Latest News

Monday, June 27, 2022

“Whether you own or rent a home, you’re invested in and connected to the place you live. While homeownership is a good fit for many, renting also helps people invest in their communities and build wealth for their families and generations to come.” Tom Vilsack, USDA Secretary “June is National Homeownership Month, when we promote the benefits of homeownership and recommit to creating opportunities for future homeowners.” - NAR Benefits of Homeownership For those wanting to own their home, here are some benefits that come with homeownership: Tax deductions non-applicable to renters - varies by state Long-term investment you ultimately control A sense of pride an...

DKEDC Announces new Executive Director Kent Campbell

Thursday, June 23, 2022

Dickinson County Economic Development is pleased to welcome Kent Campbell as our new Executive Director. Campbell has more than 25 yeas of not-for-profit leadership experience. He has proven leadership and exective experience in organizational management, community and economic development, and grassroots community capacity building. Most recently, Campbell ran his own successful consulting business focusing on solutions for non-profits. Campbell received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Communications from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. He is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Organizational Management at Notre Dame University, South Bend, Indiana, and has received several othe...

Pioneering Kansas Disc Golf: Herington native recounts his part in expanding the sport after entering state Hall of Fame

Tuesday, May 24, 2022

ABILENE REFLECTOR CHRONICLE- May 23rd, 2022 There must have been thousands of discs in his store. Almost every aisle in the former grocery store had cardboard box after cardboard box of discs. Red, neon green, orange, pink, white, black and probably every other color under the spectrum were in those boxes. All with a graphic design on top. Dennis Vahsholtz owns Discs Unlimited in Herington. Since the 1980s, Vahsholtz has been a part of the disc golf community by playing in numerous professional tournaments and providing discs to players across the state. On April 28, Vahsholtz was inducted into the Kansas Flyin...

City of Woodbine Receives Grant

Wednesday, May 11, 2022

WOODBINE, KANSAS- At its Monday night meeting, Woodbine City Council members were surprised to receive a $57,500 grant from the Community Foundation of Dickinson County – Tracy W. Gatch Unrestricted Operating Legacy Fund. The grant funds will tuckpoint the walls of the Woodbine Gymnasium, which the community uses for special events. “We are beyond excited to receive this generous gift,” said MarySue Roller, Mayor. “This grant will help us ensure the building is available for many years to come.” According to Elizabeth Weese, Community Foundation of Dickinson County director, Gatch, a former Woodbine resident, left his $2.5 million estate to the Foundation...

Custom Butcher Shop to Benefit Abilene Community

Friday, April 08, 2022

The Farm-to-Table movement typically focuses on the benefits to the consumer. While that certainly is one end goal for the Leith family and Midwest Meats of Abilene, Kansas, it is truly much more. “Our intent is to bring local producers and consumers together with a small, local community-based meat processing plant,” said Bryan Leith. “There has been a need here for a while and, especially right in the middle of cow country, Abilene should have its own custom butcher shop.” Leith and his family plan to open Midwest Meats as a custom butcher shop in downtown Abilene this spring, offering local consumer...

New Holiday Inn Moves Ahead in Abilene

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

The past two years have been the most trying experience many business owners have ever faced, but 2022 offers hope that economic development projects will resume their previous pace. Despite pricing increases occurring in March, count Anjan Ghosh Hajra among those business owners striving for a productive year, as he and his family seek to finish construction of a new Holiday Inn Express & Suites in Abilene, Kansas. “With a massive amount of support from several Abilene organizations and my family, we are extremely thrilled to be moving forward with this project now,” he said. “Everyone involved learned that it reall...

Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad announce major maintenance initiative

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Officials of the Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad have announced a major fundraising campaign to upgrade track between Abilene and Enterprise, the route of the railroad’s excursion trains. According to Ross Boelling, the general manager of the railroad, the project will require two phases, and the organization is working with granting agencies and seeking contributions to fund the project. A&SV needs about $75,000 to complete the ongoing first phase and will need about $1.8 million more to finish phase two. The railroad operates on the former Herington-Salina subdivision of the Rock Island railroad. When that company went bankrupt in 1980, th...

Dickinson County adjusts its fee schedule for 2022

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

During the Dickinson County commissioner regular meeting Jan. 6, the commissioners passed the 2022 county fee schedule. This year’s schedule includes mostly raises with some decreases in the prices of the county’s services. For open records requests from the County Clerk’s Office, the cost per hour for research time for each request rose from $10 to $30. Genealogy requests rose from $10 to $30. Pages still cost $.50 cents. Read full article.

Activities Aplenty in Dickinson County

Monday, January 27, 2020

There’s always something to do in Dickinson County! Awesome natural beauty headlines the list. An abundance of parks, sports complexes, trails and outdoor spaces are perfect for all ages seeking recreation. Combine outdoor enjoyment with natural history at the Dwight Eisenhower Presidential Museum and adjoining parks. The avid golfer will find three beautiful golf courses, including the public Indian Hills Golf Course. Every summer, the Central Kansas Free Fair is the largest such event in the state. The feature attraction is the Wild Bill Hickok PRCA Rodeo, frequently regarded as one of the best outdoor rodeos in the country. Abundant activitie...

City Celebrates Golden Belt Heights East with Groundbreaking Ceremony

Friday, June 24, 2022

By Ed Boice Abilene Reflector-Chronicle An American flag flew high above about 40 city staff, county officials and community members gathered in the Golden Belt Heights, formerly known as the Highlands. Wednesday afternoon, the groundbreaking ceremony of the Heights’ east section of the residential area took place. Leading off the ceremony was Mayor Dee Marshall. Marshall started by thanking the Dickinson County Economic Development Corporation, City Manager Ron Marsh and Heartland Housing Partners President Ross Vogel. Marshall also thanked Marsh for leading the commission in turning the Heights into a Rural Housing Incentive District. “It took all of us. I’ve been a city commissione...

DKEDC Celebrates Economic Development Week!

Friday, May 13, 2022

Dickinson County Economic Development Corporation (DKEDC) marks the week of May 9 to May 13, 2022, as the next Economic Development Week. During this week, communities across North America will celebrate and recognize the contributions made by professional economic developers to create more economically vibrant and livable communities. Created in 2016 by International Economic Development Council (IEDC), the largest international professional trade association for economic developers, Economic Development Week aims to increase awareness for local programs that create jobs, advance career development opportunities, and improve the quality of life in communities everywhere. “Economic developers play essential roles in promoting the economic healt...

Economic Development Week: May 9 - 13, 2022

Tuesday, May 10, 2022

“Economic Development Week (EDW) was created by IEDC in 2016 to increase awareness of local programs that create jobs, advance career development opportunities, and improve the quality of life in communities everywhere.” - IEDC DKEDC is choosing this time to remind all who we are, what we do and how we assist Dickinson County’s current and future residents and businesses. Driving Dickinson County In 2018, we launched the Driving Dickinson County five-year initiative. Four ultimate goals were: Create/retain 250 FTE Primary Jobs Increase Annual Salaries Target to $33,773 Generate $50 million in New Capital Investment Reach 30 businesses per year for Retention or Expansion Visits. We started 202...

Abilene Named Best Historic Small Town Finalist

Monday, May 09, 2022

Submitted by Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau: Abilene is a finalist for USA Today’s 2022Readers’ Choice Best Historic Small Town contest for the fourth year in a row. “Thank you to the tourism attractions, businesses, residents, employees, volunteers, and leaders who help make Abilene the best historic small town,” said Julie Roller Weeks, Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau director. “Receiving this recognition four years in a row is extra special and recognizes our efforts to market Abilene as a destination.” In 2021, Abilene ranked #4 in the final nationwide contest. Abilene ranked #2 and #4, respectively, in the 2020 and 2019 contests. Nominee...

Rep. John Barker files for re-election in Kansas House Dist. 70

Thursday, March 31, 2022

ABILENE REFLECTOR-CHRONICLE: Representative John Barker today filed for re-election to the Kansas House of Representatives serving the 70th District. “I am honored to serve my district in the Kansas House,” said Representative Barker. “During my time in the legislature, I have worked closely with Kansans to champion the issues that matter to them. Abilene and the surrounding areas have much to be proud of, as well as unique concerns, perspectives, and goals that should be well-represented by a strong voice in Topeka. I look forward to continuing to serve my state, and especially my friends and neighbors from across Dickinson an...

Regular Inspections Keep Dickinson County Bridges Safe

Monday, March 28, 2022

By KATHY HAGEMAN Dickinson County Public Information coordinator DICKINSON COUNTY, MARCH 26th, 2022: The Dickinson County Road and Bridge Department uses a strict inspection process to ensure the county’s 300 bridges are safe. “Our bridges are inspected every other year and the ones that are more at risk are inspected every year," said Dickinson County Road and Bridge Supervisor Martin Tannahill. "None of our bridges are in danger of falling in." When Tannahill talks about “our bridges,” he means structures located on township and county roads. “We have nothing to do with interstate or state highway bridges,” Tannahill said. Nationwide, the state of bridges and othe...

Donate Dickinson County Day Raises more than $150,000

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

ABILENE REFLECTOR CHRONICLE: “I am amazed right now,” said Elizabeth Weese, executive director of the Community Foundation of Dickinson County. “Here’s the thing, part of me should never be surprised because people and Dickinson County citizens are just generous, generous people, so I shouldn’t be surprised that (they are), but I am every year. I am just amazed and flabbergasted, quite frankly, of the generosity of people.” Over a 24-hour period, the community foundation spent March 18 promoting a day for people in the county to donate to non-profit organizations. Between 451 donors, the event raised $175,359.06. The foundation dedicated $100,00...

