News

Panasonic aims to hire 200 more workers ahead of March production start

2024-11-26T09:59:52-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Panasonic is ramping up hiring efforts as it prepares to begin electric-vehicle battery production in De Soto this spring. Workers will begin producing lithium ion batteries at Panasonic’s 4.7 million-square-foot plant in March, though an official opening date has not been announced. The Japanese manufacturer announced its executive leadership team for the De Soto facility in September 2023 and began hiring for plant jobs last fall. Source: Kansas City Business Journal

Olathe approves STAR bond plan for $320M entertainment hub

2024-11-26T09:58:46-06:00November 26th, 2024|

With public financing secured, developers are set to break ground this summer on an all-abilities theme park in Olathe. On Tuesday, the Olathe City Council unanimously voted to approve a series of tax incentives to support the development of a $320 million entertainment district called Olathe Gateway. The project will get about $104 million in state and local tax incentives. Developers plan to begin construction by July 15. On Sept. 17, the City Council approved creating a sales tax revenue (STAR) bond district on roughly 130 noncontiguous acres at the southwest and northeast corners of 119th Street and Renner Boulevard for [...]

Economic push in Reno County brings funding, new ideas

2024-11-26T09:57:08-06:00November 26th, 2024|

A process that brought together local stakeholders to try new methods for growing the Reno County entrepreneurial ecosystem is considered a success. According to StartUp Hutch Director Jackson Swearer, one of the Reno County Heartland Together program’s original advocates, the energy provided by the program led to the acquisition of $120,000 in funding over two years from the K-State 105 initiative. Founded last year, the university program aims to reach residents in all 105 Kansas counties through various extension programs, including entrepreneurial ecosystem support. Source: KLC Journal

Efforts in Liberal solidify link between leadership and growth

2024-11-26T09:56:03-06:00November 26th, 2024|

If the southwest Kansas community of Liberal has learned anything over the past few years, it’s to not settle. The city of just over 19,000 people has a dynamic economic development office that has spent the past year rolling out small-business loans, announcing major industrial growth and helping small businesses. In 2023, business leaders and community members in Liberal gathered for a program called Heartland Together, funded by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and designed by the Kansas Leadership Center, which publishes The Journal. Liberal residents discussed how to stay engaged in the community and how to make the city’s entrepreneurship [...]

Homeless Wichitans dream of shelter beyond four walls

2024-11-26T09:54:49-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Wichita’s homeless face temperatures below freezing at a time when local officials are still working to open this year’s emergency winter shelter. Once set for a Thanksgiving opening, the shelter is now scheduled to open Dec. 2. Seeking shelter can be complicated for many of those who live outside. Over months of meeting and conversing with homeless Wichitans (many of which who claimed to be chronically homeless), few saw themselves taking a shelter bed. Why? Some cited past poor experiences. Others couldn’t stand the idea of being separated from their partner or pet. (Wichita’s new shelter is supposed to have kennels [...]

A new court program offers mediation instead of eviction. Officials want more people to use it

2024-11-26T09:52:02-06:00November 26th, 2024|

The program manager estimates around 50 landlord-tenant cases in Sedgwick County had been mediated as of late September, more than a year after the program begun. Meanwhile, the county typically sees around 5,000 eviction filings, or more, per year. The mediation program offers landlords and tenants an alternative to eviction: a neutral mediator – approved by the court system – brings both parties together in an attempt to work out an agreement. Source: KLC Journal

Child care experts weigh in on state subsidy program and potential improvements

2024-11-26T09:49:31-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Child care support in Kansas needs to be simplified and amplified. That was the gist of a recent conversation among providers and administrators of child care service agencies who met to discuss a report from Kansas State University and the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund. Their findings highlight the barriers families face as they attempt to apply for state child care subsidies through the Kansas Department for Children and Families. The process for applying is seen as a barrier in itself, with strict eligibility requirements, excessive documentation needs and a reimbursement method that is almost always delayed. Source: KLC Journal

The city of Wichita is selling its public housing. Where are the tenants going?

2024-11-26T09:46:43-06:00November 26th, 2024|

About one-third of the city’s 352 single-family public housing units were still occupied as of last December. The city is offering housing vouchers to the tenants who have to move. As of last December, 110 of the city’s single-family public housing units were occupied. By the end of June, about 60 of those households had been impacted by the city’s sale of public housing, according to the city of Wichita. Each had the option to receive a voucher to help with rent, and a city contractor recommends an available housing unit to tenants and also pays for moving assistance. Source: KSN-TV

Dickinson County wind farm project approved

2024-11-26T09:44:16-06:00November 26th, 2024|

Dickinson County Commissioners are moving forward with the Hope Ridge Wind Project. The commission voted 2-1 to approve the plan, which will be located in the southeast part of the county near Hope. The permit states that the windmills cannot be taller than 600 feet and must be 1,300 feet from the road. Source: KSN-TV

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