info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Olathe Mayor Michael Copeland dies at 58. He was the city’s longest-serving leader

info2020-08-21T08:49:08-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Olathe Mayor Michael Copeland died Wednesday night at the age of 58, city officials announced Thursday. Copeland was the longest-serving mayor in the city’s 162-year history, officials said in a news release. Olathe Mayor Pro Tem John Bacon, who has served on the City Council since 1995, will assume the role of acting mayor. “I can’t begin to say how much Mike will be missed. I lost a great friend of 40 years, and the community lost a true advocate and cheerleader who loved Olathe,” Bacon said in a statement. “Olathe loved Mike as well. We will do our best to [...]

‘I wish we were all more like Michael Copeland:’ Community mourns loss of Olathe mayor

info2020-08-21T08:48:27-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Each year, Mayor Michael Copeland would visit Olathe elementary schools with the neediest kids to read to first-graders and pass out book bags, paperbacks and stickers. “He didn’t do it to get credit. He absolutely loved it,” Olathe Superintendent John Allison said Thursday. “There was a bounce in his step when he went through the school doors and could talk to students. You could just see his smile and his enthusiasm, and how the students got so engaged. That will always be a vision I will carry of the mayor.” The mayor’s children literacy program is only one example of how [...]

Keeping it in Kansas

info2020-08-21T08:46:43-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Sometimes big things come in small packages. For more than 80 years, Shield Ag Equipment, which began as Welders Supply Company, has welded and manufactured tools in Reno County. Although the company manufactures both large and small machines, ShieldAg also excels at designing and producing smaller agricultural application tools, including disc blades, subsoilers, heavy-duty chisel spikes and fertilizer knives. ShieldAg holds or shares seven patents and two registered trademarks. In addition, the company developed 20 products. Source: Kansas Agland - The Hutchinson News

Overland Park reinvents its downtown to embrace ‘live, work, play’

info2020-08-21T08:45:56-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Stand at the corner of 81st Street and Overland Park Drive, and you’ll see a downtown revived. To the west, the new Thompson Park awaits dedication next week after a $3.6 million renovation of the old Santa Fe Commons that provided something for everyone. Kids can run through splash pads or get lost in their imaginations with a “crabtrap” play set. A new stage features an awning shaped like a paper airplane, and a carriage house built by Overland Park founder William Strang now serves as a modern event space. Office workers and teens alike can get outdoors while staying connected, [...]

No fall sports in Wichita as board moves middle and high schools online only

info2020-08-21T08:42:44-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Wichita public elementary school students will have the option of taking classes in person or online, but all middle and high schoolers will start the year online only. Sports and extracurricular activities will not be allowed. The Wichita Board of Education voted 5-2 on Thursday, mostly following the advice of medical experts, to put the district in the orange zone of the reopening plan for the first nine weeks of the school year. The in-person and online classes start Sept. 8. Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

Health department will start grading Shawnee County’s COVID-19 rates for schools

info2020-08-21T08:42:16-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Dr. Giancarlo Pezzino may not have a "magic solution" for Shawnee County’s school districts, but he does have a magic formula that will help them decide when to close and open schools. The Shawnee County Health Department will begin publishing a weekly "scorecard" grading the rate of COVID-19 spread in the community to help area school districts determine when to move between in-person and remote operations, Pezzino told the Topeka Board of Education Thursday evening. The department will announce more details on the weekly updates at a Friday morning press conference. Every Thursday, department officials will start issuing a report that [...]

The Amazon effect: What it means for Amazon to open a distribution warehouse in Wichita

info2020-08-21T08:41:38-05:00August 21st, 2020|

For many, Amazon's entrance into the Wichita market symbolizes a reward for many hard-fought efforts. That incentive programs for private developers are working. That the industrial real-estate market is strong here, even amid the economic uncertainty of Covid-19. And that Wichita is taking critical steps toward diversifying its workforce and industry. "The ingredients came together to mix up a fertile area for growth," says Scot Rigby, assistant city manager. Source: Wichita Business Journal

Build it and they will come: Four projects taking shape through Wichita’s spec warehouse program

info2020-08-21T08:41:07-05:00August 21st, 2020|

Since the city of Wichita launched its more recent speculative warehouse incentive program in December 2017, four projects have been approved for construction. Designed to address what many in the commercial real estate industry say is the ongoing need for existing industrial space in Wichita, the program provides property tax incentives to developers who might otherwise prefer to have a building pre-leased prior to construction to reduce risk. The city first adopted an industrial incentive policy in 2012, but that ended in 2014. The program was revived in 2017 based on demand the Great Wichita Partnership was seeing for more inventory. [...]

Leawood to consider allowing beekeeping

info2020-08-21T08:53:30-05:00August 21st, 2020|

The Leawood City Council this week directed the city attorney and staff to work on a draft ordinance that would allow beekeeping in the city. City Attorney Patty Bennett made a presentation on beekeeping at the council’s Monday meeting. Bennett said she had researched a few area cities’ beekeeping regulations and would research them further in preparing the draft ordinance.... Prairie Village has allowed beekeeping since 2015 and Overland Park has since 1983. Neither city requires a beekeeping permit. Prairie Village City Administrator Wes Jordan said the city had not received complaints about beekeeping that he knew of. With no permit [...]

First day of school in Larned, parent’s reactions

info2020-08-21T08:47:21-05:00August 21st, 2020|

It’s the first day of school in Larned. After months of anticipation, parents are making the decision for their kids whether they’ll be in the classroom, virtual learning or home school. The district has strict guidelines for those returning, including assigned bus seating and only essential visitors allowed. Jamie Froetschner made the decision to send her kids to school. "I'm reassured knowing that they were greeted with smiling faces and they were shown where they needed to go, but it was a little bittersweet.” Holly Frick decided to home school her two youngest kids this year. "Even though I'm homeschooling my [...]

About info