September 30, 2024 | By Meg Britton-Mehlisch/The Beacon
One big rainstorm won’t fix Wichita’s water shortage. Dark storm clouds that hovered over Wichita one mid-September softened the ring of cracked dirt that’s inched wider around Cheney Lake each week, but it didn’t erase the underlying problem. Kansas is in a drought. For much of the last year, Cheney Lake, Wichita’s primary water source, […]
| By Chance Swaim/The Wichita Eagle
The two candidates for Sedgwick County Commission District 3 have different visions for how county government should raise and spend money in the face of increasing property taxes and a housing shortage in the Wichita area. Celeste Racette, a fiscally conservative Democrat with a background in accounting, said she wants to offer property tax relief […]
| By Chance Swaim/The Wichita Eagle
Sedgwick County Commission District 2 candidates Sarah Lopez, the Democratic incumbent, and Jeff Blubaugh, the Republican challenger, disagree about how the county should address affordable housing in Sedgwick County. But they both said they think county property taxes play a key role. Lopez said she plans to offer property tax relief by consolidating services offered […]
September 26, 2024 | By The Active Age
Three new members have joined the board of directors of The Active Age newspaper. Steve Criser is one of the founders and owners of CGP Group, LLC, a tax and accounting firm. A Wichita native, he graduated from East High and Wichita State University. Criser jokes that a job he held during college — drawing […]
| By The Active Age
Here are some facts you might not know about Lincoln Heights Village, which became Wichita’s first shopping center when it opened in 1949. It was named for Abraham Lincoln, whom realtor and developer Walter Morris greatly admired. Morris bought the property at Douglas and Oliver in 1926 from a wealthy St. Louis financier, Harry F. […]
September 25, 2024 | By Matthew Kelly/The Wichita Eagle
For the first time in over 100 years, Park Elementary School did not welcome students and teachers back for another school year. Instead, the recently shuttered elementary in the heart of Midtown is set to reopen around Thanksgiving as an emergency winter shelter. The Wichita City Council last month finalized its $1 purchase of Park […]
September 24, 2024 | By The Active Age
Sedgwick County is doubling the size of its Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 801 Stillwell and adding parking to the east side. According to a news release, the $1.9 million project is needed to handle growth in customer usage and to facilitate tours and school field trips in the future. Meantime, the facility’s Swap & […]
September 20, 2024 | By The Active Age
As Wichita’s drought continues, the city said this week that it will step up enforcement of water use restrictions — including the levying of fines when warranted — and may discuss prohibiting all outdoor watering in the future. “All water customers are urged to continue to find ways to cut back on water usage,” a […]
September 17, 2024 | By Suzanne Perez/KMUW
The Wichita school district will ask voters in February to approve a $450 million bond issue to finance school construction and other improvements — a plan leaders say will reduce the district’s overall footprint and make it more efficient. School board members voted 6-1 on Monday to hold a special election Feb. 25. It will […]
September 16, 2024 | By The Active Age
The state of Kansas will begin this fall to provide $1,000 to unpaid caregiers caring for someone with Alzheimer’s or another dementia, it was announced today (Monday, Sept. 16). The Kansas Respite for Alzheimer’s & Dementia Program (K-RAD) will be overseen by Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) but managed and administered by […]
September 9, 2024 | By Laura McMillan/KSN
The Wichita City Council has been looking for ways to prevent problems at short-term rental sites like Airbnb and Vrbo. Should the property owner or just the renter be fined and possibly arrested? On Tuesday, council members approved an ordinance allowing law enforcement officers to shut down nuisance parties at short-term rental properties. The ordinance states […]
September 5, 2024 | By The Active Age
Leaders of Wichita’s Orpheum Theatre on Wednesday announced its Second Century Campaign and plans to fully restore the interior of the historic venue. “We are proud to announce that the Second Century Campaign launched during our 100th anniversary (in 2022) is at 73 percent of its $9.5 million goal,” said Glen Nilsen, chairman of the […]
September 4, 2024 | By The Active Age
