Staff at Wichitia’s City Hall weren’t happy with their virtual footprint. In 2022, they described the city’s website, www.Wichita.gov, as “suboptimal,” “outdated” and “confusing.” So the city spent $312,000 on a website refresh intended to flip that description and create a welcoming and easy-to-use virtual gateway to local government. The city’s communications staff say the […]
Meg Britton-Mehlisch
Meg Britton-Mehlisch is The Beacon’s former local government reporter in Wichita. A commitment to local journalism has taken Meg all over the United States. She worked as a local news reporter in the exurbs of the Twin Cities in Minnesota, received a masters degree in investigative journalism from Columbia Journalism School and covered Pittsfield, Massachusetts for The Berkshire Eagle. Meg is a midwesterner through and through and grew up in the Kansas City metro.
Posted inWichita
Who’s running for District 3 in the Sedgwick County election? Meet Celeste Racette and Stephanie Wise
Commissioner David Dennis’ decision not to seek reelection to the Sedgwick County Commission has created an opportunity in District 3. Candidates Celeste Racette, the driving force behind the Save Century II movement, and Stephanie Wise, a commercial real estate broker, have stepped up to seize that opportunity. Voters in rural western Sedgwick County, Goddard and […]
Posted inWichita
Jeff Blubaugh challenges Sarah Lopez for District 2 Sedgwick County Commission seat
Sarah Lopez faces her first challenger as District 2 Sedgwick County commissioner. Her opponent, Jeff Blubaugh, returns to the political arena just months after his term on the Wichita City Council ended. Residents in southwestern Wichita, Haysville and Clearwater will cast their vote for either Lopez, a Democrat, or Blubaugh, a Republican. Advance voting will […]
Posted inWichita
Cheney Lake is drying up. Wichita says the drought plan is working
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, […]
Posted inLocal Government
As Wichita pauses its divisive parking plan, other cities may be models
Wichita’s downtown parking is a math problem city leaders are struggling to solve. Wichita has over 6,000 parking spots, divided between metered and free spaces, on streets and in parking garages. Each one brings in about $227 a year but costs about $400 in labor and maintenance. Complicating the equation is some $9 million of […]