News

ELLY GRIMM

• Leader & Times

Last summer saw people from Liberal and from out of town visit the Liberal community to try some delicious food and see some artisan vendors with the Food Truck Saturdays that took place.

Food Truck Saturdays ended up being so successful, it will be returning for this summer, and coordinator Amanda Devellen said she is very excited.

ELLY GRIMM

 • Leader & Times

Updating the digital infrastructure has been a goal of the Kelly Administration and recently, more action was taken to help with just that.

Tuesday, Gov. Laura Kelly announced Kansas will be receiving $8.2 million to begin implementing the Kansas Digital Equity (DE) Plan, which recently received federal approval. This announcement solidifies the state’s commitment to transform the landscape of high-speed internet connectivity and digital opportunity across Kansas.

“Providing Kansans with the digital resources they need will strengthen our state,” Gov. Kelly noted in the State of Kansas release. “The approval of the Kansas Digital Equity Plan marks a significant milestone in our commitment to closing technology gaps and knocking down barriers to affordable, accessible high-speed internet in every corner of the state. Initially introduced last October, the DE Plan received public comment and underwent thorough reviews with federal funding partners at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications Information and Administration (NTIA) office. With this approval and funding from the NTIA’s Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, the Kansas Office of Broadband Development (KOBD) will begin implementing strategies outlined in the plan to enhance digital opportunity statewide.”

ROBERT PIERCE

 • Leader & Times

In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control reported drug overdoses have claimed more than 932,000 lives in the past 21 years, and the drug overdose crisis continues to worsen.

In 2020, the rate of deaths accelerated and increased 31 percent from 2019. Synthetic opioids, such as illicitly manufactured fentanyl, continue to contribute to the majority of opioid-induced overdose deaths.

Liberal Police Chief Chet Pinkston said while fentanyl’s intended use is for medicinal purposes, it is now produced illicitly by drug cartels and brought into the U.S. through smuggling rounds.

“It’s mixed typically with other drugs,” he said.

Kansas Department of Transportation

After two years of gathering information from the public and reviewing design options, the Kansas Department of Transportation will move forward with the following intersection and corridor improvements on the U.S. Highway 54 expansion project from Hwy. 54/U.S. Highway 83 intersection to Tucker Road: