News – Page 2141 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Elected officials consider offering companies cash incentives from sales tax

info2019-05-07T09:34:39-05:00May 7th, 2019|

A body of local elected officials Wednesday will consider offering $1.9 million in cash incentives to a company considering investing $9 million here while creating an anticipated 220 full-time jobs. Those officials will also consider contracting to provide $66,000 in revenue from a countywide half-cent sales tax as cash incentives to a company that appears poised to make a $30 million investment in Topeka. The proposed moves are among items on the agenda when the board of directors of the Joint Economic Development Organization meets at 6 p.m. in the Topeka City Council chambers at 214 S.E. 8th. The JEDO board’s [...]

The town of Wright

info2019-05-07T09:33:31-05:00May 7th, 2019|

Before this community, which was named in honor of one of Dodge City’s founding fathers, received its post office in March 1886, the town started as a stagecoach stop. Robert M. Wright, who the town is named after, owned a large stockyard in the area now known as Wright. Soon after the post office came a hotel and, in 1887, William Hunt, J.D. Hendricks, Ira M. Cobb, John Murphy and A. McLeod chartered the town. Wright, Kansas did not grow into the large cattle market its founders had anticipated, but it gradually grew into a village with a newspaper, grain and [...]

Atchison to join regional 911 network

info2019-05-07T09:31:37-05:00May 7th, 2019|

Atchison County residents will soon gain the ability to summon emergency help with a text message, in a new arrangement that confers various other benefits. A 5-0 vote by city commissioners at Monday's City of Atchison governing body meeting has authorized, via Resolution No. 3156, the city to partner with the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) along with the Atchison County government. MARC currently serves a nine-county area around the Kansas City metro, including Leavenworth, Wyandotte, Johnson and Miami counties in Kansas. The vote came after a presentation by Kim Pruett, Atchison County 911 director, and Wes Lanter, Atchison County Emergency Management [...]

Tobacco free Wichita group wants ordinance to ban tobacco in city parks

info2019-05-06T07:01:03-05:00May 6th, 2019|

We've seen smoking bans take place in restaurants and workplaces, but what about our city parks? A local group is pushing for a city ordinance in Wichita that would prohibit all tobacco use in public green space. Play Healthy ICT believes the ban would make Wichita more progressive, and friendly to visitors. But some people who smoke tell KSN, it's not a good idea. "With the kids playing around, it's just not something I want my kids exposed to," said Jackie Ebert, Augusta. "It's open air, I don't think it's injuring anybody, I don't think it's hurting anybody," said Kira Miller, [...]

Elected officials consider scrapping residency rule

info2019-05-06T06:59:48-05:00May 6th, 2019|

Topeka’s governing body, consisting of Mayor Michelle De La Isla and the nine city council members, will consider doing away with the city’s requirement that all its employees be “bona fide residents of Shawnee County” within six months of their hiring. The proposed change needs six votes for approval. Council members Karen Hiller, Jeff Coen and Tony Emerson are on record as supporting the proposal, while Councilwoman Sandra Clear suggested at the Feb. 19 council meeting that she would be willing to support it. De La Isla and Councilwoman Sylvia Ortiz spoke against the proposal at that meeting, where Councilman Brendan [...]

Hutch City Council to consider renaming Avenue A Park

info2019-05-06T06:58:24-05:00May 6th, 2019|

A Hutchinson park could be getting a new name. A push is underway to convince the city council to rename Avenue A Park “Smallville Park.” The matter will come before the city council Tuesday. The city has been tagged as Smallville — the official birthplace of Superman — and has held the Smallville Con for several years now. Chris Wietrick, who has been one of the forces behind the Smallville movement, has gathered a number of supporters for the name change. The park, which is more than 20 years old, is also in need of a facelift. Wietrick feels the name [...]

Lyon County grants ESU’s appropriation request

info2019-05-06T06:56:06-05:00May 6th, 2019|

Commissioner Scott Briggs brought up a comment made to him by a constituent, seeming to complain about the use of tax money to fund ESU scholarships when their own children had to pay their own way. Briggs asked Garrett to justify the use of taxpayer dollars — the program uses sales tax money — for this purpose. She responded that ESU was an economic driver for the area and the community. “One of the other things that is absolutely true that I hear from business leaders is, it is extraordinarily difficult to find talent,” Garrett said. “We’ve got some great business [...]

Parsons aims for $25M highway project

info2019-05-06T06:52:45-05:00May 6th, 2019|

Instead of making improvements to North 16th Street by piecemeal, the city may apply for a federal grant for a $25 million project. City commissioners on Monday will consider a $30,000 agreement with transportation planning and engineering firm TranSystems to assist in the completion of a U.S. Department of Transportation BUILD grant. BUILD stands for Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development. If approved, the grant would make major improvements to 16th, which also is U.S. 59. Although in the preliminary stages, a map shared by Jim Zaleski, economic development director, during a Thursday work session shows the proposed project beginning south [...]

Garden City discusses Neighborhood Learning Center funding

info2019-05-06T06:51:01-05:00May 6th, 2019|

During an update and check-in with the Garden City Commission at a monthly town hall Tuesday, the Cultural Relations Advisory Board’s Allie Medina asked the commission for direction, including whether the board should offer grant funding opportunities for organizations like the Neighborhood Learning Center or Ethnic Empowerment Network. The Neighborhood Learning Center, a resource center in the Garden Spot Rentals apartments off Mary Street that has provided health screenings, basic English classes, citizenship prep, life skills and a wealth of other services for local refugees and immigrants for six years, will close at the end of June unless it secures new [...]

Emergency communications facility opens in Ford County

info2019-05-06T06:46:31-05:00May 6th, 2019|

City and county officials opened the doors to the new Ford County Emergency Communications on Friday. The new location at 1506 W. Comanche Street, is the new home to the Ford County Communications 911 dispatch center and Ford County Emergency Department. The previous location for the Ford County departments were held at the Government Center at 100 Gunsmoke Street and has been a three-year process in moving to the new site. “This has been a tremendous amount of work,” said Ford County Communications director Elliot Linke. “There have been a lot of people involved. Every person in this room has had [...]