Category Archives: Business

Bourbon County Retail Survey Response Requested

Chamber Logo Transparent Background.png

BOURBON COUNTY

RETAIL SURVEY

Your response is requested and appreciated!

Click here for the survey.

Bourbon County REDI

(Regional Economic Development Inc.)

has engaged with Goldstone Consulting Group to perform a Community Retail Needs Analysis.

Having current, formalized data will assist Bourbon County REDI to pursue or seize future opportunities by being able to provide this information on community needs and priorities to developers and others interested in doing business in Fort Scott and Bourbon County.

While your response to the electronic survey format is greatly preferred, you may also click here for a printable copy of the survey

or pick one up at the Chamber.

Completed hardcopy surveys may be returned to the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce,

231 E. Wall St., Fort Scott, KS 66701 or to the office of Bourbon County REDI,

200 S. Main St., Ste. 200, Fort Scott, KS 66701.

You may also access the survey by scanning this QR code:
QR_code_QNFYCH3.png
Community Retail Needs Questionnaire _2_.png
Thank you in advance for your participation

and response to this survey.

Contact Bourbon County REDI with any questions:

Rob Harrington, Director ~ 620-215-0144

Thank you to our Chamber Champion members below…
Chamber Champions Logo Image 2022 - Ledger Size.png
Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce

fortscott.com | 620-223-3566 [email protected]

Facebook

Craw-Kan Telephone Taking Orders For Fiber-optic WiFi

Hey northeast Fort Scott, Kansas!
The wait is almost over!
Craw-Kan Telephone Cooperative Inc. is now taking orders for the area in the purple on the map below.
Call today and place your order for the
FASTEST, BEST, & MOST RELIABLE
ultra-high-speed fiber-optic Wi-Fi!
620-724-8235
Click here for the Craw-Kan website
Click here to go to the Craw-Kan Facebook page.
Thank you to our Chamber Champion members listed below.

Chamber Coffee hosted by Hare & Crow Feb. 24


The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce invites members and guests to the Chamber Coffee this Thursday, February 24th at 8am.

This week’s coffee will be hosted by Hare & Crow located in the Downtown Historic District at 118 S. Main St.

Coffee and light refreshments will be served.

Hare & Crow is an old-school barbershop & mercantile in downtown Fort Scott. They offer a full range of haircuts, styling, beard trims, straight razor shaves, grooming products, men’s accessories, and local goods. They look forward to getting to know everyone in Fort Scott and learning how they can serve our community.

Any member business or organization wanting to host Chamber Coffee in 2022 is encouraged to contact the Chamber to save a date by calling 620-223-3566 or emailing [email protected].
***

Common Ground Is More Than A Coffee Shop

Common Ground Coffee Shop.

Common Ground Coffee Company is not just a place to gather but also offers small event catering and rental space venues.

Like other coffee shops, one can hang- out with others, catch up on some studying or just find a little solitude, all while enjoying specialty drinks and scrumptious foods, according to its website.

In addition to a hang-out place, the business offers small event catering and rental space venues.

The conference room, a private space at the rear of the business, is free, when available.

And there is a large space with outdoor access and a stage in the rear also called the Loading Dock.

“We rent rooms for showers and parties,” Vickie Waldron, manager, told the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce  Coffee attendees on Feb. 17. In addition, “We cater baked goods for small events.”

Hours of operation for the business are:

Monday         7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Tuesday         7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Wednesday 7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Thursday      7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Friday            7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Saturday     7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Sunday Closed

Chocolate Lover’s Shopping This Saturday

For those who love to shop and LOVE chocolate, get your walking shoes on.

This Saturday, Feb. 12, is the Love Local Chocolate Crawl shopping event, sponsored by the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce.

This is the second annual Fort Scott Chocolate Crawl, according to Executive Director Lindsay Madison.

Lindsay Madison. Submitted photo.

Stores festooned with red and white balloons and with the chocolate crawl poster in the window are participating and many will be offering drawings and store give-aways.

The majority of the retailers are in Fort Scott’s Downtown Historic District, but there are others also.

Downtown retailers are Angie Dawn’s Boutique, Bartlesmeyer Jewelry Store,  Better in Bourbon Boutique, Bids and Dibs resale clothing and more, Hare and Crow Barbershop, Hedgehog INK Bookstore, Iron Star Antiques, and Such,  Laree + Co. clothing store,  Main Street Gallery and Gifts, Sunshine Boutique, The Beauty Lounge hair salon and spa, and Treasure Hunt Flea Market.

Other retailers participating are Museum of Creativity, Shirt Shack clothing store and Varia clothing store.

Customers are invited to shop at local retailers and sample chocolate treats.

KGS Reponds to KCC Order

Kansas Gas Service is pleased with the Order from the Kansas Corporation Commission on its securitization mechanism to recover costs from the February 2021 winter storm. We prioritize keeping our customers safe and warm during these extreme weather events and aim to recover the unprecedented costs from the high natural gas prices due to the storm with fairness and minimal impact to customers.

 Submitted by:

Bailey McBride

Public Relations Manager, ONE Gas

KCC Approves KGS Recovering Winter Storm Costs

KCC approves settlement agreement allowing Kansas Gas Service to recover winter storm costs over time, using low interest bonds

TOPEKA – The Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) has approved a settlement agreement outlining how Kansas Gas Service (KGS) will recover $366 million in deferred natural gas costs incurred during last February’s winter weather event. The utility, like others regulated by the KCC, was ordered to do everything possible to continue providing natural gas service to its customers, defer the charges, and then develop a plan to allow customers to pay the unusually high costs over time to minimize the financial impact.

