Larry E. Palet, 74, of Fort Scott, passed away Monday, December 28, 2020. He was born January 31, 1945, in Chanute, Kansas, the son of Lowell E. and Hazel L. (Butts) Palet.
He married Beatrice Dunnam July 4, 1985, in Bronson, Kansas, and she preceded him in death July 16, 2019.
Larry was a farmer, and also worked for Peerless Products for eight years.
Survivors include his stepchildren, Lorrie Cameron and husband Shawn of Fort Scott, Albert Tanner & wife Marita of Uniontown, Flo Tanner, of Fort Scott, and Archie Alexander and wife Michelle, also of Fort Scott; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. In addition to his wife Beatrice, Larry was also preceded in death by his parents.
Trevor Jacobs will conduct graveside services at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, January 4, 2021, at the Oak Grove Cemetery under the direction of the Konantz-Cheney Funeral Home.
The family will have a visitation 4:00-5:00 p.m. Sunday evening January 3, 2021, at the funeral home. Condolences may be submitted to the online guestbook at konantz-cheney.com.
Domonic Martinez “Heavy” Robinson, age 27, a resident of Independence, Missouri, passed away late Friday, December 25, 2020, as the result of an automobile accident in Jackson County, Missouri.
He was born December 12, 1993, in Iola, Kansas, the son of Carl Joe Robinson, Jr. and Anicia Monique Lindsey Robinson.
Domonic graduated from the Uniontown High School in Uniontown, Kansas and later completed welding school in Nevada, Missouri. He was currently working as a welder for Boilermakers Local #83.
Domonic married Akilia Harris on July 21, 2017. Domonic was devoted to his family and provided well for their needs as well as others.
He enjoyed riding his motorcycle, collecting guns, and barbecuing. He was an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers and was a member of the United Missionary Baptist Church.
Survivors include his wife, Akilia, of the home; and three sons, Jayden, Jordan and Khalil Robinson with one more son due to arrive in June.
He is also survived by his mother, Anicia Robinson, of Bronson, Kansas, his father, Carl J. “Pete” Robinson, Jr., of Ft. Scott, Kansas; three brothers, Du’Shaun Robinson and De’Vonte Robinson, both of Ft. Scott and Charles Harris, of Atlanta, Georgia, a sister, Da’Nisha Robinson, of Bronson, Kansas; his grandmothers, Helen Patterson of Ft. Scott and Alma Williams, of Bronson, two aunts, Ruthie Robinson and Charlene Williams, both of St. Louis, Missouri, an uncle, Christopher Lindsey, of Iola, Kansas, his father-in-law, William Harris and good friends, Mitchell Newman and Jordan Woods.
He was preceded in death by his grandfathers, Charles Williams and Carl Robinson, Sr., an uncle, John Whitworth and a good friend Brandon Weyant.
Rev. George Proctor and Rev. Marty Dewitt will conduct funeral services at 11:00 A.M. Saturday, January 9th at the First Missionary Baptist Church in Uniontown, Kansas.
Burial will follow in the Bronson Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 9 A.M. until service time on Saturday at the church.
Memorials are suggested to the Robinson Children Education Fund and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
The Craw-Kan Cooperative space is seen on the backside of the Bourbon County Courthouse. The county commission has leased Craw-Kan two cells from the former jail. September 2018 photo.
Craw-Kan Telephone Cooperative Inc., Girard, is working on multiple projects in Bourbon County to provide fiber-optic lines for internet services.
Craw-Kan Telephone serves Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma, offering high-speed fiber optic internet, cable TV, and telephone service in its’ service area, according to its’ Facebook page.
Work began on a new hub for Craw-Kan Telephone Cooperative on South Judson Street in late 2018.
“We are continuing to build fiber to non-cooperative member areas in the southeast side of the city of Fort Scott,” Zach Adams, Craw-Kan Marketing Manager said. “These are homes and businesses where we have not been able to provide services in the past.”
“The goal of our Fort Scott project is to provide 100% fiber-optic coverage in the city limits,” he said. ” The west side of US 69 HWY is complete and we are currently working on the southeast quadrant of the city. We will also connect some residences outside but adjacent to the city.”
