Month: December 2021

High wind warning issued for Wednesday

Contrails over Wyandotte County on Monday. (Photo by Steve Rupert)

The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning from 9 a.m. to midnight on Wednesday, Dec. 15.

Southerly wind gusts of up to 50 mph are possible in Wyandotte County, according to the weather service. A few gusts could be stronger than that, forecasters said.

Some thunderstorms are possible Wednesday evening in the region, the weather service said.

Elevated fire concerns will exist on Wednesday, with strong winds and dry fuels, according to the weather service. Burning is discouraged.

Today’s high will be near 63 with wind gusts as high as 24 mph, the weather service said.

Thursday’s high will drop about 20 degrees, as the cold front moves through, into the 50s, according to the weather service. Another cold front will move through on Saturday, leaving temperatures in the 40s.

Today, it will be mostly cloudy, with a high near 63 and a south wind of 9 to 13 mph, gusting as high as 24 mph, the weather service said.

Tonight, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 58 and a south southwest wind of 10 to 16 mph, gusting as high as 25 mph, according to the weather service.

Wednesday, it will be mostly cloudy, with a high near 72, the weather service said. It will be windy, with a south wind of 18 to 23 mph increasing to 26 to 31 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 50 mph.

Wednesday night, it will be mostly cloudy during the early evening, then gradually clearing, with a low of 37, according to the weather service. It will be windy, with a south southwest wind of 22 to 32 mph becoming west northwest 9 to 14 mph. Winds may gust as high as 55 mph.

Thursday, it will be sunny, with a high near 52, the weather service said. A west northwest wind of 5 to 7 mph will become calm in the afternoon.

Thursday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 34, according to the weather service.

Friday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 55, the weather service said.

Friday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 28, according to the weather service.

Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 41, the weather service said.

Saturday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 24, according to the weather service.

Sunday, it will be sunny, with a high near 46, the weather service said.

Sunday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 29, according to the weather service.

Monday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 47, the weather service said.

New mayor says he’ll audit UG and BPU

Mayor Tyrone A. Garner was sworn into office at a ceremony Monday night at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas. (Screenshot from UGTV)

Mayor Tyrone A. Garner, sworn in Monday night at a ceremony at Memorial Hall, outlined goals of his new administration.

Garner, elected in November, became the first black mayor of the Unified Government and of Kansas City, Kansas. He was sworn in by Judge Robert Martinez.

To applause, Mayor Garner pledged a top-to-bottom audit of the Unified Government and Board of Public Utilities, by an unaffiliated agency.

He said it would be designed to identify ways to streamline government, cut costs, consolidate and transfer cost savings to the people.

He said he was determined to offer a message of unity, opportunity and hope, “rooted in my confidence that we can change the hopes and dreams of today into becoming the reality of tomorrow.”

It would be a reality of a Wyandotte County where no one who is willing to work hard and positively contribute would ever be left behind, he said.

It would be a reality where people of all races, religions, all persuasions and ages hold value over politics, privilege and profit, and people are put first, he said.

A former deputy police chief of Kansas City, Kansas, who spent his career with the Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department, Garner also said he would support men and women in public safety.

“We cannot have a great Wyandotte County without public safety,” he said.

The new mayor also called for a review of the UG charter. The Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, governments were consolidated after a vote in 1997, and the charter has not had an extensive review since then.

He also received applause when he said that children should never have to look at a public swimming pool in Wyandotte County that says they are closed for business.

The audience also applauded his statement that they should collaborate with all entities, and make BPU bills feel like a real utility bill.

He would seek to curtail the burdens of user fees imposed on residents, he said.

Also, Garner focused on areas east of I-635, among them the northeast, downtown, Central Avenue, Armourdale and Rosedale areas, to be given the attention they need. He said he was in favor of equitable development.

He also was applauded when he said the Wyandotte County district attorney should be supported in his efforts to bring fairness to the judicial system and include a public defender’s office.

He also said he would like the UG administration to be more accountable to the UG Commission, the elected body, and he also mentioned working together with Bonner Springs, Edwardsville and other areas of Wyandotte County.

Mayor Garner asked residents to get involved in community organizations and activities, and work together to bring about positive change that so many want to see in Wyandotte County.

Besides Mayor Garner, sworn in at Monday night’s ceremony were Wyandotte County Sheriff Daniel Soptic, and UG Commissioners Chuck Stites, 7th District; Andrew Davis, 8th District; Tom Burroughs, commissioner at large, 2nd District; and Mike Kane, 5th District.

For more of Mayor Garner’s speech, and to see the speeches of other elected officials, the inauguration ceremony is on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZldtsQFy_Sw.