Kansas Municipal News
Pott County approves draw down of federal funds to support ‘overwhelmed’ health department
Pottawatomie County commissioners agreed Monday to use $100,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to support up to four additional positions for its overwhelmed health department. Health Department Director Leslie Campbell says her nursing staff, which includes she, the local health officer and two nurses, have been fielding a growing number of concerns and questions from school officials daily. Many, she says, are trying to navigate uncertainty as transmission rates and quarantines increase. Campbell says her department has fielded numerous phone calls the past few weeks from school officials, including superintendents about what protocols they should be following.
Source: 1350 KMAN
Stray Bullets Keep Hitting Homes In Johnson County, So Sheriff Threatens To Fine Shooters $1,000
Education and brochures haven’t reduced the number of stray bullets flying in parts of rural Johnson County. Now law enforcement, the county commission and its legal department are considering a measure that will make firing bullets onto or over property without permission a code violation that could carry a maximum $1,000 fine. The new violation is meant to enforce safety measures that have not always been used by target shooters in the unincorporated area of the county, Sheriff Calvin Hayden told commissioners Thursday.
Source: KCUR News
Wichita schools to require masks for students
The Wichita school board has unanimously approved an indoor mask requirement for students. During their meeting Monday night, the board approved the requirement for all students ages 3 and older, starting August 30th. The decision is based on recent recommendations from local health officials and from the Centers for Disease Control. Sedgwick County’s Local Health Officer, Dr. Garold Minns, called for a mask requirement last week, but county commissioners voted to receive and file the recommendation rather than put it into effect. Wichita Superintendent Alicia Thompson told board members that 194 students and 51 staff members have tested positive for COVID-19. Out of 7,633 employees, 74 are in quarantine.
Source: Country 101.3 KFDI
Louisburg launches Hometown Heroes street banner program
Military veterans and active-duty personnel from the U.S. Armed Forces can now be honored through the Hometown Heroes street banner program in downtown Louisburg. This new program, in partnership with the Louisburg American Legion, the Louisburg Chamber of Commerce and the city of Louisburg, honors veterans (living or deceased) and active-duty personnel who hail from Louisburg or Miami County, according to a city news release. … Each banner costs $75 and will hang for two years from light poles located in downtown Louisburg. The banners will be displayed for several weeks during the Memorial Day and Veterans Day holidays, according to the city.
Source: republic-online.com
Municipal Bond Trends for August 20, 2021
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.
Police chief who took down Excel shooter begins statewide law enforcement role
Doug Schroeder, the former Hesston police chief who stopped the Excel Industries shooter, has taken over a statewide organization that reviews law enforcement training curriculum and has the authority to investigate and revoke officer licenses. Schroeder started earlier this month as the executive director of Kansas Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training. The appointment comes in the wake of a tumultuous 2020, where the argument over the role the police play in American life was hotly debated and defunding the police became a national issue.
Source: Wichita Eagle
Forget The Cities, Are Rural Kansas And Missouri Ready For Electric Vehicles?
Optimism is growing that country residents could benefit by switching to electric vehicles (EVs). “The research has shown that people in rural areas drive as much as 50% longer than those in urban areas,” says energy reporter Brian Grimmett. “It’s cheaper to charge your electric vehicle than it is to put gas in your car,” he observes about rural drivers. Worries over the range of EVs are lessening as new models now can go between 250 and 400 miles on one charge. Grimmett acknowledges that there are not enough charging stations in rural areas. In Kansas specifically, Grimmett reports, “There’s a whole corner of the state, the southwest corner of the state, where there are no high-speed, fast chargers at all.”
