Municipal News & Jobs

Great Bend is taking steps to make its transportation network safer through the Safe Streets for All Study. The SS4A program provides federal funding to help communities improve roadway safety through planning efforts and infrastructure projects such as sidewalks, bike lanes, crosswalks, and safety education programs. Grants can cover up to 80% of project costs. The City of Great Bend will host a community outreach booth during Party in the Park on Saturday, August 8, where residents can share concerns and ideas.
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During the August 4, 2026, meeting, the Hutchinson City Council addressed potential improvements to public meeting protocols and authorized funding for upcoming city infrastructure projects. One topic of informal discussion was the distinction between public comments and public hearings. Councilwoman Stacy Goss highlighted inconsistencies in how these sessions are currently managed. While public comments are intended for citizens to address the council without receiving feedback, public hearings are designed for active engagement between city officials and the public. Assistant City Attorney Cody Smith was tasked with recommending a potential restructure to Mayor Scott Meggers – possibly consolidating public comments to the beginning of meetings, and using public hearings exclusively after that.  The proposed changes aim to make future council meetings less confusing, more efficient, and fairer for all participants. The council held two public hearings during the meeting: one regarding the Community Improvement District (CID) for Landmark and a second concerning the Meadows on Monroe Rural Housing Incentive District (RHID). An approved amendment to the Landmark CID ensures that residents of the new Landmark building will be excluded from the 2% sales tax, with the tax applying only to businesses located at 501 North Main. This CID is set to go into effect on October 1, 2026.
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Riley County officials on Monday reviewed how the county should approach potential data center development as the technology becomes more common and communities across Kansas consider regulations. Planning director Amanda Webb updated commissioners during a work session sharing information from a recent data center planning summit in Topeka and examples of regulations being considered by other communities. Webb said the county is still in the information-gathering stage and is focused on understanding the potential impacts of data centers before considering any regulatory changes.
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A recent string of cyber attacks on U.S. water systems underscores the threat the municipal water sector is facing and the criticality of emergency preparedness and cybersecurity measures. According to multiple news reports, cyber attacks across seven states last week were reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). News of the cyber incidents followed another report that more than 30 water systems in Minnesota were targeted in a coordinated cyber attack last weekend. The seven states affected in the most recent attack were not named, but according to a CBS News report and others, Minnesota and Michigan were among seven states with utilities affected. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is urging critical infrastructure owners, operators and integrators to remove publicly exposed programmable logic controllers (PLC) devices and other operational technology (OT) from the internet as soon as possible. CISA said it is currently observing a significant increase in cyber threat actors targeting PLC devices in the water and wastewater sector. The agency said threat actors targeting exposed PLCs have modified passwords to lock out operators and have disconnected the PLCs by changing their IP addresses. The activity resulted in boil water notices and sustained manual operations, CISA said. Despite the incidents, multiple reports have said there has been no reported contamination of municipal drinking water as as result.
Read more: Water Finance & Management

Lawrence loosened its short-term rental rules ahead of the World Cup in hopes of catching a wave of visitor demand. Those temporary licenses expired this week, and a couple of local hosts say it was more bust than boom. In January, Lawrence city commissioners voted to temporarily lift the city’s cap on the number of short-term rentals — such as Airbnb and Vrbo listings — that property owners may hold, as Kansas City and surrounding areas prepared for a surge of visitors. Kansas City hosted six World Cup games between June 16 and July 11. According to KC2026, about 413,000 people attended matches at Arrowhead Stadium, and there were more than 400,000 FIFA Fan Fest attendees. Its original estimates were for 650,000 unique visitors. Altogether, the city issued 26 temporary short-term rental licenses that took effect May 25 and expired July 26, after the conclusion of the World Cup matches, according to information from Lawrence City Clerk Sherri Riedemann. Local artist Liza MacKinnon said she wanted to make money and use the opportunity to complete long-needed home repairs after her only child moved out. In preparation for listing her home as a short-term rental, MacKinnon painted the interior, had it deep cleaned, renovated the kitchen and bathroom, bought all new linens, dishes and cookware, added a FOX Sports subscription so guests could watch the matches and installed a keypad on her door. When first interviewed on May 15, said she had not received any