Shawnee Council Committee directed city staff to make amendments to the municipal co-living ordinance that, among other rules, allows for three or fewer people to live in one house who aren’t related by blood, marriage, or adoption. The changes being considered ease that restriction slightly, allowing for a maximum of four unrelated people to live in the same dwelling. Any number larger than that would be considered a co-living group and still considered illegal.
Read more: Johnson County Post

A proposal to dissolve the Manhattan Urban Area Planning Board and replace it with a new Manhattan planning board with expanded duties and Pottawatomie County representation prompted questions from Riley County commissioners Monday about the city’s annexations into Pott County and the potential impact on county residents and services. Riley County commission chairwoman Kathryn Focke on Monday questioned why county-appointed representatives should have a role in planning decisions involving another county.
Read more: News Radio KMAN

The City of Salina is ending its legal fight over the Cozy Inn’s mural – and turning its attention to changes in the city’s sign code. Staff will now be tasked with crafting amendments to the city code that mirror the court’s decision. Mayor Mike Hoppock says the City Commission has reviewed the appellate court’s decision and will not pursue further legal action in the case. The court ruling leaves the city facing changes to how it regulates murals and signs painted on exterior walls.
Read more: Ad Astra Radio

Scooter safety again drew concern during commissioners’ closing comments at the Nov. 5 Hays City Commission work session, with Sandy Jacobs urging parents and drivers to help prevent injuries before additional regulation becomes necessary. Jacobs said a local bicycling group had contacted commissioners about unsafe situations and requested that they look at other ordinances. She also described encountering riders in dark clothing on scooters without lights around dusk following the time change. “I was congratulating parents because for a while there, all these little kids were in helmets. And all of a sudden, they’re not in helmets anymore,” Jacobs said.
Read more: Hays Daily News

Beginning Dec. 15, riders of bicycles, electric-assisted bicycles and other “micromobility devices” will have to stay at or below 15 miles an hour on sidewalks and trails in Leawood, the city council has decided. In unanimously voting to update its traffic ordinance on Nov. 2, Leawood became the latest city to adjust its regulations on small electric-assisted vehicles to be closer in alignment with a model recommended by the Mid-America Regional Council. The speed limit was one of several changes that the Leawood City Council approved in the hope that consistency across city boundaries would improve compliance, said Councilmember Julie Cain. She added that she’s heard from many in the city who are worried about the dangers of these kinds of devices “flitting in and out” among traffic.
Read more: Johnson County Post

The City of South Hutchinson approved a conditional use permit to allow RVs at Prairieland Mobile Home Park during Monday night’s city council meeting. The permit is intended to benefit short-term workers who will be building the new Evergy plant. The planning commission discussed the topic at their meeting the previous week, and their recommendation was in favor of allowing the conditional use permit. Commissioner Kraig Blackwelder told the city council that short-term workers don’t want to buy or rent a house, and they often live in campers anyway.
Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune