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New construction in Wichita could be affected by additional tariffs from Canada because much of the soft lumber in the United States comes from the north. The National Association of Home Builders says two essential materials used in home construction, softwood lumber and gypsum, are sourced mainly from Canada and Mexico.  Wichita builders use Canadian lumber for home construction, which has a current tariff of 14.5%. Former President Joe Biden set that tariff rate in 2024. If a 25% tariff is added on top of that, the Wichita Area Builders Association's CEO says that will cause more uncertainty in the builders' [...]

Dozens of Pittsburg Community Middle School students braved the cold this morning to make a positive impact on their community. This is the Kiwanis Builders Club's fourth time volunteering with the Miners Hall Museum in Franklin. Today, they spread new rubber mulch on the playground surface at Franklin Community Park. Students learned the rewards of working hard while making the playground safer for kids to play on. Source: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

Appeals of Sedgwick County’s new property appraisals are running almost double the volume of previous years through mid-March. County Appraiser Mark Clark isn’t surprised. About 87% of residential property owners and 73% of commercial property owners saw an increase in their property valuations for 2025. Homes experienced an average increase of 9%, and commercial property values grew by 11% on average. Source: Wichita Kansas Local News, Crime & More |

A Topeka-based manufacturing company cleared the first hurdles on Tuesday, as it looks to expand into Manhattan. City commissioners unanimously advanced an economic development application and incentives package for PTMW, Inc., which plans to lease a speculative industrial warehouse facility in east Manhattan. Morgan Padgett, PTMW’s senior vice president of accounting, told commissioners Tuesday, the company builds pre-fabricated metal enclosures, used in critical infrastructure, such as power delivery or generation and energy storage. Source: themercury.com - RSS Results in news of type article

A long-vacant lot in Valley Center's downtown is being eyed for a new development opportunity. The half-acre property sits along the city's Main Street and has been envisioned to turn into a new mixed-use commercial development with uses like apartments and retail. Valley Center's City Council approved a memorandum of understanding, a non-binding agreement, at its March 18 meeting with the property owner for the city to buy the lot. Source: Wichita Business News - Local Wichita News | The Wichita Business Journal

Chickens, ducks and quail will be allowed to live in Marysville as a result of a 5-3 vote at Monday night’s council meeting. An ordinance and a policy resolution that sets licensing fees were approved after almost three months of discussion, committee review and citizen comment. Source: www.marysvilleonline.net

Perhaps the biggest news to come from the annual joint meeting between the Hesston City Council, USD 460 and Hesston Recreation and Community Education on March 27 was the announcement from Hesston City Administrator Gary Emry of his impending retirement and the movement of Jason Thrasher from City Clerk to City Administrator. The transition came during a time of succession within the City government including the hiring of Anthony Swartzendruber as Director of Finance. Source: Harvey County Now

Changes could be coming to EMS response in rural parts of the state. A house bill headed to the governor's desk would change the number of trained medical providers required to be in ambulances. One key part of House Bill 2280 affects counties with a population of less than 30,000 people. They'd be required to have one person trained as an EMT or paramedic, with the ambulance driver only required to be trained in CPR. This is being done to make EMS staffing more flexible for smaller communities, but some say it raises concerns about the quality of patient care in [...]

Abilene will be teeming with treasure hunters this weekend as hundreds of geocachers from across the country descend on the city for MOGA 2025 — the Midwest Open Geocaching Adventure — hosted by the Flint Hills Geocachers. Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game where participants use GPS-enabled devices to locate hidden containers, known as geocaches, which typically include a logbook and occasionally small trinkets. Source: KSN-TV