info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Downtown KCK grocery store to be on city planning agenda tonight

info2019-02-12T07:00:10-06:00February 12th, 2019|

A downtown Kansas City, Kansas, grocery store is on the agenda tonight of the Kansas City, Kansas, City Planning Commission. The item to come before the City Planning Commission tonight is conformation to the master plan for the downtown grocery store redevelopment district. The Unified Government staff has recommended approval of the item. The grocery store would be located at 5th and Minnesota on the east side of a parking lot across from the Reardon Center, and it would be operated by the Merc, a Lawrence grocery. The Unified Government would build the store. The downtown grocery redevelopment plan, contained in [...]

Olathe animal control officer praised for saving small deer trapped in 12-foot drain

info2019-02-12T06:58:43-06:00February 12th, 2019|

A deer's rescue from a sewer drain is capturing hearts and earning praise for a metro animal control officer. Olathe Animal Control helped save the doe, which they believe had been trapped for days. Nadya Dibenedetto often walks her dogs along a grassy path in her Olathe neighborhood near 146th and Halsey. But Sunday, she and her husband's dogs started acting strange. "One of our dogs pulled her toward this manhole," Igor Sorkin said. The manhole's cover was missing, and a little deer was trapped inside. "She was all kinds of freaked out by the whole thing. She's like, 'This little [...]

New ballpark’s basics headed for City Council vote

info2019-02-12T06:55:43-06:00February 12th, 2019|

Before the ceremonial shovels can dig into the ceremonial dirt Wednesday at the site of Wichita's next baseball stadium, the City Council has to approve some — but not all — of the ballpark's design. The Council on Tuesday is expected to approve $7.6 million to get the project going. In essence, the Council will be approving the location of home plate and giving the go-ahead for construction of stadium bones — site grading, utilities, infield walls, dugouts and dugout tunnels. A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday. There's little time to waste, as Wichita's unnamed Triple-A baseball team is expected [...]

Shawnee council to consider mail-in ballot election for voters to approve funding for proposed community center

info2019-02-12T06:54:10-06:00February 12th, 2019|

The Shawnee council tonight will consider financing details and plans for a proposed community center. If approved by the council, the measure will go out to a mail-in ballot election in which Shawnee voters decide whether to finance a community center through a property tax increase. The proposed community center would be located at Woodland Drive and 61st Street. The project team, including Perkins+Will, Project Advocates and J.E. Dunn Construction as well as city staff, will present information on the proposed community center during tonight’s meeting, including facility amenities, construction costs, staffing and operational costs and estimated costs, including an ordinance [...]

Shawnee County stays with lawn care firm despite suggestions service has gone to pot

info2019-02-12T06:48:51-06:00February 12th, 2019|

Shawnee County is sticking with its courthouse lawn care provider, despite questions about whether its service has gone to pot. County facilities manager Bill Kroll spoke critically Monday of the job done by Green Touch Lawn & Tree. Commissioner Kevin Cook recalled how an apparent marijuana plant was found growing last May on the courthouse grounds. Still, Kroll asked Commissioners Cook, Bob Archer and Bill Riphahn at their morning meeting to extend the county’s contract with Green Touch to mow and control weeds at locations that include the courthouse at 200 S.E. 7th. “Last year they didn’t do as good as [...]

Can Overland Park transcend ‘Johnson County beige’ image? Long-range plan holds hope

info2019-02-12T06:47:20-06:00February 12th, 2019|

Adam Hamilton, senior pastor of Johnson County’s Resurrection mega-church, would like nothing better than for his two grown daughters to live in Overland Park. But he says 29-year-old Rebecca is intent on starting a small business in a hip Kansas City neighborhood, and Danielle, a 33-year-old public defender in Olathe, prefers her home in Lawrence to Overland Park. “They both think diversity is really important,” Hamilton told the Overland Park City Council on Feb. 4. “They start talking about ‘Johnson County beige’ and that’s not just the color of our houses but it’s often the color of our skin and the [...]

Barton County saves money with bulk mailer for valuation notices

info2019-02-12T06:44:45-06:00February 12th, 2019|

The Barton County Appraiser’s Office has to mail out certified valuation notices by March 1 to all taxpayers owning real estate. The Appraiser’s Office received a full response from companies across the country that handle bulk mailings. No business in Barton County handles such a task, so it forces the Appraiser’s Office to look elsewhere. Barton County Appraiser Barb Esfeld says getting this job outsourced saves the department thousands of dollars. At an international conference, Esfeld found out about a company called The Master’s Touch. Master’s Touch is a large company that handles bulk mailing and is charging Barton County $6,500 [...]

Bringing a building ‘back to life’: After 10-year effort, newly rehabilitated Lawrence train station to be rededicated

info2019-02-12T08:46:47-06:00February 12th, 2019|

For years, little attention was given to the blond brick building along the railroad tracks. Though it served as an active train station, the Santa Fe depot was poorly maintained, was often vandalized and was sometimes the site of illegal squatting and drinking. Then, more than 10 years ago, a group of Lawrence residents started taking care of the station — hosting cleaning days, ensuring its doors were open and locked at the correct times, and sometimes having musicians play on the platform to greet passengers. But above all, the group, Depot Redux, was advocating that the City of Lawrence take [...]

Topeka may spend $2.35M more for Kansas River project where boaters drowned

info2019-02-11T14:20:15-06:00February 11th, 2019|

Topeka’s city government suffered a setback last year when costs turned out to be far more than expected for a project to improve the safety of its Kansas River weir, where three people have drowned since 2007. But the city council could put the project back on track if it approves $2.35 million as part of city manager Brent Trout’s proposed 2020-2029 Capital Improvement Plan. “The CIP funds would allow the project to move forward,” said city utilities engineer Paul Bodner. The project to improve safety at the weir is being considered at a time when local officials had been talking [...]

Downtown Sculpture Walk seeking supporters

info2019-02-11T14:18:13-06:00February 11th, 2019|

While marking its seventh year, downtown Hutchinson’s annual Sculpture Walk is also entering a new phase that will require direct public sponsorship if the program is to continue, according to a member of the group now managing the effort. The program started in 2012 as an art loan program to add art downtown, which was undergoing streetscape and lighting improvements. After viewing programs in other cities, the late Ron Kelley brought several Main Street merchants together to see if Hutchinson could support a similar program, and Sculpture Walk was born. The program involves inviting artists from local and national locations to [...]

About info