Shawnee County is just a few months away from gaining its newest solar energy farm. Evergy and Free State Electric Cooperative have partnered up to bring another energy source to serve part of Shawnee County. Evergy said there will be thousands of panels at the plant once the project is completed. However, the plant is located right behind a neighborhood. Bow Stanley, who has lived in Silver Lake for over 20 years, is not very worried about the panels being built just two doors down from his home. He’s mostly looking forward to the impact they’ll have once the plant is up and running.
Source: KSNT 27 News

Two restaurants, one lost to fire and the other to the COVID-19 pandemic, are making a comeback together. The Brookville Hotel has officially reopened – following its purchase by Deana and Chuck Munson- under the name Legacy Kansas Munson’s Prime & Brookville Hotel. The new name signals the union of two nationally-recognized restaurants which both closed recently for different reasons. The Brookville Hotel, formerly owned by Mark Martin, closed on Oct. 1, 2020, due to economic issues brought on by the pandemic while Munson’s Prime Steak in Junction City burned down on Feb. 24, 2021.
Source: KSNT 27 News

A two-year restoration project in the Kaw River State Park is getting some help from the City of Topeka. The Topeka Riverbank Restoration Project is a two-year project encompassing 22 acres of the 76-acre Kaw River State Park. The goal of the project is to remove non-native plants and invasive species from the area. The city is joining in on the process by leading excavation work near a boat ramp located in the northeast corner of the park. This is being done to reduce erosion and sediment loss. The contractor hired by the city to conduct this part of the project will also be building some nested basins near the parking lot to promote water quality by infiltration and filtration. The work is expected to conclude within the next few weeks, weather permitting, according to the city.
Source: KSNT 27 News

Rossville is celebrating its annual Tall Corn Festival this weekend. Rossville’s Tall Corn Festival takes place annually, on the second weekend of August. The event started almost 100 years ago on a hot summer weekend, as a way for the town to kick off harvest season and because Rossville is a farming community, the festival is a way to show appreciation for their Rossville farmers. This year’s festival theme is “Blame it all on my roots” and was held at the city park and in other downtown areas. The festival began Friday afternoon with a Rossville High School band performance, a watermelon feed, corn eating contest, Rossville High dance performances, and fireworks in the park.
Source: KSNT 27 News