After 12 years, the Great Bend Farm Ranch and Hemp Expo is no more. The Bird City-based Star Enterprises that owns the show is moving it to Hutchinson, starting next year. Named the Kansas Ag Expo at Hutchinson, it is set for March 30 through April 1, 2023. According to a link to the show on Star Enterprises’ website, “The Kansas Ag Expo 2023 is dubbed as the largest farm event in the United States dedicated to promoting agricultural technology.” “This is bittersweet,” said Tana Dale, who runs Star Enterprises with her husband Darren. “Great Bend has been good to us [...]

Ellinwood held its 49th annual After Harvest Festival this weekend with a celebration of “Hometown Roots.” Community members who live along the parade route watched from front porches, while others brought chairs downtown for the Saturday morning parade. The Ellinwood Rotary Club has been coordinating the AHF Parade since 1991. ... The festival wrapped up Saturday night with a dance featuring Cody Canada and the Departed at the City Park. Source: Great Bend Tribune

The Barton County Commission at a special meeting last Thursday approved allowing rural county residents to shoot fireworks on Sunday, July 3, in addition to Monday, July 4, as was allowed under the county’s current resolution. “We made a lot of people happy with that,” said District 5 Commissioner Jennifer Schartz, speaking during the commission meeting Wednesday morning. It was a compromise between allowing fireworks for the week leading to the Fourth and no change at all reached after much discussion with a host of fire chiefs from around the county. “We need to use that as a starting point for [...]

As part of the ongoing efforts to improve the 2000 block of Forest Avenue for the Final Fridays on Forest events, the Great Bend City Council Monday night approved a request from Great Bend Alive Inc. to repair and paint the alley between the 2000 block of Forest and the 2000 block of Lakin with a colorful geometric pattern. Source: Great Bend Tribune

Barton County commissioners left a joint meeting with the Ellinwood City Council last Wednesday night impressed with what is happening in the community. The gathering was a topic during the commission’s meeting this Wednesday morning. “There was some wonderful conversations and I love the vision of the City of Ellinwood and what they want to do to grow that community,” said District 4 Jon Prescott. “It also affects the growth, in a positive way, for the entire county. So it’s pretty exciting.” ... District 1 Commissioner Kirby Krier said Ellinwood City Manger Chris Komarek presented three available shovel-ready projects to his [...]

For only the second time since 2019, an audience stood to hear the Great Bend Municipal Band play “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Thursday at the band shell in the courthouse square. The band had no concerts at all in 2020 and one patriotic concert around the 4th of July in 2021. Band Director Grant Mathews said they were glad to be back after missing two summers due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s a beautiful evening for a concert,” he said. The band then performed “American Patrol,” a favorite in the repertoire of marches for over 100 years, Mathews said. Source: Great Bend [...]

The United States Department of Agriculture’s Distance Learning and Telemedicine Grant has allowed Barton County to upgrade antiquated connectivity technology and bring more business to the area, said Information Technology Director Dereck Hollingshead, giving an update on the program to the County Commission Wednesday morning. Source: Great Bend Tribune

Following the recommendation of a mayoral committee, the Great Bend City Council Monday night approved the city’s long-awaited profit-sharing plan for uniformed first responders. A special sales tax approved by voters last November funds the plan that came in response to complaints from emergency personnel about their retirement options. Source: Great Bend Tribune

In what officials have called a challenging budgeting year requiring creativity to balance spending with taxes, Barton County commissioners Monday night brought representatives from the myriad taxing entities in the county together for a brainstorming session as they launch the 2023 budget-planning season. “This is about getting the taxing entities under one roof and see how we can accomplish our goals in a collaborative way,” said County Operations Director Matt Patzner in his opening remarks. “How can we help each other do more?” In all, there are 54 taxing bodies that are entirely within the county or include a sliver of [...]

Members of Great Bend’s Beautification Committee were busy adding flowers to downtown receptacles Thursday afternoon. Committee Chair Linda Dougherty said they would do at least 10 flower pots that day, starting on Forest Avenue’s Great Bend Alive Plaza where the Final Friday event is planned for April 29. They will tend to 20 or more planters in the coming days. Source: Great Bend Tribune