Mulvane

“We are in a hot dry period,” said Kent Hixson, Mulvane City Manager.  “We are a growing community.” That combination has led to friction between the cities of Mulvane and Augusta over water use.  Back in the 90's the two cities signed a contract saying Augusta would sell Mulvane up to 200 million gallons of water a year.  Neither expected what's happened since. Now people in Augusta are frustrated that Mulvane's using more water while Augusta has to conserve. “Believe me, there's nobody out there that's more frustrated than I am,” said Bill Keefer, Augusta City Manager.

There's a proverb that says "Who takes the child by the hand, takes the mother by the heart. "  With the story of Melissa Busby and her youngest daughter it's truer than you know. In the summer of 2009, Melissa was doing her annual missionary work in Uganda, helping build libraries and boost literacy in the African country.  This pastor's wife didn't know it at the time, but God was about to give her an entirely new mission. "Each year that she would leave for Uganda my joke would be bring back coffee and a baby," said her husband, Cody.

Long before money goes into a slot machine, details you probably wouldn't even think about are being handled in Sumner County. "This is one of the largest private investment projects in the state's history," said Mulvane City Administrator Kent Hixson.   The Kansas Star Casino will be built on farm land, which until now needed little attention from Mulvane fire and EMS. "We have to figure out what kind of load this casino will put on the city," he said.  Public safety is one of the many issues consultants will study to help the city figure out whether to hire more police officers or build another EMS station.

By Kim Hynes (SUMNER COUNTY, Kan.) The casino annexation issue between the City of Mulvane and Sumner County is back in court. Wednesday the Kansas Court of Appeals heard the matter.  Both sides presented their case and the court took the matter under advisement. You may remember during the first casino process in 2008, Sumner County voted against endorsing casino projects at the Mulvane exit of the turnpike. In order for the Harrah's project to be considered by the state, Mulvane pieced together strips of property to connect the casino site with city limits.

by Kim Hynes (SUMNER COUNTY, Kan.) Two informational meetings are planned later this month about the Sumner County casino. The managers of the Chisholm Creek Casino, Lakes Entertainment will hold the meetings in both Wellington and Mulvane. They will be November 23rd at the Memorial Auditorium in Wellington and November 24th at the Mulvane Recreation Center. Both meetings will begin at 7PM. During the meetings, developers will give updated details on the proposed casino at the Mulvane exit of the turnpike.

Mulvane's Police Cheif confirms that Ryan Newell told officers he was an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tabacco, Firearms and Explosives. Newell was arrested last week after officer saw him following members of the Westboro Baptist Church, in town to do a protest at Mulvane High School. Newell is a veteran who lost both of his legs in 2008 while serving in Afghanistan. He faces six charges, including conspiracy to commit aggravated battery, stalking and multiple weapons violation.

Sumner County casino developers will pitch their projects to the Kansas Lottery next month. The Lottery Commission will meet in Topeka on September 8. The developers will give the details of their projects in an effort finalize contracts with the state. A contract is needed in order for the Lottery Review Board to consider the project. The review board reviews each project and eventually decide which casino will be built. There are three proposals for Sumner County. Global Gaming wants to build a casino at the Wellington exit of the turnpike.

Wichita police are investigating the city's latest bank robbery. A Sedgwick County dispatch supervisor tells us the alarm came in from the Mulvane State Bank near Douglas and Oliver came in just after one o'clock Tuesday afternoon. We have a crew headed to the scene.  Expect more updates both on air and online as they come in.

Officers from several agencies will start a 24-hour enforcement project on Rock Road Wednesday. Mulvane, Derby, Wichita, Bel Aire, Sedgwick County and state troopers will work in their own jurisdictions to target aggressive drivers, unsafe lane changes, speeding, seat belts and DUIs. Wichita police say Rock road has a lot of high-accident locations in all of the jurisdictions.

The Wichita Police Department says there were 183 violations during a 24-hour traffic operation along Rock Road. The third "Operation Impact" ran from 7:00 a.m. Wednesday to 7:00 a.m. Thursday along Rock Road from Bel Aire to Mulvane. Police say there were no accidents reported on Rock Road in the city of Wichita during the enforcement. Here is a breakdown of the violations: Safety Belt Citations: 4 Speeding Citations: 88 Felony arrests/warrants: 6 Stop Light/Sign Violations: 39 Passing Violations: 2 Drivers License Violations: 12 Registration Violations: 7 Window Tint: 2 Other Traffic Violations: 11 Defective Equipment Violations: 5 No Proof of Insurance: 7 Wichita Police, Sedgwick County Sheriff's Deputies, Bel Aire Police, Derby Police and Mulvane Police all participated in the operation.