Under the terms of the agreement, KGS will apply for Securitized Utility Tariff Bonds to obtain the most favorable financing to reduce costs to ratepayers. The 2021 Kansas Legislature passed the Utility Financing and Securitization Act, which allows utilities to use securitized bonds to pay for extraordinary costs at more favorable terms than traditional financing.  The KCC will review the plan to ensure the lowest possible bond costs will be passed on to customers. The application and review process could take six to eight months.

Until the securitization process is complete, the exact dollar amount KGS customers will see on their monthly bills or the length of the payment period is unknown. Estimates range anywhere from $5 to $7 per month for a period of 5-10 years.

The Commission emphasized it was in the public interest for KGS to incur the extraordinary costs to ensure the integrity of the gas system and ensure continuous service to its customers.

“A lesser response could have resulted in catastrophic property damage and serious public safety implications, including potential loss of life.  When extraordinary costs are unavoidable and necessary to benefit the public, it is in the public interest to allow recovery of such costs.”

Feb. 8 order states that any proceeds received by KGS from ongoing federal or state investigations into market manipulation, price gouging or civil suits will be passed on to customers. In addition, KGS has agreed to file a plan to assist low-income customers in its service territory by December 31, 2022.

A second order, addressing a proposed unanimous settlement on a waiver of penalties for gas marketers and transportation customers (large volume users that buy gas directly through natural gas suppliers or marketers using KGS to deliver the fuel) under KGS’ Tariff will be issued by March 7. A hearing on that settlement was held February 4.

Today’s order is available at:
http://estar.kcc.ks.gov/estar/ViewFile.aspx?Id=172a1653-5e64-4ecd-84d9-b42bd4da664a

A recording of today’s Business Meeting featuring comments by Commissioners on this order, is available on the KCC YouTube channel.

 

Chamber Coffee Postponed to Feb. 10 For Lyons Realty

REVISED DATE:
This week’s Chamber Coffee will be postponed to next week, February 10th.
Join us for this week’s Chamber Coffee
Hosted by Chamber Member
Lyons Realty Group
Lyons Realty Group proudly invites you to join them as they celebrate their one-year anniversary!
Thursday, February 10th at 8am
8 E. Wall St.
Click here to Like their Facebook page.
Click here to view their website.
Thank you to our Chamber Champion Members below…

Big Sugar Lumber: Change of Ownership

The Big Sugar Lumber staff, front from left: Tim Culbertson-contractor sales, Jim Fewins-general manager, Janice Fewins-accounting. Back row from left: Jeff Dollarhyde-yard man and driver, Kristin Bishop-floor manager, Tyler Travis-logistics manager and Stihl products, Cade Goodridge-yard man, and Daniel Harney, assistant manager.

Big Sugar Lumber had a change of ownership on Dec. 31, 2021.

With the retirement of  Matt Noll as a business partner, Jim Fewins is now the sole owner of the local lumber materials store in Fort Scott.

“He had been a business partner for several years and wanted to retire,” Fewins said. “We appreciate Matt’s working here over the years and wish him well in his retirement.”

The lumber yard is a member of the international building materials dealer Do It Best cooperative, he said.

“We are proud to be your local lumberyard,” Fewins said.

Among the store’s offerings are lumber, hardware, paint, windows, and roofing supplies.

They have a delivery service available for their products and are also a United Parcel Service drop-off point in Fort Scott.

The store personnel are working to expand the inventory: “more lumber, commodity products (plywood and OSB’s) and more niche items,” Fewins said.  And they are re-merchandising the items on the shelves to be more accessible.

Jim Fewins, the owner of Big Sugar Lumber, stands in front of a newly re-merchandized shelf in the store.

There is a new hospitality area in the store, where one can sit in a chair and have a cup of coffee at a table. This is located to the left of the sales desk, near the rear of the store.

“We’ll have contractor meetings in this area,” he said. “A place to have a cup of coffee and sit down.”

Daniel Harney, the assistant manager, said they are working to increase inventory and maintain it to have what people need.

“Customer service is a high priority, that sets up apart,” he said. “And we are a local lumber yard.”

“Every small town needs a really good lumbar yard,” Kristin Bishop, the floor manager said. “We want to provide that for Bourbon County. We are proud to be your local lumber yard.”

Fewins said new staff will be “working on making sure we have all our bases covered correctly.”

Big Sugar Lumber has a quick turnaround on items not in the store.

Do It Best Warehouse has 87,000 items, which can be ordered through the Big Sugar Lumber Merchandise Catalogue on a Monday and be in the Fort Scott store by Wednesday, Fewins said.

“And there is no charge to the consumer,” he said.

 

History of the Big Sugar Lumber Store

Original business partners Ed Graham, Sid Colwell, Jim Fewins, and Matt Noll started Big Sugar Lumber in March 1983 in Mound City.

“We came to Fort Scott in 1984,” Fewins said. “We owned both stores and had a third one in Garnett in 1988. It closed in the early 2000s.”

The facility is located at 1005 S. Clark, near the junction of 12th Street and Hwy. 69. The store phone number is 620-223-5279.

Find them also on their Facebook page.