info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Bird scooters could be headed to Prairie Village after council advances pilot proposal

info2021-06-24T07:57:40-05:00June 24th, 2021|

Bird Scooters could start showing up in Prairie Village in the coming months after the city council this week gave preliminary approval to a pilot program for the dockless electric vehicles. Prairie Village is the latest Johnson County city to enter discussions with a scooter company about bringing the vehicles to their streets. Overland Park also recently advanced an e-scooter pilot. The scooters have become a popular means of getting around in urban areas across the country since Bird debuted in 2017. While they’ve been welcomed as a more environmentally friendly way to make short trips than a car, they also [...]

Mission Hills residents wanting play structures in their yards have 4 new guidelines to follow

info2021-06-24T07:57:05-05:00June 24th, 2021|

The Mission Hills City Council has set new guidelines for yard play structures and clarified definitions for different types of residential play equipment. The city will now strongly recommend that residents who want to have play structures on their property follow four guidelines approved by the city council. The Architectural Review Board previously required a resident to move their play structure at the request of a rear neighbor, according to city documents. Source: Prairie Village Post

‘We have to pay for it’: DA’s office faces high turnover, low salaries, lots of work

info2021-06-24T07:55:42-05:00June 24th, 2021|

Lawyers in the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office are making low wages for their field and taking on “insane” caseloads, DA Marc Bennett said Wednesday, adding that it’s affecting the office’s ability to hire and retain employees. Attorneys are increasingly leaving the job behind for other public sector legal positions with better incomes that can help them pay off their student loan debt, Bennett said. “It’s tough to keep the balling rolling and keep cases moving when you have that kind of turnover,” Bennett told county commissioners. Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

Emporia commission discusses wage scale concerns for city staff

info2021-06-24T07:55:22-05:00June 24th, 2021|

The Emporia City Commission began a discussion regarding wages scale increases for city workers during its joint study/action session Wednesday morning. Human resources director Jo Lynne Herron said that the last official compensation study was completed in 2007, and in that time the consumer price index had increased by 24%. There was only one wage increase for city staff during that period, a 2% cost of living adjustment in 2014. “We are 22%, 23% behind changing our wages since the last time we did a compensation study,” Herron said. “We looked at increasing that to get to what we could be, [...]

Municipal Bond Trends for June 23, 2021

info2021-06-24T07:32:25-05:00June 24th, 2021|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS "investment grade" yields. Every issuer's credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.

Johnson County cities change liquor laws to allow for Sunday morning sales of booze

info2021-06-24T00:24:07-05:00June 24th, 2021|

Cities around northeast Johnson County are beginning to change their laws to allow for the purchase of beer and other alcoholic beverages at an earlier time on Sundays. The moves conform with a law passed by the Kansas Legislature earlier this year and signed by Gov. Laura Kelly, House Bill 2137. That law garnered attention this spring primarily for permanently allowing the sale of cocktails to-go, which was allowed last year on a temporary basis during the pandemic. But HB 2137 also allows for the sale of beer and alcoholic liquor to begin as early as 9 a.m. on Sundays. Previously, [...]

Sedgwick County to receive over $100M in COVID-19 funds, asks for input

info2021-06-23T22:27:21-05:00June 23rd, 2021|

Sedgwick County will receive $100,235,109 from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and is asking for the community's input in how to spend it. ARPA was passed earlier this year to continue recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The county says the funds can be used provide financial support to individuals, families, and businesses, and cover specific costs for school and local governments. "Your participation in this brief summary will help the Sedgwick County Board of County Commissioners develop an effective spending plan that focuses these funds where they are needed the most," the county said in a news release. Source: [...]

Parsons OKs land bank plan

info2021-06-24T07:31:19-05:00June 23rd, 2021|

Land banks allow cities to hold property in trust for the purpose of transferring title to someone who will repurpose the land. The property involved usually has assessments and back property taxes attached, but as they come into land bank ownership, the taxes and fees are forgiven. Oftentimes on abandoned properties, those assessments and taxes go unpaid for several years until they are sold at a sheriff’s auction, at which time most of the taxes and fees are forgiven anyway after they sell for nominal prices. Having a land bank will allow the city to transfer such properties more quickly. “I consider this the opening salvo in a lot more programs [...]

“Guardrails” added to state’s STAR bond incentive program

info2021-06-23T07:56:09-05:00June 23rd, 2021|

In April, Gov. Laura Kelly signed the bill that adds some guardrails to the program, such as requiring third-party feasibility studies, community engagement and other transparency measures. The bill also expands the program, allowing rural communities to more easily qualify. The current program has faced bipartisan criticism, as it has warped beyond its original intent of subsidizing large, unique tourism destinations attracting visitors to Kansas. The program has been used to fund more mundane projects such as adding turf to soccer fields in Wichita. And one STAR bond-funded project in Overland Park, Prairiefire, has largely failed to meet expectations. Source: Joco [...]

Lyons police officer shot in October back on job, talks about recovery

info2021-06-23T07:51:46-05:00June 23rd, 2021|

Lyons police sergeant Cory Ryan is back to work. Not on the streets, but doing other jobs around the office, getting back into a routine. He's been back since early May after months of physical therapy that helped him recover from being shot multiple times last October. "I didn't know if I was going to go home or if I was going to die," Ryan said. Ryan was responding to a 911 call of a citizen being threatened when he was shot, first in the face, knocking several teeth out, and then in the chest and his protective vest. Source: KAKE [...]

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