Prairie Star

01/08/2026

BOIL ADVISORY RESCINDED FOR CHAUTAUQUA

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment on Thursday announced that the boil water advisory that was issued for the City of Chautauqua has been rescinded.

01/03/2026

MORE DETAILS RELEASED ABOUT ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION LINE PROJECT IN SOUTHERN CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY, COWLEY COUNTY; PUBLIC HEARINGS TO BE HELD IN SEDAN, WINFIELD THIS WEEK

A extra high-voltage electric transmission line could be cut through the heart of Chautauqua and Cowley counties if a utility company fulfills its plans.

Evergy is proposing construction of a 133-mile transmission line that would connect an Evergy substation near Garden Plain, Kan., in Sedgwick County with a substation near Delaware, Okla., in Nowata County.

The line will be located in Sedgwick, Sumner, Cowley and Chautauqua counties before entering Oklahoma immediately southwest of Caney, where the line will continue through Washington and Nowata counties. The line will not enter Montgomery County.

The Evergy project is known as the Buffalo Flats project (so named because of the Buffalo Flats substation near Garden Plain). If approved and completed, the project will transmit 354 kilovolts of power to supplement the Southwest Power Pool grid.

The Buffalo Flats project is one leg of a larger transmission project that is intended to solidify power transmission in southern Kansas, northern Oklahoma and southern Missouri. The much-larger project is known as the “Branson 345 kV Overlay,” whereby three separate line projects will collectively enhance the power distribution to the Branson, Mo., region.

The three legs are Garden Plain to Delaware, Delaware to Monett, and Monett to North Branson.

Evergy will be responsible for the 133-mile project on the Kansas portion of the transmission line; American Electric power will be responsible for constructing the line in the Oklahoma portion.

Energy’s application to the Kansas Corporation Commission for the transmission line project calls for a large swath of right-of-way acquisition through southern Chautauqua County in the area known as the Chautauqua Hills or, in the southeast portion of Chautauqua County, as the Sand Hills. Construction will require a right-of-way path of 150 to 175 feet wide for the clearing of trees and eventual placement of large H-frame poles that will be set 600 to 1,500 feet apart. The height of the pole structures will vary depending on the span length, clears and local terrain, but the H-frame poles typically are 80 to 160 feet in height.

Evergy currently estimates that the total Buffalo Flats project will cost $493,331,649. This is a preliminary estimate based on current costs of labor and materials and the cost to acquire needed right of way. The actual costs of construction may differ from this estimate and will be affected by, among other things, the final route selected, structure design, changes in commodity prices and labor rates.

How will Evergy customers’ monthly bills be impacted by the project? For Evergy’s retail customers, the amount paid by Evergy to SPP for transmission 13 service is recovered through the Transmission Delivery Charge (TDC). Evergy estimates that its portion of the proposed project will cost approximately $5.5 million and will be in service in 2029. The cost to customers will be the highest in the first year the project is in service and will decline over time as the assets depreciate. For an average residential customer using 1,000 kWh per month, the impact would be $3.37 per year in 2029 and decline each year thereafter as the asset depreciates.

Evergy said in its KCC application that the company selected the tentative route “after several information open houses through which it received Evergy selected the route after several open houses through which it received input from landowners and residents in the areas along potential routes. Evergy also sought and received input from state and federal agencies and public interest groups. All of the information received from these contacts was used to identify a route that minimizes adverse social and environmental impacts of the line.”

The Kansas Corporation Commission will allow public comment on the project during the first of two information sessions ins the coming days. The first public hearing will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at Sedan High School, 416 Elm Street in Sedan. The information open house will run from 3:30 to 6 p.m. The public hearing will begin at 6 p.m.

The second public hearing will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 8 at the Richardson Performing Arts Center at Southwestern College, 100 N. College St. in Winfield. An open house will be held from 3:00 to 6 p.m. in Christy Room 201. Both are located in the Christy Administration Building.

Anyone unable to attend in person may participate by Zoom with advance registration by noon the day prior to the hearing. The Commission is also accepting written comments through 5 p.m., Jan. 23, 2026. To register to attend by Zoom or submit a written comment, visit https://kcc-connect.kcc.ks.gov/s/public-comments.

In addition, the hearings will be broadcast live on the agency’s YouTube channel (type Kansas Corporation Commission in the Search field) and will be available for later viewing.

12/30/2025

PUBLIC HEARINGS TO BE HELD IN SEDAN, WINFIELD REGARDING HIGH-VOLTAGE TRANSMISSION LINE PROJECT

TOPEKA – The Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) has scheduled two public hearings on Evergy’s application for approval to site a 133-mile, 345 kV electric transmission line through western Sedgwick, Sumner, Cowley, and Chautauqua counties.

Evergy is proposing to construct the line beginning at the Buffalo Flats Substation near Garden Plain, Kan. and ending at the Delaware Substation near Delaware, Okla. A map of the proposed transmission line shows it running west to east in southern Chautauqua County before entering Oklahoma southwest of Caney.

The public hearings will give Kansas residents an opportunity to learn more about the proposed location of the line, ask questions, and make public comments before the Commission. Prior to each hearing, Commission Staff and Evergy representatives will be present at an Information Open House to answer questions and discuss maps of the proposed route.

The first public hearing will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at Sedan High School. The open house will run from 3:30 to 6 p.m. The public hearing will begin at 6 p.m.

The second public hearing will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 8 at the Richardson Performing Arts Center at Southwestern College, 100 N. College St. in Winfield. An open house will be held from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. in Christy Room 201. Both are located in the Christy Administration Building.
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Anyone unable to attend in person may participate by Zoom with advance registration by noon the day prior to the hearing.

The Commission is also accepting written comments through 5 p.m. Jan. 23, 2026. To register to attend by Zoom or submit a written comment, visit https://kcc-connect.kcc.ks.gov/s/public-comments. In addition, the hearings will be broadcast live on the agency’s YouTube channel and will be available for later viewing.

The Evergy project aims to address thermal and voltage issues during extreme cold weather events. Evergy has received a Notice to Construct from the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) for the project.

The estimated cost of the project is more than $493 million, which is subject to change based on various factors.

The construction of the transmission line is anticipated to be completed by December 2029.

Surveying and design work will begin on May 14, 2026, following the approval of the application.

Construction activities, including vegetation clearing, are expected to take approximately 17 months starting in June 2027.

12/28/2025

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: SMALL EARTHQUAKE REPORTED IN CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY

A small 2.4-magnitude earthquake rumbled through the Chautauqua County hills shortly after midnight Friday.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the small trembler was centered between Chautauqua and Peru with a depth of about 5 kilometers. It was felt at about 12:06 a.m.

Typically, an earthquake in the range of 2.0 to 2.5 magnitude is only a minor rumble of the ground and causes no damage. In fact, it often is not even felt by residents near the epicenter.

However, it is strong enough to trigger the monitors at earthquake monitoring stations across the world, which keep a constant ear to the earth’s tectonic plate movement.

Some other seismic activity was reported in the region in the past 24 hours. On Saturday, small earthquakes in the 2.3 to 3.2 magnitude were experienced near the town of Union City, Hanna and Loco in Oklahoma.

12/27/2025

Boil Water Advisory Issued for the City of Chautauqua

TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has issued a boil water advisory for the City of Chautauqua public water supply system located in Chautauqua County.

Customers should observe the following precautions until further notice:

• Boil water for one minute prior to drinking or food preparation or use bottled water.

• Dispose of ice cubes and do not use ice from a household automatic icemaker.

• If your tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears.

• Disinfect dishes and other food contact surfaces by immersion for at least one minute in clean tap water that contains one teaspoon of unscented household bleach per gallon of water.

• Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled. Supervision of children is necessary while bathing so that water is not ingested. Persons with cuts or severe rashes may wish to consult their physicians.

The advisory took effect on December 26, 2025, and will remain in effect until the conditions that placed the system at risk of bacterial contamination are resolved. KDHE officials issued the advisory because of a two waterline breaks resulting in a loss of pressure in the distribution system. Failure to maintain adequate pressure may result in a loss of chlorine residuals and bacterial contamination.

Regardless of whether the public water supplier or Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) announced a boil water advisory, only KDHE can issue the rescind order following testing at a certified laboratory.

For consumer questions, please contact the water system at 620-216-3004, or KDHE at 785-296-5514. For consumer information please visit KDHE’s PWS Consumer Information webpage: https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/468/Disruption-in-Water-Service

Restaurants and other food establishments that have questions about the impact of the boil water advisory on their business can contact the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s food safety & lodging program at [email protected] or call 785-564-6767.

12/21/2025

Due to the Christmas holiday, the Prairie Star deadline is tomorrow morning, Monday, Dec. 22, at 10 a.m.! If you have any items to send to the Prairie Star, email to: [email protected]

Thank you! - Jenny Diveley, editor

12/18/2025

In this week's Prairie Star, the elementary Students of the Month were identified as from Sedan USD 286. However, they are Students of the Month from West Elk USD 282. It is corrected above and will be corrected and printed in next week's edition. The Prairie Star regrets the error.

12/05/2025

Have you put your hands on this week's edition of the Prairie Star? There is so much to read, featuring the Winter Sports Preview from our sports editor, Brian Thomas, as well as numerous holiday events happening in the Prairie Star area! Definitely worth your time to prop up your feet, snuggle in, and take it all in!

11/13/2025

10/31/2025

A great issue of the Prairie Star is out for your reading pleasure!

You’ll read about local Halloween events, a great sports section that is among the best in the nation, and you'll also find a listing of candidates whose names will appear on the general election ballot on Nov. 4.

Want a free issue? Email us at [email protected] . . . and we'll get you a complimentary electronic issue in your hands.

You may also subscribe at www.taylornews.org.

10/31/2025

FOOTBALL SEASONS END FOR SPARTANS, BLUE DEVILS IN WEEK #9 CONTESTS

Football seasons for several area teams ended in the week 9 game of the eight-man division 1 playoffs on Thursday.

Cedar Vale-Dexter saw its season draw to a close with a 48-28 loss to Rosalia-Flinthills. The Spartans’ season record was 7-2.

The Sedan Blue Devils finished its season in a 57-12 loss to Madison. Sedan’s final season tally was 4-5.

Details will be printed in the Nov. 6 issue of the Prairie Star.

For a current bracket of the eight-man, division 1 football playoffs, click on the following link:

10/25/2025

FRIDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL FINALS IN THE TAYLOR NEWSPAPER AREA

• Rose Hill 35, Independence 12

• Cherryvale 41, Fredonia 18

• Caney Valley 48, Riverton 7

• Cedar Vale-Dexter 74, Northeast-Arma 50 (Thur.)

• West Elk 36, Central of Burden, 26 (Thur.)

• Labette County 35, Chanute 14

• Fort Scott 48, Field Kindley 6

• Oswego 54, Sedan 24