Dry and windy conditions Monday contribute to a higher fire danger in the region. (National Weather Service graphic)Wyandotte County was not under a red flag warning as of Monday morning, but it was close to some areas that were at high risk for fire danger. (National Weather Service graphic)Wyandotte County has a marginal risk of severe thunderstorms on Wednesday night to Thursday. (National Weather Service graphic)There is a marginal risk of flash flooding on Wednesday night and Thursday. (National Weather Service graphic)Heavy rain is possible Wednesday night and Thursday. (National Weather Service graphic)
Today’s high will be near 72, with very high fire weather danger, according to the National Weather Service.
Burning should be avoided today, the weather service said. While Wyandotte County was not listed as under a red flag warning at 9 a.m. Monday, it was near some of the areas under that warning.
The Kansas Forest Service warned Kansas residents today that gusty winds and dry air, along with dry grasses and fuels, could result in a high potential for wildfires across the state.
Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday morning issued a State of Disaster Emergency in several counties because of the high risk of wildland fires, and the red flag warnings. The Kansas Highway Patrol reported on social media that it assisted in several fires, including with air support, on Sunday in the Shawnee County area.
The next chance for thunderstorms will be Wednesday evening into Thursday, according to the weather service. A few strong storms are possible but widespread severe weather is not anticipated.
In some places, heavy rains could lead to flooding, the weather service said. Wyandotte County could receive marginal flash flooding, according to the weather service. Between 1 and 2 inches of rain are in the forecast for Wednesday night.
Today, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 72 and a south southwest wind of 14 to 17 mph, gusting as high as 26 mph, the weather service said.
Tonight, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 51 and a south wind of 11 to 15 mph, gusting as high as 20 mph, according to the weather service.
Tuesday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 72, the weather service said. A south wind of 14 to 21 mph will gust as high as 33 mph.
Tuesday night, the low will be around 59 with a south wind of 18 mph, gusting as high as 28 mph, according to the weather service.
Wednesday, there is a 20 percent chance of showers, with a high near 73, the weather service said. A south southwest wind of 17 to 22 mph may gust as high as 40 mph.
Wednesday night, there is an 80 percent chance of showers and a thunderstorm, according to the weather service. The low will be around 50. Between 1 and 2 inches of rain are possible.
Thursday, there is a 60 percent chance of showers, mainly before noon, with a high near 62, the weather service said.
Thursday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 41, according to the weather service.
Friday, there is a 50 percent chance of showers, with a high near 52, the weather service said.
Friday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers before midnight, then a chance of rain after midnight, according to the weather service. The low will be around 39.
Saturday, there is a 30 percent chance of rain, with a high near 51, the weather service said.
Saturday night, there is a 40 percent chance of rain, with a low of 36, according to the weather service.
Sunday, there is a 40 percent chance of rain, with a high near 50, the weather service said.
The state of Kansas expects to receive over 120,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses this week, according to the state’s vaccine report.
Kansas was projected to receive 32,760 Pfizer prime doses, 32,760 Pfizer second doses, 27,800 Moderna prime doses and 27,800 Moderna second doses this week, according to the vaccine report.
Last week, Kansas received 23,400 Janssen doses, (the vaccine made by Johnson and Johnson), in addition to Pfizer and Moderna doses, and the doses were shipped to local health departments, the report stated.
No additional Janssen vaccines will be received this week, according to the report. They will next be available the week of March 21, the report stated.
About 15.1 percent of the state’s population have received one dose of COVID-19 vaccine through March 5, according to the state’s vaccination webpage. There were 439,127 persons who received one dose, and 219,306 persons who received a second dose.
According to the state’s website, the state distributed 837,340 doses and the federal pharmacy program distributed 178,600 doses since the beginning of vaccine distribution, for a total of 1,015,940.
The Kansas weekly vaccine report stated that since Feb. 8, Kansas pharmacies have received about 36,900 doses directly from the federal government in the federal retail pharmacy program. Twelve pharmacy chains with more than 400 locations are participating. Those locations currently are vaccinating people 65 and older, as well as teachers.
Also receiving vaccine doses directly from the federal government are federally qualified health center, the vaccine report stated. About 250 of these centers in the nation receive vaccines for underserved populations. Currently, two health centers in Kansas are receiving allocations, the vaccine report stated. The program is directed to follow county prioritization protocols within Phase 2.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 12 COVID-19 case on Friday, March 5, for a cumulative 17,736 cases. There was a cumulative total of 273 deaths reported, no change since Thursday. Case number updates now are issued from Monday through Friday, not on Saturday or Sunday.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 160,964 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Sunday. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 82. Cumulative deaths in the nine-county area were 2,230.