World Cup-related bookings, and as of June 5, she still had none. By July 21, she said, she’d had five bookings, but only one tied to the event. In May, longtime rental property owner Mark Kern said he’d pivoted to renting his property to a relocation company for the month of June because he didn’t see World Cup bookings rolling in. “I’m really surprised that we haven’t had any (bookings) yet,” Kern said two weeks before the tournament. “We have not even had anybody inquire about renting it for any of the (World Cup) dates.” More recently, Kern said the property was his only short-term rental and was an experiment to see whether it could generate extra summer revenue, but he also didn’t have any bookings in July. According to data provided by AirDNA, a company that tracks data on properties listed on Airbnb and Vrbo, the demand for STRs in Lawrence and Douglas County increased 29% during the tournament period. But the supply of listings also increased 26.8%, absorbing the increased volume. Occupancy peaked at 72% on June 25. That was the day when the Netherlands faced Tunisia in Kansas City, and the USA vs. Turkey match was held in Los Angeles. AirDNA’s analysis found that “Notably, the World Cup impacted pricing significantly more than it did booking volume.” In late June, local average daily rates peaked at nearly $300. The two STR owners had positive reviews about the process. Property owner Kern said the city’s process was straightforward, and he thinks the temporary rules should be permanent. The temporary STR licensing fee was $17, plus a $50 inspection fee. Property owner Liza MacKinnon said she also needed a $1 million liability insurance rider on top of her home insurance. “I’ve stayed in Airbnbs in other places, and they’ve been pretty janky at times, and so I was surprised by how careful the city wants us to be,” MacKinnon said. MacKinnon said the city’s licensing process was easy to follow. “People were very responsive with questions that I had, and I was able to schedule the inspection when my contractor was there. The contractor just made a list of the things that needed to be changed or fixed,” MacKinnon said. “Then the inspector let us send him a video and some snapshots just proving that those things had been done, and so it’s very smooth.”
Read more: The Lawrence Times

Lawrence’s new city manager, Majed Al-Ghafry, has officially moved to town and started his job. He attended his first city commission meeting Tuesday evening. During the city manager’s report, Al-Ghafry said he was honored to be a part of the fabric of the community and that he’s enjoyed his first week living in the city. “We have plenty of incredible opportunities for us, so we’re going to get to work,” he said. City Commissioner Kristine Polian thanked Casey Toomay, assistant city manager, for stepping in as acting city manager throughout the transition and hiring process. Polian also welcomed Al-Ghafry. “I think you’re going to be pivotal for the future of this city, and I look forward to seeing what you do,” she said. City commissioners on June 9 announced Al-Ghafry as the next city manager. Per his contract with Lawrence, Al-Ghafry had to move to Lawrence within six months of winning the contract. He was previously the city manager in DeSoto, Texas, where his contract required him to tender a 60-day notice.
Read more: The Lawrence Times

Usage of golf carts, UTVs and worksite utility vehicles on Winfield streets could become legal in the coming weeks as commissioners discussed potential changes to the current ordinances during a work session last week. Currently, golf carts are only allowed in certain areas, such as at the Winfield Fairgrounds and some residential neighborhoods around golf courses. They are not allowed on state or federal highways, such as U.S. 77 or U.S. 160, except for at legal crossings. Citizen-led efforts to allow more golf cart use have failed at least twice since 2022. Winfield city manager Taggart Wall said staff has drafted an option that would allow golf carts on all streets, provided they go 30 miles per hour or less, as per state law. The laws already governing the use of golf carts on public streets that are in effect would be kept as they are. Worksite utility vehicles, including side-by-sides and UTVs, would be allowed on public roads as long as they are driven at or below 45 miles per hour. Like with golf carts, these vehicles would also be prohibited from driving on state and federal highways, except for at legal crossings. Wall said the proposal allowing worksite utility vehicles would be added to the city ordinance governing the use of micro-utility trucks. The worksite vehicles would have to meet the same requirements as micro-utility trucks; for example, they would be required to have a muffler, and operators would be required to have a valid driver’s license.
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Next to an old steam locomotive in a park on the west side of Kinsley is a sign positioned on atop two telephone poles: One arrow points to the east — New York, 1,561 miles; the other points west — San Francisco, 1,561 miles. Thus, earning Kinsley, KS., the nickname, “Midway USA.” But most Kansans have been taught that the geographic center of the contiguous 48 United States is near Lebanon, Kansas, closer to the Nebraska border. How did Kinsley get this nickname? “I moved here in 1979,” Julie Miller said, “and I saw the Midway sign in the museum, and I was curious about it because I love history.” Miller is a curator of the Edwards County Historical Society Museum and Sod House Museum, located in the park where the Midway Sign sits.
“In 1939, there were two World’s Fairs — one in San Francisco — the Golden Gate Exposition; and one in New York,” Miller said. “The April 22, 1939, Saturday Evening Post put a picture of one car headed for the fare in San Francisco; and one headed for the fair in New York. Behind them was a sign.” The photo became the cover of that Saturday Evening Post. But in actuality, the sign had yet to be created. That idea comes from the local Chamber of Commerce. “The director of the Chamber of Commerce was George Taylor,” Miller said. “Upon seeing the mileage shown on the sign on the magazine’s cover, George had a brainstorm that the halfway point from New York to San Francisco would be somewhere close to Kinsley. Using dead reckoning, he determined that this fictional point would be two miles outside of Kinsley.” The sign was erected two miles west of Kinsley on U.S. 50 Highway in February 1940. But as the years went by, the sign was often vandalized. It eventually was moved closer to town and nearer to the junction of U.S. 50 and 56 highways … and local law enforcement’s eyes. Travelers still often stop at the sign, stretch their legs and come into the museum to talk with Miller. They often say the same thing: “They say we’re almost to San Francisco or we’re almost to New York … We’re halfway there!”
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The home park for Wichita’s minor league baseball team has been generating far less revenue than needed to cover what’s owed on the debt for its construction and upgrades to surrounding infrastructure.
According to city financial reports, in 2025, the Equity Bank Park generated $204,970 in revenue from the 2% tax levied as a community improvement district (CID), a special taxing district where additional revenues are collected to help cover the costs of improvements. The city’s total CID bond repayment for that same year was $714,716. During a July 7, 2026, city council meeting, the city’s finance director, Mark Manning, reported that the district, since it began collecting tax in 2020, generates “somewhere in the neighborhood of $250,000 a year”. This is below the $1 million annually it will need to break even beginning in 2027.
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The scope of cyberattacks on U.S. water systems has grown to include at least seven states and may be far wider, officials and experts warned, as the authorities raced to safeguard the nation’s water supply against an assault that increasingly appeared to be the work of Iran.
While there were no indications that any water supply had been altered or made unsafe to drink, state and local officials throughout the country were on high alert for potential problems in vulnerable computers that are commonly used to monitor and adjust water quality, including chemical-treatment levels and water pressure. Minnesota first publicly reported the attacks, and now Michigan says its systems have also been targeted. The attack has little precedent, experts said, but has long been the stuff of nightmares and sensationalized Hollywood thrillers: an apparent cyberattack by a foreign power during a time of war that could, at least in theory, jeopardize the health and safety of Americans. Officials cautioned that they had not definitively determined that Iran was responsible for the attack and that the investigation was still preliminary. But they said Iran had stepped up cyberattacks since the U.S. and Israel launched a war against the country five months ago, and had previously targeted similar water systems and other critical infrastructure in the U.S. There seemed no financial motive, making a criminal attack less likely.
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Machinist Mason Grimmett criticized the Wichita Police Department’s reliance on high-speed equipment that reads, logs and converts into searchable files the license plate of everyone driving in range of nearly 200 specialized cameras in the city. Last month, Grimmett used his five-minute public comment slot at a June meeting of the Wichita City Council to express apprehension about local law enforcement’s deployment of cameras capable of capturing images of plates on moving vehicles day or night. The city’s warrantless effort to document routine movement of street traffic placed images in a database that could be retrieved and shared with other law enforcement agencies. “The Wichita Police Department, and others, can reconstruct where you sleep, work, worship, seek medical treatment, protest, who you associate with — currently without a warrant,” he said. On Wednesday, Grimmett amplified his position by becoming the plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in Sedgwick County District Court asserting the city’s “dragnet surveillance program” violated the Kansas Constitution. The city of Wichita’s policy is not to comment on pending litigation. Kansas Justice Institute litigation director Sam MacRoberts, who is representing Grimmett, said the suit was based on a belief the state constitution didn’t authorize the government to place every citizen under persistent, AI-powered surveillance just because it might lead to the capture of alleged criminals.
