info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Attorney summarizes public input about proposed City of Golden

info2021-08-13T07:16:06-05:00August 12th, 2021|

There’s no desire among proponents or opponents of the proposed city of Golden to see their rural lifestyle change. How they achieve that objective is the sticking point. Jim Kaup, a Topeka attorney who specializes in land use law, provided that assessment of the proposed incorporation of Golden in northern Miami County during the County Commission’s first Golden testimony session Wednesday, Aug. 4. County commissioners will hear experts weigh in on a number of topics during their Wednesday morning study sessions through early September as part of the testimony phase before they begin their deliberations. ... “A couple of quick things [...]

Gov. Kelly discusses COVID response, economic development, Big 12 shakeup

info2021-08-12T23:19:56-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Governor Laura Kelly spoke with News Radio KMAN this week during an exclusive interview heard Wednesday on KMAN’s In Focus. COVID-19. Governor Kelly says she shares frustrations of Kansans upset with the return of COVID restrictions after it appeared the state had turned a corner on the pandemic just a few months ago. According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, as of Wednesday, nearly 50 percent of all Kansans have received at least one dose of the vaccine and 43 percent have received both shots. Gov. Kelly says she hopes to see that threshold push higher in the state’s [...]

Kansas population more concentrated; 80 counties lose people

info2021-08-12T23:10:25-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Most Kansas counties lost residents over the past 10 years as the state’s population concentrated in more populous places, including the Kansas City area, new census figures released Thursday showed. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s once-a-decade count of the nation’s population showed that 80 of the state’s 105 counties declined in population since 2010, 16 of them by more than 10%. Most of those counties were rural. Five of the top 10 fastest-growing counties were in or close to the Kansas City metropolitan area. The state’s most populous county, Johnson County, has affluent Kansas City suburbs that have been growing [...]

Is Sedgwick County counting illegal ballots? Irregularities cloud vote count

info2021-08-12T23:07:46-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Sedgwick County commissioners took the rare step Thursday of ordering the election office to count ballots that may not have arrived by the legal deadline after the Aug. 3 city council primary. The commissioners, sitting as the county’s canvassing board, rejected a recommendation by the new election commissioner, Angela Caudillo, who recommended tossing the votes out. At issue are 37 ballots that were postmarked on election day. State law says that if those ballots are delivered by the end of the following Friday, they count. And if they don’t arrive by then, they don’t count. But commissioners said there was no [...]

County Treasurer transitions to national vehicle title and registration process on Monday

info2021-08-12T23:04:51-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Atchison County Treasurer Connie Ellerman has issued the following press release regarding some software transitions in the Atchison County Treasurer’s Office that will commence Monday, Aug. 16. The State of Kanas is transitioning to include National Motor Vehicle Title Information System reporting in titling and registering vehicles. NMVTIS is designed to protect consumers from fraud and unsafe vehicles and to keep stolen vehicles from being resold. The transition to NMVTIS in the state system occurs Monday. At this time, the Atchison County Treasurer’s office is not certain how this may affect motor vehicle processes Monday morning. While we do not anticipate [...]

Overland Park considers plan to allow backyard chickens on smaller properties

info2021-08-13T07:12:03-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Overland Park residents who hope to keep backyard chickens may finally have cause to rejoice. After coming to a deadlock last November, city councilmembers have come up with a compromise they hope will make it easier for people on smaller lots to keep chickens on their property. A proposed ordinance change is working its way through city government that would allow people on lots as small as a quarter acre to have up to three hens, provided they meet the rules for enclosures and setbacks and pass inspections. The change would not require prospective chicken owners to make a presentation at [...]

Merriam City Council discusses but ultimately rejects idea for new city mask mandate

info2021-08-12T23:00:11-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Merriam became the latest Johnson County city to consider imposing a citywide mask mandate in the face of rising cases of COVID-19 this summer. Ultimately, however, the city council this week rejected the idea, in favor of focusing more on encouraging residents to get vaccinated. On Monday, the Merriam City Council revisited the topic of a potential city mask order in a discussion prompted by Councilmember Whitney Yadrich, who brought forward the item while also making clear she didn’t necessarily think the city should impose its own mandate. She noted that neighboring Prairie Village has also begun exploring the possibility of its [...]

Support exists for LEMA, but final plan still lingers among Groundwater Management District No. 1 stakeholders

info2021-08-12T19:51:20-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Support for groundwater conservation efforts isn’t the issue. What those efforts will look like is the question that continues to confront Groundwater Management District No. 1. While landowners and operators within the five-county GMD are overwhelming in support of establishing a Local Enhanced Management Area (LEMA), determining how to reduce water allocations will be the subject of hearings over the next year. A tentative timetable to put the LEMA into effect is January 2023. Source: Scott County Record

Rural Kansas is losing population while metro areas see political power growth, census redistricting data shows

info2021-08-12T20:06:10-05:00August 12th, 2021|

Much of rural Kansas is losing population as metropolitan areas grow and the state becomes more racially and ethnically diverse, new 2020 Census data show. The Census Bureau released redistricting data Thursday showing 80 of the state's 105 counties lost population in the past 10 years. Kansas also grew more racially and ethnically diverse over the past decade. The data will be used to redraw state political maps for congressional, legislative and board of education districts. The population shifts will further concentrate political power in cities and away from rural areas. The statistics were released on the second-to-last day of a [...]

Scott City to reconsider liability for building demo

info2021-08-12T19:48:18-05:00August 12th, 2021|

The Scott City Council would like to see more done to remove dilapidated trailer homes or demolish structures that are beyond repair, but building codes are an obstacle. Under current regulations, if someone wants to demolish a trailer home within the city they are required to purchase a $1 million liability insurance policy. Building inspector Lloyd Foster referred to that level of liability coverage as “overkill” when he brought up the issue at the last council meeting. Source: Scott County Record

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