This area of Olathe has seen 200% spike in fire calls. A new firehouse is planned there.

23 Sunday, June 23

This area of Olathe has seen 200% spike in fire calls. A new firehouse is planned there.

info2024-06-23T15:46:17-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Olathe plans to spend about $14.5 million on its future Firehouse No. 9 planned northwest of College Boulevard and Woodland Road. On Tuesday, city staff and contracted architects from Finkle + Williams gave a presentation to the Olathe City Council focused primarily on the design of the future firehouse. This particular property was donated to Olathe from the historic Hoff Family Farm along with land for a future city park, dubbed Pioneer Park. In an email to the Post, Olathe Fire Public Information Officer Capt. Mike Hall reiterated the location’s importance for the fire department, pointing out that northern-central Olathe has seen steady growth [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Objections to wind farm expansion growing

info2024-06-23T15:41:25-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Several residents of the southwest portion of the county are objecting to a proposed expansion of Sunflower Wind farm. Quentin Guhr, who lives east of Goessel, spoke to county commissioners Monday about his concerns. “Our current decommissioning regulations say enough of the turbine’s base is to be removed so 18 inches of soil can be placed over it and reseeded with native grass,” Guhr said. “As some of you may know, and any farmer will tell you, 18 inches is not enough soil over concrete to grow a crop.” Regulations say that any more than 18 inches is to be negotiated [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Prairie Village has fined Republic Services $28K for recent rash of missed trash pickups

info2024-06-23T15:38:00-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

After fining Republic Services $28,000 over the past six months for missed trash pickups, Prairie Village city leaders are asking its solid waste provider for better communication. Mayor Eric Mikkelson and the Prairie Village City Council on Monday asked Phoenix-based Republic Services to proactively communicate with the city about missed pickups. City leaders also asked Republic representatives to prioritize picking up trash at missed routes for the following day. This comes after several issues with Republic missing trash pickups in the past two years in Prairie Village and neighboring Johnson County cities. In Prairie Village, Republic is the primary solid waste hauler citywide. The city is more [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

City of Wichita to hold further discussion on possible reparation panel

info2024-06-23T15:36:28-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

A local activist is pleading with the Wichita City Council to look into the issue of reparations for the African-American community in the city. Kansas Justice Advocate President Mary Dean is pointing at other cities across the country that have put together panels of experts to address how the African-American community can be compensated for historic racial discrimination and displacement. "East Coast, West Coast, everybody was doing it, and I'm like, 'Wow, I think Wichita should join in and, you know, try to figure out how to repair the harm that had been done to Black people, over decades and centuries, [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Rural Fire Department Receives $10,000 donation.

info2024-06-23T15:32:47-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Rangeland Cooperatives Inc., along with its Board of Directors are proud to announce, once again, that Rangeland has made a $10,000.00 donation to Phillips County Rural Fire District #1. This donation was matched with a grant of $10,000.00 from CoBank. The $20,000.00 will help District #1 buy a new 2024 brush truck, this is a joint effort with the City of Phillipsburg. This is the 4th consecutive year that Rangeland Coop and CoBank have joined together in a grant program that has benefited the Phillips County Rural Fire Departments a total of $60,000.00. We wish to thank our volunteer fire fighters for [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Wichita ranks No. 1 for home price increases, study says. See what the data shows

info2024-06-23T15:31:03-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Wichita home sale prices increased the most out of the largest U.S. metro areas, according to a SmartAsset ranking. The company ranked the largest 100 metro areas by one-year price increases from Zillow’s home sale price data. Wichita ranked first, right above Toledo, Ohio. Wichita saw a 21.2% price change in the last year, according to the banking company. Wichita’s current average sale price in April was $259,264, while in April of last year it was $213,955. SmartAsset reports that home sale prices in Wichita have increased more than 69% since 2019, when the average price was $153,347, according to Zillow [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Arkansas City hosts ribbon cutting for park renovations

info2024-06-23T15:29:06-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Arkansas City hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday at Lovie Watson Park. The ribbon cutting was hosted by the Arkansas City Chamber of Commerce and marked the culmination of extensive efforts by Arkansas City's Parks Department to renovate the park. The renovations were made possible through a grant that was secured in Nov. 2023 from the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas Health Pathways program. The grant funding helped install new equipment and establish a tobacco-free policy within the facility. The Pathways initiative, known as Pathways to a Healthy Kansas, is the largest community grant initiative funded by Blue Cross and Blue Shield [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Wichita Fire Department hosts kids summer camp

info2024-06-23T15:27:22-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

Wichita firefighters took the time to teach kids about being first responders, letting them spend a day in their boots. On Friday, the Wichita Fire Department hosted a summer camp, giving kids a personal perspective on the life of a firefighter. They learned how to pull a hose, spray water, and force their way into a building. "We want to get out in the community and do fun things, great things with the kids. We want to share what we do with them. We want to have fun with them and let them know if they ever need us that we [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Cowley County’s first temporary homeless shelter welcomed its first guest last week

info2024-06-23T15:26:37-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

An emergency shelter is now open in Cowley County, and it has already housed its first temporary residents. The shelter has been in the works for years but now has the opportunity to change lives. In Cowley County, resources for housing are slim. The Cowley House of Hope shelter is meant to fill those gaps. The shelter's been in the works since 2017 when thousands of dollars had to be raised to make it a reality. The shelter is built similarly to a duplex. It sleeps five people and has two rooms with several beds in each. Each room also has a small [...]

23 Sunday, June 23

Sedgwick to have city-run EMS service for the first time in 7 years

info2024-06-23T15:25:43-05:00June 23rd, 2024|

The city of Sedgwick will have a city-run EMS service for the first time since 2017. City leaders made the decision to give up their certificate to run EMS services because they were not getting enough volunteers. This meant the closest ambulance was coming 15 minutes down the road from Halstead. The city's new EMS director believes having in-service in the city limits once again will get them under the five-minute response requirement by the state of Kansas. Sedgwick's officials made the decision to start stockpiling funds yearly from 2017. Now, they have roughly $500,000 to launch the new department. Having Halstead run [...]