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Plans for an $860 million data center project in Edgerton are moving forward despite the city’s planning commission rejecting it in June. On July 16, during a special meeting, the Edgerton City Council unanimously overrode the planning commission’s rejection of final plans from Dubai-based DAMAC Digital for a data center project at the Logistics Park Kansas City warehouse at 31800 W. 196th St. The city council’s override comes about a month after the city council voted on June 15 to deny a six-month ban on data centers, which would have temporarily prevented applications for facilities where the primary use was a data center. The vote for that was 3-2. The city council’s approval of DAMAC Digital’s plan was “disappointing … but expected,” Edgerton resident Kim Twente said in a message to the Johnson County Post. “This is incredibly disappointing, as it was the citizens that voted them in and that they are supposed to represent. We have expressed over and over again that we are against this project, but they continue to ignore our pleas,” she said. DAMAC still has a final plat for the data center that needs to be approved, which will need to go back before the Edgerton Planning Commission in August and then the city council after that, Kara Banks, a spokesperson for the city, said in an email to the Johnson County Post. DAMAC did not return a request for comment by the time of publication. When the planning commission denied DAMAC’s application in June, it did so because of concerns that the application did not meet the fifth standard of approval in city code: “The plan is consistent with good land planning and site engineering design principles.”
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Sgt. Brandon So figuratively does heavy lifting as part of his job with the Sedgwick Police Department, and he also literally does that as part of a weight-lifting hobby. On Sunday, July 26, at the El Dorado 4-H Building, he won a deadweight lifting competition to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. The second-to-last guy who was behind So missed the 585-pound lift. After pulling 585 pounds, So asked if he could do another lift. “I pushed it to 620, and that’s what I ended with,” he said. Yes, that’s 620 pounds. So said that’s two and a half times his body weight, since he weighs 260 and stands 6 feet, 5 inches tall. He’s pulled 635 before, he said, which he did about one and a half months before the competition. Deadlifts require a person to pick the weights up off the ground in one lift, So said, adding it’s a compound lift. “You use almost every muscle in your body to pick it up,” he said.
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Lyon County commissioners discussed increasing penalties for commercial truck drivers who use county roads posted as “No Thru Commercial Traffic” during Thursday morning’s action session, saying the current $75 fine does little to discourage violations.
The discussion stemmed from ongoing complaints from residents along Allen, Burlingame and Americus roads, where county officials say through truck traffic has increased, particularly because of highway construction and detours. County Engineer Wayne Scritchfield said his office routinely receives calls from residents concerned about heavy trucks using roads that were not designed for that type of traffic. Undersheriff John Koelsch said the Sheriff’s Office has conducted enforcement efforts but noted deputies face challenges determining whether a commercial vehicle is legitimately making a local delivery or simply using the county roads as a shortcut. “We’ve made several truck stops,” Koelsch said. “The difficulty is making sure that commercial truck drivers aren’t making a delivery off one of those roads.” Officials said recent complaints included trucks hauling agricultural products and heavy equipment through the county, adding unnecessary wear to roads and bridges. Scritchfield said county roads such as Americus, Allen and Burlingame were never intended to carry continuous heavy commercial traffic. “The roads were not constructed with these kinds of loads and this frequency of traffic,” he said. Commissioners discussed replacing the current $75 citation with a county-specific penalty that would provide a greater deterrent. Koelsch said a local trucking company owner told him some states impose fines as high as $1,000 for similar violations, with repeat offenses carrying even higher penalties. County Counselor Molly Priest said the county could explore adopting its own fine structure through a revised resolution rather than relying solely on state traffic statutes.
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A proposed utility-scale solar project near the Emporia Energy Center is continuing to move through the early planning stages, even as Lyon County has temporarily paused new solar development applications while officials review and strengthen local zoning regulations.
Evergy says the proposed Emporia Solar Project has been in development since 2022 and is designed to provide electricity for the company’s approximately 1.7 million customers across Kansas and Missouri. The company also stressed the project is not related to the proposed Flint Hills Digital Campus. The project would be located near the existing Emporia Energy Center, where Evergy already has transmission infrastructure in place. According to a project map provided by the company, solar panel arrays are proposed on multiple tracts surrounding the generating station on land owned by both Evergy and private landowners. Evergy notes the map represents its current concept and remains subject to change as planning continues. Unlike some large energy projects that are built to serve a single industrial customer, the proposed solar farm would become part of Evergy’s electric grid, supplying power throughout its service territory. Questions about the project have increased since Lyon County commissioners voted last week to approve a temporary moratorium on new utility-scale solar developments. The moratorium, which runs through Dec. 1, is not intended to stop Evergy’s project permanently. Instead, commissioners said it provides time for county staff to review and strengthen existing solar regulations before considering new utility-scale applications.
