HUTCHINSON — It’s still too early to see the impact of the recent maintenance turnaround project at the McPherson CHS refinery when it comes to sales tax in Reno County.

But the numbers for April were still positive. Total sales tax revenue for Reno County was $339,051, compared to $328,347 in 2018.

The refinery is wrapping up a two-month long maintenance shutdown, which resulted in a rapid increase in sales activity in Hutchinson and the surrounding area. It also benefited the state fairgrounds RV park, which was full of campers housing refinery employees.

Restaurants, hotels and other businesses have all reaped the benefits of the project, but with sales tax numbers representing sales from two months ago, it could be May or even June before officials see what the full impact of the refinery project has had.

To date, the county has taken in $1,536,577, compared to $1,511,057 last year. That puts the county just over $25,000 ahead of its 2018 pace.