McPherson County Commission Meeting Highlights 6/23/25
McPHERSON COUNTY, Kan. — McPherson County Public Works is conducting an in-house study of the intersection of Old US 81 and Arrowhead Road, where two people were killed in a crash earlier this month. Public Works Director David Bohnenblust said this includes accident data at that location over the past ten years and files on other studies.
Bohnenblust said he may also reach out to the Kansas Department of Transportation, which has a traffic safety group that will on occasion take a look at these types of situations. Of the reports reviewed so far, Bohnenblust said driver error was cited as the major factor, with one common theme, that being people pulling away from the stop signs on Arrowhead. While site distances at the intersection are good, it may be a case of not looking in the right direction.
Commissioner David O’Dell also suggested looking at the intersections of Old 81 at 22nd Avenue, or Christian Avenue in Moundridge, and at the south end of the bypass at Main Street south of McPherson, the latter having a more severe angle issue than at Arrowhead.
Commissioners heard another round of 2026 budget proposals, including one from the McPherson Airport requesting a ten percent increase in their 2026 budget, which Airport Manager Cynthia Peterson said would largely be related to plans to replace their fueling system.
The existing underground tanks are 50-70 years old, and last week’s rains put the tanks completely under water, and they are still pulling water from the bottom of them. The new tanks would be above ground and easier to maintain..FAA grants for the coming year will cover 95 percent of the estimated $1 million cost of the project, with additional funding coming from the Build Kansas program and the Kansas Department of transportation.
Peterson also reviewed the status of such things as hangars, pavement and lighting conditions and other things.
Register of Deeds Laurie Wizarde included in her proposal a salary classification change for her deputy, and said they are seeing more passport applications through their office in light of two adjacent counties no longer offering these services.
County Attorney Jennifer Wyatt asked in her proposal for salary increases for three employees in her office who are at the top of the current salary scale for their positions.
Information Technology Director Jeff Butler proposed an overall ten percent increase in his 2026 budget, including higher personnel and contractual costs. No changes are proposed to commodity or capital outlay line items. Butler noted the average budget increase for IT is running some 20-30 percent, and his proposal is well below that.
Commissioners approved a just over $4,000 payment to replace the antenna on the current Windom tower site. Emergency Management and Communications Director Emily Yates said they began having issues with pages not going out in late May. KaComm has a used antenna they can mount at the current site, which will get them through the activation of the new site.
On the new Windom tower site, Yates said the microwave equipment for that site is scheduled to ship Friday and be here next week with the VR 10 system still to come. Custom Towers is scheduled to start installation of antennas the week of July 7th, which will take about five days to complete. If all goes as planned, their project manager expects the project to be complete in late July. Yates also reported on damage assessments from last week’s flooding and windstorm. She’s heard from three townships so far, and their reported infrastructure damage is $64,400. The County has a total damage threshold of $142,652 and a state threshold of $5.6 million in order to be able to access public assistance through FEMA.
Commissioners approved an agreement with Disability Planning Organization of Kansas to serve as a payroll agent for people who self-direct services for the developmentally disabled. The Salina based organization handles such things and payroll and taxes for the providers involved. The Commission also approved a promotion of a Public Works maintenance employee to Maintenance Worker 4.
