There certainly was no blockage to a wide assortment of quality entertainment when the London-based Barricade Boys put on quite a show Frida night at the Fox Theatre. The four English singers and stage show veterans have been touring the world for a decade and brought their Broadway Party to Hutchinson.
Exceptional is the best word to describe their music selection, harmony, choreography, screen graphics, lighting and sound, wardrobe and on-stage togetherness. The performance was bookended at the beginning and close with songs from Les Miserables but in between was an amazing rendition of hit music from Mama Mia, Jersey Boys, Motown, rock and even an emotional tribute to service members with a song called Bring Him Home.
The four singers were backed by four highly talented band members including an outstanding music coordinator and keyboard player, all contributing greatly to the overall musical journey.
Not all artists make themselves available for a visit, signing and up-close contact but the Barricade Boys were as personable for fans after the show as during their on-stage performance.
If the Fox is fortunate enough to book them for another future show or if they make another appearance nearby you are guaranteed an enjoyable and memorable time.
CAPTION: CREDIT THE BARRICADE BOYS
By Dan Deming
There certainly was no blockage to a wide assortment of quality entertainment when the London-based Barricade Boys put on quite a show Frida night at the Fox Theatre. The four English singers and stage show veterans have been touring
CAPTION: Barton Community College’s Maddox Spray (10), a 6-foot-6 sophomore guard from Great Bend High School, scored 2 points in the Cougars’ 92-62 first-round win over Brunswick Community College at the NJCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament Sunday at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. CREDIT BARTON CC
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship, throughout the day at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
Tuesday Mar 25
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship, throughout the day at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
Mid-Week Movie Night at the Library featuring the movie “The Public,” 5:15 p.m. in Meeting Room 1 (second floor). Free admission. Popcorn and beverages provided in limited quantities
Wednesday, Mar 26
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship Quarterfinals, games at noon, 2:30, 5:30 and 8 at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
Thursday Mar 27
“Treasure Island,” 7 p.m. at Trinity High School, 1400 E 17th Avenue. Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for students. Reserved seating only. Tickets are available at the door and online at One Ticket
“M*A*S*H,” part of the Fox Classic Film Series, 7 p.m. at the Fox Theatre, 18 E 1st Ave. Admission is $5. The Fox Film Series Passes are $45 and include 10 admissions and 5 small popcorns
Friday Mar 28
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship Semifinals, 5:30 and 8:30 at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
“Treasure Island,” 7 p.m. at Trinity High School, 1400 E 17th Avenue. Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for students. Reserved seating only. Tickets are available at the door and online at One Ticket
Saturday Mar 29
2025 Hutchinson Polar Plunge Event, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Midwest Superstore, 1100 E 30th Ave. Support Special Olympics Kansas. Registration opens at 10, with the plunge beginning at 11. Contact the organizer, Jake LaMunyon, at lamunyojnj@soks.org for more information
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship Finals, noon, at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
“M*A*S*H,” part of the Fox Classic Film Series, 2 p.m. at the Fox Theatre, 18 E 1st Ave. Admission is $5. The Fox Film Series Passes are $45 and include 10 admissions and 5 small popcorns
Shine at Stage 9! Open Mic Night, 7-10 p.m. at Stage 9, 9 South Main St. $5 admission at the door. Come perform and support local musicians and performers. Beverages will be available for purchase. Must be 21 to purchase alcohol
“Treasure Island,” 7 p.m. at Trinity High School, 1400 E 17th Avenue. Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for students. Reserved seating only. Tickets are available at the door and online at One Ticket
Monday Mar 24
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship, throughout the day at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700 E 11th Ave. Check the NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship page for more information
Tuesday Mar 25
NJCAA DI Men’s Basketball Championship, throughout the day at the Hutchinson Sports Arena, 700
By John Mesh
No. 20 Monroe University upset No. 13 Chipola College, Fla. 79-78 in the third game of the NJCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament Saturday night at the Hutchinson Sports Arena.
Four first-round games were played Saturday. It was the first time the NJCAA men’s
Mr. Glenn visited Topeka this week to speak with Hutchinson’s elected officials. Results were mixed; you can read about his experiences in his opinion column.
I have been tuning in periodically to see if the legislature will take any action on property tax relief.
Not surprisingly, more hot air than ideas floated around the Statehouse.
Some ideas are currently in play, though.
The first proposes a constitutional change. Per HCR 5011’s text, “Proposing to amend section 1 of article 11 of the constitution of the state of Kansas to provide that valuations of residential property, commercial and industrial real property and mobile homes personal property shall be determined based on the lesser of the fair market value or the average fair market value.”
The bill’s history and textual changes can be viewed here on the legislature’s website.
Mainly, Wichita and Johnson County senators introduced the virtually identical SCR 1603.
If a 2/3 majority in both chambers passes this bill, all Kansas voters will have the opportunity to vote for or against it.
Representative Blake Carpenter of Derby introduced HCR 5014, “Proposing to amend article 11 of the constitution of the state of Kansas by adding a new section establishing the freedom from taxes fund, establishing the Kansas Citizens Freedom Review Board, authorizing the board to review tax exemptions and approve or eliminate such exemptions and eliminating the state-imposed property taxes and income and privilege taxes.”