Source: KCUR
Mask mandate defeated in Sedgwick County
The Sedgwick County Commission voted Friday evening to effectively reject a mask mandate in indoor public spaces — after multiple physicians pleaded with the commission to require face-coverings and an anti-mask activist threatened to show up outside commissioners’ homes if they passed a measure aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus. The decision came after County Health Officer Dr. Garold Minns proposed requiring masks as the COVID-19 delta variant surges and local hospitals fill with younger, sicker patients.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
How the Sedgwick County Zoo grew from an empty field to 115 acres of animals and fun
It a was drizzly, uncomfortably chilly day in October 1969, and the one-time milo field that would soon be home to the Sedgwick County Zoo was a muddy, mucky mess. A little over 50 years later, though, all Barb Hoppins remembers is the cold, the dirt and her mother’s instructions: “Get Mr. Blakely’s autograph.” Hoppins, then a fourth-grader at Peterson Elementary School, was one of about 75 schoolchildren chosen to serve as ambassadors at the “Commencement of Work” ceremony on the Wichita site of the future zoo, which would open almost two years later. All the kids present that day got small glass jars and tiny silver scoops and were invited to fill their containers with dirt from the site. When Hoppins got hers, she did what her mother requested, asking zoo director Richard Blakely — a bona fide local celebrity by then — to sign the jar.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Masons donate to improve basketball court in Burden
The Kansas Masonic Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to benefitting Kansas communities, has partnered with Clinton Lodge No. 233 to donate $1,000 to Kansas Pride of Burden, an organization dedicated to encouraging and assisting local government and volunteers in making our community a better place. A project to restructure the basketball court at the city park was previously put on hold due to a lack of funds. The $1,000 donation will pay for concrete work to repair the basketball court.
Source: The Arkansas City Traveler
On the frontier, trains brought progress. They still do.
When the first passenger train to Wichita arrived the night of Thursday, May 16, 1872, it seemed the entire town had waited up to meet it. Rolling up to the wooden depot on Douglas, the steam train and its 44 occupants were met by a cowboy brass band. Jubilation is not a strong enough word to describe the mood in the city. “Regular through trains reached our depot yesterday,” wrote Marshall Murdock, the usually sober frontier editor, in the next day’s paper. “The bosom of our valley heaved and sot with ecstatic emotion. All is joy and many, very many, are too full for utterance. We are exhausted, bewildered and can say no more. It is enough.” Such was the relief, as Murdock put it, of being “within the bounds of civilization.” You could board the train one day in Wichita and be in St. Louis the next, and Chicago the day after. By May 1872, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway had already crossed most of Kansas and was nearing the Colorado border. It had already reached Emporia in 1870 and Newton in 1871. It did not veer south to Wichita, but continued its westward journey, generally following the old Santa Fe Trail, which had been scouted half a century before. It took a spur line, the Wichita and Southwestern Railway Co., to bring passenger service to the city, but that line was soon absorbed by the Santa Fe.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Alma celebrates 12th annual ‘Hot Alma Nights’ car show
The 12th annual “Hot Alma Nights” took place in downtown Alma on Saturday to raise money for cancer research. Hot Alma Nights started in 2009 as a way to support Relay for Life of Wabaunsee County. The organizers decided to do something unique instead of the traditional relay event. Now the event is mainly a car show. This year around 330 cars participated. Downtown Alma was blocked off to traffic and filled with vendors, food trucks and cars of all makes and models. “Everybody schedules their class reunion for hot Alma nights night because that’s the only thing going on in town. I mean normally there’s not much going on in town so everybody wants to be here on hot Alma nights because the crowds here. Something to do,” Maurice Baker, Mayor of Alma, said. Organizers said they look forward to continuing the tradition on the third week of August again in 2022.
Source: KSNT News
Evil Knievel museum to repay incentives if it moves to Vegas
If the Evil Knievel museum does move from Topeka, Kansas, to Las Vegas, the owner of the museum dedicated to the daredevil has pledged to repay $117,000 it has received from the city since it opened in 2017. It was reported earlier this month that the museum dedicated to the career of Robert Craig Knievel, who became known for his death-defying stunts and tricks on motorbikes, may move to the Las Vegas Arts District. The museum’s owner Mike Patterson told city officials in a meeting last week he believes it is appropriate to repay the city even though it might not be required in the incentive contract the museum signed.
