Municipal News & Jobs

After enacting a six-month moratorium on data center projects last month, the Riley County Commission on Monday began considering the next steps of the conversation. Planning director Amanda Webb spoke to commissioners about possibilities of the information they could seek during the moratorium period. The temporary restriction also includes battery energy storage system projects, but data centers were the focus of Monday’s conversation.
Read more: News Radio KMAN

As economic uncertainty continues to ripple through manufacturing communities across the country, Emporia leaders say they remain focused on attracting new opportunities, even as the Flint Hills Economic Alliance remains in a developmental phase and Michelin announces the layoff of approximately 100 workers. The Flint Hills Economic Alliance, or FHEA, was first unveiled in late February as a proposed restructuring of local economic development efforts. The concept aimed to combine several community organizations under one umbrella in an effort to streamline recruitment, tourism and business development efforts.
Read more: www.emporiagazette.com

Standing room only during a city council meeting in Gardner Monday night. In nearly two hours of public comment, dozens of people stood up to object to a proposed hyperscale data center. The 3.1 billon dollar project would include up to 16 data halls across multiple buildings on the 300-acre site. Beale claims it will be one of Johnson County’s largest tax revenue generators, and employ hundreds of contractors, trade positions and 50 full time on-site positions.
Read more: FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV

Great Bend could consider a permanent 0.75-cent sales tax, potentially raising the total local tax rate to 9.45% if voters approve it in November. The discussion surfaced at a City Council work session after the Monday meeting, though no formal action was taken.
Read more: Great Bend Tribune

Residents of Sylvan Grove and surrounding communities are invited to take part in a once-in-a-generation celebration as the town marks its 150th anniversary on Saturday, May 23. Centered around the theme “Rooted in Our History … Reaching to Our Future,” the event promises a full day of activities honoring the town’s rich past while celebrating the spirit of its future.
Read more: Great Bend Tribune

Isaac Shue’s favorite parts of the mural he’s creating at Mostaza are the bubbles. They’re small, round dots in various colors, and flowers decorate the mural, which they started on Sunday, May 3. The reason they picked flowers for the mural is that mostaza is a plant, and plants start with seeds, Shue said. The bubbles in the mural represent seeds, which can be seen in the store’s logo, he said. Shue and his wife, Karina, are Mostaza co-owners. Mostaza is at 615 N. Main in downtown Newton, and the gallery had a blank wall out back, so Shue wanted to color it up with the mural.
Read more: Harvey County Now

Johnson County’s Stormwater Management Program has launched its new Green infrastructure Grant Program, covering the cost of green infrastructure projects across the county. “Green infrastructure” refers to natural systems like streams, prairies, forests and wetlands. The program seeks to fund projects that advance watershed health, reduce flooding and erosion risks, and improve stormwater quality in alignment with the program’s watershed master plans.
Read more: Johnson County Kansas

After pushback from the public, the Olathe City Council on Tuesday delayed a vote on an ordinance restricting drone takeoffs and landings to give the topic more scrutiny and discussion. The ordinance would place new limits on where drones can take off and land in the city, including up to a mile from large events and within 1,000 feet of certain public facilities. Opponents of the bill said ordinances like this only harm responsible drone operators.
Read more: Johnson County Post

April showers bring May flowers — or, in this case, a 15-foot sunflower sculpture outside De Soto City Hall. City officials, the De Soto Arts Council and USD 232 students and staff celebrated the installation of the kinetic sculpture, titled “Blooming De Soto, Rising Tomorrows,” on Thursday. The piece, which has two layers that rotate with the wind, was made entirely by USD 232 Center for Advanced Professional Studies (CAPS) students at the Cedar Trails Exploration Center (CTEC).
Read more: Johnson County Post

A proposed 300-acre data center in Gardner has nearby residents in an uproar. California-based Beale Infrastructure, which also leads the De Soto data center project, recently proposed another data center in eastern Gardner, near the northeast corner of 191st Street and South Clare Road. Many Gardner and nearby residents, including Kyle Eisenbarger, believe that data centers have no place in the community. Eisenbarger lives just across the street from the proposed site, in unincorporated Johnson County. He can see the 300 acres from his driveway. Eisenbarger launched a website condemning the proposal, and the community has followed suit with both a Facebook group and a petition, which had more than 1,000 signatures as of Monday morning.
Read more: Johnson County Post

