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Street congestion is not something that is discussed much in Crawford County, but the issue was a topic of conversation at Monday’s Arma City Council meeting. At that meeting, councilmembers shared their concerns about parking on a particular block in the city that is causing potential issues. Read more: -Morning Sun

The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office is investigating vandalism to a water tower near Olsburg. Deputies were called out Wednesday morning to the area of Swede Road and Shannon Creek Road where it was discovered a tower serving Rural Water District No. 2 had sustained numerous bullet impacts. Sheriff Doug Adams says it does not appear the damage was recent, but also appears to be intentional. He estimated the damage likely occurred sometime between mid-August and late November. Read more: News Radio KMAN

The Barton County Commission came short of approving an outright ban on commercial wind turbines in Barton County, but resolutions approved Tuesday make them virtually impossible. Meanwhile, large and small non-commercial wind projects will still be allowed. Read more: Great Bend Tribune

The Harvey County Emergency Management (EM) department celebrated its 30th anniversary last Wednesday with a small gathering at the courthouse. In attendance were Carol Buller, widow of the first EM director, Lon Buller, former director Gary Denny, and current director Mike Anderson. Read more: Harvey County Now

The same day that the Prairie Village City Council moved forward with financing for its $30 million municipal complex project, a city resident appealed a federal court’s Nov. 3 decision to dismiss his lawsuit trying to stop the project. On Monday, the city council voted 11-0 to approve three items that pushed the public financing for its $30 million municipal complex project forward, including issuing bonds. That same day, Fritz Edmunds, the attorney representing Prairie Village resident Marc Vianello, filed a notice of appeal in federal court regarding that court’s decision last month to dismiss the lawsuit for lack of standing. [...]

Large trucks are now prohibited from driving in an unincorporated neighborhood just outside Spring Hill in southern Johnson County. The Board of County Commissioners deemed the roads in the Spring Hill Station subdivision, just east of Kansas Highway 7 along 199th Street, too narrow and unsafe for large trucks, including semi-trucks. Commissioners approved the measure 6-0 on Nov. 6. Commissioner Shirley Allenbrand was absent. Read more: Johnson County Post

The city of Prairie Village is considering banning all monkey species — with one potential exception. After two discussions in the last month about an outright monkey ban, the Prairie Village City Council on Dec. 1 signaled interest in making an exception for one spider monkey, Oakley, who currently lives in the city with her owner, Toni Skelton. Skelton told the Shawnee Mission East Harbinger earlier this year that she first obtained Oakley in September 2024. City staff confirmed to the Post that Skelton got Oakley licensed through the city in April 2025. The proposed monkey ban is coming back before [...]

An Overland Park animal control officer sprung into action Wednesday after a caller reported an unusual situation in their backyard. When officers arrived, they found a red-tailed hawk with unknown injuries. According to a police spokesman, Officer Jillian Sundberg was able to safely contain the hawk and transport it to Operation Wildlife for further care. Operation Wildlife, located in Linwood, Kansas, provides rehabilitation and veterinary services to injured and orphaned wild animals in the Kansas City metro and surrounding area. Overland Park police was notified Thursday that, after receiving some treatment, the hawk died from complications of avian influenza. Read more: [...]

A year after residents filed a petition to halt construction of the Hope Ridge Wind Farm, a Fifth District judge has upheld the Dickinson County Commission’s 2–1 decision allowing the project to move forward. Ten plaintiffs sued the County Commission in December, claiming the Conditional Use Permit approved for the wind farm was “unreasonable and unlawful.” Their suit alleged the application did not meet zoning requirements, lacked agreements from all affected landowners, and that the County mishandled an Oct. 31 protest petition by miscalculating the percentage of property needed to validate it. In his ruling, Judge Lee Fowler found no errors [...]

The musicians scattered around the former elementary school gymnasium didn’t look like an ordinary orchestra, nor did they sound like one. A woman in plaid and high-top Converse sneakers played her banjo with a brush while the warm sounds of cellos and violins intermingled with the sharper tones of an accordion and melodica to create a polyphonic drone. Joining forces, a small chorus sang a traditional folk tune, the words changed to reference Kansas and the tallgrass prairie. The performance, which took place on a recent Saturday in the small town of Matfield Green, was led by Clay Gonzalez, a young, [...]