Municipal News & Jobs

After months of work and a few clarifications, Riley County on Monday unanimously approved amendments to short-term rental regulations for properties in unincorporated areas of the county. One amendment defines how the county may waive the 500-foot separation requirement between units. “Thus it was proposed to revise the language to directly focus on primary issues, which were traffic and parking,” county planner Bob Isaac said. “It’s a matter of phrasing, but it includes that and gets directly to the point.”
Read more: News Radio KMAN

Within the same breath, 10 years can feel both as if decades have passed or it has just been a few minutes, and for many, the moment happens at the same instant. On Feb. 26, 10 years will have passed since a random act of violence shook Hesston to its core during the Excel shooting, where Joshua Higbee, Renee Benjamin and Brian Sadowsky were killed, along with the perpetrator, Cedric Ford, and 14 others were wounded. Ford’s rampage began when he fired shots at cars near the intersection of 12th and Meridian, in Newton, followed by more shooting at Old 81 and Meridian before he returned to Hesston. Even though many memories are forever etched for those who were there, worked or responded to the tragedy, one thing that never changed was the Hesston community’s ability to heal.
Read more: Harvey County Now

More than 222,000 Notices of Appraised Value are being mailed to Johnson County property owners, detailing changes in property values for this year. County Appraiser Carolyn Logan will present property revaluation trend updates to the Board of County Commissioners at its regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday, Feb. 26. This year’s report indicates a continuation of healthy growth and stability across residential and commercial markets. Total appraised and assessed values across all markets show an increase of approximately 6% for 2026 compared to 2025.
Read more: Johnson County Kansas

A stretch of Lee Boulevard between 81st Street and 103rd Street now has a lower speed limit in the latest effort by Leawood officials to address parents’ demands for pedestrian safety. The council unanimously voted last week to lower the speed limit from 35 to 30 miles an hour, beginning Friday, Feb. 20, with the intent to review the effects in six months to decide if the limit needs to be lowered even further. Speed limits, crosswalks, helmets and signals have been at the top of the council’s to-do list for the past few months, since the death of 10-year-old Duke Ommert in October. Duke was hit by a car while riding an electric scooter on Lee Boulevard. Since then, parents have regularly brought their suggestions on safer streets to council meetings, and the council has begun to take action, recently requiring helmets for youths operating electric scooters and bikes.
Read more: Johnson County Post

Students and parents in the Shawnee Mission School District are heading for a significantly more tech-centric bus riding experience next school year, now that school board members have approved a seven-year contract with Zum, a Redwood City, California, company. Expectations were high last month as the Shawnee Mission Board of Education gave unanimous approval to engage Zum (pronounced Zoom) at an estimated $21 million a year and an $18 million initial cost. In return, Zum advertises a completely air-conditioned fleet and modernized tracking systems that optimize routes, show parents and school officials where a bus is at any given time and also keep track of when and where students get on and off.
Read more: Johnson County Post

A yawning gap between surging home values and stagnant commercial assessments has fueled a significant shift in the Kansas property tax burden, forcing homeowners to shoulder a larger share of government needs, state and local officials say. Driven by an overheated residential market and decades of commercial exemptions, a flip in the tax base has left families paying the lion’s share for schools, roads and emergency services. Despite commercial property being taxed at more than double the rate of residential property, Rep. Adam Smith, a Weskan Republican and chair of the House Taxation Committee, said the “sheer velocity” of home price increases has outpaced the higher commercial rate. “Value is whatever you are willing to pay for it,” Smith said.
Read more: Kansas Reflector

The Overland Park Police Department is one step closer to having a true, on-campus training center for its officers. For years, the department has utilized a temporary space, originally intended as a garage, for physical fitness training. Additional training, such as mandatory shooting practice, is completed elsewhere, either at another police department facility in the area or at private facilities. But on Monday, city leaders, department officials and retired members of Overland Park Police marked the formal start of construction on a dedicated, more sustainable training facility on the W. Jack Sanders Justice Center campus with a groundbreaking ceremony.
Read more: Johnson County Post

Marysville Mayor Todd Frye is looking to incorporate the youth of the community to help design the city’s next flag. Frye said Marysville’s over-50-year-old flag could use a refresh, and decided it would be fun to involve the youth. He said he is hoping to branch off the city’s coloring page competitions that the council hosts for the students. “I’m hoping to kind of branch off of that, but also include junior high and high school kids in the community.” “The students can just draft whatever they think of as a flag that would represent Marysville and what it means to them.” The top designs will then go back to the Marysville Junior and Senior High students, who will vote on the next flag design for the city. Frye said the council and organizations try to stay invested in the youth, hoping projects like this helps them decide to stay or come back to Marysville as adults.
Read more: KCLY Radio

This artist needs to think big. That’s because his proverbial canvas isn’t just a small square on an easel, it might be the side of a building. Today we’ll meet a rural Kansas man who is creating murals for communities across Kansas and beyond.  Layne Stafford is the artist who has created murals around the state. He grew up in Hill City where his father was a music teacher. “Creativity was encouraged at our house growing up,” Stafford said. “Our dad’s classroom was next to the art room, so we were exposed to some of that.” Stafford and his brother enjoyed drawing. They would fill a sketchbook with pictures they had drawn of athletes or Ghostbusters or Ninja Turtles. When school was out in the summertime, they even took art classes. Stafford attended K-State where he graduated in art education. For more than 20 years, Stafford has worked as a freelance muralist and created works for a variety of clients as far away as South Dakota. He typically completes four to five mural projects a year. Some of these are massive, as big as 100 feet wide and 20 feet tall.
Read more: KCLY Radio

