 2020, the previous record year. “The point-in-time count represents real people, each with their own stories, struggles, and hopes,” the city said in a news release Thursday morning. “Through collaborative efforts with Douglas County, the Lawrence Community Shelter, and other dedicated service providers, the City is focused on knowing each person by [...]

Park City getting another big development

info2024-08-12T10:11:04-05:00August 12th, 2024|

Less than two months after breaking ground on Champtown in Park City, officials broke ground Friday on another big project for the town. The mayor says it will help people recognize where Park City is. “For many years, we’ve heard a lot of people who drive north and south on the interstate right by us later say, ‘Where is Park City? Where is it? We don’t know where that’s at. There’s no Main Street. There’s no downtown'” Mayor John Lehnherr said. “We hope that this is going to be the answer to that. We’re very confident it will be.” Source: KSN-TV

Bridge replacement in western Kansas creates nearly 60-mile detour

info2024-08-12T10:09:49-05:00August 12th, 2024|

A bridge replacement project in western Kansas is creating a nearly 60-mile detour. The Kansas Department of Transportation says work has started to replace a bridge on Kansas Highway 34 in Clark County. The bridge is located over Bluff Creek, about 8 miles north of the U.S. Highway 160 Junction north of Sitka. During the project, traffic is being diverted onto U.S. Highway 160, west to U.S. Highway 283 to Minneola and U.S. Highway 54, and east on U.S. 54 to Bucklin and the K-34 junction. KDOT says the detour is necessary because the county roads cannot support highway traffic. Source: [...]

Squirrel in Barton County starts grass fire

info2024-08-12T10:08:28-05:00August 12th, 2024|

Barton County Fire District 2 determined a grass fire had somewhat of a squirrelly cause. A Facebook post from the fire district said firefighters were dispatched to a small grass fire near the intersection of U.S. Highway 281 and NE 50 Road. They arrived and found a small grass fire that appeared to have started near the base of a power pole. The fire was extinguished, and after some investigation, it was determined that it started when a squirrel climbed on the wires of the power pole. The squirrel made contact with two power lines, which caused a spark that set [...]

Water restriction update: Violation notices being given

info2024-08-12T10:06:56-05:00August 12th, 2024|

The City of Wichita is on the fourth day of water restrictions and is already issuing violation notices. Public Works Director Gary Janzen was not specific about the number of violations reported, but he said some of the people who received notices plan to appeal. “We’re not proactively going out looking for people who are running irrigation systems when they’re not supposed to,” he said. “It’s not meant to be punitive, so we’re not actively trying to go after people. Our goal here is education of the community and the value we have with conservation community-wide.” After people get a violation [...]

Garden City approves grant agreement with EPA for water reuse project

info2024-08-12T10:02:42-05:00August 12th, 2024|

The Garden City Commission approved a grant agreement with the United States Environmental Protection Agency to construct a Water Reclamation and Reuse project at the commission’s regular meeting Tuesday. Fred Jones, Garden City Water Resource Manager, said the city has worked continually since 2016 to develop strategies to utilize reclaimed water treated by the city’s Wastewater Utility which would otherwise be discharged into the Arkansas River. Multiple projects and studies have been pursued by the city, including three federal grants which were awarded to the city from the Bureau of Reclamation, Jones said. The grants will assist staff in “developing a [...]

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