10 Years in the Making: County Receives Tax Allocation from Pipeline

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

ABILENE, KS: Dickinson County received its first tax allocation in January from the TransCanada Keystone Pipeline — 10 years after the company started pumping the oil sand material south through the Dakotas, Nebraska and Kansas to Cushing, Okla. During all that time, Dickinson County and the other five Kansas counties the pipeline runs through have not received a dime thanks to the Kansas Legislature which granted TransCanada a 10-year tax exemption before pumping began. The exemption started in 2010 and ended in 2020, making 2021 the first year the company has paid Kansas taxes. Since taxes are paid in arrears, the mone...

Former Brookville Hotel Building sells to Junction City Couple

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

By Dewey Terrill JC Post Charles ( Chuck ) and Deanna Munson bid $926,000 during a bankruptcy sale in Abilene on Monday to acquire the former Brookville Hotel restaurant property. Pinnacle Bank had put the property up for sale with the Munson's submitting the lone bid. They plan to open a new restaurant called Legacy Kansas, with a subtitle acknowledging both the Brookville Hotel and Munson's Prime. Charles and Deanna owned the Munson Prime steakhouse in Junction City that was destroyed by fire in February of 2021. They now plan to open the new restaurant with what Deanna termed "the best of bot...

Abilene Location Among KDOT Electric Vehicle Charging Station Awards

Monday, February 07, 2022

From KDOT and The Salina Post: The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has awarded $2 million to install electric vehicle (EV) charging stations along the state’s most traveled highways. KDOT received 32 project proposals seeking to use $2 million of the state’s allocation of Volkswagen Mitigation Trust funds dedicated to the installation of Direct Current Fast Charging (DCFC) stations. KDOT had identified 12 priority locations for these funds to improve public access to charging stations along primary corridors, to which applicants made their case for providing EV services. “The quality of proposals made the selection process very competitive, and it was clea...

OCCK’s Abilene to Salina Weekly Route, KanConnect, to End

Monday, February 07, 2022

Salina, Kansas – OCCK Transportation is ending the KanConnect fixed route bus service at the end of the day on February 11, 2022. KanConnect has been operating as a weekly bus route pilot project between Salina and Abilene since June 2020. “The KanConnect route came about as an opportunity during the early days of the pandemic,” said Michelle Griffin, Mobility Manager for North Central Kansas. “We are always looking for ways to better assist residents of the counties we serve. At this time, we need to look at solutions and potentially move forward in other directions.” Residents that need to get to eithe...

New Year, New Beginning

Thursday, January 20, 2022

With the beginning of a new year, comes the end of our first capital campaign program of work and the beginning of our second capital campaign program of work. First, we want to thank all of you who invested in us as we began working on our initiatives and goals in 2018 as well as those who have renewed their investment in us and those who joined us as new investors in this campaign. As our updated dashboard shows, we have provided a lot of assistance to businesses throughout the county since 2018 and we are thrilled that we were abl...

Seismic activity in Kansas: history and statistics of Dickinson County earthquakes

Friday, January 07, 2022

Did you know there is a tectonic feature called the Abilene Anticline? While the anticline is not the cause of earthquakes in Dickinson County, the county sits between two tectonic features that do. Part one of this two-part series will discuss the geographic causes of earthquakes in Dickinson County and county earthquake statistics. The majority of earthquakes in the county occur in the southeastern area of Dickinson County, above Hope and Herington, and the western county line around and below Solomon, according to an interactive map by the Kansas Geological Survey and Shelby Peterie, research geophysicist for the survey. The count...

SPARK executive board earmarks $154 million for Kansas economic development, education

Monday, December 20, 2021

TOPEKA — The SPARK executive board of state officials and business advisers agreed to move ahead Monday with allocation of federal funding for $100 million in commercial building infrastructure projects and $50 million in direct aid to children enduring educational setbacks in the COVID-19 pandemic. The idea proposed by Lt. Gov. David Toland to the seven-member executive board featured development of grants to businesses and communities for expanding building infrastructure capable of attracting or retaining jobs in Kansas. In addition, Toland said the goal would be to provide a $1,000 voucher to low-income, high-need students particularly affected by loss of educationa...

Abilene City Commission & USD 435 School Board Candidates Answer Questions Submitted from The Driving Dickinson County Partnership Members

Friday, October 29, 2021

Abilene City Commission Candidate Q&A All candidates for Abilene City Commission whose name will appear on the ballot for the November 2nd, 2021 elections were provided the following list of questions submitted anonymously by members of The Driving Dickinson Partnership to answer. Their individual responses are listed below. Candidates are: Incumbent Chris Ostermann, Incumbent Trevor D Witt, John Kollhoff, and Wendy Miller. There are 3 seats up for election. Q: What do you see as the biggest issue facing the city in the next few years? John Kollhoff: “balancing supply and demand in the labor and housing markets.” Chris Ostermann: “Originally I would sa...

Dickinson County Housing Assessment

Friday, May 24, 2019

The Dickinson County Housing Assessment is available to view as a PDF. The report reviews local trends in housing since 2010, discusses opportunities and challenges in our communities, recommends a path for future success and showcases case studies of success stories from similar communities. View the assessment here.

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