A new two-day celebration is coming to Dickinson County as part of the U.S. 250 commemoration, funded through local and regional sponsors. Organized between Old Abilene Town, the Smoky Valley Railroad, and the Dickinson County Historical Society, Plains, Trains and Cowboys: A 250th U.S.A. Celebration, will take place April 24–25 on the grounds of Old Abilene Town and Heritage Center beginning at 10:00 a.m. both days. Austin Anders, Historical Society Director, said the event was designed to mark the nation’s 250th birthday with attractions that reflect the region’s character and history. “Of course, plains, trains, and cowboys seemed like a natural fit for our area.” Live music will headline both evenings, with the Lazy Wayne Band performing Friday at 8 p.m. and Rusty Rierson taking the stage Saturday at 8 p.m. Cowboy poets will present programs throughout both days in Heritage Hall at the Heritage Center.
Read more: KCLY Radio

“Those guys are 32 chickens,” says Spring Hill resident Lindsay Museousky, as she scans her 10 acres along 191st in Spring Hill, Kansas. “That’s the dairy farm … the horse farm is there,” she mentions and points from the west to the east across her land. “It’s one of the main things that we love about this area. We love the open land … it gets pitch dark, and it’s so quiet.” She thinks for a moment and smiles. “I mean, you hear occasional planes going by and we have an owl that’s been in that tree since 2019.” When she talks bout possible rezoning of 316 Rural Residential acres she and her neighbors enjoy, she is passionate in her opposition. “Unimaginable. Absolutely unfathomable.” The Spring Hill City Council, as part of an update to its Comprehensive Plan, voted on Oct. 23, 2025, to move forward a plan to rezone the acres to M-1 Industrial in order to accept development offers for a data center. Spring Hill Attorney Spencer Low said at that meeting the city has to frequently turn down offers from industrial developers.
Read more: KMBC

Tuesday marked 10 years since a man opened fire on an Excel Industries plant in Hesston, leaving 14 injured and three dead. It came as a realization for many: a mass shooting can happen anywhere. The sounds of simulated violence ring from inside the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center as instructor Thomas Watts guides his cadets through the stairs and corridors of active shooter training. “This is getting to the ‘walk’ phase of the ‘crawl, walk, run,’” Watts said. “Active killer training,” as they put it, comes at the very end of a 16-week basic training course.
Read more: KSN-TV

Sedgwick County announced on Wednesday that it will host two town hall meetings on data center zoning. The Board of County Commissioners is holding a listening town hall, where the county can hear from the public, on March 12 at 6 p.m. The Planning Department is hosting a town hall on March 31 to discuss zoning protocols and provide an opportunity for public discussion and feedback. “It’s important that we listen to the public on this large economic development opportunity for Sedgwick County,” Chairman Jeff Blubaugh said in a release. “Public discussion and transparency are vital parts of this process.”
Read more: KSN-TV

A new senior living community is now open in Russell. The Flintwood Housing Community features 24 duplex units with appliances, and a community room for gatherings and events. It is designed for adults 55 and older and currently has eight units available to rent. “Housing in general is a necessity across the state of Kansas, regardless of the size of the community,” said Callie Miller, the executive director of Housing Opportunities Inc. “But rural communities specifically are not seeing the growth that metropolitan areas are seeing. So being able to provide any kind of housing in general to a rural community is huge.”
Read more: KSN-TV

Topeka City Manager Robert Perez joined the 27 News team on Monday to chat about new housing in the downtown area and street repairs. Perez first talked about the city’s housing shortage and what efforts are being done now to rectify this problem. He said a recent study identified a shortage of 900 units in the downtown area of the city. Large-scale housing projects that were recently announced seek to address these housing concerns in Topeka’s downtown. These include the best-in-class apartments coming with The Hutch and additional living spaces with Union at Tower District apartments.
Read more: KSNT 27 News

Marion County commissioners received an overview Monday on data center development. They heard about potential economic benefits and infrastructure demands as the industry grows across Kansas.
The discussion was informational only. Recent state actions have made Kansas more competitive for development, Consultant Tonya Witherspoon said.
Read more: Marion County RECORD

Marion City Council members took a deeper dive Monday into the city’s dog ordinance, revisiting a conten-tious issue of whether certain breeds should be banned in the city.
Police chief Aaron Slater, who earlier proposed lifting a current ban, invited Newton animal control officer Lyndsey Robinette to provide insight from a community without a breed-specific ban. Robinette, who has nearly seven years of experience in Newton, said pit bull-type dogs accounted for 26% of reported bites over the past three years but also represented a large share of the overall dog population.
Read more: Marion County RECORD

Marion County commissioners revisited proposed changes Monday to short-term rental regulations, including occupancy limits, but delayed action after briefly approving and then rescinding the measure. The proposed amendments would increase the maximum number of guests allowed in most short-term rentals from 8 to 12, while setting a lower limit of 6 for properties at Marion County Lake. The differing limits led to confusion during public comment.
Read more: Marion County RECORD

Nobody is coming to save us, but we can take the next steps to save ourselves. That was the mantra Neighborhood Evolution’s Vice President Monte Anderson repeated during the launch of their Build Hutch program at Memorial Hall on Feb. 23. The Build Hutch program was paid for by the city and Hutchinson Community Foundation to spur and mentor residents to improve the city through small-scale development and incremental improvements. The program will last through the year. The program includes monthly online coaching sessions and the organization of a building development cohort, which the city is hoping lasts far beyond just this year. The cohort will be open to anyone who is, or would like to be, involved in any stage of building development around town. More details to come as this group gets organized.
Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune

The House agreed to an amendment lowering by half the signature threshold on protest petitions used to block a city or county from exceeding the cap. The House also passed an amendment deleting a $60 million state fund to compensate local units of government that held annual growth in property taxes under the cap. The revised bill advanced on a vote of 87-22.
Read more: The Lawrence Times