info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Pratt Solar Farm a result of teamwork, persistence

info2018-07-27T12:06:42-05:00July 27th, 2018|

The city of Pratt hosted an official groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday for the Pratt Solar Farm, which could be the largest municipal-owned solar farm in Kansas when operational. Members of the Pratt City Commission, the Pratt County Commission and Pratt Community College were joined by representatives of Inovateus Solar, Kenyon Energy, Tortoise Financial Advisors and several bystanders to celebrate the teamwork and persistence that culminated in the promised coming of 37 acres of solar panels to provide Pratt citizens with electricity by October 2018. “Initially we were aiming for a completion date sometime in January 2019,” said Jamie Huber, Pratt Director [...]

Several in Hodgeman County without power after overnight storms

info2018-07-27T12:04:00-05:00July 27th, 2018|

Several residents in Hodgeman County woke up in the dark on Thursday. Storms moved through overnight knocking down transmission lines and snapping power poles. The Hodgeman County Sheriff's Office posted updates on its Facebook page showing the damage between Jetmore and Hanston. The City of Jetmore asked residents to conserve water while its well was on a backup generator from Wichita. Crews from Midwest Energy, Inc. finally arrived to restore power. "Well 14 is working on filling the water tower, and the lift station is keeping the sewer flowing. Thank you to everyone for conserving the water! Because of your efforts, [...]

New city manager discusses what’s next for Shawnee

info2018-07-27T11:51:49-05:00July 27th, 2018|

It’s a new era for the city of Shawnee as Nolan Sunderman takes over the reins. Without much of a breather, the good-natured 34-year-old has spent the past few weeks jumping into his duties as the new city manager ever since he was named Carol Gonzales’ successor last month. Being in charge of the city’s operations, as well as implementing policies adopted by the council, are not easy tasks, but Sunderman, the former assistant city manager, loves the challenge. After all, his passion for city government stems back nearly two decades when he was an ambitious high school student longing to [...]

Great Bend looking to switch to an entirely automated water meter system

info2018-07-27T11:45:29-05:00July 27th, 2018|

The City of Great Bend has made recent efforts to be as transparent as possible with water bills and meter readings. At a Great Bend City Council meeting in April, the City outlined the entire process on how water rates are calculated. Interim City Administrator George Kolb mentioned at the July 10th budget session that the City plans to allocate money over the years to automate the entire water meter system. Kolb noted an automated system would reduce labor and benefit the customers. With over 6,000 water meters that the City operates, it takes the one trained employee roughly a month [...]

Mayor: Clapp Golf Course, Evergreen and Linwood libraries to remain open

info2018-07-27T11:42:18-05:00July 27th, 2018|

The City of Wichita will not close Clapp Golf Course or two local library branches this year, according to Mayor Jeff Longwell. The mayor made the announcement during his weekly brief Thursday morning. He said an increase of $1 million that was going to be used for street maintenance would be shifted over to keep the programs open. "We want to make very clear that we intend to continue operations at Clapp Golf Course, that it will remain open until we've had the chance to masterplan the property," said the mayor. He also said full funding would be restored to Linwood [...]

Phillipsburg’s ‘man of steel’ built rodeo grandstands, helped with construction of pens

info2018-07-27T11:38:04-05:00July 27th, 2018|

He’s the man of steel, and he’s put up plenty of it at the Phillipsburg rodeo grounds throughout the years. Cliff Van Kooten has been associated with the rodeo, either on the committee, as chairman, or as a volunteer, since 1982. After graduating from high school in 1960, the Long Island, Kan. native spent three years in the military before coming back home to marry his wife, Helen, in 1964. The couple moved to Phillipsburg. He went to welding school and worked for the International Harvester dealer in Phillipsburg while he welded on the side. In 1967, he started his own [...]

Downtown Pittsburg To Get New Parking Lots

info2018-07-27T11:35:47-05:00July 27th, 2018|

Pittsburg's Block 22 Project is nearing completion. It's expected to be done by the middle of next month and at that time around 99 additional people will be living downtown. Those people will need somewhere to park. This week the city commission approved a parking plan. Five parking lots within a block of the buildings have been selected. Residents are expected to move into Block 22 on August 18th. (Read more: KOAM - Local News)

Topeka public works director Jason Peek answers queries from Capital-Journal readers

info2018-07-27T11:34:59-05:00July 27th, 2018|

Topeka public works director Jason Peek says he understands the frustration drivers feel when they sit at a red light for what seems like a long time. He said Wednesday that the city uses technology, including video cameras and “loops” embedded in the street, to detect vehicles arriving at most signalized intersections and adjust the signal’s timing to keep traffic running smoothly. “But these are all pieces of infrastructure that require maintenance,” Peek said. Sometimes loops break, or straight-line winds — such as those the city saw last week — alter a camera’s direction and keep it from working effectively, he [...]

The Downsides of Property Tax Caps

info2018-07-27T11:33:39-05:00July 27th, 2018|

Property tax caps are hampering municipalities' ability to fund basic services and are exacerbating inequality, according to a report released by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) last week. The tax caps, which first became popular during the 1970s tax revolt and have since spread to 44 states plus the District of Columbia, have created fiscal stress for the states that adopted the limits. Because of property tax caps, "states are pushing too many costs down to the lower level," said Ron Deutsch, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute, during a press call about the report. The report [...]

Florence seeks to seize springs

info2018-07-26T09:03:05-05:00July 26th, 2018|

An ongoing water fight between Florence City Council members and owners of a spring that has supplied city water for 98 years has ratcheted up and is likely headed toward a court battle. Council members voted Monday to begin eminent domain proceedings to seize ownership of four acres owned by the DeForest family at Crystal Springs, where the city’s springhouse is situated. Council member Trayce Warner was the lone vote in opposition. The atmosphere of city council meetings frequently has been contentious since council members voted in June to reject a 10-year, $6,000-per-year water contract offered by the DeForest family. (Read [...]

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