News

A focus group meeting was held for USD 379 on September 30th at Lincoln School, with about 32 people in attendance. The meeting was ran by HTK Architects, the firm that was hired to run the bond issue. Architects Maria Kutina, principal in charge, and Noah Mediavilla, project manager, started with a presentation about the bond issue process, which includes research, vision, program, collaboration, and resolution/voting.  Kutina also spoke on the current climate of public schools, which have come to require bonds in order to afford asset maintenance.  Read more: KCLY Radio

The Kansas City Police Department has struggled to recruit new officers for years, especially after protests against misconduct and racism. But Chief Stacey Graves says a record number of new recruits graduated into the department in August, and next year’s class is similarly robust. Read more: kcur.org

One detail was unspoken during the Wichita City Council’s recent debate over stronger enforcement of an ordinance against homeless encampments: Cleanups are far more frequent than they were prior to the updated ordinance, according to a Journal analysis of public records, and they have been occurring, on average, at least daily since stricter enforcement began in March. After the council voted to crack down on illegal camping in the city last December, formal encampment cleanups are up from an average of 14 a month to 38 a month – a 171% increase compared to last year. Despite the acceleration, some council [...]

Freeman Health System has decided against building a new hospital in southeast Kansas following its feasibility study. According to Freeman, the original purpose of the hospital was to fill a gap in quality healthcare services in the region. Freeman says the study considered multiple factors, including the impact of pending legislation, including the "One Big Beautiful Bill," and evolving challenges in rural healthcare. Both of those variables contributed to the final decision. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is inviting Kansans to share their ideas and discuss transportation priorities during a series of local consultations scheduled throughout October. Read more: www.koamnewsnow.com

A new museum dedicated to farm toys has opened at the Dickinson County Heritage Center in Abilene, celebrating the state's agricultural roots and history. The Farm Toy Museum features nearly 2,000 miniature farm implements, including tractors, combines, and plows, with a significant portion of the collection donated by John Gruber and his wife, Kathy. "You know it's very unique in the fact that as far as we know, other than Dyersville, Iowa, we are the only farm toy museum kind of in the Midwest area that we are aware of," said Austin Anders, Director of the Dickinson County Heritage Center. Read [...]

Sedgwick County and city leaders met with the Kansas Department of Transportation on Wednesday to discuss transportation priorities, including the proposed Northwest Expressway. The Northwest Expressway project would connect Maize, Goddard, and southwest Wichita. "We've already invested over $20 million into buying the right of way for the Northwest Expressway. We want to make sure that the state realizes this is important to the people in Sedgwick County," said Ryan Baty, Sedgwick County Commission Chair. Baty said another important discussion was on the aging infrastructure of Interstate 135, or Wichita's Canal Route, "a six-mile stretch through the heart of Wichita." KDOT [...]

The first Buc-ee's convenience store in Kansas is now set to break ground late next week. The project has experienced several delays since June. The $95 million project was expected to start last Wednesday, but the company wanted to work on an official groundbreaking ceremony. Construction on the 74,000 square foot store was originally scheduled to begin in late June. The groundbreaking for the new Kansas City, Kansas store will be next to Kansas Speedway at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 16. Read more: KSN-TV

A Kansas community is rallying to help save its local drive-in theater. A Kanopolis couple purchased the Kanopolis Drive-In theater last year. The drive-in opened for the season on May 23. The theater had been operating throughout the season, that is, until Thursday, Oct. 2. The Kanopolis Drive-In's projector broke down, and the cost to replace it is steep. The theater will need to raise at least $100,000, on the low end. Read more: KSN-TV

Newman Regional Health was awarded a $485,000 grant from the Patterson Family Foundation to expand health care access to rural communities. The grant will be used to launch Newman's two-year Telehealth for Rural Health Equity: Expanding Specialty Access Through Infrastructure Innovation program, which aims to serve residents in seven counties across east-central Kansas. Read more: KSN-TV