News – Page 373 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Kansas has the oldest fire code in country. An update was ‘derailed’ by new law

info2024-11-29T09:06:47-06:00November 29th, 2024|

Fire marshal Mark Engholm shared the news during a presentation to the Legislative Budget Committee on Monday ... "Kansas has a 2006 version of the fire code," Engholm said. "We are the oldest fire code in the United States of any state in existence. We were fairly close to getting to a more updated code but were derailed, unfortunately. "We were derailed by some of the the actions in the last session as far as rules and regulations and dealing with the economic impact studies. It's very difficult for us to say how would a fire code economic impact across the [...]

Municipal Bond Trends for November 26, 2024

Henry Schmidt2024-11-27T08:54:46-06:00November 27th, 2024|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

Governor Kelly Announces More than $320,000 for Seven Kansas Water Plan Partnership Initiative Projects

info2024-11-26T10:10:35-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Governor Laura Kelly announced on Friday that more than $320,000 will go toward seven new partnership initiatives for the second year of funding through the Kansas Water Office’s Kansas Water Plan Partnership Initiative (KWPPI). KWPPI invests State Water Plan Fund resources into projects centered around conserving and protecting the High Plains Aquifer, improving state water quality, reducing vulnerability to extreme events, and increasing awareness of Kansas water resources. “These projects continue the work we are doing to secure our state’s water future,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “The investments we make today will affect generations to come. The Kansas Water Plan Partnership [...]

Governor Kelly Announces Nearly $6M in KDOT Cost Share Program Projects

info2024-11-26T10:09:26-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Governor Laura Kelly announced Thursday that $5.9 million will be awarded to seven transportation construction projects through the Kansas Department of Transportation’s Cost Share Program for fall 2024. This cost-share investment will leverage $9.8 million in community matching dollars for a total investment of more than $15 million. “Infrastructure projects funded through the Cost Share Program aren’t just about roads and bridges; they are about increasing job growth and retention and strengthening the economic climate across Kansas,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “By leveraging this partnership with KDOT, communities are able to address necessary, long-term solutions to their local transportation issues.” Source: [...]

City to consider funding park upgrades with naming sponsorships

info2024-11-26T10:08:21-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Manhattan city commissioners on Tuesday will consider funding part of the CiCo Park improvement project with a proposed resolution allowing parks and recreation staff to authorize naming rights for new and existing facilities and their amenities. The goal is to reduce the overall tax subsidy of the park upgrades by increasing private funding through donations and sponsorships. If passed, the resolution would allow for sponsorship opportunities ranging from $3,000 to $100,000. Commissioners only will discuss the proposed resolution on Tuesday. The resolution will come to a vote at the commission’s Dec. 17 legislative meeting. Source: 1350 KMAN

Suit filed against commissioners, solar panel companies

info2024-11-26T10:06:56-06:00November 26th, 2024|

The Board of Bourbon County Commissioners and companies with agreements for solar developments in the county are the defendants in a civil lawsuit filed Wednesday in Bourbon County District Court. Source: Fort Scott Tribune

Amtrak moving forward on Newton improvements

info2024-11-26T10:06:09-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Amtrak is moving forward on upgrading the train loading and drop-off deck at the Newton depot. As for other projects, such as the Heartland Flyer Extension and the state of the Depot itself, more information should be available in December. Zach McHatton, Blank, said he recently met with Amtrak officials and primarily spoke to them about the project to update the deck at the Depot. The project would add lighting, make the deck ADA-compliant, and generally upgrade the area. Source: Harvey County Now

Municipal Bond Trends for November 25, 2024

Henry Schmidt2024-11-26T10:06:08-06:00November 26th, 2024|

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

Hillsboro plans for the future

info2024-11-26T10:04:15-06:00November 26th, 2024|

The Hillsboro City Council, along with several other city leaders, spent close to three hours in a strategic planning meeting on Tuesday, Nov 12. The meeting began with City Administrator Matt Stiles explaining that the strategic plan started in January 2020 and has been updated quarterly. Stiles led the group through a review of the vision, values, goals and status of the past five years of the current strategic plan with a promise to work on a three-year plan in the rest of the meeting and another two or three meetings. He said the hope is to have marching orders to [...]

Overland Park’s property tax rebate pilot takes shape — Who will qualify?

info2024-11-26T10:02:57-06:00November 26th, 2024|

The details for Overland Park’s new city property tax rebate pilot program are starting to firm up. On Wednesday, the Overland City Council Park Finance, Administration, and Economic Development Committee voted unanimously to recommend an agreement with the Community Capital Fund to administer the pilot. The action also effectively endorsed the pilot program’s eligibility rules and extra priority criteria. Previously, the city set aside $200,000 for the rebate pilot program as part of its 2025 budget, but at the time, the parameters for it were unclear. The decision to start a pilot of this sort followed several months of sometimes heated [...]