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The Emporia City Commission will hold its Aug. 5 and Aug. 19 meetings virtually following multiple threats made against city commissioners by individuals from across the nation. According to a news release issued Monday, the city said the decision was made “in the interest of public safety” and is intended to help protect elected officials, city staff and members of the public while allowing city business to continue. The move comes as the commission has received numerous threats in recent weeks related to ongoing discussions surrounding the proposed Flint Hills Digital Campus project. City officials said the threats have originated from individuals both within and outside Kansas, including people from across the country.
The meetings will begin at 11 a.m. and will be conducted in accordance with the Kansas Open Meetings Act. Members of the public may watch the meetings live through the city’s website. Unlike typical commission meetings, no public comment period will be offered during either virtual meeting. Residents who wish to comment on agenda items are encouraged to submit comments before the meeting by emailing citycommission@emporiaks.gov or calling 620-343-4289. The city said it remains committed to conducting public business in an open and transparent manner while taking reasonable steps to ensure public safety. Meeting agendas and supporting materials will continue to be posted on the city’s website before each meeting. City officials described the virtual format as a temporary measure while safety concerns are addressed.
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Arkansas City commissioners this week unanimously approved a request to rezone a property at 519 West Skyline Road from residential to agricultural to accommodate the landowners chicken keeping. City Planner Josh White said the Planning Commission held a public hearing for the request in May and recommended against the rezoning in split vote, after a neighbor expressed concerns about roaming chickens that have since been resolved. White said the property was annexed by the city in 1986 and was briefly zoned for commercial use. Since the Rudman family has owned the property it’s been treated as agriculture but not zoned as such. “This would allow them to have more freedom with our regulations regarding animals inclosing chickens and they have some horses and other animals,” White said. At a second hearing in July, the Planning Commission reversed course and recommended the rezoning. “Everything is OK with the neighbor; the neighbors are good?” Commissioner Charles Tweedy asked Tuesday. White said the nearby resident had no objections, and the only other neighbor is Skyline Homes, which has no concerns about the rezoning.
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The City of Salina has completed a new policy to assist utility customers who are experiencing water quality issues, such as discoloration, rust colored water, sediment, or staining. The City is now beginning the process of signing up eligible customers for assistance under the new program. The policy is part of the City’s continued effort to respond directly to customer concerns, document problem areas in the water distribution system, and provide practical support while longer term infrastructure improvements are evaluated. The City’s water continues to meet applicable drinking water health standards established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and enforced in Kansas by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). The City conducts required water quality testing, including routine testing required by KDHE, and publishes an annual Consumer Confidence Report for public information. Some residents have experienced water quality issues that may affect the appearance of the water. These issues are often associated with iron, commonly described as rust, that can come from older water mains, corroded pipe material, or sediment that has built up over time in parts of the distribution system. While these conditions can be frustrating and inconvenient, they are different from health based drinking water violations. Under the new policy, customers experiencing water quality concerns may contact the City to report a water quality concern and begin the eligibility process. City staff will document the concern, gather information about the location and nature of the issue, and determine whether the customer qualifies for available assistance.
The City Commission recently approved assistance programs for customers experiencing water quality issues, including a rebate program for eligible in-home filtration systems of up to $750. The new policy provides the framework for implementing that assistance and helping customers understand the steps required to participate.
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According to Tim Beims, Executive Director of the Economic Development Agency of Cloud County, population has been in a slow, steady decline due to changes in rural economy in northern Kansas. To combat that trend, Cloud County implemented the County Level Incentive Program, known as CLIP, funded by the Innovation Center and Dain G. Hansen Foundation. “And the goal, the ultimate goal, and it’s a grand objective, is to ultimately increase population throughout the Northwest Kansas region,” Beims said. The program offers money incentives to individuals, especially recent college and trade school graduates, from outside of northwest Kansas if they accept a job in Cloud County. “We hope that that’s a strong recruiting tool for our county employers to be able to really motivate and incentivize prospective employees to accept positions and relocate to Cloud County,” he said. “As well as bring our native sons and daughters who went to trade school or college, bring them back home to build their lives and build their careers in Cloud County.” Beims said he thinks Cloud County is in a strong position to draw and retain population growth, with the help of this grant. Recipients can receive up to $10,000 per individual under this program, which can be paired with Cloud County’s housing incentive program.
More information about the CLIP program can be found at the Cloud Corp Cloud County Development official website.
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Southeast Kansas voters have decided on four municipal tax measures that will fund essential services and infrastructure improvements in their communities. The measures represent local decisions about how cities will invest in their futures, from emergency services to street maintenance to economic development.
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