Introduced on March 14, the resolution seeks to replace taxation with an unspecified fund referred to as a “sovereign fund,” which would function similarly to an endowment. The proposal is very thin on details about how such a massive hoard would be accumulated, which would presumably generate enough yearly revenue to replace property, income and sales taxes.
There is no mention of proper oversight and who would make asset-balancing decisions. Those who remember the shiny packaged economic bombs called subprime mortgages that triggered the most significant economic crisis since the Great Depression should be very wary of this proposal.
HB 2011, introduced on January 15, proposed decreasing the ad valorem tax rate imposed by a school district. Shortly afterward, that bill disappeared quietly.
While researching background information for this column, I came across the Tax Foundation’s web page, a nonpartisan tax policy analysis group. I didn’t review all the website’s information, but I did find an article analyzing Kansas’s property valuation system and the potential effects of policy changes. The author advocates for a levy limit and discusses the impacts of that versus limits on valuations. The article link is here if you wish to read more.
As we near the end of a very short legislative session which will be remembered more for posturing, virtue signaling, bullying and trashing the First Amendment than a serious effort to effect positive change in the lives of everyday Kansans, I am left staring at my property tax bill and wondering if there is anyone left in Reno County who represents working-class homeowners.
By Gina Long
Mr. Glenn visited Topeka this week to speak with Hutchinson's elected officials. Results were mixed; you can read about his experiences in his opinion column.
I have been tuning in periodically to see if the legislature will take any action on property tax relief.
Not
CAPTION: Making red wine braised beef is a bit of a labor of love, but the rich flavors and tender vegetables produced by this recipe make it well worth the effort.
By Lindsey Young
Several years ago, my parents gifted me with a gorgeous, red braising pot.
It’s
To begin Spring Break this year, I went to Topeka. Going to our statehouse is something that I try to do at least once a state legislative session.
I’ve always been a preacher of government accountability and transparency: it’s important to have watchdogs who keep our government officials to their word– or at least let you know when they don’t.
If you read my statehouse coverage this year, you may have realized it was a bit lighter than in years past. For the two days I was there I was only able to write a few pieces. I wanted to write more, but there simply wasn’t much going on at the statehouse those days.
You also may have realized that there wasn’t any comment from one of Reno County’s legislators. That representative was Kyler Sweely.
Before I drove up to Topeka on Sunday, I messaged all of the legislators I knew I wanted to get an interview with: Rep. Paul Waggoner, Sen. Michael Murphy and Sweely. I wanted to give them enough time to carve out 10-15 minutes to talk to me.
Waggoner and Murphy both got back to me within a short period of time, and we had a productive and meaningful conversation, as shown in my stories. With Sweely, however, I’ll just show you the response I got.
Sweely didn’t have time to talk to me. In other words, Sweely didn’t have time to talk to you, the readers.
I still wanted to get comment from our representative, but I wasn’t going to chase him down. I figured my only shot would be to try and catch him walking in and out of the House convening to do business for the day.
When they were wrapping up, I headed down a side staircase to ensure I could catch him.
Boy, was I wrong!
He’s pretty fast, faster than I thought, because when I started walking down all I saw was him and Rep. Avery Anderson, a Newton Republican who helped him get elected and is a friend of his, strutting down another staircase.
He offered to have me email him while in Topeka. I didn’t think that was fair to you, readers. I drove two and a half hours to communicate in person with the people whose salaries we pay. An email just wasn’t going to cut it.
Here’s why email is bad:
I can’t ask any follow-up questions about any answers.
He can articulate, down to the punctuation and word choice, what he wants to say. While of course, you can do that while talking, you do sound different when you email compared to when you speak.
How do I even know who’s writing the responses? It’s sent from his email, but there’s no way of knowing that his responses aren’t getting sent to a PR person who reviews and refines it. Or the PR person writes it all together.
Admittedly, I probably let Sweely email me his thoughts longer than I should have. I wanted to cut him slack since he was simply a candidate until January, but when I’m paying your salary, you better speak up.
Maybe I’m making a big mistake. Maybe he legitimately was busy. Let’s take a look at Sweely’s schedule for those days.
9 a.m.: Financial Institutions and Pensions Committee (sounds amusing): Meeting on Call of the Chair was the only business called for that day. That means they weren’t meeting. It wasn’t streamed on the Kansas Legislature’s YouTube either.
11 a.m.: House Calls into Session. I was there for this, and they recessed a little after Noon until 4 p.m.
1:30 p.m. Higher Education Budget Committee meeting. Meeting on Call of the Chair. Come on man, really? Again?
3:30 p.m. Judiciary Committee Hearing. I was personally there for this one, and they actually did do stuff.
Just from Monday’s schedule alone, it sounds like Sweely had a lot of free time to talk to one of the few remaining journalists from his district about issues that impact it. But, to no avail.
Every other legislator I wanted to talk to, I got ahold of. Waggoner and I probably spoke for 15 – 20 minutes about a number of policies that he either supported or didn’t. He told me why he supported or opposed those policies. I thanked him for his time and went on.