Source: KSN-TV
COVID surge overwhelming hospitals
The calls in search of a bed come from hospitals in Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Texas. “At this point, we have to kindly decline,” said Chuck Welch, the vice president at Hutchinson Regional Healthcare System. “We can’t help them.” The hospital has its own problems. So do scores of hospitals across the region. The stress of the delta-driven COVID- 19 resurgence has medical facilities across Kansas worn out, overwhelmed and often looking for outside help from nearby states that are just as overrun.
Source: Salina Journal
Families in rural Kansas facing child care dilemma. This couple called 12+ providers before finding spot.
The child care that Zach and Aubrey Woolf had lined up for their 10-month-old daughter was closing, just a couple of weeks before Aubrey started back at her job with the local school district. The news sent them scrambling. They called over a dozen other child care providers in town and sent messages to 20 more. The Woolfs scoured a statewide database for options in their county. But there were exactly zero openings. “There just seems to be a swarm of people all trying to find open spots for infants, and they’re few and far between,” Zach Woolf said. “There’s no hope.” How dire is the situation in Hays? The Woolfs also posted their pleas to an active Facebook group dedicated to local parents searching for child care options. In this northwest Kansas town of about 21,000 people, that Facebook group has 1,400 members.
Source: CJonline
God’s country: Heaven and hell
The water issue is a statewide one, experts underscore, but it is perhaps at its most acute in western Kansas. The region is powered by the Ogallala Aquifer, which spans a half-dozen states and at174,000 square miles is one of the world’s largest aquifers. While its tentacles stretch into south-central Kansas, it is most critical for supporting western Kansas agriculture. That same industry, however, it was is sapping the Ogallala dry. Not all farmers rely on irrigation. But corn, the most commonly grown crop on the high plains, is water intensive and is in large part responsible for up to 5.58 million acre-feet of water per year — the amount necessary to help farmers irrigate their fields. Ever since irrigation began in earnest, the Ogalalla has seen a decline in its groundwater levels. That trend has accelerated in recent years, depleting half the supply in some parts of western Kansas.
Source: Salina Journal
HPD’s ‘predictive policing’ effort appears to be paying off
It’s not quite a scene from the 2002 science fiction thriller “Minority Report,” but “predictive crime” methods the Hutchinson Police Department is developing nonetheless appear to be making a notable dent in the city’s felony crime rates. The department has implemented a crime reduction strategy built on police intelligence combined with community engagement since the arrival of Chief Jeffrey Hooper in late 2018. Like a lot of things, the novel coronavirus interrupted those efforts. But as things have reopened and community engagement becomes once more possible, statistical data kept by the department shows a significant impact through the first half of this year. Hooper shared the numbers while reviewing the city’s 2020 crime data.
Source: Hutch News
City leaders express interest in proposal to bar more housing near Lawrence until the city expands
Citing the need for denser neighborhoods, Lawrence city leaders expressed interest in moving forward with regulations that would prohibit new rural neighborhoods near the city’s boundaries until that land is ready to be added to the city. And they said that would also mean the city should be ready to make those expansions. Lawrence city commissioners got their first look at the proposed subdivision regulations for the city’s urban growth area as part of their meeting Tuesday, and gave planning staff the go-ahead to continue work on the proposal, which will come back for a vote at an upcoming meeting. Some commissioners agreed that the restrictions on rural residential development would put pressure on the city to expand its boundaries to accommodate new neighborhoods.
Source: LJWorld.com
Shawnee County declares state of disaster emergency, ‘maxed out’ on COVID-19 resources
With Shawnee County facing dwindling resources amid a rise in COVID-19 cases, residents are once again under a state of disaster emergency regarding that disease. Shawnee County Commission Chairman Kevin Cook signed a document Thursday putting that in place for seven days after the declaration was issued by Dusty Nichols, the county’s COVID-19 incident commander. … The issuance of Thursday’s declaration puts the state of Kansas on notice that Shawnee County is “maxed out” on available resources for dealing with COVID “from hospital beds to staffing to everything else,” and might ask the state to help meet its needs, Nichols said.
Source: CJonline
Art project gets Garden City’s approval
Downtown Garden City is getting a new art piece. The Garden City Commission approved public arch project The Arch/El Arco by Armando Minjarez Monarrez for installation at the corner of Eighth Street. and Stevens Avenue at their regular meeting Tuesday. The installation is part of the city’s Eighth Street improvement project and a collaboration between local artists, Garden City Arts and Garden City Downtown Vision. Melissa Gallegos, executive director of Downtown Vision said they were charged sometime last year with helping create this project with Garden City Arts, opening up the process for artists to submit proposals for art installations.
Source: GC Telegram
Municipal Bond Trends for August 19, 2021
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.
USD 383 loses main food supplier
The Manhattan-Ogden school district has lost its largest food vendor. That’s according to assistant superintendent Eric Reid, who told the school board Wednesday that the vendor informed the district just last week that it would be canceling its contract. The vendor, Sysco, which is a wholesale food distributor, supplied about 80 percent of the district’s food supplies. According to Reid, Sysco attributed the canceled contract to supply chain issues stemming from staffing shortages. Reid says child nutrition director Stephanie Smith has been working to find alternative solutions until other vendors can be found, however the district may be limited in what it can get in the meantime.
Source: 1350 KMAN
Gov. Kelly announces 250 new jobs coming to Emporia with Communications Solutions expansion
Communications Solutions LLC is expanding operations into Emporia and creating 250 new jobs, Gov. Laura Kelly announced Wednesday. “Our partnership with CSLCC, which will create 250 new jobs in Emporia, is a testament to our state’s talented workforce and strong economy,” Kelly said in a written release. “Congratulations to CSLLC and Emporia on this exciting announcement. We’ll continue prioritizing pro-growth policies to recruit new businesses and families to our state.” CSLLC is a provider of business-to-business and business-to-consumer call center services. The company is purchasing a facility to create a new call center in response to growing customer demand, with hiring for the new location already underway.
Source: Emporia Gazette
Prairie Village cancels Jazz Fest 2021 over COVID-19 concerns
Three weeks before the expected return of one of the city’s biggest annual events, Prairie Village has decided to cancel Jazz Fest 2021 over concerns of rising COVID-19 case numbers caused by the Delta variant. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment released new guidance on Friday, Aug. 13 requiring individuals who attend any mass gatherings — where social distancing and masking are not followed — to quarantine after the event. Following that new guidance, Prairie Village’s Jazz Fest committee convened a special meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 18 to discuss how to move forward. After an hour-long discussion, with ideas about how to make the event work, the committee came to the conclusion that canceling it would be in the best interest of the community.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Short-staffed, fatigued and filling up, Kansas hospitals struggle again with COVID surge
Cases and hospitalizations have multiplied so swiftly over the past six weeks that Kansas finds itself far worse off going into this school year and fall season than during the pandemic last year. The calls in search of a bed come from hospitals in Arkansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Texas. “At this point, we have to kindly decline,” said Chuck Welch, the vice president at Hutchinson Regional Healthcare System. “We can’t help them.” The hospital has its own problems. So do scores of hospitals across the region. The stress of the delta-driven COVID-19 resurgence has medical facilities across Kansas worn out, overwhelmed and often looking for outside help from nearby states that are just as overrun.
Source: themercury.com
Riley County commissioners approve vaccination incentives for county employees
Riley County employees will be offered incentives to get fully vaccinated against COVID-19. On Thursday, county commissioners voted 2-1 in favor of an incentive program to get more county employees inoculated. The incentives include a $100 payment for all county employees who get fully vaccinated within the next month and a half, as well as one extra day of annual leave for employees who are eligible for county health benefits. Commissioners John Ford and Kathryn Focke said they were in favor of the combination of incentives for county employees. Commissioner Greg McKinley voted against the measure and said he preferred the single $100 bonus incentive for all employees.
