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Weekend in Wichita: $5 chili cook-off, Open Streets ICT and a business expo highlight community calendar
Summary
City briefing outlined several upcoming events: the Wichita Wagon Masters chili cook-off (low-cost fundraiser supporting Good Life grants), Open Streets ICT (2.5 miles of Douglas closed to cars), and the Wichita Business Expo at INTRUST Bank Arena on Sept. 30. Other items included a volunteer cleanup and a United Way resource guide release.
City leaders used the briefing to highlight several community events this weekend and next week.
Andy Smith (Wichita Wagon Masters, 2025 Chili Dipper) said the downtown chili cook-off will be an inexpensive fundraiser—"It only cost $5"—with dozens of competing teams and vendors. Smith said the event typically draws thousands; he described approximately 53 teams and said organizers expect attendance in the low thousands and "probably 1,300–1,400 gallons of chili" (as reported in the briefing).
Angela Buckner (superintendent of recreation) described Open Streets ICT, scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 28, from noon to 4 p.m. She said the city will close about 2.5 miles of Douglas Avenue from Grove to Seneca for walking, biking and family activities, with three main hubs at Kennedy Plaza, NASCAR Park and East High School, more than 125 vendors and last year’s attendance reported at about 25,000. Buckner said Wichita Transit will offer free electric bus rides along the route and that Douglas Avenue will be closed to vehicles from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Chelsea Dyer (senior director of investor development, Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce) said the Wichita Business Expo will take place Tuesday, Sept. 30, noon–4 p.m. at INTRUST Bank Arena. Dyer said the free expo will feature more than 100 businesses, educational sessions, speed networking and partners including the city of Wichita, Sedgwick County and USD 259.
Other civic updates: the mayor announced Operation City Shine, a volunteer cleanup hosted by Kansas Freemasons on Saturday, Oct. 4 (volunteers meet 8:00–8:30 a.m. at the Walmart on South Broadway), and noted United Way of the Plains published a fall 2025 one‑page resource guide listing services and the 2‑1‑1 resource line.
Logistics, attendance figures and quantities reported during the briefing were presented as approximate by speakers. For more event details, the briefing cited openstreetsict.com and wichitachamber.org.
