When it came time to cut the ribbon at the opening of the new Overland Park Farmers’ Market space in the Clock Tower Landing area, city officials were surprised by the size of the crowd. “We did not anticipate this many people being this excited,” said Bryan Toben, director of the city’s parks and recreation department, to the assembled group. Part of what makes it more accessible than the old space is that part of the construction involved flattening out what used to be a 10 to 12-foot grade change from the top to the bottom of the market area, just [...]

The Manhattan City Commission, with a 5-0 vote, approved a resolution that opposes the suggested incorporation of the City of Green Valley in Pottawatomie County. The resolution will be submitted for Pottawatomie’s Board of County Commissioners June 11th public hearing.   If approved by Pottawatomie County, the area would become its own municipality with authority over local governance matters, rather than remaining solely under Pottawatomie County jurisdiction. Read more: KCLY Radio

The Hutchinson Planning Commission voted Tuesday, June 9, to recommend temporary zoning requirements for large-scale data centers and utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) in order to give the city time to make permanent regulations. If the Hutchinson City Council approves the proposed temporary regulations at its July 7 meeting, the city will prohibit large-scale data centers and utility-scale BESS in all residential districts and require conditional use permits for them in commercial and industrial zoning districts but would permit BESS used for on-site needs and server rooms serving a main use at the same location. Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune

In a rare public appearance Wednesday, the Las Vegas casino magnate and Wichita businessman Phil Ruffin outlined his vision for his Gilley's entertainment complex in Park City after recently securing the popular Country Stampede music festival. Gilley's will partner with the Lenexa-based Kustom Entertainment (NASDAQ:KUST) to produce and host music festivals throughout 2027, including the three-day Country Stampede festival that will relocate to Gilley's next June as part of a multi-year agreement. Read more: Wichita Business Journal

Nine residential units in South Hutchinson will receive cash incentives from Reno County, aimed at reducing their price and increasing residential development in the city. The South Hutchinson City Council approved nine $7,000 incentives at its regular meeting Monday, with six payments for homes to be completed and sold by the end of 2027 and three for homes to be sold by the end of 2028. All homes will be built by Free State Builders in the Prairie Ridge subdivision , near Bluestem Drive off west Blanchard Road. Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune

Young trainers took on the Greenbush Pokemon Gym Challenge, aiming to “catch ’em all” as they visited four themed gyms on the way to the champion gym. Organizers said the event was designed to give families a fun experience while encouraging creativity, movement, problem-solving and positive student engagement. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com

Children met some of their community heroes during a special storytime event at the Frontenac Public Library on Thursday. Members of the Frontenac Police Department and Frontenac Fire Department visited the library, showing children their vehicles and talking about how they serve the community. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com

Eighteen Kansas communities will share in nearly $14 million in funding to support infrastructure projects. Gov. Laura Kelly announced Wednesday that over $10.1 million in federal Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act funding will be paired with over $3.6 million in matching funds from the Kansas Infrastructure Hub and the Build Kansas Fund, along with $165,000 in local funds. The money will support improvements at multiple Kansas airports, as well as energy grid improvements. Read more: KSN-TV

Marquette Mayor Hank Kugelman said the day after severe storms brought a new challenge: cleaning up debris in the heat while dealing with the outage. Read more: KSN-TV

A 10-megawatt data center has been operating in Pittsburg since January, bringing new revenue streams to the city while raising questions among some residents about future expansion and community input. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com