Kansas Municipal News
Privatizing cemetery upkeep in Galena
The City of Galena has something in the works when it comes to its cemeteries. It’s accepting bids from contractors to privatize upkeep at the three it currently owns and maintains “The Old Galena,” “Oak Hill,” and “Hillcrest” cemeteries. … “We believe that the cemeteries deserve the utmost respect, and they need to look pristine all the time. We do our best to keep, to make that — although sometimes we fall short. So, our hope is that by putting out for bid, we will have some contractors put some bids in that are within our budget — that they can handle the mowing and maintenance season,” said Galena Mayor, Ashley Groves.
Source: KSNF/KODE
McAnarney agrees to Marion’s interim city administrator role
There’s a new position ahead for Mark McAnarney, if only for a short period of time. McAnarney has reached an agreement with Marion city officials to serve as the city’s interim city administrator. The Marion County Record says McAnarney begins his work Thursday. The Record also says McAnarney will work three days a week at a full-day rate of $488 per day or a five-hour maximum of $244 per day. Employee benefits will not be included. Marion had been looking for a city manager after the resignation of Brogan Jones on Nov. 15. There is currently no word on when the city plans to have a permanent city administrator named. McAnarney, meanwhile, served the city of Emporia for over 30 years, first as assistant city manager starting in 1989 and then as city manager in 2013. He retired in late 2021. He also served as Neodesha’s interim city manager between October and mid-January. McAnarney has agreed to talk with KVOE News this week about his decision.
Source: KVOE Emporia Radio
New $20M Overland Park police training facility back on table
Overland Park is almost ready to move ahead on a new Overland Park Police Department training facility and some other major public safety investments. In the city’s draft capital improvement plan list for 2025-28, the city has budgeted nearly $20 million for the new facility. Overland Park plans to build the new training center at police headquarters, on the W. Jack Sanders Justice Center campus located at 12400 Foster St.
Source: Johnson County Post
Brown County commissioners meet with planning committee over survey results
The Brown County commissioners-Richard Lehmkuhl of District 1, Lamar Shoemaker of District 2 and William Pollock of District 3-met with Brown County Planning Commission members-who included Bill Vonderschmidt-on Monday over results collected from the survey conducted by Olathe-based ETC Institute. The commissioners and Planning Commission met with ETC Director of Community Research Jason Morado via Zoom call about the 2023 Community Survey that was conducted in Brown County. Morado gave some specifics of the survey. “The survey was five pages long,” Morado said. “On average, it takes residents about 10-15 minutes to complete the survey. The survey was administered by a combination of mail and online to Brown County households.” Morado also added that the sample size included 803 completed surveys, a 95% level of confidence and that demographics of the survey responded reflected the actual population of Brown County.
Source: County Government | hiawathaworldonline.com
North Newton pursuing public transportation
Harvey County entities have been meeting to talk about a transportation planning grant. That’s what North Newton City Administrator Kyle Fiedler told North Newton City Council members during their regular Monday night meeting this week at City Hall. Those entities include North Newton, Newton, Harvey County, Bethel College, USD-373, NMC Health, Prairie View, United Way, Chamber of Commerce, housing authorities and several others. “The plan would help identify options for transportation in Newton and North Newton,” Fiedler said. “Options could include a fixed schedule route that a bus runs through both communities or an on-demand service, where a person requests a ride and the vehicle drives to their location to pick them up.” Following some discussion, the council voted 5-0 to move forward to apply for the grant. Fiedler told the council some Bethel College students have difficulty finding transportation options, and Bethel College thought they’d benefit from having a transportation service in the community. “I’ve kind of kept this in the back of my mind, saw this opportunity, reached out to Bethel, Newton, Harvey County and some other partners to potentially submit a grant for planning,” Fiedler said. No one really jumped at the opportunity, saying no one has the time to put in an extra five or 10 hours per week to coordinate the planning. Since Fiedler isn’t full time, he said he could pick up those 10 hours and that the grant would cover those additional hours.
