Category: Sedgwick county government

  • Sedgwick County Employees Grow Faster Than Population

    Here’s a chart that shows the number of Sedgwick County residents for each Sedgwick County employee: Although there have been ups and downs, the trend is that Sedgwick County employee count is growing faster than the county’s population.

  • How are Tim Norton and Marcey Gregory For Low Taxes in Sedgwick County?

    Richard Taylor, President of the Building and Construction Trades Council of South Central Kansas, in a news story stated “Marcy Gregory and Tim Norton are for low taxes and they are for jobs and people.” I don’t know where Mr. Taylor learned about these two candidates, but stating that both are for low taxes must…

  • Marcey Gregory Ad Fact Check

    A recent advertisement by Sedgwick County Commission Candidate Marcey Gregory in the October 12, 2008 Wichita Eagle contained a few points that deserve comment and clarification. First, the ad, as part of a checklist of attributes or characteristics of Gregory, has the item “Lower taxes.” If she’s proclaiming that we need lower taxes, voters only…

  • What Ray Frederick Forgot to Include about Marcey Gregory

    Editor’s note: the original version of this article contained an error in arithmetic, which has been corrected. In Sunday’s Wichita Eagle, Wichita businessman Ray Frederick wrote a letter supporting Marcey Gregory for the Sedgwick County Commission. In listing her qualifications, he wrote “Gregory is for low taxes.” That doesn’t square with Gregory’s recent actions. On…

  • Are airlines pilots the best judge of airline economics?

    I’m not positive about this, but I’m sure that the demand for air travel between Wichita and Oklahoma City is very low. Google maps tells me that the driving time from one city’s downtown to the other is two hours and 30 minutes. The drive to a city’s airport, arriving way early to make sure…

  • Being Open and Transparent: A Sedgwick County Commissioner’s View

    Yesterday (August 27, 2008) I testified briefly at a meeting of the Sedgwick County Commission opposing the formation of a tax increment financing (TIF) district that will benefit a Wichita political insider. My concern that I wanted the commissioners to be aware of is was that the applicant, Wichita school board member Reverend Kevass Harding,…

  • Campaigning for my Precinct Race

    Two weeks ago, Kansas held its primary elections. As part of the primary, we elect precinct committeeman and committeewomen. It’s sort of confusing, as everyone else on the ballot goes on to face a challenger in the November general election. But for the precinct races, it ends in August. Earlier this year someone convinced me…

  • In Sedgwick County, New Technology vs. Old School

    I was one of the two campaign co-managers for Karl Peterjohn’s successful campaign for the Republican nomination for Sedgwick County Commissioner, third district. As such I was invited to the election night party where we watched the returns roll in. I had my laptop computer with me, connected to the outside world by a wireless…

  • Predictions of Downtown Wichita Arena’s Success are Premature

    Several Wichita Eagle editorials in recent weeks have mentioned the success of the Intrust Arena being built in downtown Wichita. Success, I might ask, at doing what? The fact that the arena structure is rising is evidence of only the smallest measure of competence by Sedgwick County officials. Having entrusted them with some two hundred…