info, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Kansas governor proposes another $30M to address dwindling water supply

info2025-01-17T09:45:27-06:00January 17th, 2025|

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly proposed creating a state natural resources office and spending another $30 million each year to address the state’s water crisis in her State of the State address Wednesday night. In her speech, Kelly, a Democrat, looked back over the first 25 years of the 21st century and said she sees “so many good things on the horizon” in the next 75 years. But she called the state’s dwindling water supply “seriously concerning.” “Without that water, the agricultural industry that fuels our economy and sustains our rural way of life cannot survive,” Kelly said. The Ogallala Aquifer, which [...]

Emporia receives $450,000 for ‘Fix Emporia’ project

info2025-01-17T09:44:02-06:00January 17th, 2025|

The City of Emporia has received $450,000 for the Fix Emporia program. The money comes from FHLBank Topeka’s 2024 Affordable Housing Program. The funds will be used to rehabilitate 30 owner-occupied homes in Emporia whose households fall under the 60% Area Median Income (AMI) limit. ESB Financial is also a contributing partner. Source: KSN-TV

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly presents new state budget to Republican-led House, Senate

info2025-01-17T09:42:31-06:00January 17th, 2025|

The proposed state budget crafted by Gov. Laura Kelly features a 2.5% pay raise for state employees, expands Medicaid eligibility for 150,000 lower-income Kansans and fully finances K-12 public education. Kelly’s blueprint contained a $30 million surge in appropriations for water resource programs and called for appointment of a special task force to develop a 10-year plan for conserving the precious resource. She also proposed $10 million in matching grant funding to further spur expansion of child-care capacity statewide. Source: The Lawrence Times

City’s snow crew was out 24 hours a day for six days after blizzard, official says

info2025-01-17T09:41:13-06:00January 17th, 2025|

City crews plowed 42.24 million cubic feet of snow after last week’s historic snow storm, an official said Tuesday. Interim director of public works Wyatt Thompson said at the city commission meeting that officials figured if the snow was 16 inches deep, the snow they plowed between Jan. 4 and Jan. 9 could have filled City Park Pool 468 times. That amount of snow also could have filled 12,500 train cars or filled Bill Snyder Family Stadium 400 feet deep. Thompson said public works had 31 operations team members who were able to mobilize quickly. Source: themercury.com

The past, present and future of Highway 77

info2025-01-16T09:32:27-06:00January 16th, 2025|

For close to a century, U.S. Highway 77 has been a major highway in Cowley County. For a good deal of its length in the county, it is a four-lane highway from the Oklahoma state line to the north side of Winfield. However, from the north side of Winfield onward to the Butler County line, it is merely a two-lane highway. “The possibility of a future four-lane expansion for this section has not been prioritized at this time. Local consult meetings, which are held periodically, with the next round anticipated this fall, are an opportunity for communities to share input on [...]

Few public entities in Cowley County provide online access to meetings

info2025-01-16T09:30:42-06:00January 16th, 2025|

Arkansas City residents who are unable to attend city commission meetings can now watch the meeting through a livestream or watch it later as a video. The city began broadcasting and posting recordings of the meetings earlier this month on YouTube. The new platform makes it possible for residents to stay informed by viewing meetings in real time or by accessing a recorded video at a more convenient time. Source: Cowley CourierTraveler

County slows down energy storage talks

info2025-01-16T09:29:55-06:00January 16th, 2025|

Allen County Commissioners agreed to a 180-day moratorium in regards to a proposed battery energy storage system (BESS) in the southeast part of the county at their meeting Tuesday. Zoning Director Terry Call discussed the project with the commissioners. The current proposal is for a 300-megawatt storage facility near Savonburg and Elsmore. An estimated 15 to 30 acres would be needed for the facility and it would cost $300 million. Source: The Iola Register

‘Once in a generation’: Lawrence officials begin prep for World Cup in KC

info2025-01-16T09:28:22-06:00January 16th, 2025|

Thousands of international soccer fans and millions of dollars are expected to descend on Kansas City next year as the city hosts six world cup matches. Lawrence officials and organizations have begun preparing to claim a slice of the pie. The impacts are expected to be huge. Six games will be played at Arrowhead Stadium, including a quarterfinal match. “For each of those, the impacts they estimate are similar to what a Super Bowl would be,” said Steve Kelly, vice president of economic development for the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce. KC2026 is the organization in charge of planning for the World [...]

Ellis mulls benefits vs. risks for golf cart legalization

info2025-01-15T11:18:00-06:00January 15th, 2025|

Council President John Walz acknowledged that he may be in the minority in opposing golf cart legalization; however, his concern is safety. Council Member LaBarge reported that safety features as well as licensing and inspection would be required and that no problems have been reported in the surrounding communities, including Hays. Source: Hays Daily News

Lawrence staff outlines financial tools that could generate new revenues for Parks & Rec

info2025-01-15T11:16:43-06:00January 15th, 2025|

That includes creating a pricing policy, which could include resident and non-resident pricing; adding a position to the department that would seek out partnerships, sponsorships or grants to fund park programs; using part of the transitive guest tax to support programming and establishing a foundation for the department to generate private funding through donations. Source: LJWorld

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