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“Welcome to the theater.” As the smell of popcorn wafts in the air, movie-goers come in and take their seats – in a theater building that is more than a century old. Today we’ll learn about a group of volunteers who have restored their historic movie theater building and are operating it for their rural community.  Dan Brooks and his wife Kelsey Mai are volunteer managers of the Strand Theater in Sharon Springs. Dan grew up in Colorado Springs. He does carpentry and residential remodeling. Ten years ago, they moved back to Sharon Springs where Kelsey grew up. Source: KCLY Radio

Nearly a year after the tornado, JT and Ashley VanGilder said they are pleased with how well the Westmoreland community has bounced back..... Westmoreland's city government has chipped in by not requiring people whose homes were destroyed to pay for their building permit, Ashley VanGilder said. Source: CJonline

The city of Prairie Village is once again thinking of sending funds to help its war-ravaged Ukrainian sister city, but the politics of the moment in the U.S. are creating local concerns that didn’t exist the first time Prairie Village tried to help three years ago. Source: Johnson County Post

A public pet microchip scanning station, believed to be the first of its kind in Johnson County, is now up and running in Gardner. The Gardner Police Department installed the scanning device inside a portable station last week in the parking lot at the head of the popular Gardner Greenway trail off East Madison Street. Source: Johnson County Post

Governor Laura Kelly has signed Senate Substitute for House Bill 2172, officially creating a water program task force aimed at developing a long-term investment strategy for Kansas’ water needs. Modeled after the state’s 10-year transportation programs, the initiative will focus on securing a dedicated funding source for water infrastructure and planning. Source: KCLY Radio

Governor Laura Kelly announced Thursday 11 rural roadway projects will receive a total of $8.1 million in federal funds through the Kansas Department of Transportation’s High Risk Rural Roads (HRRR) Program. Source: KCLY Radio

Governor Kelly signed a bill into law this week that allows for the year-round sale of fireworks in Kansas. While the law expands the sale of fireworks, it does not alter the times when fireworks can be discharged or how those times are determined. Source: KWCH

Wichita is heading into spring still in stage two drought conditions, meaning water restrictions from the city have not been lifted. Source: KWCH

The Wichita Police Department (WPD) has been testing gunshot detectors in some areas of the city since 2022. Now, the department is preparing to make them a permanent part of detecting gun violence. The new detectors use artificial intelligence to alert dispatch and officers when gunshots are detected. Source: KWCH

The state is finalizing potentially more than $150 million in Sales Tax and Revenue, or STAR, bonds to bolster the development, which it and developers predict will bring in more than two million visitors annually. Source: Wichita Eagle