“We are subcontracting Jim Radell Construction, Pittsburg, for construction on the southeast quadrant of the City of Fort Scott,” Adams said. “They have multiple crews working in the area. We also use multiple Craw-Kan employees in the construction and installation process. There are two or more repair and installation technicians assigned to the Fort Scott territory at any given time.”
Craw-Kan began the Fort Scott overbuild in 2017 and completion is estimated to be in 2021-2022, Adams said.
Uniontown Project
Conduit for the Craw-Kan Fiber Optic project. in March 2020 in Uniontown.
“The other large project in Bourbon County is the upgrade to the Uniontown (756) phone exchange,” he said. “This project will be replacing copper phone and DSL lines with fiber-optic lines that will bring maximum reliability and gigabit internet speeds to 100% of Craw-Kan Telephone Cooperative members in the Uniontown exchange…The project will upgrade 100% of existing Craw-Kan members to fiber-optic connections to the home.”
“For the Uniontown project, Bob Hull Inc – BHI was with bid winning contractor doing the fiber upgrade construction,” Adams said. “They will be using multiple crews to complete the work.”
The Uniontown project was started in 2020 and is expected to be completed in 2021, he said.
Cost of the project
“Craw-Kan has invested several million dollars over the last four years into upgrading the connections of our cooperative members in Bourbon County as well as bringing new fiber optic services to the City of Fort Scott and surrounding areas,” Adams said.
MEETING WILL BE HELD IN COMMISSION ROOM. ANYONE ATTENDING THE MEETING WILL BE REQUIRED TO WEAR A MASK PROVIDED BY THE COUNTY. MUST MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING.
2:00 Executive Session – Confidential data relating to financial affairs or trade secrets of corporations, partnerships, trusts and individual proprietorships
Governor Kelly Announces First Statewide Housing Needs Assessment in 27 Years
TOPEKA –Governor Laura Kelly today announced that a planning and design firm with extensive statewide experience will lead Kansas’ first comprehensive housing needs assessment in nearly 30 years. RDG Planning & Design, an Omaha-based consultancy, will conduct an in-depth discovery process, assess current housing opportunities and identify goals, and develop strategic initiatives to guide the state’s future housing development efforts.
“A shortage of quality, affordable housing is one of our state’s biggest barriers to growth and development, particularly in our rural communities,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “This statewide housing assessment will provide us with a starting point on how we can positively affect communities’ abilities to grow and provide the quality of life that every Kansan deserves regardless of their zip code.”
RDG has worked in Kansas communities ranging from Scott City to Chanute, De Soto to Dickinson County. The firm’s initiatives have included collaborating with Dodge City officials to pioneer developing some of the state’s first Rural Housing Incentive Districts (RHID), working with Salina leaders to encourage greater reinvestment in core neighborhoods, and helping Johnson County navigate tremendous new growth.
“Dodge City has put a major focus on addressing our housing shortage to provide essential homes for our workforce,” said Joann Knight, Executive Director of the Dodge City/Ford County Development Corporation. “RDG plays a vital role in our success, and their attention to detail makes understanding housing needs much easier.”
“RDG has had the pleasure to work in every corner of Kansas, from the state’s largest cities to its smallest communities,” said Amy Haase, RDG Principal. “We have developed a deep understanding of the wide breadth of housing opportunities and challenges facing Kansans, and we are proud that communities continue to seek us out both for the expertise we provide and the passion we bring for creating great places.”
Kansas has not conducted a significant housing study in decades, resulting in a shortage of data on existing housing resources and current and projected needs. The Office of Rural Prosperity’s Housing Work Group, an interagency team of state leaders led by KHRC Executive Director Ryan Vincent, identified a needs assessment as a crucial first step in addressing the state’s housing needs and priorities, particularly in rural and underserved areas.
“As I have discussed with Kansans across the state, housing is a barrier for communities to recruiting and retaining skilled workers,” Lt. Governor Lynn Rogers said. “This statewide assessment will allow us to determine what our current housing needs are and how best to address them.”
The state’s Office of Rural Prosperity, in conjunction with Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC), the state’s housing finance agency, selected the firm through a competitive RFP process and will manage the project. The assessment process is expected to extend throughout 2021, with the final report’s delivery anticipated in December 2021.
