News – Page 1201 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Sensory overload: Overstimulated people can check out room in OP Convention Center

info2022-02-09T02:43:49-06:00February 9th, 2022|

Going to a trade show or convention can be fun and exciting, but for many people, the environment can also be overwhelming. That’s why the Overland Park Convention Center recently installed a sensory room to help. The room opened Jan. 21. A sensory room usually is more quiet and has different lighting, along with various fidget activities that can help stem issues people have when their senses are overstimulated. People with autism, PTSD, attention deficit disorder, dementia and other conditions can experience this in places that are crowded, noisy and have bright lighting. Source: Joco 913 News

Ark City Downtown Visioning

info2022-02-09T06:22:03-06:00February 9th, 2022|

More than 50 people showed up at the Burford Theatre on Saturday to voice ideas for the revitalization of downtown Arkansas City. The brainstorming session was conducted by students and instructors from Kansas State University and the South Dakota State University. After a brief introduction, the participants broke up into several small group sessions to exchange ideas. The students, who are majoring in landscape architecture, interior and graphic design, served as facilitators and will use those suggestions and their own observations to create visual renderings that illustrate future possibilities. Source: The Arkansas City Traveler

Local hospitals say capacity crisis has eased

info2022-02-09T02:35:03-06:00February 9th, 2022|

Officials at both local hospitals in Cowley County said their capacity issues have improved since late January, when they appealed to the public for help alleviating packed emergency and ICU departments. Sarah Johnson, spokesperson for William Newton Hospital in Winfield, said officials have seen a drop in COVID activity and the facility’s capacity problems had diminished, at least for this week. “We are seeing significant improvements,” Johnson said. As of Monday, the hospital had no COVID-positive inpatients. There was one COVID-related death last week, Johnson said, and a patient is recovering in the hospital after a COVID infection. Source: Cowley CourierTraveler

Scooter and e-bike company Bird will flock to Overland Park this spring

info2022-02-09T06:22:35-06:00February 9th, 2022|

A flock of electric scooters and bicycles will offer Overland Park residents a new way to fly around town starting as soon as early March. The popular scooter and bikeshare company Bird inked a two-year deal with the city this week to offer a fleet of its small, electric shared vehicles across Overland Park as a trendy alternative for residents hoping to zip around town without a car. The scooters and electric bikes are fun to ride, but city officials also hope they can offer residents or students without a car the opportunity to get around town more easily and cheaply, [...]

USD 232 school board may urge county to lift mask mandate for K-6 schools

info2022-02-09T02:22:06-06:00February 9th, 2022|

As COVID-19 cases trend downward in Johnson County, USD 232 school board members in De Soto may ask the county to lift a public health order mandating masks be worn in all school buildings serving students up to and including 6th grade. At the school board’s meeting Monday night, most board members expressed interest in each writing letters to the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners asking them to remove the school mask requirement for younger grades. The board of county commissioners is set to revisit the mask order at its regular meeting on Thursday, Feb. 17. Source: Prairie Village Post

Douglas County Considering New Mask Mandate

info2022-02-09T02:16:46-06:00February 9th, 2022|

The Douglas County Commission will consider a new emergency public health order during its meeting Wednesday. The new order would require individuals to wear face coverings at indoor gatherings in which 500 or more individuals are in attendance in a single space. That would include concerts, sporting events, trade shows, or conventions. Local health officers are recommending the new order specific to large crowds to help prevent spread of COVID-19 in Douglas County where cases and hospitalizations continue to be high, putting a strain on staffing in schools and the healthcare system. If approved, the public health order would start Thursday, [...]

Municipal Bond Trends for February 7, 2022

info2022-02-08T06:48:09-06:00February 8th, 2022|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS "investment grade" yields. Every issuer's credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.

Seven hikes? Fast-rising wages could cause the Fed to raise interest rates even higher this year

info2022-02-08T01:52:34-06:00February 8th, 2022|

Too much of a good thing, in the form of rapidly rising wages, is expected to push Federal Reserve interest rate hikes at an even faster pace. Average hourly earnings jumped 0.7% in January and are now running at a 5.7% pace over the past 12 months, according to Labor Department data released Friday. Excepting a two-month period during the early days of the pandemic, that is by a wide margin the fastest-ever move in data going back to March 2007. While that has come as welcome news to workers, it's posed a further quandary for the Fed, which increasingly is [...]

How Butler County was impacted by the early Feb. 2022 winter storm

info2022-02-08T01:47:45-06:00February 8th, 2022|

The last few days have been cold and snowy in south-central Kansas and it has left a small impact on the communities. Schools, services, and businesses were closed, then the roadways have felt like an adventure. The good news is that the winter storm has passed and some good weather is on the way. We could return into the 40s and 50s, then have sunny conditions, but here is what the winter storm caused through Wednesday, Feb. 2 through Friday, Feb. 4. Source: Andover American

The history behind the brick roads in Fort Scott

info2022-02-08T06:49:11-06:00February 8th, 2022|

In 1952, Fort Scott was referred to as the city of brick streets because it had more brick streets per capita than any other city in the US. These bricks are a source of pride for the community, and they're something people have been fighting to protect for decades. "We are a historic community, they provide an ambiance, a look that a lot of cities don't have," says Matthew Wells, Fort Scott City Commissioner, "We bill ourselves as historic Fort Scott, Kansas, and the brick streets only enhance that." ... Work on them began back in the 1880's using a unique [...]