News

EARL WATT

   • Leader & Times

Despite claims that Seward County has eliminated 18 positions to meet the requested mill levy rate, payroll report comparisons from 2024 to 2025 show that the total payroll expenses have increased by $261,406.93 through August of each year.

From Jan. 1, 2024 to Aug. 31, 2024, Seward County spent a total of $7,932,115.40 on payroll according to records forced to be released by a Kansas Open Records Act demand.

EARL WATT

   • Leader & Times

The skies will be filled with aerobatics and displays of muscle Saturday when the AirFair returns for the first time since 2018.

There are some familiar perks, like free admission to the show and to the Mid-America Air Museum.

But there are also some new enhancements. For one, the City of Liberal will be providing shuttle service form 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each hour for guests who would like to leave their car at the AirFair but visit the Liberal Tourist Center,  Coronado Museum, Dorothy’s House and the Land of Oz and the Baker Arts Center. Each hour, a shuttle bus will drive a loop to those locations, and visitors can check out Liberal’s other attractions and then return to the tarmac for the AirFair when the next shuttle returns each hour.

ELLY GRIMM

   • Leader & Times

The Liberal High School Class of 1985 gathered last weekend not just to catch up with one another, but also to honor a recently lost classmate and start a new scholarship fund.

“In the first part of May was when we were planning our class reunion, and around that time was when we lost one of our classmates, Hector Rios, who died in a kayaking accident,” Class of 1985 member Tony Naab said. “He was a distance runner all his life, and they started the 1984-85 cross country team back to LHS because of him. He was not only a great athlete but also a great person. We decided, with him gone, to do a run dedicated to him and would use the money to go to the cross country team. It was great seeing everyone out at our reunion Saturday, it's been a long time since we've all been together. I know Hector was looking down on us and smiling at us all being together like that, I know he would have been here if he could.”

ELLY GRIMM

   • Leader & Times

Communities everywhere are looking for ways to revitalize their downtown areas, and soon, they could get some funding to help with that.

Tuesday, Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland announced $1.5 million is available for a sixth round of Historic Economic Asset Lifeline (HEAL) grants to revitalize dilapidated and underutilized downtown buildings in small communities across the state. These grants help close the financial gaps for communities striving to make their downtown districts economically vibrant, according to a release from the State of Kansas, and since the launch of the program in 2021, $7 million has been awarded to fund more than 100 different community projects throughout Kansas. The state investment has leveraged $36.7 million in local matching funds.