I finally got out to see Spider-man (great movie btw) a few days ago. Do you have a go-to movie theatre in Wichita?

Anyways, let’s get to it!

- Landon

Downtown Wichita Action Plan

The Final Draft of the Downtown Wichita Action Plan is now live.

What does that mean?

A year long process consisting of a design firm named Sasaki and community engagement has laid out what the community as a whole should do over the next 10 years.

I haven’t spent a ton of time with it yet, but from a WBJ summary, here are a few things that stood out:

Designating 8 mix-use districts anchored by major landmarks or intersections
That includes an arena district by Intrust Bank Arena, Music & Arts Hub, Biomedical District around the new school, and more
Adding a high-frequency (every 15 min) downtown shuttle

Amongst many other things, I suggest you read it yourself.

Together with Backyard Specialists

If you’ve ever wondered what those random playsets are off of k-96 near Sam’s Club, let me introduce you to Backyard Specialists.

Backyard Specialists is locally owned and operated.

They opened up in 2008 and have built one of the most trusted local brands providing outdoor play sets, basketball hoops, spring free trampolines, poly furniture, and more (including installation which is a life saver).

Mention Wichita Life and get $100 off a Backyard Adventure Swing Set today!

We trust Backyard Specialists with our backyard and we highly recommend you check them out.

LOCAL BUSINESS

Opening

Sinclair gas station - 45th N & Woodlawn in Bel Aire - Opening TBD
Buckets Ca Phe (Vietnamese Coffee shop) - 4100 E Harry (former Powerhouse Nutrition ICT) - Openign TBD
Equity Bank - 21st & Arkansas - First Branch opening in 8 years - Date TBD
Willie C’s Revival - Returning for 3 days (August 21 - 23) at Venue 3130 at 3130 W Central
Pho 316 - 6157 E Harry (former Daikon Cafe and Little VietNam Kitchen) - Now Open
Sabrosura - 2648 N Arkansas Ave - Now Open

Rooftop Patio

Who doesn’t love a rooftop patio?

Delano is about to get ANOTHER (shout out Wichita Brewing Company) rooftop patio when Flatlanders Brewing opens at 623 W Douglas right next to Picasso’s.

It opens in a few weeks.

Anniversary

Tillie’s - Celebrating 150 years with a 60,000 rose giveaway!

What is your business anniversary?

Downtown Apartments

There are 200+ more luxury apartments coming downtown to the corner of Washington Avenue and Waterman as the City Council just approved an encroachment agreement.

NONPROFIT

Grumpy Old Men

The legend John Legend is coming to the Orpheum on August 30th to help kick off the $13-million restoration reopening.

This is in large thanks to the Grumpy Old Men. No, that isn’t a jab at these old fellas, it is the name of their philanthropic organization.

The Revivalists will also be performing at The Orpheum on September 26th.

Wichita Children’s Home

Ground was broken on Wednesday for the new Center for Children’s Healing and a new maternity group home for the Wichita Children’s Home.

🍽️ Wichita Life Dinner Club 🍽️

August is here!

Come out and make some friends!

Here’s how it works:

🍽️ Take a quick quiz about your personality, interests, and food preferences.

✨ Get matched with five other Wichitans who fit your vibe (food preferences, budget, life stage, etc.).

📍 Your table of six meets for dinner on Tuesday, August 25th — the exact restaurant is revealed that morning.

🥂 After dinner, all groups are invited to a casual after-meetup to keep the conversation going (more on that below).

👉 Take the quiz & grab your seat ›

If you’ve been wanting to meet new people in town, this might be the easiest (and most fun) way to do it.

CIVIL

New Fitness Court

There is a brand new Fitness Court at Osage Park at 2121 W 31st St S.

Middle School Heat

We all know it is hot out, but most of us are blessed with some sort of AC.

School just started and the Pleasant Valley Middle School gym has no AC.

There are more than 10 school buildings where gyms don’t have AC in the Wichita Public School district.

Cell Phone Ban

Did you know cell phones are banned this year at Wichita Public Schools? Did you kids have anything to say about this yesterday?

School Board Seat

There is an open Wichita school board seat for District 3 and the board is taking applications.

LOCAL

Somewhere Fest Lineup Additions

Somewhere Fest has added a few new artists to join the already existing lineup.

Some of the new entries include:

ERNEST, Cooper Alan, Eli & Fur & more!

Autumn & Art

Congrats to local talent Tarah Clark on being named our 17th Featured Artist for Autumn & Art!

Free Fall Concerts

Exploration Place is bringing eight free concerts to the Wichita riverfront this fall, featuring national touring artists across a variety of genres. Shows run Thursday evenings from Sept. 3 through Oct. 29.