Source: themercury.com
Governor orders flags lowered for Kansas firefighter electrocuted while searching for crash victims
Governor Laura Kelly has ordered flags be flown at half-staff in honor of the firefighter who was electrocuted while searching for crash victims earlier this week. On Sunday, Aug. 15, Morton County deputies and emergency crews responded to a rollover crash south of Rolla. A deputy and Morton County firefighter Josh Schwindt arrived on the scene just minutes later. As Schwindt was searching for victims, he was shocked by damaged power lines. “My condolences are with his family, loved ones, and fellow Morton County firefighters during their time of loss. Josh’s commitment to protecting his community and his service to our state will not be forgotten,” Gov. Kelly said in a news release. Funeral services are scheduled for Friday.
Source: KAKE – News
Fatal crashes on rural roads lead push for new safety efforts
Safety efforts are underway to address deadly crashes on rural roads in Kansas. People may hear a lot about crashes in urban areas, usually when people try to cross the street, but hundreds of thousands of crashes take place on rural roads in the U.S. every year. In Kansas, it’s something Tod Salfrank, who oversees several local project units at the Kansas Dept. of Transportation, said they’re working hard to prevent. “Here in Kansas we have a large percentage, of crashes, fatal and disabling crashes that occur on the local road system,” Salfrank said. In 2018, there were nearly 65,000 traffic crashes in the state; 365 were fatal. People driving on rural roads face the same risk. The state announced in May that $8.5 million would go to 16 counties in the state to address crashes on rural roads in high-risk areas.
Source: KSNT News
Ark City hires firm to design wastewater upgrades
Arkansas City commissioners moved one step closer Tuesday toward making millions of dollars in repairs and upgrades to the city’s wastewater treatment plant. The commission unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the city to enter into a contract agreement with Burns and McDonnell/CAS Constructors, for the design-build of the wastewater plant at a cost not to exceed $12,085,118. The contract includes a two-stage notice to proceed. The first stage authorizes the plant design work at a cost of not more than $2 million. “We have $2 million cash on hand that we can commit to that,” City Manager Randy Frazer said. Frazer said the second stage authorizes the construction. He said that the city will apply for a Kansas Department of Health and Human Services loan in the amount of $10.5 million to fund that project. City officials have said sewer rates likely would be increased to fund the construction, but there are no specifics yet.
Source: The Arkansas City Traveler
SEK gets $1M grant to fight opioids
To fight the ongoing opioid crisis — the addiction to high-powered prescription painkillers — a Southeast Kansas coalition will work to remove the barriers that keep someone from treatment. In large part, that translates to transportation, helping someone get to treatment or a job. It could also mean help paying for counseling and treatment programs. A $1 million federal grant will help area counties with those issues and more over the next three years. Thrive Allen County announced it has received a federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration. The Rural Communities Opioid Response Program grant will provide about $333,000 a year to address opioid misuse in Allen, Wilson, Woodson, Coffey, Bourbon and Neosho counties. It will begin Sept. 1.
Source: The Iola Register
Sign up for the free Water Rate Checkup Tool Workshop (Ottawa) on August 24
The Rate Checkup program is a free on-line tool that was developed to assist small Kansas public water supply systems with the process of reviewing water rates. This tool was made available and developed through funding from KDHE and additional technical assistance is available and provided by Ranson Financial Group LLC through a technical assistance contract with KDHE. This training will provide classroom instruction as well as interactive use of the Rate Checkup tool. The session provides participants with a basic understanding of the on-line tool’s functionality and usability.
Sign up here.
Kansas lawmakers try to tackle water issues amid drought conditions
A draft copy of the state’s water plan, released once every five years, lays bare the problem in stark terms. “It is not an overstatement to say that the future of habitability in much of western Kansas is at stake,” the plan reads, mere pages into the 200-plus page document. Titus Jaeger, who works on conservation issues and is a representative on a regional water advisory committee, said he has seen the issues firsthand over the years. He noted the Arkansas River has lost streamflow between Garden City and Dodge City in his lifetime — and experts agree more extreme fallout could occur if action isn’t taken.
