Treasury bonds surged, pushing key two-year yields to their lowest level this year, as investors bet the collapse of three US lenders will compel policymakers to halt interest-rate increases. Swaps now show a less than one-in-two chance that the Federal Reserve will implement another quarter-point hike this cycle. Yields on two-year Treasury notes — the most sensitive to changes in policy — fell as much as 60 basis points to less than 3.99%, the lowest since October. Source: Bloomberg

Douglas County District Court will soon transition to a new case management system, which will temporarily disrupt the processing of online payments and electronic court document filings, according to a news release from the state judicial branch. The court will begin switching over to the Kansas eCourt centralized case management system at 4 p.m. on March 29, and the new system is expected to be up and running by April 3, according to the Office of Judicial Administration’s news release on Friday. Courts will remain open during the transition, but attorneys will only be able to file documents on paper and [...]

In an indicator of the closer relationship between the City of Lawrence and the Lawrence Community Shelter, the city plans to use a portion of its pandemic aid to pay additional staffing costs for the shelter to expand its capacity to 125 people. The city announced Thursday that beginning March 13, the day after the city’s winter emergency shelter at the Community Building in downtown Lawrence is set to close for the season, LCS’ capacity will be increased to 125 people. Assistant City Manager Brandon McGuire said Friday that the city would be providing staff and resources to support the increased [...]

More communities are turning away from the prospect of a dollar store opening up in their town. In a report published by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, researchers said more than 70 cities and towns have already blocked new projects from chain dollar stores and 50 cities have enacted laws to limit the discount retailers’ plans for expansion. ... “In cities, it is common to find dollar stores clustered by the dozen within certain neighborhoods. In rural towns, they typically locate near the only grocery store, and often succeed in wiping it out,” the report said. “One might assume that the [...]

This winter, Saline County residents have been able to apply for a housing weatherization program that aims to help reduce overall costs of utility payments in the colder months of the year. The program was partly funded through American Rescue Plan Act monies, and a recent allocation could help the organization continue to help families after the initial allocation is expended. A partnership between Saline County and the Community Housing Development Organization of Central Kansas (CHDO) to provide rehabilitation and weatherization to area homes was envisioned to be a two-part project. In addition to $500,000 already approved for home rehabilitation under [...]

Although the Sonoco Hutchinson Paper Mill closed its doors on Monday, leaving workers perplexed as to the swiftness of it, community members and local and regional businesses are posting on the Hutchinson job board, asking these newly let go workers to apply. In addition, the Siemens Gamesa Hutchinson plant is slowly starting back up. Source: Hutch News