info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Local association educating public on importance of controlled burns

info2024-03-01T07:34:26-06:00March 1st, 2024|

In prairielands like Kansas, if there's a lot of smoke in the air, there's a good chance that a fire has started, but one organization wants the public to know that not all of these fires are wild. The Smoky Hills Prescribed Burn Association (PBA) has grown to around 45 members in its three years of existence in north central Kansas. Its main purpose is the promotion, assistance and education on the safe and responsible use of fire as a management tool and to be a resource to assist landowners and land managers with the necessary means to organize and conduct [...]

National League of Cities, founded in Lawrence, celebrates 100th anniversary with city leaders

info2024-03-01T07:24:41-06:00March 1st, 2024|

Leaders with the National League of Cities on Thursday were in the city where their organization was founded to celebrate a century of connecting and providing services to municipal officials across the U.S. .... a delegation from the NLC is in Lawrence this week as part of a cross-country roadshow celebrating the organization’s centennial. Lawrence, the first stop on the tour, is where the NLC was founded in 1924 on the University of Kansas campus. Clarence Anthony, the CEO and executive director of the NLC, is one of the leaders with the visiting delegation, and he presented a commemorative plaque to [...]

Lessons in population health from small-city Kansas

info2024-02-28T16:19:13-06:00February 28th, 2024|

Mahbub Rashid sees cities differently than most people. And you might say the dean of the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design ought to do that. But Rashid has taken spatial analysis of urban development to the cutting edge of technology — and this view of small-town Kansas suggests to him that much more can be done to promote the health of people who live there. Rashid’s new book, “Built Environment and Population Health in Small-Town America: Learning from Small Cities of Kansas” (Johns Hopkins University Press), looks at how lifestyle behaviors and health indicators are associated with spatial [...]

Goat remains on the lam in Harvey County

info2024-02-28T14:12:31-06:00February 28th, 2024|

... Sheriff’s Deputy RJ Wagner responded to a call asking for assistance in wrangling a goat that was on a person’s property ... Wagoner reported spending about five minutes with the property owner, getting a rope around the goat and leading it to a lean-to pen. He said the property owner planned on trying to find the goat’s owner. He left and said between 10 to 15 minutes later, he received a call that the goat had escaped. As of Tuesday, it had yet to be located. Source: Harvey County Now

Sedgwick County homeowners see higher property appraisals again

info2024-02-28T11:19:31-06:00February 28th, 2024|

Sixty percent of Sedgwick County homeowners will see higher tax appraisals when notices are mailed out March 1. Despite the bad news for three in five residential property owners, it’s actually the lowest proportion of appraisal increases since 2018. Appraisals went up for 80% of homeowners in 2023 and 88% in 2022. This year, the average median increase is 8%. Only 1% of the county’s 183,359 residential parcels declined in value. Tax appraisal increases are driven by sales of new and existing homes. “We still have shortages of housing. The unbalance between supply and demand is there and it pushes up those prices,” County Appraiser [...]

Topeka could hire new city manager by May

info2024-02-28T11:17:51-06:00February 28th, 2024|

Topeka is getting closer to finding a new city manager. City leaders gave an update Tuesday on where the hiring process stands. Interim City Manager Richard Nienstedt said the city has received 42 applications for the position. The governing body reviewed each of those candidates during executive session at its Feb. 20 meeting. Nienstedt said the council hopes to select finalists at its March 19 council meeting. Once the finalists are announced, Nienstedt said in-person interviews should begin the second week of April. These interviews will involve multiple opportunities for the public to give feedback to council, including panel discussions and a [...]

With complaints about noise, trash and booze, Johnson County city cracks down on Airbnbs

info2024-02-28T11:15:56-06:00February 28th, 2024|

Shawnee is the latest city in the metro to crack down on Airbnbs and other short-term rentals in response to neighborhood complaints. The Shawnee City Council for months has debated whether to tighten restrictions on short-term rentals — or even outright ban them in residential areas — due to mounting complaints about noise, parking, alcohol and trash at Airbnb and Vrbo locations. And on Monday, the council voted 7-1 to add new regulations, joining a growing number of cities nationwide, and one of the first in Johnson County, to do so. Owners of such rentals have advocated for regulations that allow [...]

Neighbors can’t take the racket, so a Johnson County city is taking down pickleball nets

info2024-02-28T11:14:36-06:00February 28th, 2024|

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Pickleball was soaring in popularity to become America’s fastest growing sport. Courts started multiplying throughout Kansas City, becoming a staple of parks, community centers and new entertainment complexes. And with high demand, Prairie Village — already needing to resurface its tennis courts at Windsor Park — decided to restripe for pickleball. But nearby neighbors say they can only take so much. Many say the constant “pop, pop, pop” reverberating through their neighborhood has been a headache since the courts were completed last June, at the park near Mission Road and south of [...]

National League of Cities Kicks Off ‘Roadshow’ Celebrating Organization’s 100th Anniversary

info2024-02-28T11:13:20-06:00February 28th, 2024|

One hundred years ago, in 1924, the National League of Cities (NLC) was founded in Lawrence, Kansas at the University of Kansas. To commemorate this historic milestone, NLC, will kick off its Centennial Roadshow: 100 Years, 100 Cities, with the University of Kansas School of Public Affairs and Administration, the League of Kansas Municipalities, and the City of Lawrence, Kansas for a day-long celebration at the University of Kansas. As the site of NLC’s founding, Lawrence, Kansas will serve as the first stop in a nationwide roadshow organized by NLC. The roadshow will include stops at 100 cities in every region of [...]

Johnson County residents tried to stop controversial park sale. But judge sides with city

info2024-02-28T11:10:23-06:00February 28th, 2024|

The city of Westwood will move forward with selling its lone park so it can be redeveloped into retail and office buildings, now that a Johnson County judge has ruled that a resident petition aiming to stop the sale is invalid. Judge David Hauber on Friday sided with the city, deciding the residents who submitted the petition failed to meet several legal requirements to place the sale of the park on the ballot. Without being required to hold a public vote, city officials say they will now complete the sale this summer to pave the way for the redevelopment project. The [...]

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