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Governor Laura Kelly and Lieutenant Governor Lynn Rogers created the Office of Rural Prosperity (ORP), a nonpartisan initiative established in part to ensure that rural Kansas is heard and represented in the statehouse. The ORP aims to streamline rural policy while focusing on the issues that matter to rural Kansans. During the ORP’s 2019 and 2020 statewide listening and action tours, housing was brought up by leaders in every region of the state as a vital component of recruiting and retaining workers, families, and entrepreneurs to help rural Kansas thrive.
Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC) helps Kansans access the quality, affordable housing they need and the dignity they deserve. Codified at K.S.A. 74-8901 et. seq., KHRC is a public corporation and independent instrumentality of the state. KHRC serves as the state’s housing finance agency (HFA), administering essential housing and community programs to serve Kansans. Learn more about KHRC’s core values, programs, and services online.
Governor Laura Kelly Issues Executive Order Waiving Waiting Week for Unemployment Benefits
TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly today announced that she has signed Executive Order #20-71, providing temporarily relief from the waiting week requirement for Kansans applying for unemployment benefits.
“Kansans who have a lost their jobs as a result of COVID-19 cannot afford to wait a week to receive the unemployment benefits they need to make rent payments or feed their families,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “This executive order will be crucial in our state’s ongoing response to the pandemic and to ensuring unemployed Kansans can access their benefits as soon as possible.”
The “waiting week” is a required non-payable week that typically needs to be served on new benefit years. E.O. #20-71 temporarily waives the waiting week requirement for all claimants. For states that have temporarily waived the waiting week requirement, Congress will federally fund 50% of the first week of compensable regular unemployment until March 14, 2021.
The Order is currently in effect and remains in force until rescinded or until the current statewide State of Disaster emergency expires, whichever is earlier.
Darla Dean Bruner, age 85, resident of Ft. Scott, KS, died Sunday, December 27, 2020, at the KU Medical Center, Kansas City, KS.
She was born November 29, 1935, in Seiling, OK, the daughter of Lewis and Gladys Bartell Mandersheid. She graduated from Humboldt, KS high school. She then attended Chanute Junior College and Pittsburg State College. She then taught grade school near Fredonia, KS. Darla married Elvis Willard Bruner on June 4, 1960, in Fredonia, KS. They moved to Ft. Scott in 1962.
He preceded her in death on July 20, 2018.
In 1973, she began working at Western Insurance and later American States Insurance until 1992. Later, she was employed by Med-Plans 2000 for several years.
Her greatest enjoyment was being with family and Christian friends, quilting, flower gardening, attending garage sales with Willard, and serving the Lord. Darla attended the Church of Christ, at 1900 Margrave.
She was the best of us and always put other first. We will miss her sweet smile and kind heart.
Survivors include two daughters, Donna Graham and husband William, Joplin, MO, and Sharon Bruner, Roeland Park, KS; a son, Ernest Bruner and wife Stephanie, Overland Park, KS; 6 grandchildren, Lindsay Johnson, Cassandra Bailey, Jennifer Bruner, Khaled Graham, Donovan Graham, and Shanece Grimm; 11 great-grandchildren with one on the way; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Besides her husband, she was preceded in death by 3 sisters; one brother; and her parents.
Private family services will be held. Burial will follow in the Memory Gardens Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to the Darla Bruner Memorial Fund and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.
The City Commission will meet for a special meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, December 29th, 2020 at City Hall in the City Commission meeting room at 123 South Main Street, Fort Scott, Kansas. The City Commission will consider to accept two Quit Claim Deeds from Flint Hills Holdings to the City of Fort Scott for the Union Lofts Project and pass a resolution of acceptance and recording for these deeds.
This meeting will be broadcast on the City’s You tube channel. This meeting is open to the public.
The Hole in the Wall Liquor Store, at Wall and Scott Street September 2018. The new apartments are above the retail store.
Roy and Jody Hoener have opened a new business in the historic Fort Scott downtown area.
“The name of the new apartments are called ‘H Bar Suites,'”, Jody Hoener said. “This was Roy’s cattle brand when he had cattle.”
Submitted photos of the H Bar Suites vacation rental’s interior construction.
