News – Page 2154 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Sedgwick County picks new fire chief; points toward merger with Wichita Fire Department

info2019-04-22T07:40:05-05:00April 22nd, 2019|

In a move that could help clear the way for eventual consolidation of the Wichita and Sedgwick County fire departments, veteran fireman Doug Williams has been selected as the new chief of County Fire District No. 1, county officials said Friday. Williams, the division chief of operations for the fire district, had been serving as interim fire chief since the Dec. 21 retirement of Chief Tavis Leake. “He (Williams) has the backing of the fire men and women and that’s what’s critical right now,” said County Commission Chairman David Dennis. A recent survey of firefighters’ attitudes about their jobs showed “morale [...]

Lawrence investigating reason for clog at recently completed $74 million sewer plant

info2019-04-19T11:10:50-05:00April 19th, 2019|

The city’s recently completed $74 million sewage treatment plant has clogged, requiring the city to haul sludge to another plant in order to temporarily clear the plant’s basins and make repairs. Though the plant is fully operational again, city staff says it’s continuing to investigate what caused the clog. As part of its meeting Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission received a report on a payment of $253,800 to Honeybee L.C. for emergency sludge hauling at the Wakarusa Wastewater Treatment Plant. The sludge hauling was necessary to clean out and repair the plant’s aerated sludge diffusers, according to a city staff memo [...]

Shawnee County defers action on purchase of pool cabanas

info2019-04-19T10:53:56-05:00April 19th, 2019|

Shawnee County Commission chairman Bob Archer questioned the notion Thursday of spending nearly $59,000 to acquire and install 11 pool cabanas at the county’s Midwest Health Aquatic Center. He suggested the facility at 2201 S.W. Urish Road lacks the room for that many cabanas, adding that the county could find better ways to spend that much money on parks and recreation. “I don’t think this is Miami Beach,” Archer said. But after further discussion, Commissioners Archer, Bill Riphahn and Kevin Cook decided they needed more information. They voted 3-0 to defer action on the matter until April 25 while asking aquatics [...]

Augusta approves requests for liquor tax funds

info2019-04-19T10:53:09-05:00April 19th, 2019|

The City received $28,042.39 in Liquor Tax Revenue during 2018. Each year, the funds generated by the Liquor tax are redistributed to non-profit organizations. The money can only be distributed to organizations that assist children who are victims of domestic violence. Three organizations submitted requests to receive funds for a total of $20,000. Family Life Center requested $12,000, which is a decrease of $1,000 from last year. SCARF requested $3,000, a decrease of $1,500 from last year. And a new organization to submit a request, Thrive Butler, requested $5,000. Commissioner Badwey questioned whether any organization could request the funds, and what [...]

Leavenworth County Commissioners approve land use concept for road corridor

info2019-04-19T10:50:19-05:00April 19th, 2019|

Leavenworth County commissioners have formally approved a land use plan for a County Road 1 corridor south of Tonganoxie. The concept approved by commissioners Wednesday includes areas of the corridor that can be used for commercial and industrial businesses as well as residential areas. The County Road 1 corridor spans six miles south of Tonganoxie. The corridor also extends 1.5 miles to the west of County Road 1 and 1.5 miles to the east of County Road 1. The corridor includes the county’s only interchange with the Kansas Turnpike. Krystal Voth, deputy director for the Leavenworth County Planning and Zoning Department, [...]

Resident wants zoning regs enforced at Marion county lake

info2019-04-19T10:48:33-05:00April 19th, 2019|

Donna Kaiser’s concern about her county lake neighborhood filling up with storage buildings brought much discussion at Monday’s county commission meeting. Zoning regulations in the residential area by the lake require single-family homes to be built in the area with water and sewer connections. The rule is on the books, but the county does not have a building inspector to enforce it. "What is happening is, three lots were sold and people were going to store their lake toys," Kaiser said. "My concern is, if one gets to do it, pretty soon everyone wants to do it." [MORE] (Read more: Marion [...]

Riverfront legacy master plan a “once in every 100-year opportunity”

info2019-04-19T10:45:17-05:00April 19th, 2019|

Community leaders announced Thursday plans for a Riverfront Legacy Master Plan, a comprehensive vision that connects projects and both banks of the Arkansas River. The vision and plan are still in early stages but will consider a performing arts center, convention center, Century II, the former library and pedestrian bridge among other elements. "We've got one chance to do it really well for generations to come," Evan Rosell, VP of projects for the Greater Wichita Partnership said. Rosell wants it to be a place where the community can gather and put on events. Over two decades ago, seven-term Wichita mayor Bob [...]

Crawford County commissioners reluctant to approve work on land use plan

info2019-04-19T10:42:17-05:00April 19th, 2019|

The Crawford County Commission hosted a work session Tuesday with representatives of the firm Olsson Associates to discuss a land development plan the firm is working on with the City of Pittsburg, but did not reach any agreement with Olsson to expand that plan to include the county. “The City of Pittsburg has the long range goal of producing a citywide comprehensive plan,” said Brian Coomes, a civil engineer with Olsson Associates, “and so as a first step to that process they want to develop a citywide land use planning document as a baseline and then build upon that as they [...]

Topeka’s new flag featuring star, sunflower received runaway support

info2019-04-19T10:32:26-05:00April 19th, 2019|

Voters choosing from among three finalists to be the next city of Topeka flag overwhelmingly approved a design featuring a sunflower accompanied by a white star at Topeka’s location on the state map. That design was chosen by more than 70 percent of the nearly 4,000 people who participating in the selection, representatives of Forge, the city’s young professionals association, said Thursday. Forge planning committee members Leo Espinoza and Brittany Stiffler Crabtree announced the winner near the end of the annual State of the Community luncheon, which organizers said 500 people attended at the Ramada Hotel and Convention Center. The number [...]

‘Investors Are Hesitant’: Rural America Might Miss Out on ‘Opportunity Zones’

info2019-04-19T10:31:30-05:00April 19th, 2019|

This week, the federal government released new guidelines for the nation’s more than 8,700 "opportunity zone" communities trying to attract venture capital investment and boost their struggling economies. Rural areas account for 40 percent of the designated opportunity zones, which offer private companies and investors tax breaks in exchange for investing in certain low-income communities. But some warn that even with the tax incentives, many rural areas still likely won't benefit unless state and local governments intervene to make the investment less risky. The zones were created by the 2017 federal tax overhaul as a way to entice companies to invest [...]