Source: CJonline
‘More than bricks and glass,’ Volland Store brings art, stories to Wabaunsee County
Patty Reece was new in Wabaunsee County when she and her husband first spotted the structural remains of the abandoned Volland Store, a large brick building in sad disrepair. “We have always loved old buildings and have felt sadness when they melted into the earth — as so many have,” she said. “The roof of the building was gone, as were many of the windows. Weeds were tall, trees were encroaching on the foundation, but the building was straight and strong.” Her interest in the building led her on a fact-finding mission with neighbors and community members. She began to hear funny tales of the people who had gathered there and fond memories of storekeeper Otto Kratzer, “who always gave penny candy to the neighborhood kids,” Patty said.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Shawnee Mission School District still trying to settle $675K gas bill created by February winter storm
The Shawnee Mission School District says it is still trying to negotiate with a Texas-based natural gas company over the final price of an unusually high energy bill created by February’s record cold snap. District officials say SMSD currently owes Houston-based Symmetry Energy Solutions slightly more than $675,700. That’s a significant drop from the initial $1.6 million invoice Symmetry billed the district in March but still roughly equals what the district typically budgets for gas for an entire school year.
Source: Shawnee Mission Post
Municipal Bond Trends for August 18, 2021
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.
Allen County to switch ambulance services
Allen County will pursue a contract with a private company to provide countywide ambulance services starting in 2022. County commissioners voted, 2-1, Tuesday to negotiate solely with American Medical Response, and to let its existing EMS contract with the City of Iola expire on Dec. 31. The move is certain to have major ramifications within the Iola Fire Department, because firefighters man ambulances throughout the county from stations in Iola, Humboldt and Moran. “The decision was not made lightly,” Commissioner David Lee said, noting he’d had “a lot of sleepless nights” during negotiations. “But at the end of the day, I think the contract we’re gonna be pursuing is better for the county.”
Source: The Iola Register
Unionizing new Amazon workers top priority for Wichita labor leaders
Several unions in the Wichita area are preparing to attempt to organize new Amazon workers in Wichita and Park City, local labor leaders said, despite the online retail giant’s success in so far keeping unions at bay in warehouses across the country. “I may be a bit too much of an optimist, but the only way you ever accomplish anything is by trying,” said Esau Freeman, the business representative for the Service Employees International Union Local 513, which represents workers at the city of Wichita and USD 259. Freeman said he has given his business card to any Amazon workers he has seen driving around town or run into, and that workers have received it well so far.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Wichita, Sedgwick County leaders declare formal support for Amtrak expansion
Wichita City Council members and Sedgwick County Commissioners have been involved in discussions over the past decade on returning passenger rail service to south central Kansas, but they have now declared formal support for an expansion of Amtrak service. Sedgwick County Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution of support Wednesday for the extension of Amtrak services. The Wichita City Council approved a similar resolution last week. The city has not had direct access to passenger service since 1979. In recent years, Wichita residents have had to travel to Newton or Hutchinson to access Amtrak services. Amtrak has been studying an expansion of the Heartland Flyer route from Oklahoma City to Wichita and Newton, to connect to the Southwest Chief service that runs through southwest Kansas. The expansion is estimated to add 100,000 to 200,000 passengers a year. The expansion would also connect to other Amtrak routes west to Los Angeles and east to Kansas City and Chicago.
Source: Country 101.3 KFDI
Governor Laura Kelly Announces 250 New Jobs in Emporia
Governor Laura Kelly today announced Communications Solutions, LLC (CSLLC) will expand its operations to Emporia, Kansas, creating 250 new jobs. “Our partnership with CSLCC, which will create 250 new jobs in Emporia, is a testament to our state’s talented workforce and strong economy,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Congratulations to CSLLC and Emporia on this exciting announcement. We’ll continue prioritizing pro-growth policies to recruit new businesses and families to our state.” CSLLC is a premier provider of Business-to-Business and Business-to-Consumer Call Center services. The company is purchasing a facility to create a new call center in response to growing customer demand, with hiring for the new location already underway.
