Country 101.3 KFDI

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has announced that a California aviation company will be expanding its operations with a facility in Wichita. Brek Manufacturing Company intends to purchase two buildings in Wichita, investing $4.5 million and creating 75 new jobs over the next five years. Brek specializes in the making of complex structural aircraft parts, including contoured surface parts common with modern-day aircraft.   Company officials said Wichita’s aerospace and aviation ecosystem and workforce were factors in their decision to expand into Kansas.   Brek’s products are used in commercial, strategic and tactical military aircraft. The Wichita City Council is expected to consider industrial [...]

Voters are going to the polls to narrow the list of candidates for city council races in Wichita and Park City. Wichita has two council races.  In District 3, incumbent Jared Cerullo has six challengers: Jerome Crawford, Ian Demory, Jason Carmichael, Mike Hoheisel, Cindy Miles and Tevin Smith. District 6 has incumbent Cindy Claycomb and five challengers:  Maggie Ballard, Martin Garcia, Loren Hermrick, Jr, Dereck Reynolds and Andy Speck. Park City has a Ward 1 council race, with incumbent John Lehnherr challenged by Angie Carter and Charley Davidson. Polls are open until 7 p.m.   The top two candidates in each race [...]

A COVID-19 surge in Kansas fueled by the faster-spreading delta variant is filling up hospitals in some areas. A survey from the Kansas Hospital Association said four times as many patients with confirmed COVID-19 infections were hospitalized this week as were hospitalized in early June. The association said that 116 Kansas hospitals surveyed this week reported having 399 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. For early June, 125 hospitals reported having 99. For about a month, the Salina Regional Medical Center has sometimes has been near full capacity and its chief medical officer says it has struggled to find beds for patients who have [...]

The Kansas Insurance Department said severe storms in May caused more than $76.4 million in damage across the state. The estimate is based on a reported 12,745 insurance claims in 101 counties. Kansas Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt said the storms affected thousands of businesses, farms and residents. The estimates for May, 2021 property loss payments are up more than $15.8 million from a year earlier. So far in 2021, storm losses in Kansas have added up to more than $99 million in reported damage. Source: Country 101.3 KFDI

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has issued a new order requiring state employees and visitors to wear masks inside state buildings and facilities.  The order goes into effect Monday, August 2nd. The governor announced the order at a news conference Wednesday, and she said it was in response to new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control that call for fully vaccinated people to wear masks indoors in areas with increasing cases of COVID-19.    The governor’s order applies to all state employees and visitors regardless of their vaccination status. The governor said the order is being issued because the delta variant [...]

Rescue crews worked for over three hours Tuesday evening to free a man who was trapped in an eight-foot trench at a Hutchinson mobile home park. Crews were called to the 1700 block of East Blanchard around 5:20 p.m. to find a 24-year-old man who was trapped from the waist down after a wall collapsed in a trench. The worker was repairing a four-inch sewer line when the collapse occurred. Sedgwick County and Newton fire crews helped with the rescue operation, along with Reno County EMS and police from Hutchinson and South Hutchinson. The worker was removed from the trench shortly before [...]

After another round of public comments Tuesday, the Wichita City Council has voted to delay final action on a proposed anti-discrimination ordinance until October 12th. The vote was 5-2, with Mayor Brandon Whipple and Vice-Mayor Brandon Johnson voting no.    Mayor Whipple said the ordinance has been discussed and vetted and he wanted the council to finish the work that has been started. As they did a week ago, the Council heard from a number of speakers, many of them in support but others said the ordinance would have a negative impact on churches. District 2 Council member Becky Tuttle moved [...]

After a couple hours of discussion, which became heated at times, Wichita’s City Council gave initial approval on an a proposed anti-discrimination ordinance. The 4-3 vote approved what is called a first-reading, and changes can still be made before the ordinance is put into effect. A second-reading of the proposed ordinance is set for July 6. Some council members expressed concern regarding transparency, saying the public did not have much of a chance to look at the proposed ordinance before the vote. There was also concern that ordinance did not go through advisory boards that the city has set up. The [...]

Wichita City Council members have approved changes to a development agreement to allow for a new golf destination facility in the northeast part of the city. The city established a STAR Bond district at K-96 and Greenwich Road for the development of the Stryker Sports Complex with the construction of an indoor facility.  Another phase of the project was intended for a golf and entertainment venue, and the city has reached an agreement with Topgolf to provide that facility. Topgolf will have a two-story, 50-bay interactive golf facility with a restaurant and meeting space.  Assistant City Manager Scot Rigby said future [...]

Sedgwick County commissioners have been involved in a series of meetings during the past week with department leaders, hearing about their funding needs for 2022. After the past year of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, County Manager Tom Stolz says the county will face challenges next year with employee compensation, workforce and staffing challenges, and stressed operations in criminal justice, first responders and the mental health system. Stolz said the Sheriff’s Office, District Attorney and District Court are having workforce challenges and operational challenges with backlogs that the pandemic has made worse.    Source: Country 101.3 KFDI