A man who pleaded guilty to a felony charge of mistreating a 90-year-old resident of a Bel Aire nursing home was sentenced Wednesday to a year of probation and ordered not to be employed in any capacity where he would be providing medical care to patients. According to a news release from the District Attorney’s […]
August 30, 2024 | By Sherry Graham Howerton
Don Suderman discovered his passion for roses more than four decades ago. “I grew some roses starting in the 1980s. Then I went to a garden tour in Wichita and got invited to a Wichita Rose Society meeting, which increased my knowledge on how to grow them,” said Suderman, who is now president of that […]
| By Joe Stumpe
BTK wasn’t Wichita’s only serial killer to escape detection for decades. On April 11, 1992, 23-year-old Patricia Smith and 32-year-old Patricia Magers were shot to death while working late at Magers’ bridal shop, La Bride d’ Elegance, on east Kellogg. Less than a month later, police announced that their killer had murdered four other people […]
| By The Active Age
Senior Carnival fun night Senior Services, Inc. is holding a Senior Carnival for people 55 and older from 6-8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13 at Linwood Senior Center, 1901 S. Kansas St. The $5 admission includes a hot dog dinner, games, goodie bag and more. RSVP to (316) 263-3703 by Sept. 11. Senior Services operates the […]
| By Joe Stumpe
I always assumed flour tortillas were an offshoot of corn tortillas, which have been made in Mexico and Central America since prehistoric times. Not so, says Gene Chavez, a Kansas City-based scholar specializing in Mexican-American history. Chavez believes the flour tortilla’s precursor originated in North Africa and was similar to what we know as pita […]
| By The Active Age
There’s been a debate of late in Wichita over the importance of art, particularly as it relates to public funding, but artist Kay Ferris can make her argument for it in two words: It’s everything. “Being creative . . . and playing with my ideas . . . is what has given me life and a […]
| By Diana Breit Wolfe
My dad said there was no electricity on the family farm in the 1930s because they “didn’t need it.” Their water was pumped from the windmill. Their stove burned wood. They did have a phone on the wall for a while (electricity provided by the telephone company), but only got calls when somebody […]
| By Ted Blankenship
Recently, I read a newspaper article about the Rorschach test. That’s where a psychologist asks his or her patient to look a series of ink blobs on white sheets of paper and express what they mean to the patient. The patient may say something like, “It looks like you spilled some ink on your prescription […]
| By Nancy Wheeler
How many legendary male actors can you identify from the clues below? (Female legends from the big screen will appear in a separate quiz.) 1. Whose on-screen relationship with Ingrid Bergman has been described as the “greatest love story in American cinema”? 2. Whose good looks and debonair style led to his frequent casting by […]
| By Joe Stumpe
TOPEKA — The growth in the older population is a public health success story that’s created its own challenge: how to help that burgeoning group live as healthy, fulfilled and independent lives as possible. Kansas is now part of one response: a push to create what’s being called Age-Friendly Kansas. An advisory committee held its […]
| By Diana Morton
Forum Theatre, at the Wilke Center, 1st United Methodist Church, 330 N. Broadway. The Who’s TOMMY. Stage version of The Who’s exhilarating 1969 rock opera, including the anthems “I’m Free,” “See Me, “Feel Me,” “Sensation” and “Pinball Wizard.” Sept 19-21 8pm; Sept 22 at 2pm; Sept 26-28 8pm; Sept 29 2pm; Oct 3-5 8pm; Oct […]
| By Jim Miller
Dear Savvy Senior, I recently received an email that I needed to update my online Social Security account. Is this legit or is it a scam? Suspicious Susan Dear Susan, The Social Security Administration did indeed send out a legitimate email last month to notify recipients that they are making changes to the way you […]
August 28, 2024 | By The Active Age
The 2024-2025 Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines have received federal and state approval and will be available in mid-September. According to a news release from Sedgwick County, the 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccines are no longer approved for use. A vaccine locator lookup tool will be added to www.vaccines.govwhen the 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccines become widely available. The updated […]