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Wichita, Kansas

Population: 344,284
Located in Sedgwick County

Wichita, the largest city in the state, has the state's largest buildings, biggest industries, and most venturesome businesses. It is also the largest metropolitan area in the state with nearly one-fifth of the state's population. It is home to more than 330,000 people living in neighborhoods scattered over 120 square miles. Wichita encompasses some 203,000 households with a mean household income of $38,000. The population has grown steadily over the past decade with roughly 31,000 newcomers arriving since the early 1980s.

Wichita is full of fun things to see and do! Home to a unique blend of museums, remarkable performing arts, entertaining music theater, classic comedies and nightlife, Wichita offers entertainment for even the most discerning.

At the award winning Sedgwick County Zoo, animals are presented in their natural environment. Botanica-The Wichita Gardens provides a haven of beauty. The new Great Plains Nature Center offers nature trails and indoor exhibits of the wildlife native to the area.

There's all-out fun amusement park, recreational parks and municipal and private golf courses. More than 136 municipal parks and playgrounds cover nearly 3,000 acres in the city and county. The Park Board offers a bike system of more than 100 miles, much along rivers and landscaped picnic areas.

Wichita's extravaganza of museums focus on preserving the past. The Wichita/Sedgwick County Historical Museum chronicles Wichita's early years through artifacts, historical photographs, slides and films. In addition, Old Cowtown Museum offers a memorable opportunity to explore the past of Wichita and Sedgwick County. This frontier town of more than 30 authentically furnished buildings features a hands-on experience with the past including a working blacksmith shop and dramatic re-enactments. Adjacent 1880 DeVore Farm depicts country life, complete with farm animals and buildings. The Mid-American All-Indian Center showcases the cultural contributions and heritage of America's Plains Indians. The Kansas African American Museum exhibits the black heritage of early Wichitans.

However, the future is not forgotten. Exploration Place, a new futuristic learning, creative and community gathering center, offers hands-on opportunities to explore a twenty-foot tornado in a tank and to investigate how airplanes and birds fly. The 98,500 sq. ft. complex, designed by internationally acclaimed architect Moshe Safdie of Boston, to take maximum advantage of the 20 acre river-front site, features four major indoor theme pavilions, outdoor exhibits, two theaters, simulation center, and a park. It also features a community-built science and arts play yard, retail store and café.

The arts have always prospered here, thanks to the generous support and interest of many Wichita residents. The Wichita Symphony, founded in 1944, is one of the community's most vibrantly successful examples of what a culturally conscious community can produce with sheer enthusiasm and talent. Theater thrives, playing to packed houses in venues ranging from experimental theater to Music Theatre, which every summer showcases Broadway talent, to year-round professional Dinner Theater.

Art has even taken to the street! In the heart of downtown, Douglas Avenue has been transformed into an open-air gallery with the addition of 12 bronze sculptures. The works range from a lone guitar player, to a child playing hopscotch, to a cow, and a pony.

We invite you to get involved in what our community has to offer. Submerge yourself in the peace of our parks and riverbanks. Enjoy the wonderment of unexpectedly encountering art in one form or another - sculptures, murals, fountains, landscaping and architecture.

For those with a competitive edge, Wichita is teaming with sports. Every season brings excitement. Wichita State University's baseball team is always at the top of the college ranks. The Wichita Wranglers, affiliated with the Kansas City Royals, play at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium in downtown Wichita. Wichita has been the home of the National Baseball Congress for over half a century, and the championship tournament continues to attract the best non-professional teams from all over the U.S.

The 11,500 seat Kansas Coliseum hosts a wide variety of sporting events including the Wichita Thunder hockey, Stealth arena football, Wichita Wings Soccer, plus rodeos and concerts. The Wichita Greyhound Park offers pari-mutuel wagering for fun-loving race fans from Kansas and surrounding states. The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission was established in 1997 and attracts, promotes and supports a wide range of youth, amateur and professional sporting programs and events.

The Wichita River Festival, a ten-day extravaganza of some 80 events, draws a quarter of a million visitors and citizens together every May. The Festival entertains spectators with parades, music, fireworks, athletic contests, and food. It begins with a parade in which half the city participates and the other half watches. It ends with the Twilight Pops Concert featuring the Wichita Symphony Orchestra, a heart-stopping fly-over of military jet aircraft, climaxing in a magnificent fireworks display.

The many cultural influences and diverse population in the city give Wichita a cosmopolitan mix. Accordingly, our calendar is punctuated with ethnic festivals that celebrate the diversity of heritages that give Wichita so much of its zest. The Mexican Cinco de Mayo, German Oktoberfest, the Wichita Asian Festival, the Black Arts Festival and Native American Pow Wows create cross-cultural opportunities for the enjoyment of good food, good music and new friends.

Two of the region's largest shopping malls are the flagships of retail

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