info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

‘Mr. Winfield’ Rick Meyer fondly remembered

info2023-10-04T16:26:44-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Rick Meyer, known as “Mr. Winfield” due to his work for the city and assistance with numerous events around town, died Saturday after an illness. Meyer, 71, had worked for the City of Winfield for just shy of 35 years, according to Winfield city manager Taggart Wall. At the time of his death, Meyer was the city’s facilities service coordinator. Wall said Meyer began working for the city after his previous employer, St. John’s College, closed down. “Rick was known for his grin and wit,” Wall said. “He always had a way of pulling people together to get things done.” Mr. [...]

See murals painted live during 2023 Boom! Street Art and Mural Festival in downtown Salina

info2023-10-04T13:52:52-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Live art is back in town right now as the second annual Boom! Salina Street Art and Mural Festival is happening in Salina. The creation of eight murals is currently underway as artists from around the world work in various locations throughout downtown Salina. Boom!, which began in 2022 by the Salina Kanvas Project and funded through private and crowd sourced donors, is an annual mural festival which has a goal to "bring in street artists and muralists from around the world to enhance the visual landscape of our city." Source: Salina Journal

Here’s what Saline County has done in 2023 to address its top 5 areas of need

info2023-10-04T13:51:50-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Saline County continues to look at creative ways to address top local issues which have contributed to a stagnant workforce and are building upon a plan the board developed early this year to improve various aspects of the county. The plan was developed as part of a visioning process the board of commissioners went through to address top local needs and come up with tangible actions based on those needs. Its five key areas are the county workforce, county services and infrastructure, the county's public communication and outreach, working relationships with local partners, and physical and economic community health. Source: Salina [...]

Mulberry restores city basketball court

info2023-10-04T12:31:09-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Mulberry Mayor Pat Walden was beaming with pride in his hometown as he showed off the newly restored basketball court at the Freddy Gobl, Jr. Park made possible by a $2,500 grant from the Community Foundation of Southeast Kansas (CFSEK). Like a lot of small towns, Mulberry needs help, so Walden said he just took a chance and applied for a grant through CFSEK, a local organization that hosts individual charitable funds created by donors who have a passion for giving back to the community. Grants from these funds assist people throughout southeast Kansas and beyond. According to Walden, a lifelong resident [...]

Leawood reverses course on slashing maximum building height

info2023-10-04T12:29:43-05:00October 4th, 2023|

The city of Leawood is closer to a decision on capping the maximum building heights to 60 feet, or about four stories. This comes after several weeks of working toward a compromise on how tall office and mixed-use buildings in the city can be. The Leawood City Council wanted to make sure new buildings don’t get too tall, while the city’s planning commission initially opposed any regulations that could stunt growth. At its September meeting, the Leawood Planning Commission unanimously approved an amendment to the city’s development ordinance bringing the maximum building height down from 90 to 60 feet. The city [...]

Overland Park expands street maintenance program for 2024

info2023-10-04T12:25:33-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Overland Park plans to spend roughly $17 million more next year maintaining, repairing and rehabilitating roads. It’s all part of an expansion to the city’s infrastructure maintenance program in 2024, supported largely by revenue raised through the city’s new three-eighths cent special sales tax, which voters approved this summer. Overall, the city expects to spend about $38.3 million next year maintaining its streets with different methods, including more mill and overlay projects, when a street’s top surface layer is removed and replaced. “It’s really exciting to see the impact of the vote that our residents took to increase the sales tax and dedicate [...]

Places to go, sites to see, tales of yore keep Atchison tourism on the Kansas Map

info2023-10-04T12:23:20-05:00October 4th, 2023|

For the curious, history lovers, adventurists, and naturalists near and far, they might tell Atchison is the place they like to go for good time experiences. Kansas Tourism recently announced that the Atchison Area Chamber of Commerce was recently awarded a $10,000 Marketing Grant in the 2023 Tourism Marketing Grant Awards Program. The grant awards announced on Aug. 28, are designed to assist local tourism or attractions in new or first-time innovative marketing initiatives. Atchison Chamber is one of the 22 projects that the Kansas Tourism Award will provide funding throughout the state to enhance and expand advertising efforts to attract [...]

Valley Center to consider water treatment plant

info2023-10-04T13:08:50-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Valley Center is considering building its own water treatment plant. The city voted Tuesday to approve a special meeting on the topic next Thursday. It will hold a public hearing to decide on whether to ask for a maximum $19 million loan from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to build the facility. The city currently sells its untreated water to Wichita and then buys treated water from Wichita at a higher rate than Wichita residents. "What we do know is that once we're done that that per thousand gallons that we're charging monthly to our residents would be about half of what [...]

Lawrence city commissioners approve change to allow 2 affordable homes on more single lots

info2023-10-04T12:21:07-05:00October 4th, 2023|

Lawrence city commissioners approved a tweak that will open up more single residential lots to possibly be developed with two small affordable homes. City commissioners in 2019 approved a text amendment to allow two affordable homes to be built on one lot, if projects meet several conditions. But city code currently does not allow development of two smaller homes on certain types of lots. The new text amendment the commission approved Tuesday will change that, opening up more than 1,000 lots to the possibility of being developed with two affordable single-family homes. City staff members had had recommended opening up the [...]

Reno County alcohol vote could change business operations

info2023-10-04T12:19:06-05:00October 4th, 2023|

On Nov. 7, Reno County voters will decide on whether to get rid of the food rule. Reno County has been a semi-dry county since the 80s, meaning businesses that sell alcohol by the glass over 6% must ensure food makes up 30% of sales. "This is ultimately an outdated regulation that is obscure that very few people actually recognize is still here," Pippin Williamson, Sandhills Brewing co-owner, said. "I mean the number of times that we've heard people say like, I thought we got rid of that 20 years ago. If you're a non-food establishment, it is almost impossible to do 30% [...]

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