Kansas Municipal News
Manhattan City Crews Hauled more than 2,000 tons of Snow after Winter Storm Blair
Manhattan city crews and contractors plowed over 42 million cubic feet of snow following Winter Storm Blair, which, with 15 inches, delivered the second-highest single-day snowfall in city history, surpassed only by 18 inches in 1900. Between January 4 and 13, crews plowed 500 lane miles, equivalent to the distance from Manhattan to Denver, and hauled more than 2,000 tons of snow from areas including Aggieville, downtown, and major roads. They also used 400 tons of salt to treat city streets. The 42 million cubic feet of snow could have filled the City Pool 468 times or Bill Snyder Family Stadium 400 feet deep. The last time Manhattan saw more than 10 inches fall in one day was February 5, 2014.
Source: KCLY Radio
Kansas Agricultural Land Values Stabilize After Years of Growth, With Regional Variations and Economic Pressures Ahead
Non-irrigated cropland prices in Kansas increased by 3.8% last year, while pasture and hay ground saw a 2.7% rise, according to the 2024 Kansas Agricultural Land Values and Trends report. Kansas State University farm economist Robin Reid explained that these figures suggest land prices are stabilizing after years of rapid growth, with some regions even experiencing declines. As margins tighten and farm income decreases, Reid anticipates that land values could continue to decrease.
Source: KCLY Radio
Local firefighters awarded during ceremony for bravery, heroic actions
Some local firefighters were recognized during a ceremony in Pittsburg Friday night. According to the city, community members came together to recognize the bravery of local firefighters during its inaugural awards ceremony. “Every day, our crews leave a lasting impact on someone’s life. It may be something that seems small to us, like waving at a child as we drive by or stopping to chat in a store. Or it might be something monumental, like performing life-saving operations. Regardless of the scale, I am deeply proud of every individual who wears the title of Pittsburg Firefighter,” said Chief Taylor Cerne.
Source: KOAM News
New developments in effort to build $2 billion semiconductor facility in Bel Aire
Federal funding has been offered to help build a nearly $2 billion semiconductor assembly and test plant in the Wichita area, according to Sen. Jerry Moran. But there are still a lot of questions about whether the plan will come to fruition or if it will be on the scale of the initial proposal. Moran’s office says that CHIPS funding was offered to Integra but did not say how much. Earlier this month, KSN reported that Micross Components bought Integra, and the state said the sale would not affect the CHIPS application. Moran’s office says he has had conversations with the Micross CEO and was told that the company did plan to grow in the Wichita area and was deciding if the CHIPS funding fit into their business plan.
Source: KSN-TV
Liberal hires from within for city manager position
The City of Liberal has hired from within for the open city manager position. Scarlette Diseker has been hired as Liberal’s new city manager. Diseker has been with the city since 2022, previously serving as Director of Finance, Chief Financial Officer and the interim city manager since Oct. 1. Diseker is a Liberal native. Before being employed by the city, she worked for over 20 years at First National Bank, now an Equity Bank.
Source: KSN-TV
Sedgwick County to launch Property Fraud Alert service
The Sedgwick County Register of Deeds is launching a new service to help property owners. The service is called Property Fraud Alert. It will notify subscribers each time a document, such as a real estate deed, mortgage, lien, or easement, is recorded with their name on it. Citizens can enter as many personal, business, and trust names as necessary. Sedgwick County says that while the service will not prevent fraud from happening, it will provide an early warning. This way, property owners can take action as soon as possible.
Source: KSN-TV
Ogallala Aquifer drops by more than a foot in parts of western Kansas
Aquifer levels in parts of western Kansas that rely on groundwater for everything from drinking to irrigation fell more than a foot last year, Kansas Geological Survey scientists said Tuesday. The Kansas Geological Survey earlier this month completed its annual campaign to measure the Ogallala Aquifer, which supplies the western one-third of the state with water. The Ogallala, the largest underground store of freshwater in the nation, has been declining for decades because of overuse to irrigate crops in otherwise arid parts of the state.
Source: KSN-TV
Topeka gets recognition for being ‘bicycle friendly’
The capital city is being honored for its work to make Topeka a better place for people to bicycle. Tuesday, Jan. 28, the League of American Bicyclists recognized Topeka for its efforts to create a better place for people to bicycle. Topeka was honored with a Bronze-level Bicycle Friendly Community (BFC) award. Topeka is one of 459 communities nationwide involved in a movement to create safer streets for everyone.
Source: KSNT 27 News
What did winter storm Blair cost Topeka?