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce
A short-staffed Sedgwick County now offers signing bonuses up to $5,000
To combat widespread staffing shortages, Sedgwick County is offering signing bonuses up to $5,000 for some new employees. The signing bonuses are available for new hires in facilities maintenance, emergency communications (911) and Comcare — departments in which the county is having trouble attracting applicants, County Manager Tom Stolz told commissioners Wednesday. “It is a trial policy to see if the use of signing bonuses is an effective way to bolster and recruit workforce in areas that have large numbers of openings of specialty positions,” Stolz said.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Board of Regents session raises open meeting questions
The Kansas Board of Regents is convening virtually Wednesday afternoon to vote on the profile that will be used to pick the next president of Kansas State University. But the only way to watch the 4 p.m. Zoom meeting is to drive to the board’s Topeka office, where it will be livestreamed. Emily Bradbury, executive director of the Kansas Press Association, said in a joint statement with the Kansas Association of Broadcasters that the board’s decision to limit access to the public meeting is irresponsible. “While the Kansas Board of Regents may not have to provide a link to the meeting to abide by [the Kansas Open Meetings Act], it begs the question why they are conducting the meeting via zoom for board members but requiring members of the public to travel to Topeka to observe that very meeting,” Mazzei wrote in an email.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Pizza Hut can serve beer, thanks to pastor
More than four decades after opening in Hillsboro, Pizza Hut can now serve its customers a beer. Until Tuesday, the restaurant was banned from serving beer because city code prevents cereal malt beverage from being served within 200 feet of any school, college, or church. Pizza Hut is within 200 feet of Hillsboro United Methodist Church. Although no one from Pizza Hut came to talk to city council members Tuesday, the pastor of the church came to advocate letting Pizza Hut sell beer.
Source: Marion County RECORD
Parsons selected for regional criminal justice training site
Parsons will be home to a new regional criminal justice training site for law enforcement. Agencies from 16 regional counties will report to the new center for criminal justice training. Officials hope to get the new center up and running in the next 90 days. The 16 counties to be served by the site are: Lyon, Greenwood, Elk, Chautauqua, Coffey, Woodson, Wilson, Montgomery, Anderson, Allen, Neosho, Labette, Linn, Bourbon, Crawford and Cherokee. “This is a huge step forward for our agency and our region,” said Parsons Police Sgt. Jason Ludwig. “Training is critical for smaller rural agencies where staff members have to be generalists, who have a wide range of abilities from crime response, criminal investigation, crime scene management and core skills from firearms, driving and defensive tactics.”Earlier this month, the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center training council voted unanimously to select Parsons as the new training site. The group met in Parsons with area officers and other law enforcement staff to look for a location in Southeast Kansas.
Source: Parsons Sun
Rural residents air concerns about dangerous dirt ‘detour’
Residents along an unofficial detour voiced their concerns to the Neosho County Commission Tuesd ay after a fatality accident last week. Marilyn Henry, who lives in the first mile north of the intersection of Elk Road and K-47, was one of about a dozen residents at the meeting and spoke to the commission about heavy traffic around the US-169 construction project. Four miles of Elk Road are dirt between K-47 and 150th Road. The stretch is posted 30 miles per hour and through trucks are prohibited. Commissioners on Tuesday approved a resolution that specifically prohibits through-truck traffic on Elk, Chase and Douglas roads between K-47 and 160th. Henry presented a petition to the commission with about two dozen signatures asking for action on the road. She said she set up a trail camera at her residence, and during a one-week period counted up to 2,276 vehicles per day – and from between 43 to 302 tractor-trailer rigs.
Source: The Chanute Tribune
Want to rent a scooter in Prairie Village? Residents may soon have that option
The city of Prairie Village is on the brink of making way for a fleet of dozens of rentable, motorized electric scooters, though lingering concerns about the vehicles has prompted the city to consider a pilot program that can be ended relatively quickly. The city council previously expressed some concerns over adding scooters to city streets, but the council committee of the whole on Monday approved entering a memorandum of understanding for a pilot program with Bird, one of the biggest players in the growing e-scooter market. Mayor Eric Mikkelson said he’s supportive of the pilot program because it will allow the city to look into the viability of alternative modes of transportation.
Source: Prairie Village Post