News – Page 2117 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Johnson County signs use flashing lights to warn of flooding. But they aren’t working

info2019-05-29T06:55:12-05:00May 29th, 2019|

In Mission Hills, a sign along a road with a light at the top is meant to warn drivers to stop and turn around. If the light is flashing, the sign is meant to say, it is because the road ahead has been flooded by Brush Creek. On Friday night, the light wasn’t flashing when emergency services performed a water rescue just past the sign. Crews pulled a woman from a car in high water. The sign at 66th and Indian Lane is part of a larger, county-wide flood warning system. Eleven signs like the one at 66th and Indian Lane [...]

Saline County approves contract to share Planning Director with Dickinson County

info2019-05-29T06:53:20-05:00May 29th, 2019|

The Saline County Commission approved a joint contract with Dickinson County Tuesday morning to share the labor and expertise of Tim Hamilton, who will serve as planning and zoning director for both counties. Dickinson County had already approved the joint contract, and Saline County’s approval made the arrangement official. Saline County didn’t have a planning and zoning director for five months after David Neal, the previous director, left Oct. 2, 2018 after accepting a job as a site design planner in Arizona. Hamilton has been serving both Saline and Dickinson counties as planning and zoning director since March 5. Before then, [...]

Great Bend basement flooding & Wastewater system update

info2019-05-29T06:51:49-05:00May 29th, 2019|

The City of Great Bend Administration & Public Works Departments would like to put out additional public information on Basement Flooding and our current wastewater treatment plant update. The City of Great Bend is posting the KDHE – Kansas Department of Health & Environment Wastewater Incident Report Form to the City Website. This form needs to be filled out and given to KDHE for tracking and incident reporting because of the excessive rainfall we’ve had in Great Bend. As for our Wastewater system update, our wastewater plant is still working as it was designed however due to the excessive amounts of [...]

As Airbnb Grows, This Is Exactly How Much It’s Bringing Down Hotel Prices and Occupancy

info2019-05-29T06:45:38-05:00May 29th, 2019|

Airbnb has grown exponentially since its founding in 2008 and is expected to soon go public in an initial public offering that would rank it among the world’s most valuable hotel companies. In fact, U.S. consumers spent more money on Airbnb last year than they did on Hilton and its subsidiaries, the second-biggest hotel chain in the world, which was founded a century ago. Our research included data from 2008 to 2017 in Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, San Francisco and Seattle. In those cities, the number of properties on Airbnb—from room shares to entire houses—surged [...]

Final tally – sales tax issue fails by 29 votes in Brown County

info2019-05-29T06:38:25-05:00May 29th, 2019|

The final votes were tallied Tuesday morning and the outcome remains the same - the sales tax to benefit the hospital was defeated by a mere 29 votes. The Special Election Question was Tuesday the 21st, and voters were able to cast their ballots on whether to approve a half-cent sales tax to benefit the Hiawatha Community Hospital. Of the estimated $700,000 expected to be raised annually over the 10 year period of the proposed tax, 20 percent was earmarked for healthcare in Horton. This week's numbers are different than unofficial vote tallies as released last Tuesday evening. This is due [...]

American Red Cross sets up to help tornado victims in Lawrence

info2019-05-29T06:36:45-05:00May 29th, 2019|

Volunteers were on hand to help as the American Red Cross was setting up a shelter for people displaced by Tuesday’s tornado. The group set up in building 21 at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 2120 Harper St., in Lawrence. (Read more: KC Breaking News, Sports & Crime |)

New dog park with agility area to open soon in Wichita

info2019-05-29T06:34:36-05:00May 29th, 2019|

In a few weeks, dogs of Wichita will have another public park to play in. A newly constructed dog park in the eastern portion of W.B. Harrison Park, 1300 S. Webb, is expected to open to mid-June, according to Troy Houtman, director of Wichita’s Park and Recreation Department. It will have separate areas for large dogs and small dogs, as well as shade structures, areas for open play, benches, tables and an agility course. The large hill in the northeast corner of the park — often used by neighborhood kids for sledding in wintertime — is within the dog park area. [...]

Mandatory evacuations underway in Coffeyville Monday

info2019-05-28T13:19:44-05:00May 28th, 2019|

The City of Coffeyville initiated mandatory evacuations Monday morning as the Verdigris River continued to rise. According to a Facebook post from Coffeyville Police, the river level at the time was 23.1 feet and had been rising steadily overnight. According to the latest information from the National Weather Service, the river in Coffeyville is expected to be at 25 feet Tuesday morning. The Coffeyville Police Department and Coffeyville Fire Department have begun notifying businesses and citizens in the flood prone areas. The City is instituting a mandatory evacuation for those in the flood areas. (Read more: WIBW News Now)

Kansas town’s treasurer kept taxpayer cash for herself, went to casino, prosecutor says

info2019-05-28T13:19:04-05:00May 28th, 2019|

The former treasurer of a Kansas town has been charged with defrauding the city, allegedly keeping taxpayer money for herself and spending some of the money at a casino. Deborah Sell was charged Thursday in federal court with wire fraud and filing a false tax return, court records show. The U.S. Attorney’s Office alleges that Sell schemed to defraud the Miami County town of Fontana while serving as its treasurer. Sell’s alleged scheme to use public money to pay for personal expenses began sometime before July 2015 and continued until she left employment with the city in September 2017, according to [...]

Think this May is wet? It hasn’t broken the rainfall record – yet. But it’s close.

info2019-05-28T13:16:21-05:00May 28th, 2019|

If you think this month seems a little wetter than usual in Wichita, you’re right. We haven’t hit the rainfall record — yet. But it’s close. And there’s a good chance we could break it. The National Weather Service tweeted Sunday that with the morning’s rainfall, this is officially the second-wettest May on record. So far 11.96 inches of rain have fallen in Wichita at Eisenhower National Airport since May 1. The record for the month of May, set in 2008, is 13.14 inches. “We’re just an inch and a half away or so from breaking it,” National Weather Service meteorologist [...]