News – Page 2281 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Parsons commissioner disapproves of closed session to discuss incentives

info2018-11-30T07:43:58-06:00November 30th, 2018|

Parsons city commissioners met in an executive session during a Thursday work session, but the decision to meet in private wasn’t made unanimously. Commissioner Peter Cook objected to the closed session because the motion didn’t include enough information for the public. The session was called to discuss possible incentives based on sales and confidential financial information related to the financial affairs of a corporation. “I think to have an executive session on this, it ought to be a little more revealing because we’re not telling anyone anything except we’re going to meet in secret to talk about something,” Cook said. As [...]

Sale of city-owned building in Chanute : Job retention vs. recruitment

info2018-11-30T07:42:30-06:00November 30th, 2018|

Chanute commissioners received two offers, raised a counter proposal, and are now waiting to see if the other players will call or fold. The stakes are economic development and privatizing a manufacturing plant at 615 W. Cherry. The players are a long-time Chanute manufacturer and a new business looking to come to town. For now, the winner remains undetermined. Chanute Regional Development Authority Director Matt Godinez said both offers look good, and he thinks both companies are sound and will do what they promise. He said that the issue seems to be between job retention versus recruitment. “It’s almost personal taste [...]

Supreme Court case could have major impact on law in Missouri, Kansas

info2018-11-30T07:40:00-06:00November 30th, 2018|

A law that brings in millions of dollars for law enforcement in Kansas and Missouri could soon change. Under a law called civil asset forfeiture, a traffic stop could end with someone losing their car or life savings. Wednesday, the Supreme Court of the United States heard a case from Indiana that looks at the law. It centers around a man named Tyson Timbs who sold undercover police in Indiana $400 worth of heroin. He was arrested, and they took his $40,000 Land Rover through asset forfeiture. On Wednesday, during oral arguments, his attorney told the Supreme Court that the seizure [...]

Kansas task force eager to finish stalled T-Works projects, invest in road preservation

info2018-11-30T07:37:43-06:00November 30th, 2018|

The Kansas Legislature’s task force Thursday recommended completion of more than 20 highway projects suspended when the cash-strapped state government drained away highway funding to balance the budget and to place a high priority on investments preventing deterioration of existing infrastructure. The panel of state and local government officials and industry representatives struggled to identify precise sources of funding to cover $535 million needed to finish 21 projects remaining from the T-Works program started in 2010. It was the same with pinpointing financing as much as $500 million annually for road preservation projects managed by the Kansas Department of Transportation. In [...]

Commissioner concerned lawsuit against drug makers could hurt local jobs

info2018-11-30T07:07:49-06:00November 30th, 2018|

Cowley County commissioners have decided to drop out of a opioid lawsuit several months after they joined it. The commission approved a resolution Tuesday night removing itself from the suit initiated by Sedgwick County and joined by Cowley County in April 2018. The purpose of the suit, as described by the lawyers for Sedgwick County and explained at length in the suit itself, was to go after the “Big Pharma” companies that have been encouraging physicians to prescribe opioids while denying they are addictive. That, according to the claim, promotes the current opioid crisis. “The opioid crisis is everywhere. Why wouldn’t [...]

City selects ballpark design-build group; competing bidder questions qualifications

info2018-11-30T07:05:40-06:00November 30th, 2018|

The Wichita City Council hasn’t officially approved a design-build team for the city’s new $75 million Minor League ballpark, but there’s already been a protest over the recommended group. On Tuesday, the Council will vote on a selection committee’s recommendation of Kansas City, Mo.-based JE Dunn Construction, which is teaming with Overland Park-based DLR Group and three Wichita companies: Schaefer Johnson Cox Frey Architecture, Professional Engineering Consultants and Eby Construction. At issue in a protest by a competing team is whether the JE Dunn team meets a key requirement to be selected, which is that it has built at least three [...]

#Myarkcity is the hashtag to help Ark City win $500,000

info2018-11-30T07:03:09-06:00November 30th, 2018|

The Small Business Revolution-Main Street TV show will announce on Dec. 10 the 10 finalists for the $500,000 community development prize. Arkansas City is one of the top 20 finalists, and community supporters hope to make the cut and be included in the next round. Several groups in the community are making an all-out effort to make sure Ark City remains in the contest. Jill Wineinger, a strong supporter of the campaign, said it was especially important for all citizens to rally their support on every possible social media platform. She encouraged residents to use the hashtag #myarkcity and tag the [...]

Should Kansas raise the gas tax to pay for highways? Some officials are discussing it

info2018-11-30T07:00:12-06:00November 30th, 2018|

ansas drivers may pay more at the pump — or pay a fee if they own an electric car — to help fund future highway improvements, under ideas proposed by state lawmakers and officials. One senator says the current gas tax of 24 cents a gallon should increase to 29 cents a gallon. Discussion of a higher gas tax and fees comes as Kansas begins crafting a new long-term transportation plan that will guide highway projects for years to come. A state task force finalized recommendations on Thursday for a program that will eventually replace T-WORKS, the 10-year, $8 billion transportation [...]

Shawnee’s 2019 CDBG plan dedicates funds to city street infrastructure

info2018-11-30T06:57:52-06:00November 30th, 2018|

Shawnee has submitted its application for Community Development Block Grant funding for the next five years. Should the Kansas Department of Commerce accept Shawnee’s application as is, the city would receive $285,302 in CDBG funds. A majority of the city’s funding request is $217,602 to be dedicated toward street infrastructure improvements on 60th Street between Flint Street and Nieman Road. CDBG funds are designed to provide assistance to low- and moderate-income residents. The city’s five-year plan was updated to include housing rehabilitation, stormwater and street and sidewalk improvements, subsistence payments to low-income Shawnee residents, payments to subsidize child care, and funding [...]

Longwell: Public will have input on Wichita baseball team nickname

info2018-11-30T06:55:36-06:00November 30th, 2018|

Plainsmen? Flyers? Wind Sox? Whatever the nickname turns out to be for Wichita's new Triple A baseball team, it sounds like the public will get a say. That's according to Mayor Jeff Longwell, who said during his Thursday media briefing that the public will be involved in the process to rename the New Orleans Baby Cakes, the Triple-A baseball franchise that plans to move to Wichita for the 2020 season. "The team wants the public involved," Longwell said. "That process will organized by the (Baby Cakes). They have a website they're almost ready to launch and their goal is to have [...]