Why Sedgwick County plans to burn parkland

17 March 2023

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Sometime in the next three weeks, drivers may see smoke coming from the northeast corner of Sedgwick County.

The Sedgwick County Parks Department plans to do a controlled burn at Northeast Sedgwick County Park, at 127th Street East and 77th Street North.

Many people may not realize there is a park in that corner of the county. It’s 600 acres of grass and woods. The County website encourages people to use it for hiking, walking dogs, and riding horses. There’s even a YouTube video for the park.

Parks Department officials say they need to burn the park to get rid of old thatch and trees that are taking over the grassland.


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The controlled burn will happen between Monday, March 20, and Friday, April 7, when weather conditions are appropriate.

The County says crews will put fire breaks around the perimeter of each burn site to ensure control of the flames.

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