News – Page 467 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Douglas County Commission approves permit for solar farm north of Lawrence

info2024-04-15T11:36:33-05:00April 15th, 2024|

Following a nearly 10-hour meeting Saturday, Douglas County commissioners voted to approve a permit for the Kansas Sky Energy Center, a massive solar farm to be built north of Lawrence. The meeting drew dozens of public commenters. Commissioners planned the special Saturday meeting knowing that there would be numerous members of the public wishing to speak on the topic. A unanimous (3-0) vote was required to approve the project because planning commissioners had tied in their vote and a protest petition had been filed against the project. The 159-megawatt solar farm will be built, owned and operated by Evergy with designs provided by Savion [...]

KDOT holds town hall on K-96 renovations

info2024-04-15T11:35:31-05:00April 15th, 2024|

Richard Zrubek lives in Bel Aire, an area of suburban Wichita that's seen growth in the last few years. "Now it's getting to the point where during rush hour traffic, you'll find pretty much every exit on 96 from Woodlawn, Hillside, Rock Road, and now they're backed up clear to the highway when people are trying to exit the road," Zurbek said. As this growth continues, the Kansas Department of Transportation is proposing several new changes to the K-96 highway. "We're taking seven interchanges; five of them are going to become diverging diamond interchanges. And then toward K 15, where it [...]

Abilene places 3rd in USA Today 10Best Historic Small Towns

info2024-04-15T11:33:31-05:00April 15th, 2024|

Abilene has placed 3rd in USA Today's 10 Best Historic Small Towns. Abilene has placed in the top 10 list for the last 6 six years. “Abilene’s consistent Top 10 ranking is a testament to our community’s relentless commitment to preserving and promoting its history,” says Julie Roller Weeks, Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau Director in a news release. “Our enthusiasm to promote and share Abilene is contagious and inspires thousands of voters each year to vote for Ike’s hometown.” A USA Today panel of expert submits town nominations each year and then USA Today selects 20 for the public to vote on [...]

6,000 acres burned in Ellis County wildfire on Thursday

info2024-04-15T11:31:46-05:00April 15th, 2024|

According to Darin Myers, Ellis County Fire Department, the fire started around 11:30 a.m. in the far northeast corner of Ellis County near Codell Road. Kansas State Fire Marshal Mark Engholm says the wildfire burned southeast through grass and brush. Ellis County Fire reports mutual aid was requested from fire departments in Russell, Rooks, Trego, Lincoln, and Osborne counties, and the Hays Fire Department. Public works provided water trucks, fuel, graders and supervisors. Two tankers from the Kansas Forest Service provided aerial assistance and made 11 trips to drop water on the fire. The fire was under control around 6:30 p.m. Crews [...]

Seward County Community College receiving federal funds

info2024-04-15T11:30:18-05:00April 15th, 2024|

Seward County Community College is receiving $1.2 million in new federal funding. The funding comes from the Department of Labor as part of a line item in the labor, health, and human services bill sponsored by Sen. Jerry Moran. The funds are earmarked for the school's expanding truck driving program. Demand for the SCCC CDL program has increased for several years, leading to a waitlist. In 2021, the college received a $1.81 million grant from the state to expand its CDL and Diesel Technician programs. “We’re excited about the impact this program can have in our community and everywhere truck drivers are needed,” said [...]

Southeast Kansas student combats referee shortage

info2024-04-15T11:28:36-05:00April 15th, 2024|

A local high school student is choosing to enter a field most are getting away from. Antonio Aita, 17, is a junior at Parsons High School, who's says he's been officiating competitive soccer games for more than seven years now. He first took the responsibility of the whistle when he was just 10 years old, after suffering a season-ending injury playing peewee soccer. Aita can now officiate any game in the U.S., at a club-level, after being certified last year through the United States Soccer Federation in Kansas. Today, he discussed the current nationwide referee shortage, as the game he was at would ideally [...]

Law enforcement from around the state attend annual Lyon County Sheriff’s spring training seminar

info2024-04-15T11:25:27-05:00April 15th, 2024|

The Lyon County Sheriff’s Office welcomed law enforcement professionals from across the state of Kansas for its annual spring training seminar this week. More than 200 law enforcement officers and professionals from more than 30 different agencies attended the three-day seminar which covered several areas of the profession including case reviews, investigation techniques and more. Lyon County Detective Eric Williams organized the seminar which he says is geared towards “smaller departments.” He adds that regular seminars such as this are extremely important as the world of law enforcement, contrary to popular belief, is always evolving. Lyon County Sheriff Jeff Cope, a near 30-year [...]

City in Kansas says it violated its own ordinance, will remove goats

info2024-04-15T11:24:34-05:00April 15th, 2024|

Newton says it violated its own ordinance by using goats as weed control on city-owned industrial land. “We tried this with the best intentions on a property in a non-residential setting,” City Manager Daniela Rivas said in a news release Friday. “We wanted to get the job done in a better way and save some taxpayer dollars. We’re so sorry we put the cart before the goat.” The goats have been on the property since April 4 and were supposed to be there through the end of the month. They will be removed as soon as possible, the release says, adding [...]

Andover YMCA announces opening day

info2024-04-15T11:23:19-05:00April 15th, 2024|

The wait is over. After two years of recovery and renovations from the aftermath the 2022 F-3 tornado, the Andover YMCA has announced their opening day. The organization opened the water park feature of the fitness center in summer 2023, welcoming a line of guests ready to enjoy the park. On May 20 YMCA members and guests can finally step back into the new and improved Andover YMCA. Of those improvements made is the new 44-foot Luckey Climber that replaced the rock wall feature. The lucky climber is geared towards children, which allows them to safely climb with friends from the main [...]

The City of Wichita could lift electric scooter riding curfew as early as next week

info2024-04-15T11:20:22-05:00April 15th, 2024|

The City of Wichita is considering lifting the curfew for Veo Ride scooters. Currently, they shut off at 9 p.m. or dusk. “I normally start using them around six,” said Zidane Forbes, who uses the scooters. Forbes typically rides around on the scooters at night in Wichita. So when he heard they could soon be used after 9, he's on board. “Most of the time, that's when people actually want to use them. Like during the that's a good idea. But later at night, you want to use them, ride around just have a little bit of fun,” said Forbes. The [...]