Visiting Chanute

You will experience a Warm Kansas Welcome in Chanute. Award winning efforts have restored the downtown business district to a beautiful, thriving place to shop and have fun. The South Santa Fe areas also offer a variety of shops and merchandise. Prices are reasonable, a wide selection is available and parking is plentiful.

Chanute’s progress and success is attributable to a “pro-active” City Commission and the professional guidance of our City Manager and staff. Combine these attributes with a strong supportive Chamber of Commerce and Main Street program and you have a great place to visit, do business, earn a living and raise a family.

Chanute’s professional Fire and Police Departments are equipped with State-of-the-Art equipment and offer 24-hour services to the community. Many of the city offices are located in the renovated Memorial Building, providing a central location for easy access. The city provides full-service utilities, which guarantees the best in service and competitive rates for citizen, business and industrial customers.

Chanute’s Martin Johnson Municipal Airport has experienced continuous updating to meet today’s flying requirements of mid-size corporate jets. The fixed base operator offers fuel, storage, pilot’s lounge, courtesy and rental car services 24-hours a day, 7-days a week.

Unified School District 413 is committed to creating, providing and maintaining an educational environment that promotes the physical, mental and social development of each individual. We believe the education of our children and youth is a cooperative venture with active responsibility shared by the partners in education: home, community, and school. The school district includes four elementary schools, one middle school and one comprehensive high school. Several private schools are available.

Neosho County Community College offers a variety of educational opportunities, including two-year associate degrees, transfer programs, certificates, vocational training, continuing education and lifetime learning. The college also has agreements with Pittsburg State University and Emporia State University where students can earn a variety of options due to a new interactive television classroom that allows NCCC to share course offerings with other colleges via a two-way television communication system.

NCCC also has an excellent training and retraining program to prepare unemployed, dislocated, or newly returning adults to the workforce. In addition, NCCC is a central location for a variety of career placement services and works directly with local unemployment agencies. Several federally funded grants have allowed the college to also help those students who may be academically challenged. Many students qualify for financial assistance and free tutoring is available to all students.

Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center serves a four county area providing a variety of acute and outpatient care services. This county-owned facility has attracted an outstanding medical staff including specialists in the fields of: family medicine, internal medicine, orthopedics, obstetrics & gynecology, urology, general surgery and pediatrics.

We are very proud of the quality of life in Chanute. Browse through the Chanute Tribune, our daily newspaper, or listen to KKOY AM/FM or KINZ FM, our local radio stations. You will enjoy the advantages of our city’s size, big enough but not too big. You can feel secure about a walk in the park or about your children walking to and from school. Enjoy the friendliness that is one of our major resources, and you will soon understand why people think our community is a great place to visit or live. No matter what your age group, Chanute has something to offer. Try our quality of life and you will feel at “home”.

Chanute is blessed with excellent recreational possibilities. The Chanute Recreation and Parks Commission program is recognized as one of the best in the state. Athletics for youth and adults; instructional and cultural programs as well as special events make up a year round program. The city has one of the largest pools in southeast Kansas with its 120-foot waterslide a favorite summertime attraction. Lighted tennis and outdoor basketball courts, two community buildings and a 40 acre lake for boating and fishing are just some of the excellent facilities located in the six city parks that cover over 300 acres. Besides local support, the Santa Fe sports complex with six softball fields and the Katy baseball diamond annually draw tournaments and visitors from around the state and region. If golf is more your speed, the fairways at the Safari Golf Course on 35th Street or the Chanute Country Club provide a relaxing environment in which to spend an afternoon. For the outdoor sportsman, Chanute lies in the middle of an excellent hunting and fishing region. Local hunting outfitters can provide tips on how to bag trophy deer, quail, turkey, raccoons, and other game. The 1873 Austin Bridge was recently moved into Santa Fe Park. The Bridge is constructed of cast iron and is believed to be the longest bowstring arch bridge of that era in the United States. If you want to take a hike the Bridge serves as the southern terminus of a 3.11 mile hike/bike path. 

The Chanute Art Gallery and Martin and Osa Johnson Safari Museum are jewels set in the heart of downtown. The Gallery offers changing exhibits featuring local and nationally known artists. An annual feature is a two-day quilt show. The Safari Museum showcases the story of Martin and Osa who photographed Africa, the South Seas and Borneo from 1917 to 1936. A significant exhibit of African art and artifacts occupy the first floor of the Museum. The Museum is located in the restored 1902 Santa Fe Depot.

The oldest Mexican Fiesta celebration, in Kansas, complete with authentic food, music and dance is held each fall. The Artist Alley Festival the last Saturday in September each year attracts visitors from a wide area. Chanute Community Theatre presents three productions annually in the Memorial Auditorium as a portion of a busy schedule of performances.

Chanute has a wide diversity of strong businesses. Daily our businesses manufacture recreational vehicles, electronics, wire and cable, furniture, power generating equipment, cement and a multitude of other products. A full-line of professional businesses provide services including medical, educational, governmental, legal financial, communications, and engineering. In addition, our retail businesses are growing at a phenomenal rate in both our downtown area and south South Santa Fe Avenue area.

Fortunately many of our businesses are experiencing capital expansion and job creation. The City of Chanute supports this growth with a comprehensive set of economic development incentives. 

For more information about Visiting Chanute contact:

Jane Brophy
Phone: 620-431-3350
Toll Free: 877-431-3350
Fax: 620-431-7770
e-mail: director@chanutechamber.com

Chanute Area Chamber of Commerce & Office of Tourism
21 North Lincoln
PO Box 747
Chanute, KS 66720