This is how it’s supposed to work.
I spoke with Murphy for probably around 10-15 minutes. He legitimately had a busy schedule, vice-chairing a committee and being on three others.
Rep. Kevin Schwertfeger, the rural representative for most of the county, spoke with me for 15-20 minutes as well. He brought up multiple pieces of legislation and information that he thought would be helpful to me because he believed that they would benefit his community.
From all of this, we see three legislators who understand that talking to the press is a part of their job. Three legislators took the time out of their day to speak with one of the few journalists remaining in their district.
Evidently, one of our new legislators hasn’t picked that up yet.
I’m disappointed in our legislator. I’m disappointed that he didn’t want to talk to me or let any of you know what he would like to do with the seat we elected him to.
Maybe we can change that. Here’s my challenge to you, the readers. I would like you to get a hold of Sweely in any way possible except by email. This can include a phone call to his office (785) 296-7695, a letter to his office (Room number 512-N) or a visit to his office if you find yourself in Topeka.
Let’s make sure we can hold our legislators accountable.
By Michael Glenn
To begin Spring Break this year, I went to Topeka. Going to our statehouse is something that I try to do at least once a state legislative session.
I’ve always been a preacher of government accountability and transparency: it’s important to have watchdogs who
The 1861 Club on the Kansas State Fairgrounds will host “Hats and Horses” Kentucky Derby party on May 3 and the 20th annual “Boots and Bling” fundraiser on Aug. 9 CREDIT RICHARD SHANK
Spring has sprung, and the Kansas State Fair is open for business to host non-fair events, including a Kentucky Derby party and the 20th annual “Boots and Bling” fundraising auction.
Coinciding with the actual Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs May 3 in Louisville, Kentucky, partygoers will gather in the 1861 Club on the Kansas State Fairgrounds for the first annual “Hats and Horses,” a fundraising event sponsored by the Kansas Fairgrounds Foundation (KFF).
Sponsorships are available for tables of 6 or 10, along with individual tickets for festivities scheduled to kick off at 4 p.m. and last as long as participants choose to stay.
Dubbed the “Newest Luxury Fundraising event,” “Hats and Horses” will include a Derby-inspired menu, Mint Juleps, with the actual race simulcasted on a big screen and 15 large television sets situated throughout the 1861 Club. Derby attire contests will be a part of the festivities, along with other ways to support and cheer on your favorite horses.
Also, the 20th annual “Boots and Bling,” the foundation’s top fundraiser, is scheduled for August 9 in the Meadowlark Building. Approximately 700 attend the event each year, which includes a live and silent auction. Following the live auction, attendees are treated to food, drinks, live music, and a party. Table sponsorships and individual tickets are available.
More companies, organizations and individuals are booking the 1861 Club for events such as corporate meetings, retirement parties, wedding receptions, annual dinners, and graduation parties.
Nearly 600 non-fair events are held on the Kansas State Fairgrounds each year.
The proceeds from all Kansas Fairgrounds Foundation fundraisers are earmarked to support improvements to the Kansas State Fairgrounds. The foundation’s vision, established at the time of the organization’s inception, is to inspire excellence and understanding of the Kansas agriculture industry and culture through the Kansas State Fair. The 2025 Kansas State Fair opens at 11 a.m. on Friday, September 5.
The 1861 Club on the Kansas State Fairgrounds will host "Hats and Horses" Kentucky Derby party on May 3 and the 20th annual "Boots and Bling" fundraiser on Aug. 9 CREDIT RICHARD SHANK
By Richard Shank
Spring has sprung, and the Kansas State Fair is open for
By John Mesh
The NJCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament will be held at the historic Hutchinson Sports Arena for the 77th consecutive year dating back to 1949.
The NJCAA men’s basketball tournament schedule tips off Saturday with a new schedule. The tournament used to start on
The City of Hutchinson is beginning road construction on 30th Avenue Monday, March 24, and will be closing a portion of the street.
The City will begin a roadway improvement project on W 30th Street between N Main St and N Adams. The project will involve the removal of the existing road, curb and gutter on the north side of 30th Street. The road will be narrowed to create space for a new multi-use trail along the north side.
In addition to removing the old road infrastructure, crews will install a new base, asphalt pavement, curb and gutter and pavement markings, and perform grading in the affected areas. This work will help improve both the safety and accessibility of the street for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.
During construction, thru traffic will be closed between Main and Adams streets. Motorists are advised to follow the posted detour route via 17th Avenue, Monroe Street, and Main Street. Residents will have access to 30th Street, but there will be lane changes, lane reductions, and active construction in the area.
The closure of thru traffic will begin Monday, March 24th, and the project is expected to last approximately seven weeks. Drivers and pedestrians are encouraged to use caution and follow all detour signs in place during construction.
CAPTION: CREDIT CITY OF HUTCHINSON
The City of Hutchinson is beginning road construction on 30th Avenue Monday, March 24, and will be closing a portion of the street.
The City will begin a roadway improvement project on W 30th Street between N Main St and N Adams.