The apartments are located in historic downtown Fort Scott, directly above Hole in the Wall Liquor, another business the couple own, and across from the Fort Scott National Historic Site, she said.
The physical address is 8 North Scott Street.
They are fully furnished apartments.
The Hoeners have used Ruddick’s Furniture, and local contractors: Casper Enterprises, Stoughton Plumbing, KTK Electric, and Perry Cannon to name a few. The cabinets were made by Kirby’s Cabinets.
“There are two apartments. The two-bedroom apartment is currently available, click on the link,” she said.
The furnished 2 bedroom apartment is finished. Submitted photos.
The couple hopes to have the one bedroom available at the end of this week, Hoener said.
“There were a few issues with furniture and appliances being back-ordered that has delayed the opening,” she said.
Construction on the Hole in the Wall Liquor Store at Wall and State streets began in 2018.
History of the Hoener businesses at the site
“Our project started in 2016 when we started looking for a place to move Hole in the Wall Liquor. (https://holeinthewallliquor.com/) ,” she said. “One stipulation we had to move as we wanted to remain downtown. As business owners with a vested interest in our community, we wanted to make a larger impact beyond a retail store. Downtown revitalization’s direct impact is well documented and has shown to spur local economies.”
“When we took on this old and condemned building downtown, it literally had poles coming from the middle of the street, up to the side of the building, holding up the wall, for almost a decade,” Hoener said. “This was quite the eyesore to one of the main entrances of our downtown.”
“Heather Smith, the city’s then Economic Development Director, showed us several downtown buildings,” she said. “It was a hard sale. All of the buildings were in such disrepair that it would be impossible for us to come up with the capital to make the needed improvements. The cost of replacing the roof was much more than the value of the whole building. In short, we discovered what many already knew: it would be impossible to obtain a loan on a worthless building. We learned first-hand why these buildings are sitting empty but also a few tricks, tips, and solutions to the problem.”
” Smith, through the City of Fort Scott, was able to offer us the State of Kansas Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for historic districts,” Hoener said. “This is a state-wide grant program, highly competitive, to help cities provide financial incentives to bring these condemned buildings back to life. After much thought and planning, working through the risks and unknowns of old buildings, and working with Smith and Dave Martin, we decided to take a leap of faith. ”
“Working with Smith (even after she took on a new job in Wisconsin!) and Susan Galemore at the Southeast Kansas Regional Planning Commission we wrote and submitted a winning CDBG grant,” she said. “The grant, paired with creative financing from Gregg Motley at Landmark National Bank, and lots of sweat equity, brought new life into the building, encouraging foot traffic downtown, and being a part of the momentum to spur economic growth.”
They had a plan and worked it.
“Our business plan was developed and written in phases,” she said. “The first phase was to move Hole in the Wall Liquor to the new location and open the retail liquor store.”
” The second phase was to then take advantage of the opportunity in the space upstairs and develop housing. We are now, four years later, almost to the end of that final phase,” Hoener said.
“Our initial plans were to use the space as market-rate apartments,” she said. “We have since decided to try marketing the space on VRBO as short term or vacation rental space. We have decided we can always offer them as apartments later if that does not work out.”
Evergy recently awarded $1,500 to the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes in support of the “Unsung Heroes of the Environment (Role Models for America’s Youth)” museum display. Ronda Hassig serves as project director. Norm Conard, Executive Director of the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes, said “Jacob Valentine II was an unsung hero that worked his whole life as an advocate for the environment and the species that live in it. Exhibiting Jacob Valentine II in our museum serves as a powerful role model for everyone who sees it. We are excited to share his story!”
About Evergy
Evergy wants to be a good neighbor, civic leader, and community partner in the communities they serve. They want communities to understand that the commitment they have to powering the lives of their customers goes beyond simply providing safe, clean, reliable energy. Evergy supports programs designed to invest in the education of tomorrow’s workforce to the skills and knowledge required are available to enable Evergy to thrive in the future.
About the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes
The Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes works to transform classrooms and communities through student-driven projects that discover Unsung Heroes from history and teach the power of one to create positive change. Everyone, especially our young people deserve role models who demonstrate courage, compassion and respect. Jacob Valentine II was just such a hero!