Charred fence posts, oxidized barbed wire and blackened trees lined the Arkansas River in west-central Kansas in the wake of a 1,500 acre fire that scorched the dry riverbed and surrounding property. Below average rainfall in the region and a bone-dry riverbed filled with dead brush fueled the fire. The Kansas State Fire Marshal’s Office deemed the cause “undetermined,” even though the fire sparked one day after a controlled burn was performed on an adjacent ranch owned by the city of Hays. The fire marshal’s office did not draw a connection between the two fires. But others didn’t find it difficult to see a link.
Read more: Kansas Reflector

The Mission Gateway site at the intersection of Shawnee Mission Parkway and Johnson Drive has sat largely vacant for two decades. While it’s unclear how long it might take for the private property get redeveloped, Mission Mayor Sollie Flora says the city’s government is making “making it a focus.”
Read more: KCUR

It’s getting more difficult to find an attorney in rural Kansas as people retire, so the state is offering incentives to attract a new generation of lawyers. Still, filling the civic leadership roles left by veteran lawyers will not be easy. The shortage of attorneys in many rural areas has left people without the legal help they need. But a new Kansas law will give incentives to lawyers who practice or plan to practice in rural areas of the state. As Kansas News Service reporter Zach Boblitt explains, they have big shoes to fill.
Read more: KCUR News

Steve Hirsch serves as county attorney in four counties and as city attorney in 20 communities in western Kansas … and he has even more jobs. The 64-year-old also files income tax returns, helps handle affairs after someone dies and has been a member of nearly every civic organization that will have him. Walk down the street with him, and it feels like everybody knows Hirsch and he knows the communities he serves. He knows the community like the back of his hand, but the question Kansas lawmakers and attorneys across the state have to answer is: What happens when legal pillars like Hirsch retire?
Read more: KPR

As public pools prepare to open for the summer, a familiar problem is forcing them to make changes. Augusta announced Thursday that due to a shortage of lifeguards, the pool will have reduced hours. The city said it is short 12 lifeguards. It is going to continue recruitment efforts in hopes that more people will join the team before the pool opens on May 23, because it could return to the full schedule if there are more lifeguards. Another city scrambling to get more people is Oakley. The city put out a call earlier this week saying that if it doesn’t hire more lifeguards, the pool will not open at all this summer.
Read more: KSN-TV

Jump Start cut the ribbon Thursday on a new blending facility in Butler County. The biofuel facility in Potwin converts soybean oil into biodiesel and biogas. The group behind the facility said it will serve as the region’s fuel distribution terminal, filling anywhere from 25 to 100 loads daily. Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas said it will create yet another market for Kansas farmers.
Read more: KSN-TV

Plans for a downtown pavilion are a step closer to reality for the community of Russell. Russell Development Inc. announced Thursday that it is moving forward with plans for the Russell Market Square. It will serve as a covered, open-air pavilion in the heart of Russell’s downtown at West Seventh and North Maple Streets. The pavilion will be used to host farmers markets, food truck nights, live music, festivals, holiday events, private rentals and other events throughout the year.
Read more: KSN-TV

Starting Friday, you will want to make sure you leave the toilet seat down, and no, it’s not because your wife asked you to. The City of Hays said a contractor will begin sewer line cleaning and inspections in the northeast area of the city. The project will begin at the north, with crews working their way south over the next two months. Door hangers providing information will be placed on homes and businesses prior to cleaning. During cleaning, you may hear a rumbling sound, and water may bubble up from sinks, bathtub drains and toilets.
Read more: KSN-TV

Parts of the state are expecting cold temperatures Wednesday night, with western Kansas dipping into a freeze warning. It could be the final nail in the coffin for some already struggling wheat crops. With wheat crops nearly two weeks ahead of schedule, Ron Suppes with the Kansas Wheat Commission said a freeze now, after months of drought, could be devastating.
Read more: KSN-TV

Sedgwick County commissioners are pushing for a law school to be established in Wichita. During their meeting on Wednesday, commissioners said having a law school in Wichita would address the lack of attorneys in central and western Kansas. Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett has been advocating for a law school, commissioners said. There are only two law schools in the state: one at the University of Kansas in Lawrence and the other at Washburn University in Topeka. Baty said he has had discussions with both institutions. Leadership has expressed interest in opening a law school in Wichita, but nothing has been nailed down.
Read more: KSN-TV