info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Merriam becomes latest JoCo suburb to allow accessory dwelling units. What are they?

info2025-01-22T09:29:35-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

A new housing option is now allowable under the city of Merriam’s municipal code. The Merriam City Council last week voted 7-0 to approve an ordinance allowing accessory dwelling units, sometimes called mother-in-law suites, within city limits. Councilmember Reuben Cozmyer was absent. Other Johnson County cities like Olathe, Overland Park and Westwood already allow accessory dwelling units. Source: Johnson County Post

City, county to vote on health funds for 29th & Grove caught in state bureaucratic struggle

info2025-01-22T09:28:26-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

As Kansas state lawmakers begin another legislative session, $2.5 million they allocated last year for health testing of communities impacted by groundwater contamination has yet to be touched. That may change next week, as the city of Wichita and Sedgwick County are set to take key votes. The county will vote Wednesday on whether to sign an agreement with the state that will release some of the dollars, while the city will vote Tuesday on whether to provide a portion of matching funds needed to make state money available. Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

As more states adopt traffic enforcement cameras, here’s where Kansas stands

info2025-01-22T09:26:36-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

Technology is helping some states and cities crack down on dangerous driving. In particular, traffic cameras have spread throughout the nation. These are intended to ensure that drivers fully stop at red lights and maintain posted speed limits, which help motorists avoid major safety threats. About 340 communities throughout the United States have red light cameras, and 278 have speed cameras, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

Wichita delays strict rules for operating golf carts on city streets, seeks public input

info2025-01-22T09:25:07-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

Wichita has paused a recently passed city ordinance regulating the use of golf carts in city limits. The ordinance received initial approval last week on a 4-3 vote and was slated to receive final approval Tuesday. As written, it would be the most restrictive regulations for golf carts in the state. It allowed for carts to be driven on city streets with posted speed limits of 30 mph or less, but restricted driving to 18 or older. It also prohibited golf carts from being driven in the city’s core area — downtown, Old Town and Delano — and from crossing arterial [...]

Wichita updates master plan for bicycles

info2025-01-22T09:23:25-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

The Wichita City Council has approved an update to the city’s Bicycle Master Plan. The update was prepared throughout 2024 and it’s a ten-year plan for infrastructure, policies and programs to provide for safe, comfortable and convenient. The city has added 70 miles of bikeways since the 2013 plan was adopted. The 2024 update calls for another 81 miles of bikeways over the next decade. The Bicycle Plan also looks to connect important destinations like parks, schools, recreation centers and retail areas. It will also look to connect Wichita’s pathway system with bike networks in neighboring communities like Derby and Andover. [...]

Kansas towns request $600M in first two years of water project grants

info2025-01-22T09:19:35-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

Kansas communities in the last two years have requested more than $600 million for water needs, stunning state officials as they work to allocate funds to a fraction of the projects. Dawn Buehler, chair of the Kansas Water Authority, told members of a Kansas House committee Tuesday that the state’s two new water grant programs, funded by the Legislature in 2023, have received almost 600 applications for funding in their first two fiscal years. For the fiscal year that ended in June, the state received requests totaling more than $380 million. But the state had just $18 million available. This year, [...]

Grain Belt developers tell lawmakers how the transmission line will benefit Kansas

info2025-01-22T09:17:54-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

While it won’t drop off electricity to substations in Kansas, the Grain Belt Express transmission line will bring savings and improve reliability for residents, developers of the project said Thursday. Representatives from Invenergy, the Chicago-based company developing the Grain Belt Express, appeared before committees of the Kansas Senate and House to answer questions about the project, which is expected to carry renewable energy from southwest Kansas through Missouri and Illinois, ending at the Indiana border. Using high-voltage direct current technology, the 5,000-megawatt line will carry as much power as three traditional power line networks, Invenergy representatives said. It can also reverse [...]

Halstead Planning and Zoning considers changes to battery storage regulations

info2025-01-22T09:16:41-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

After receiving feedback on proposed regulations, the Halstead Planning and Zoning Board reviewed a draft policy. This was the latest step in an ongoing process to create regulations for a potential battery energy storage system (BESS) in Halstead. The city received a request from Concurrent to build a battery storage facility in the industrial park, which Concurrent would then sell to a company who would utilize the facility. After spending over a year researching the concerns around a facility, the board published a draft of its proposed regulations for a battery storage facility. These regulations included requirements for noise limits, runoff [...]

Kansas City faces a new economic ‘border war’ as sports and stadium deals loom

info2025-01-22T09:15:17-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

More than five years ago, Kansas and Missouri declared a truce. The two states had for years engaged in a bloodletting competition to lure businesses to their side of the Kansas City region — handing out lucrative incentives to move a corporate headquarters just a few miles across the state line. These deals brought no new jobs to the region. They sacrificed millions in taxes that could have gone to hire more teachers, pave more roads or invest in public safety. They did nothing to improve the regional economy. It was, as many called it, a race to the bottom. Suddenly, [...]

Pittsburg Police, Fire participate in Battle of the Badges

info2025-01-22T09:13:22-06:00January 22nd, 2025|

The Pittsburg Police Department and the Pittsburg Fire Department are going head-to-head during Battle of the Badges. The two agencies will team up with the American Red Cross for a blood drive and chili feed. Attendees will be able to vote on their favorite chili, while giving back and donating during the blood drive. Source: KOAM News

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