Source: Harvey County Now
Manhattan discusses housing in newest downtown plan
City commissioner Karen McCulloh says downtown development plans need to focus more on creating housing. During a presentation on the city’s updated Beyond Tomorrow downtown plan at Tuesday’s commission meeting, McCulloh said there should be less emphasis on building office space and more on developing residential areas. She pointed to the higher rate of people working from home since the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason for this. “It appears to me that we seriously need to put more housing in every nook and cranny down there,” McCulloh said. Senior planner Ben Chmiel, who presented the most recent version of the Downtown Tomorrow plan, said in every focus group he and the other planners conducted, community members said more housing is a need. “I think that area really can be something very special because we kind of have a blank palette there,” McCulloh said. “If we really go in and develop that area, we could do some interesting housing.” Commissioner John Matta said a previous commission had concerns that creating too much housing could cause congestion in the area and exacerbate parking difficulties. Mayor Wynn Butler agreed with Matta that developing housing is necessary, but he doesn’t want to see it affect traffic or parking in the area. He also said he’d like to get electric trollies that look like the old-fashioned trollies to use as shuttles from downtown to the parking garage or some other large parking space.
Source: themercury.com
Pittsburg Ascension Via Christi transfers ownership to Mercy
Mercy Joplin announced Thursday they will take over Ascension Via Christi in Pittsburg – and planning for that transition is now underway. Mercy Hospital administrators expect it will be official in about four months – and there are already some goals for the future mercy hospital in Pittsburg. They plan to expand primary care options, saying there aren’t currently enough for the market. And Mercy Hospital officials expect to offer more choices for patients in need of specialty medical care. “We want to strengthen the current specialists that they have. They’ve got really good physicians. We’re going to do that with recruitment, some outreach and satellite clinics with our specialists, maybe offer some virtual options as well,” said Jeremy Drinkwitz, Mercy Joplin President. The transition plan doesn’t include any cuts, meaning all current programs and employees in good standing will continue after mercy takes over.
Source: KSNF/KODE
Did your teeth just rattle over that pothole? Here’s how to report it to Wichita, county
Unexpectedly driving over a pothole is not a fun surprise. Not only are potholes nuisances, but in some cases they can also cause significant damage to your vehicle. According to auto club AAA, in 2021, damage caused by potholes cost more than $26 billion in the U.S. The average cost that year for pothole damage was about $600 per repair, according to the same release. While you may not be able to avoid potholes during your morning commute, there are ways to report them to ensure the city of Wichita knows where repairs are needed. Anyone can report a traffic issue, including potholes, online at wichita.gov/1013/Report-an-Issue. You can also use the same website to report an ethics complaint, a nondiscrimination ordinance complaint, nuisance reporting and more. To report potholes, click “new request” on the map underneath “report an issue.” From there, type in the location of the pothole. Once you verify the address, you will get a list of categories, and one of those options is “report a pothole,” which you should select and submit. There’s also an option to download a photo. Alternatively, you can email the complaint to traffic@wichita.gov or call 316-268-4013. The location of the pothole should be included. You can also report potholes through the city’s app. There you can check recent pothole reports and see if the city has responded to the reports.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
County forms new 911 advisory board
A couple of years ago, according to Sedgwick County Emergency Communications Director Elora Forshee, efforts began in earnest to seek out a way to engage the community voice regarding 911 operations. In the wake of those ongoing efforts and feedback heard from a 2022 task force formed in response to the death of Wichita teenager Cedric Lofton, a community advisory board (CAB) was suggested and officially approved by the Sedgwick County Commission at its Feb. 7 meeting. Representing first responders (Wichita-Sedgwick County Emergency Communications Advisory Board) and staff (Employee Advisory Board), county 911 was getting input from two of the three key facets in its response – with only the community voice missing. “We didn’t have a good conduit for the community to have input in their 911 services,” Forshee said. “We think this is a great opportunity for our community to have some voice within the system and provide input.” Opening the county’s new emergency communications center within the past year also led to the prioritization of the CAB, which will be made up of 13 voting members. Makeup of the board will include a representative from each of the five commission districts, the city of Wichita, city of Derby, a city of the second class, a city of the third class, a youth member and three at-large members. The board will be fully ratified by the county commission.