In early January, northeast Kansas was blanketed with history’s third-largest single-day snowfall. What did it cost the city? From Jan. 4-5, the City of Topeka saw 14 inches of snow during the blizzard. Starting on Jan. 4, city crews started working 24-hour operations in 12-hour shifts. Crews worked until Jan. 13 plowing streets and treating residential neighborhoods for ice. According to the Kansas Open Records request, the total cost for equipment, labor, materials, contractors and fleets was $972,685.
Source: KSNT 27 News
House panel signs off on amended property tax bill
A top legislative priority for House Republicans got out of a committee Tuesday with the panel approving a bill that would cut the state property tax levy for schools by 1.5-mills. The House tax committee amended the bill to ensure that the revenue loss from cutting the 20-mill tax levy would be backfilled with revenue from the state general fund. The proposal is estimated to cost about $823 million over five years.
Source: Sunflower State Journal
Secretary of state backs bill validating voided school board bond election
The secretary of state on Tuesday got behind a bill that would allow a small western Kansas school district to secure funds from a bond election that was invalidated by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach. Clay Barker, deputy secretary of state and general counsel for the agency, testified before the Senate local government committee on a bill that would validate a bond election held by Greeley County Public Schools last May.
Source: Sunflower State Journal
House will not take up amendment to limit property valuation increases, Hawkins says
Despite more than 60% of Kansans supporting constitutional limits on property tax valuations, Kansas Speaker of the House Dan Hawkins says the Kansas House of Representatives will not take up the amendment recently passed by the Senate tax committee. According to State Affairs, Hawkins said late last week that even if the full Kansas Senate passes Concurrent Resolution 1603, it will not get a vote in the House.
Source: The Sentinel
New Pott Co. commissioner is confident in new, expanded board
Pottawatomie County Commission Chair Terry Force tried Monday to alleviate any concerns or anxiety about the new board. After thanking every one for attending, he said, “This is a learning time for us all. It’s an anxious time for some group leaders and employees (wondering what) four brand new commissioners are going to do to us. Rest assured. This group here has a diverse background. A lot to offer. “Collectively this will be an extremely good and effective board,” he continued “I don’t know of anyone with an agenda. We just want Pottawatomie County to be the best place to live for tomorrow and years to come. We’re not here for heads to roll, just to make sure this county is run properly following the policies in place. If the policies don’t fit, we will look at them and adjust as necessary.”
Source: themercury.com
Municipal Bond Trends for January 27, 2025
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. 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.
Leawood pet owners with only 2 fur babies no longer have to license them
…councilmembers weighed the costs of administering the annual license tags and the burden to residents and decided that the revenue from the tags and late fees fell short of supporting the cost of running the program.
Source: Johnson County Post
Topeka officials want Manhattan, Lawrence to join its metro area
Topeka officials on Friday pitched an idea to Manhattan area leaders: Why not join forces make one big metropolitan area?… The benefit is showing a higher population to be able to compete for businesses and economic development projects or programs that might have a higher population cutoff than any of those cities has on its own.
Source: themercury.com
Kansas tuberculosis outbreak is now America’s largest in recorded history
As of Jan. 17, public health officials reported that they had documented 66 active cases and 79 latent infections in the Kansas City, Kansas, metro area since 2024. Most of the cases have been in Wyandotte County, with a handful in Johnson County.
Source: CJonline
Municipal Bond Trends for January 24, 2025
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. 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.
Treasury yields drop as investors look for safety after AI sell-off in stocks
U.S. Treasury yields fell on Monday as investors sought out safe-haven assets amid a massive stock market sell-off. The 10-year Treasury yield slipped seven basis points to 4.557%, while the 2-year Treasury yield was last trading at 4.225% after falling close to five basis points. One basis point equals 0.01% and yields move inversely to prices. Stocks tumbled on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite being hit hard by a large decline in the technology sector. Last week, Chinese AI startup DeepSeek released an open source AI model that reportedly outperformed OpenAI’s in several tests. The company said it launched the large-language model in December for less than $6 million, causing investors to question the billions of dollars they have spent to build and train AI models.
Source: CNBC – Bonds
Johnson County park district will end bike rental program
The “cruiser” style bicycles that were for rent at three Johnson County parks will be going away this year, as the park district board mulls how to replace a service that consistently lost money. The governing board voted to cancel the contract with BikeWalkKC for the program that allowed visitors to rent bikes by the minute at Shawnee Mission, Heritage and Meadowbrook parks. Park staff will bring back options for other bike services — which could include mountain bikes — at the board’s March meeting. Rental revenues have not covered the operating costs of the program for every quarter since the program began in 2021, according to a county spreadsheet. By the end of four years, the total gap was about $300,000.
Source: Johnson County Post