Wyandotte County has the third highest average wages paid of all 105 Kansas counties according to 2013 data from the Kansas Department of Labor.

Wyandotte County's average annual wage for all workers are $45,552.  Wyandotte County perennially ranks near the top of Kansas counties in terms of average annual wages.

Johnson County ranks second in the latest report with an annual average wage of $51,012. Sedgwick County (Wichita), ranks fourth in the annual earnings survey with an average wage of $44,616.  The statewide average of all counties is $41, 548.

The 2013 Labor report shows improvement in Wyandotte County worker wages over 2012 when the average was $44,980.

Coffey County (Burlington) has the highest average wages of all Kansas counties because that's where the Wolf Creek Nuclear Power Plant is located and those special skilled jobs pay high wages.

The chart below compares urban counties. 

County                   Avg Wages (2013)              Avg Wages, Rank

JOHNSON COUNTY             $51,012                                     2

WYANDOTTE COUNTY         $45,552                                     3

SEDGWICK COUNTY           $44,616                                     4

LEAVENWORTH COUNTY     $42,068                                     6

SHAWNEE COUNTY             $41,132                                     7

A brand new Walmart Neighborhood Grocery officially opened for business in Argentine on Wednesday. The doors opened following a special grand opening and ribbon cutting event held in front of the new grocery.

Commissioner Ann Murguia was presented with the LEAFS Award (Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability) by the EPA's Region 7 Administrator, Karl Brooks, for her ongoing efforts to revitalize the community through redevelopment projects that successfully remediate and reuse old and abandon Superfund sites. The site was once home to Kansas City Structural Steel more than 20-years ago.  

"The Argentine Community has a spirit that you can feel its heartbeat from 25 to 30 miles away. We were welcome to work with a community that had a strong idea of what it wanted and this site was transformed," said Brooks. "The Environmental Protection Agency was privileged to work with the Argentine neighborhood on this."

In addition to the new Walmart, Argentine also has a new Save-A-Lot grocery store and Dollar General that was recently constructed on the same brownfield site.

Murguia kept mentioning the next project was a Walmart gas station, which appeared to gather momentum among the speakers and the crowd as well.

"Our UG staff worked tirelessly to present Walmart with an incentive package that our Board of Commission unanimously approved. This would not have happened without their vote and their support and I greatly appreciate them," Murguia said looking at her fellow Commissioners.

She went on to thank a host of other supporters, organizations, and staff for their efforts in making the project successful. Walmart also generously donated several thousand dollars to local schools in Argentine and organizations such as El Centro, the Kansas City Kansas Police Department and a few others.

Immediately following the program, shoppers filled the aisles of their newest local grocery.

Also in attendance for the ribbon cutting and grand opening event were Kansas Lt. Governor Jeff Colyer, Kansas Secretary of Commerce Pat George, and Mike King, Kansas Secretary of Transportation. 

The Unified Government in partnership with local organizations will host a job fair on Tuesday, September 23^rd from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Jack Reardon Convention Center located at 520 Minnesota Avenue.

Mayor Mark Holland and Commissioner Brian McKiernan invite you to join them for the Grand Opening of the new Amourdale Hike and Bike Route on Saturday, September 20, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. This special grand opening will be held under the Kansas Ave. Bridge on the West side of Amourdale.

The Armourdale Hike and Bike - Island View Loop was named after the famous river island that can be seen from the levee and is the first ever recreational access river levee trail in Wyandotte County.

The 1.3 new mile route was made possible through the partnership with the Kaw Valley Drainage District and future upgrades are planned.