Source: Derby Informer | News
City of Lawrence to launch revamped SeeClickFix mobile app
The City of Lawrence will soon launch a mobile app where community members can report code compliance issues, missed trash pickups and more, according to a city news release. Beginning Tuesday, Feb. 20, the app, powered by SeeClickFix Inc., will be free to download and use on smartphones. The city in June 2022 announced that it was pausing its SeeClickFix app for about nine months so the city could “revamp and improve the system to better serve our community.” Next week’s launch will mark 20 months since that announcement. Community members will be able to submit requests for city assistance in seven service categories, according to Thursday’s news release: General property maintenance pertaining to code compliance; property maintenance pertaining to weeds; nonemergency police assistance pertaining to theft, damage to property or use of financial cards; parks maintenance issues; tree or overhead limbs; missed trash collection; and dead animals. All communication related to the service request will take place live within the app. “The City of Lawrence App makes it easier for community members to request City services – allowing them to submit a ticket and follow along with progress updates through the work’s completion,” according to the release.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Hesston approves property sale tied to grocery store project
The Hesston City Council approved selling property it owns to BHF Grocery Store, LLC, owned by Beneficient Heartland Foundation Inc. At its Feb. 12 meeting, the city council voted 5-0 to sell 0.57 acres of property located at the corner of Old Highway 81 and North Lancaster Street to the company for $50,000. “The 50,000 offer for the property is well above our investment in the property,” City Administrator Gary Emry said, adding that the city had invested $42.000 to $44,000 in the property so far. “I think it’s a good offer.” Emry described the property as serving as a domino piece in Hesston’s downtown grocery store project. The long-discussed project is to be paid through funds from the state’s TEFFI law, which allows the Beneficient company, with an office in Hesston, to offer financial services in the state, requiring two and one-half percent of the value of transactions to be given to the State of Kansas for rural development or used for the benefit of Hesston. Beneficient Heartland Foundation, Inc., oversees the spending of the funds to benefit the City of Hesston. A City of Hesston memo stated that the property will be used for the purpose of building a one-story office deposit institution, the property’s future owner.
Source: Harvey County Now
Water sector issues joint statement to Congress on fully funding SRFs
On Feb. 15, a broad cross-section of water sector organizations representing, utilities, public works departments, executives, manufacturers, research organizations and other industry partners sent a letter to Congress requesting that it fully fund the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs) to congressionally authorized levels of $3 billion each for fiscal year 2024. The letter stated in part: “Fully funding the SRFs will expand access to affordable financing for water infrastructure that protects public health. SRF subsidized loans fund infrastructure that provides safe drinking water, recycled water, wastewater services and stormwater management in thousands of communities around the nation every year. Without increased federal funding for this critical public health infrastructure, the risk of exposure to preventable diseases from poor water quality and water scarcity will increase for millions of Americans.” The demand for affordable SRF financing has increased exponentially in recent years. Increased federal funding is needed to meet the growing demand for SRF subsidized loans, which has skyrocketed due to the increased cost of planning, design, construction and financing.
Source: Water Finance & Management
Mulvane seeks to bring back farmers market
At the most recent meeting of the chamber board in Mulvane, according to The Mulvane News, the possibility was discussed of restarting the farmers market in the downtown area. Previously, several years ago, a market was operated by local farmer Tom Phipps in the Carson Bank lower parking lot on Saturdays during the summer. Currently, chamber members are making plans to start the new market the second Sunday in April from 1 to 4 p.m. at the west end of Main Street (by the Historical Depot Museum).
Source: Derby Informer | Area
Rainbow representative gives city info about fiber project
The City Commissioners met on Monday to speak with Rainbow Communications representative Julie Bergman about updates with the Fiber Project. City Administrator Becky Berger was not present during the meeting due to illness with strep throat. Bergman explained the current status of the project and how it aims to provide a fiber broadband network to residents in Hiawatha. “We’re overbuilding all the lines in town to be able to provide fiber Internet to all the residential residents,” Bergman said. “We’ve had fiber to businesses since about 2012-2013 time frame.” Bergman also mentioned about working with construction companies to complete the fiber cable installation and notices would be hung on customers’ doorknobs to let them know about fiber cable work being done. Bergman also gave more info about more Internet technology being upgraded in Kansas and added that the state was qualifying cities as being “broadband ready” and “fiber ready.” “Here in the next 30 or 60 days, we’ll be coming back to kind of talk to you about that as far as becoming a certified broadband ready city in the state of Kansas,” Bergman explained. “So that’s a campaign that the state is starting also to make sure all cities are open to, you know, advanced services and being ready for high speed.”
