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The Olathe Police Department is moving forward with plans to build a new police shooting range near Interstate 35 and 167th Street, after receiving the city council’s approval earlier this month. The Olathe City Council approved rezoning to make way for the new shooting range at its meeting on May 6. Source: Johnson County Post

When Derek Buckridge rides a mountain bike down a trail through the woods, there’s a type of reverie that comes with putting all of his focus toward staying on two wheels. “You just kind of get lost in that blissfulness of nature and the adrenaline,” he said. “I get that (feeling) with trail building too.” As a construction supervisor for the Johnson County Park & Recreation District, that’s the type of feeling he wants to recreate for others as he supervises the building of biking and hiking trails across Johnson County. In his role with JCRPD, Buckridge helps volunteers with a [...]

The Geary County Food Pantry officially opened its new facility to the public on Thursday, May 29th, welcoming a long line of guests eager to access food resources. Located in Junction City, the new 3,800-square-foot building, built by Hutton Construction, more than doubles the size of the previous location. Source: KCLY Radio

U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) announced that nearly $4 million in EPA Brownfields Grants have been awarded to support environmental cleanup and redevelopment efforts in Kansas. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin made the announcement alongside EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Macy, Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Janet Stanek, and Mitchell County Economic Development Director Emily Benedick. Source: KCLY Radio

Coffey County Commissioners were told that their application for $1.9 billion in Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) grant funds was denied; throwing the construction of a proposed Burlington computer chip factory into question. On May 19, commissioners heard from County Counselor Wade Bowie, II, about CHIPS funding. According to Bowie, the transition between the Biden and Trump administrations likely resulted in the denial. Source: KSN-TV

An area fire department provides hands-on training, giving recruits a chance to prepare for what they'll see in emergencies. Pittsburg Fire Department recruits entered a live house burn as part of the department's new training initiative. Surrounding fire departments also came to observe and learn. The simulation included smoke, sirens, and fire, designed to reflect real-life situations. This approach helps trainees practice and learn under pressure, which in turn will help them become firefighters. Source: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

A local renter-led advocacy group plans to present the Douglas County Commission an ordinance to guarantee tenants legal representation in eviction cases.  Lawrence Tenants hope for the ordinance to be on the commission’s agenda for consideration by August. The proposed TRTC ordinance would cover every tenant regardless of their income; cover any legal proceeding where a tenant could lose their housing or housing subsidy; provide legal representation; and require that the county contract with nonprofit legal providers for the service, according to Sprague’s presentation.  Source: The Lawrence Times

Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland today announced that in partnership with the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, Kansas Health Foundation and Sunflower Foundation, the Kansas Department of Commerce has awarded $298,825 in Towns Grant funding to support 32 small-scale projects across Kansas. The funded projects are quality-of-place investments that create quick, meaningful results in rural communities across the state. Source: Kansas Department of Commerce

Kansas law allows a school district board of education to expend funds to improve leased property. General obligation bonds may fund improvements to leased properties that are necessary for school district purposes. However, capital outlay funds may not be used to improve leased properties. Source: Kansas Attorney General Opinions

Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland today announced that nearly $600,000 has been awarded in the latest round of Tourism Attraction Development Grant funding, bringing the total awarded this fiscal year to more than $1 million. The new grants will support 32 communities through 21 projects aimed at developing new or enhancing existing tourism attractions across the state. Source: Kansas Department of Commerce