The state of Kansas reported 295,861 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Friday, March 5, an increase of 752 cases since Wednesday. There were a total cumulative 4,812 deaths, a decrease of four since Wednesday, KDHE figures. The KDHE stated that the decrease in deaths was attributed to a review of death certificates. Some deaths originally reported as COVID-19 were determined during the review as not having had COVID-19 as the main cause or contributing cause of death, according to the KDHE. Case number updates are issued on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Saturday night reported 28,998,834 cases in the United States, with 525,031 total deaths nationwide.
COVID-19 tests scheduled Monday
Free COVID-19 tests are available from 8 a.m. to noon Monday, March 8, at Oak Ridge Baptist Church, 9301 Parallel Parkway, Kansas City, Kansas.
Appointments are not needed for the test at Oak Ridge Church, and anyone can be tested, regardless of symptoms or exposure to COVID-19. For more information, or to see if there is any change to the schedule, visit https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.
The Pierson Community Center COVID-19 testing site at 831 S. 55th is open at 9 a.m. Monday, March 8. Tests are through WellHealth. Appointments are required, check with the website, www.gogettested.com/Kansas, for available appointment times.
Another COVID-19 testing site will be at Lowe’s, 6920 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas, starting at 8 a.m. Monday, March 8. Tests are through WellHealth. Appointments are required, check with the website, www.gogettested.com/Kansas, for available appointment times.
Unified Government COVID-19 testing and vaccine sites are scheduled to be open on Monday, March 8. The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will be open Monday, March 8, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Appointments are not needed for COVID-19 tests there on Monday. There is also another UG Health Department location for COVID-19 testing at the former Best Buy store, 10500 Parallel Parkway. More information is at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19. To see if there is any change to the schedule, visit https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.
The Health Department is offering saliva COVID-19 tests to the public. Tests from the Health Department are free for those who live or work in Wyandotte County.
The tests are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19. Check with the UG Health Department’s Facebook page to see if there have been any changes in the schedule. Bring something that shows that you live or work in Wyandotte County, such as a utility bill.
Walk-in vaccines available for those 85 and older
The UG Health Department is offering COVID-19 vaccines Monday through Friday for Wyandotte County residents who are over 65.
Those Wyandotte County residents who are 85 or older can walk in and do not need an appointment Monday through Friday at the vaccination sites at 7836 State Ave. and 10500 Parallel Parkway. The sites are open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Those who are 65 and older, as well as critical workers, still need appointments for vaccines.
All those 65 and older should bring an ID or other proof of age, such as a driver’s license, government ID or birth certificate, as well as something showing their Wyandotte County address, such as an ID or a piece of mail.
For more vaccine information, and to fill out a form expressing interest in getting a vaccine, visit WycoVaccines.org or call 3-1-1.
Cards and letters of encouragement for caregivers at KU Health System may be sent to Share Joy, care of Patient Relations, 4000 Cambridge St., Mailstop 1021, Kansas City, Kansas, 66160. Emails can be sent to [email protected].
Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask and social distancing order.
The former Wyandotte County Courthouse annex at 94th and State Avenue was being demolished to make way for new development, as shown in this photo from Feb. 21.
by Mary Rupert
As plans move forward for a new apartment complex on part of the former Schlitterbahn property on the northwest corner of 94th and State, a part of Wyandotte County history is disappearing.
The old Wyandotte County courthouse annex building at 94th and State was being demolished this past month.
While the old county annex building no longer will remain at the site, a graveyard to the north of it will not be affected by the demolition, according to Dave Reno, a spokesman for the Unified Government.
When the old county annex property transferred from the county to the Schlitterbahn water park, the old courthouse annex building was used by the water park for offices and storage. In recent years, the building showed a lot of signs of age, including broken windows.
A 2009 photo showed Schlitterbahn using the property in front of the old county annex building to store items they might use in their water park. The building also was used for offices and storage. (File photo)
Before its Schlitterbahn years, the building housed local county government offices such as the election office, motor vehicle tags and Extension office.
A photo of the former Wyandotte County Courthouse Annex building, 94th and State, from 2005. (Photo courtesy of Wyandotte County Museum)
County home for aged and indigent
A photo from the Wyandotte County Museum archives showed buildings on the county farm home property near 94th and State. (Photo courtesy of Wyandotte County Museum)A photo from the Wyandotte County Museum archives showed buildings on the county farm home property near 94th and State. (Photo courtesy of Wyandotte County Museum)A photo from the Wyandotte County Museum archives showed buildings on the county farm home property near 94th and State. (Photo courtesy of Wyandotte County Museum)
Years earlier, there was a county home for the aged and indigent on the property, which was sometimes called the “poor farm” by local residents.
