An incident involving a Holton resident and a representative of a telecommunications company at­tempting to sell services to the resi­dent was the focus of discus­sion at a recent Holton City Com­misssion meeting. During the commission’s Tues­day, May 19 meeting — held a day later than usual due to severe storms that moved through the area the previous day — commissioners met with Holton resident Jim Rick­etts about a recent incident involv­ing a representative of Brightspeed whom Ricketts said got aggressive with him when he asked the em­ployee for a copy of a solicitor’s permit. Door-to-door salespersons visit­ing Holton are required to [...]

A motion to put a six-month pause on data centers in Gardner died Monday night, despite support from residents and the backing of one city councilmember. The discussion comes as multiple Johnson County cities, including Gardner, have been weighing data center proposals in recent months. Earlier this spring, a data center application was withdrawn in Spring Hill. Then, a California-based company withdrew its data center application in Gardner, following community pushback. And Edgerton currently has a data center application on the table, even as De Soto also moves forward with another. Ono Monday night, the Gardner City Council discussed a measure [...]

As a girl, Dawn Buehler loved floating the Kansas River as it passed her family’s farm. As an adult, she’s floated all the major rivers of the Ozarks. Last summer she floated and camped along rivers in Washington and Montana. She hopes to keep floating new rivers. Some of the rivers she’d most like to float are just an hour or two from her home in rural Douglas County, and include the Elk, Marais des Cygnes and Verdigris. All begin amid the grand grasslands of the Flint Hills and eventually flow through prime forests near the Kansas border. But those rivers, [...]

Deep Fission announced Tuesday a partnership with Day and Zimmermann for the construction of a nuclear reactor in Parsons. Deep Fission is a company that makes small advanced nuclear reactors and chose Parsons, Kansas, to build a test version of its new underground reactor. The site will be in the Great Plains Industrial Park. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com

Pittsburg's only movie theater has permanently closed, leaving residents without a local option to watch films on the big screen as summer approaches. AMC Classic Pittsburg 8 shut its doors for the final time on Sunday, May 31, according to a statement from AMC Theatres. The closure came as a surprise to many regular customers who had no advance warning. AMC Theatres confirmed the closure in a statement to KOAM, saying the company "routinely reviews the theatres in our circuit and makes decisions based on what will strengthen the company going forward." The sudden closure has left longtime patrons confused and [...]

After hearing from the public, the Wichita City Council amended an ordinance on Tuesday to make back-in parking legal in most city spaces. Council members approved the amendment 7-0, despite staff’s recommendation to keep the current ordinance that had been in effect since 2008. The council ultimately agreed with the public, who sent dozens of emails speaking against the back-in parking rule. The only spots where backing in will still be illegal are on-street parking. This was a safety concern since many of the spots are angled, and drivers could be pulling out into traffic. Council members were also worried that [...]

A new dairy held its grand opening in western Kansas on Tuesday. Twin Circle Dairy, owned by Blue Sky Farms, opened its facility just south of Lewis. The $250 million facility houses about 23,000 to 24,000 head of cattle and will be able to produce roughly 19,300 gallons of milk each day. “We’re just very excited about this day, and finally everything is full, and we’re ready,” Blue Sky CEO Harry Dwit said. Read more: KSN-TV

City leaders in Emporia are considering the addition of a specialized district that could hold future data centers. The City of Emporia announced in a social media post on Tuesday that its Planning Commission is considering a proposal to establish a new Digital Infrastructure Overlay District (DI-O). The Planning Commission will hold a special meeting and public hearings tied to this topic later this month. Read more: KSN-TV

The City of Park City said it was a successful opening weekend, but it cautions that because of staffing shortages, there may be days when operations will be limited. Read more: KSN-TV

To mark America's 250th birthday, Wichita's Cowtown has added a new exhibit honoring America's pastime. The exhibit, titled the “155th Celebration of Base Ball in Wichita” opens Sunday at Old Cowtown Museum. The exhibit showcases early “base ball” as it was spelled back then, in Wichita and the city’s place as an innovator, not just in the sport, but in civil issues that were changing society. Read more: KSN-TV