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A Leavenworth man has pleaded no contest to charges stemming from a shootout and a pursuit, according to a news release from the County Attorney's Office.

Another amenity is now complete and open for public use at the Basehor Civic Campus. A ribbon cutting ceremony was held recently for the splash pad, located just north of the Basehor City Hall building.Mayor Dick Drennon briefly spoke prior to the ribbon cutting, thanking everyone in attendance as well as members of the Basehor City Council and administration. “I cannot put into words how proud I am of our City Council and their dedication to meeting the needs of our community. Seeing all of these wonderful new features behind me shows their commitment to our city and to providing quality of life amenities to our residents. Today is just the start,” Drennon said.In addition to the members of the Basehor City Council, the mayor also thanked City Administrator Leslee Rivarola and Deputy City Administrator Maddie Bouton for their hard work in bringing this project across the finish line. In addition, Drennon recognized GBA, Doug Pickert of Indigo Designs, Crossland Construction and the subcontractors who worked long hours, often in the heat, to complete the projects on the Civic Campus.Other amenities are yet to be completed, but progress is being made. The playground should be completed in another week once the rubberized surface is installed. Also on the horizon is a pond which will be stocked with fish as well as a dock for fishing. A sledding hill should be ready for action once the first snow hits this winter. In 2025, more trails will be completed to help with access to several of the features, including an amphitheater.Susan Marquardt and her three children were among those in attendance at what was dubbed "the first splash of the season." Two of her children attend nearby Grey Hawk Elementary School so they were especially excited to see the project finally complete.“We couldn’t miss the opening of the splash pad. It’s kind of cool tonight, so we made sure the kids put on long-sleeved shirts. They are really excited for this,” she said.While the main attraction of the evening was definitely the splash pad, the Basehor Community Library also took advantage of the people attending to offer a scavenger hunt and face painting. The Friends of the Basehor Library distributed bookmarks to help publicize their upcoming Oct. 4-6 book sale.The new Basehor Kiwanis Club distributed plastic buckets to children heading to the splash pad as well as information about an upcoming bicycle rodeo which will be held on Sept. 14 beginning at 9 a.m. at the Basehor-Linwood Early Learning Center located at 15880 Garden Parkway. The rodeo will consist of a safety class, training course, bicycle inspections and helmet giveaways. For children already having a helmet, they are encouraged to bring it to ensure a proper fit for safety purposes. Basehor Velo Cycling Group and Santa Fe Trails Bicycle and Coffee Shop will be on hand to help with the rodeo.

A woman has pleaded guilty to crimes related to the stealing of more than $42,000 from an Easton woman who was under her guardianship, according to a news release from the County Attorney's Office.

John Richmeier/Leavenworth Times A Lansing man who cleared nearly 100 of his neighbor’s trees without permission so he could put up a hunting stand has… Login to continue reading Login Sign up for complimentary access Sign Up Now Close

John Richmeier/Leavenworth Times Leavenworth County commissioners discussed funding for the Leavenworth County Port Authority when they met this week. But commissioners took no action on… Login to continue reading Login Sign up for complimentary access Sign Up Now Close