Jeff Jennings of the Wyandotte County Museum said there were two buildings on the property, one which is the former county annex and the other that was called the poor house. The second building has been gone for a long time, he said.
A newspaper story from the Kansas City Kansan in September 1930 detailed the progress of construction on a new home to house about 200 persons at the county farm at 94th and State. (Clipping courtesy of the Wyandotte County Museum)
A newspaper clipping from the Kansas City Kansan, dated Sept. 29, 1930, stated that the construction of a new $200,000 home at the county farm was progressing. It was described as a two-story building of brick and stone that would house 200 residents.
The home was built on a plan that placed a courtyard in the center, allowing sunshine and fresh air for residents, according to the news story.
Another old news clipping, from February 1930, said there was a proposal for oil and gas drilling at the poor farm, with oil struck there in 1930.
A third news clipping reported there was a fire at the county home in December 1930, with 146 residents fleeing the building. The story said there already were plans to replace the building with a brick and stone structure.
Cemetery located near county home has hundreds of unmarked graves
A sign and gate marked the entrance to the Wyandotte County Cemetery on 94th Street, north of State Avenue. The cemetery is to the north of the former courthouse annex.
To the north of the home for the aged and indigent was a cemetery, according to Jennings. It was sometimes called a pauper’s cemetery, and it is listed under the name Wyandotte County Cemetery in some of the records.
Besides an entrance sign identifying it as a cemetery, there are only about two marked graves, Jennings said. The cemetery contains over 500 unmarked graves, perhaps as many as 600 or 700, he said.
Jennings said he had a list of the names of the persons who were buried in the cemetery, which is located to the north of the old annex building, on the east side of the property. However, he added he didn’t know exactly where in the cemetery those persons were buried.
Jennings said the cemetery should stay in place during the construction process for the new apartment buildings.
The cemetery was the subject of a story in February 2007 in the Wyandotte West, as preparations were being made to turn the property over to Schlitterbahn.
There was an extensive investigation into the cemetery and graves in 2006, with an agreement made then that graves would not be touched. There was discussion about creating a park-like setting for the cemetery.
Investigators used metal detectors to find the perimeter of the burial grounds and noninvasive measures were used to discover the unmarked gravesites. The UG commissioned the study, with Chris Schoen of Louis Berger Group, Marion, Iowa, as the main investigator and Geoffrey Jones, geophysicist, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, as the geophysical surveyor.
A report issued by Jones in December 2006 noted that the cemetery was established in 1870 and was used until 1973. The number of total burials there was unknown, but 541 burials were recorded during the last quarter century of the cemetery’s use, the report stated.
A magnetic survey and an electrical resistance survey were completed. After testing and investigation, the researchers concluded the cemetery was limited to the interior of the road loop and to the flat hilltop between the road loop and 94th Street. Another area containing burials was on higher ground between the eastern road of the cemetery and 94th Street, according to the report.
The 94th and State area will be developed into apartments, according to a UG Committee meeting on March 1. Nine apartment buildings and a clubhouse are planned. (From UG Committee meeting)The new apartment buildings planned for 94th and State are planned to look like this drawing, which was presented at the March 1 UG Committee meeting. (From UG Committee meeting)
A multifamily apartment project planned for the site of the former county annex building at 94th and State received preliminary approval for industrial revenue bonds at the March 1 UG Economic Development and Finance Committee meeting.
IRBs not to exceed $45 million were approved for the Milhaus Properties project.
As part of the Homefield project for the former Schlitterbahn property, the project was already approved in concept earlier, according to Katherine Carttar, UG director of economic development.
The 18-acre apartment site will have 274 units, and will include a clubhouse pool, enclosed garages and surface parking, John McGurk, vice president of development for Milhaus Properties, said at the UG meeting. It will have a fitness center, lounge, coffee bar, pet park, pool with a sun deck, and fire pits. There will be nine buildings and a clubhouse, and the apartment buildings will have three stories and a basement.
According to McGurk, the project will have a trail system through the entire Homefield development.
The project is to start construction this summer, with the first units completed within 12 months, McGurk said. The project should be completed in spring 2023, according to developers.
The northeast portion of the property will remain a forested area, according to the developer.
The UG Committee meeting is online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jt6BdMl46yM.
