info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Students building bridges across the American divide (Dodge City featured on CBS Sunday Morning)

info2023-10-09T08:29:26-05:00October 9th, 2023|

High school grads participating in the American Exchange Project are sent on a free, week-long trip to a hometown very different from their own – crossing boundaries of blue and red states to find grey areas of common ground.... Under a nearly full moon in the unpolluted darkness of the night sky over Kansas, a group of student stargazers sat in a circle taking turns on the telescope. "It's weird. Like, some craters are super-tiny," said one. It was a bonding experience that was out of this world, especially given that only a day before they were as foreign to each [...]

Salina hosts state tennis for first time in 20 years. A community effort made it possible

info2023-10-10T08:28:14-05:00October 9th, 2023|

Salina will host top high school tennis players from across the state this weekend for the first time in two decades. The Kansas State High School Activities Association's 5A Girls State Tennis Tournament will be held in Salina for the first time since 2003, after the completion of a new state of the art tennis facility in town made it possible. For at least five years, the city, school district and community partners have been working on getting local tennis facilities up to a higher standard. The culmination of this effort resulted in updates to the Salina South tennis courts ahead [...]

Overland Park Police completes international trust building initiative

info2023-10-06T12:50:48-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Overland Park has taken a number of steps aimed at building trust in the community, all outlined in an international police pledge. The Trust Building Campaign initiative, which the department embarked on earlier this year, is through the International Association of Chiefs of Police. Despite completing the pledge, the Overland Park Police Department has faced scrutiny for what some have alleged are untrustworthy actions, particularly in regards to its handling of an officer who shot and killed a teenager in a mental health crisis in 2018. Source: Shawnee Mission Post

Lane County using unique method to address housing issues

info2023-10-06T11:14:53-05:00October 6th, 2023|

There has been a push in Lane County to build more homes, and the Lane County Community Foundation has an interesting way of achieving that goal. The foundation and the "Dighton Builds The Future" initiative are fundraising for the efforts with a $70,000 match from the Patterson Family Foundation. Logan Campbell, the executive director for the Lane County Community Foundation, said housing has always been an issue, but now, they are losing teachers and workers because of it. The method for solving the housing issue? If you build it, they will come, Campbell said. Source: KSN-TV

Quindaro Ruins in Kansas City, Kansas, are one step closer to National Historic Landmark status

info2023-10-06T11:13:54-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Before local preservationists focused attention on the decaying ruins of the town of Quindaro in the 1980s, the overgrown and largely forgotten site, hidden on the bluffs overlooking the Missouri River, was nearly turned into a landfill. Since then, community members and legislators have pushed for official recognition and the resources that come with it. Preservation advocates got one step closer to their goal on Tuesday. Three U.S. House representatives, two Democrats and one Republican, introduced a bill to further protect the ruins in northeast Kansas City, Kansas. Sharice Davids (D-KS), along with Emmanuel Cleaver (D-MO) and Jake LaTurner (R-KS), introduced [...]

Stevens County Fire Department teams up for Fire Prevention Week

info2023-10-06T12:48:04-05:00October 6th, 2023|

The Stevens County Fire Department is teaming up with the National Fire Protection Association® (NFPA®) — the official sponsor of Fire Prevention WeekTM (FPW) for more than 100 years — to promote this year’s FPW campaign, “Cooking safety starts with YOU. Pay attention to fire preventionTM.” The campaign works to educate everyone about simple but important actions they can take when cooking to keep themselves and those around them safe. Source: Hugoton Hermes News

Kansas on track for $2.6 billion state revenue surplus, $1.6 billion stash in rainy-day fund

info2023-10-06T11:11:17-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Kansas budget director Adam Proffitt said Tuesday the state government was on track to meet revenue projections necessary to create a $2.6 billion ending balance in the current fiscal year and reinforce the state’s financial position with $1.6 billion in a rainy day emergency account. He told participants at Washburn University’s economic outlook conference the state generated $2.2 billion in revenue during the initial three months of the fiscal year. That was a 0.5% or $10 million above the estimate issued in April. If all goes as assumed, he said, the state would spend only $9.4 billion of $10.3 billion in revenue [...]

Winfield City Lake at lowest level since 1992, new way to track levels

info2023-10-06T11:06:17-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Winfield City Lake is at its lowest level since 1992. The City of Winfield says this is because of the extended drought conditions in Cowley County and the Upper Timber Creek Watershed Area. "The City of Winfield addresses its short-term water shortage problems through a series of stages based on conditions of supply and demand with accompanying triggers, goals and actions," said Winfield. "Each stage is more stringent in water use than the previous stage since water supply conditions are more deteriorated." The City Manager is authorized by ordinance to implement the appropriate conservation measures. There is a new way to track the [...]

Wichita has 9 active TIF districts — where they are, how they’re performing

info2023-10-06T11:04:47-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Tax increment financing, one of the tools in the city's economic-development toolbox, has supported several notable commercial projects locally. The Wichita area has nine active TIF districts that have helped finance a range of projects, including the construction of Riverfront Stadium, the renovations at Union Station and a housing development in Riverside, among others. So, what is a TIF? TIF districts are designed to fund redevelopment costs in blighted areas of the city through the incremental increase in property taxes that occurs over time because of the investment. The incremental increase is used to reimburse bonds that were sold to finance the project, [...]

Panasonic details its hiring to date and future plans for De Soto plant

info2023-10-06T11:03:33-05:00October 6th, 2023|

Panasonic is ramping up hiring for its $4 billion electric-vehicle battery factory in De Soto. To date, the company has hired 70 people for the plant and has filled out its senior leadership team, said locally based Kristen Walters, vice president of human resources. The newly hired employees are roughly a 50/50 split between area residents and outside hires, she said. New hires and open positions are across the board, and include areas such as human resources, finance, supply chain and logistics, procurement, production/operations and engineering. Some engineers will be training in Nevada and Japan before working at the De Soto plant. The company [...]

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