Source: City Government | hiawathaworldonline.com
Hutchinson officials share concerns about community’s wildfire risk
Mayor Greg Fast asked Chief Beer if he has any suggestions on how to get people to voluntarily comply. Cutting down trees and hauling them away can be an expensive undertaking, so Beer said fire officials have researched grants to help offset the costs. He suggested a “chipper day” with a third party contracted to run limbs and brush that individuals have put out by the curb through a chipper, but many grants are limited to property bordered by federal lands, and only state lands surround Hutchinson. Councilmember Goss said it makes sense for the city to fund a chipper project if it will save homes in the community. Fast reassured residents that “We are not going to make people take out trees, and they shouldn’t be afraid to get the fire department involved.” City ordinances do not indicate clearance around things like backyard fire pits or chimineas, and problems ensue when fires are burned near wood fences or dry leaves.
Source: Hutch News
Municipal Bond Trends for February 16, 2024
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. 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.
Salina seeks public input as it makes changes to city’s sign codes
As the line between what is art and what is advertising becomes somewhat blurred, Salina is looking to revamp and change city code on signs. As part of this process, the city hosted a listening session Thursday evening to hear from members of the public about signs in Salina and brought in Wendy Moeller … One of the biggest challenges in adopting codes on signage is dealing with case law in the United States. Moeller said in just the past decade new decisions have come from various courts. “There’s been a couple of Supreme Court cases that have made a lot of problems for sign regulations across every community,” Moeller said. … “(The decisions from courts say) communities like Salina really need to step away from regulating signage based on the message,” Moeller said.
Source: Salina Journal
Park City cracks down on chronic calls
Park City is cracking down on so-called “chronic nuisance” properties in the city. The city council on Feb. 13 unanimously voted to create an ordinance that would give city staff an additional way of dealing with properties that generate excessive police calls. Properties where two or more “trigger events” occur within a compliance period can now be dubbed chronic nuisances under the new policy. A property can also become a chronic nuisance if a non-self-defense-related shooting occurs or if a search warrant is executed there. The ordinance says the compliance period is six months for residential properties and 30 days for commercial properties or multi-family units. The ordinance lists 16 broad examples of “trigger events” police might respond to that could lead to properties being dubbed chronic nuisances.
Source: Ark Valley News
2024 Hays Water Conservation Incentive & Rebate Programs
At the City of Hays Feb. 13, 2024 Press Briefing, Water Conservation Specialist Holly Dickman reviewed the City’s ongoing efforts to encourage water conservation through the Showerhead & Aerator Program and five rebate programs for residents who invest in water efficiency both indoors and out. “City of Hays water customers can stop by City Hall, the Finance office, anytime to pick up high efficiency showerheads for free or for cost and we also have faucet aerators available at all times,” Water Conservation Specialist Dickman said. Faucet aerators are free. Six different types of shower heads are offered. Three models are free with exchange of old shower head and the other 3 are just $5.00 with exchange of old shower head.
Source: Hays Daily News
Kansas Court of Appeals: Termination for Insubordination (Frazier v City of LeRoy)
The City of LeRoy, Kansas (the City), passed a resolution and order for a citizen to remove a vicious dog from the city limits as a nuisance abatement. The resolution required service of the abatement order to the dog’s owners by the Chief of Police, Daniel C. Frazier. He refused to serve the order, claiming it was an unlawful order. The City terminated Frazier’s employment for insubordination. Frazier brings this appeal against the City, arguing that the City’s decision to terminate his employment as the Chief of Police was arbitrary or capricious, outside the scope of its authority, and unsupported by substantial competent evidence. After reviewing the arguments and record, we find the district court’s decision that the City’s decision to terminate him was proper. Thus, we affirm.
Source: Frazier v City of LeRoy