The 31st Holy-Field Vineyard & Winery grape harvest got underway this month in Basehor. It is the oldest operating winery in Kansas. Last Sunday, founder Michelle Meyer welcomed about 30 local and Kansas City metro area volunteer pickers who arrived at 8 a.m. to harvest one of the varietal grapes, Vignoles, at the vineyard.Meyer said her father, Lester J. Meyer, purchased 400 vines in about 1986 to begin the vineyard. She joined her father for the first harvest in 1994. Michelle Meyer shared a quote her father often said: “There is nothing a grapevine likes better than the caring shadow of its owner.” The father-daughter duo grew that initial venture to today’s 17 acres of 11 grape varietals from which the winery produces 20 distinctive wines. Lester Meyer passed away Nov. 30, 2023. His obituary shared the memory: “He was quick to offer you a sample of his beloved port wine and declare, ‘Makes your gooder feel better!’” Carrying on the first harvest since her father’s passing, Michelle Meyer paced the rows between the vines last Sunday as the pickers spread out to clip and gather clusters of Vignoles. Vignoles is the official white wine grape of the state of Kansas. Meyer explains how harvesting Vignoles at different times affects the winemaking process. “These are all Vignoles grapes,” Meyer explained, pointing to a marked section. “The difference is I don’t pick all the Vignoles at the same time. I pick this early in the season because I’m going to finish it dry and I don’t want high alcohol and then you have higher acids which kind of go hand and hand with a dryer wine. I let this (sweet Vignoles) hang for about a couple more weeks so the sugars go up, then I can finish with about a 4% residual sweetness.”If that sounds like science, it is. Meyer is continually monitoring and testing for brix - the sugar level - in grapes on the vines. She knows how much rain fell on what days last week. She can also readily recite what the temperature was, what it’s predicted to be and what affect that is going to have on different grapes in different parts of the vineyard.Meyer is in near-constant motion, evidenced by her athletic physique. She sports an organic suntan. Her trademark mane of platinum blonde hair makes her easy to spot in the field. Her expressions during the harvest ranged from a squinting examination of clipped grape clusters to an instant broad, bright smile for the pickers and her crew. She’s happy to have a conversation with anyone who can walk at a brisk pace beside her.Pickers ranged in age from 3 to 87. Some came for the first time while others come every year. They come for different reasons. Among the pickers Sunday was Homer Garrison, of Shawnee, who said he’s been coming to the harvests since 2009. “I enjoy it - for an 87-year-old guy,” Garrison quipped. “I enjoy the outdoors. They are good grapes. Michelle grows a good crop. Michelle and family, they treat me like a king here. I like their wine. My favorite is called Tailgate Red - and I like the Vignoles.”Meyer explained that how a wine is finished is the creative part of the process. She prefers to allow her grapes some room for self-expression.“All of the grapes have individual characteristics and the winemaker’s job is to bring out the best of those characteristics in the wine,” Meyer said. “You have to identify that and see what its best potential is. I personally don’t like over-oaked white wine because it covers up all the fruit. The key to sweet wine is the balance of the acidity.”Not all grapes by the same name will finish the same.“Some people might say ‘I don’t like Seyval’ – they don’t like that grape. And I say, ‘Well, you might not have found the Seyval wine that you like yet. It’s not that you don’t like the grape because every winery is going to put their own interpretation on it, in the bottle,’” Meyer said.Holy-Field Vineyard & Winery is a Kansas agritourism business that has many layers of customer experiences. Next to the vineyard is the winery shop where customers can purchase a wine sampling option from a list of available bottles of wine. Holy-Field wine products are also available at four farmers markets: Bonner Springs, Leavenworth, Lenexa and Overland Park. Harvest picking dates for the 2024 harvest season are Sundays from August to the first Sunday in October. Picking begins at 8 a.m. Reservations are required. The winery also hosts a Summer of Music series on Friday nights from May through mid-August.The 2024 Oktoberfest is noon to 4 p.m. Oct. 12, featuring The Alpen Spielers German Polka Band. The event is also the annual release of the Holy-Field wine-filled chocolates. The limited-edition confections are only available from October through the holiday season while supplies last.Dueling Pianos events are scheduled for Oct. 27 and Nov. 17 at the winery. Also on the schedule are two murder mystery dinners, "Murder on the Disoriented Express" in October and "Murder at Bonny & Clyde’s Holiday Party" in December. For more information about Holy-Field wines and events, visit them on Facebook www.facebook.com/holyfieldwinery or Instagram http://instagram.com/holyfieldwinery The shop is open 7 days a week at 18807 158th St. in Basehor. Their website is www.holyfieldwinery.com

With Camp Leavenworth now about one month away, city commissioners received an update this week about the festival.