Kansas Municipal News
Affordable Connectivity Program in Louisburg
The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) offers eligible households $30/month toward home internet service. The ACP is a long-term $14 billion program of the Federal Communications Commission, funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The program offers eligible households a $30/month discount toward high-speed internet and a one-time discount of $100 toward the purchase of a connected device such as laptop, desktop computer or tablet from a participating provider if the household contributes $10-50 toward the purchase price. In Miami County, fewer than 20% of eligible households are taking advantage of the Affordable Connectivity Program. In mid-July, only 26 of the estimated 658 eligible households within the City of Louisburg are participating in the program.
Source: Louisburg, KS-Newsflash
Prairie Village, Fairway declare states of emergency following storm
The city of Prairie Village and Fairway, two northeast Johnson County suburbs battered particularly hard by Friday’s severe thunderstorms, have both declared local states of emergency amid ongoing recovery efforts. During a regularly scheduled city council meeting Monday, Prairie Village Mayor Eric Mikkelson said he had declared the local disaster state of emergency for his city. That came shortly after Fairway’s Mayor Melanie Hepperly sent out notice of her own emergency declaration via email. Mikkelson said the July 14 storm was significantly worse in terms of damage compared to other severe storms Prairie Village has experienced, noting that the city’s police and fire departments responded to 196 emergency calls in the first 24 hours after the storm hit on Friday afternoon.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Leawood PD and HappyBottoms team up to give out free diapers
The city of Leawood is collaborating with Kansas City nonprofit HappyBottoms to help local parents in need. The Leawood Police Department has begun a partnership with the organization to distribute diapers to families who cannot afford them. The nonprofit works with hospitals and social service agencies to identify parents in need of diapers. Through HappyBottoms’ programs, families can qualify for either 50 disposable diapers or 30 training pants per month. The organization’s “Bundles of Joy” program also allows new mothers in need at hospitals to receive 75 diapers right after the birth of their child. “We started in 2009, and since then, we’ve distributed more than 21 million diapers into the Kansas City area,” said Ashley Allison, marketing and communications manager for HappyBottoms.
Source: Prairie Village Post
New bill aims to simplify federal grant applications, boost funding for underserved communities
Lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that proposes to streamline the federal grant application process while increasing access to funding opportunities for under-resourced communities and local governments. Applying for federal grants can be a lengthy and complicated undertaking that often includes bureaucratic red-tape and requires a multifaceted understanding of the process. The Streamlining Federal Grants Act would task the Office of Management and Budget with developing guidance for all federal agencies on how to modernize and simplify their grant applications. The legislation also calls for agencies to update the software and systems used to manage their grant application processes and implement common data standards for grant reporting.
Source: Route Fifty – All Content
Barton County storm siren systems malfunctioned, officials say
Storm sirens malfunctioned in Great Bend when officials tried to set them off during the Sunday night storms. Great Bend Fire Chief Brent Smith said dispatch attempted to set off the alarm ten times but had no success. “Trying to identify some of the problems or where the problems occurred, we discovered the fail safes that were in place had also not allowed the sirens to go off,” explained Smith. The storm caused the main power grid to go out, so the tower couldn’t receive the signal to sound the sirens. Smith explained they have two backups for when the power goes out, the first one being a system powered by battery in a metal building near the tower that receives the signal, but the batteries in the backup weren’t working.
Source: KAKE – News
Viega to expand production capacity in McPherson
Plumbing and piping manufacturer Viega LLC plans to spend $70 million over two years in expanding its production capacity at its 1 million square-foot facility in McPherson, the company said this week. The first wave of investment is planned for $14 million and will increase the company’s ProPress pipe-fitting production ability. “As we continue to grow the business, we are bringing more production to the United States,” president and CEO Markus Brettschneider said in a statement. “These investments in our U.S. footprint will further support demand and leverage the talented U.S. manufacturing workforce, starting with the expansion of production capacity in Kansas.”
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Indoor pickleball, commercial kitchen part of $13.7M project named for former Wichita mayor
The Carl G. Brewer Community Center at McAdams Park will see major upgrades in 2024. The Wichita City Council has approved a major expansion of the Carl G. Brewer Community Center at McAdams Park, bringing the project cost from an initial estimate of $8 million to $13.7 million. The expanded recreation center at 17th Street and Wabash will include a nearly 25,000-square-feet addition to the existing 10,800-square-feet building recently renamed to honor Brewer, Wichita’s first African American mayor elected by a citywide vote (A. Price Woodard, Wichita’s first African American mayor, was elected by city commissioners in 1970).
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Municipal Bond Trends for July 18, 2023
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.
Phillipsburg woman loves her new town, benefits from rodeo funds
A Phillipsburg transplant is a walking billboard for her new hometown. And she’s also benefitted from Hope in the Heartland funds. Laura Flores, who moved from Kansas City to Phillipsburg two years ago, was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in September of 2022. … She’s always felt a sense of belonging in Phillipsburg. Laura had become good friends with Lacie Shields, another Phillipsburg resident, when the two lived in Kansas City. After Lacie moved back to Phillipsburg in February 2019, Laura visited her the next year. “I came to visit one weekend, and then it turned into another weekend, and another weekend, and I fell in love with the town, and then her brother,” she said. She is engaged to be married to Derek Shields, Lacie’s brother. Laura loves Phillipsburg. “I really enjoy the slow pace here, and the community has just been amazing. I feel like for the very first time, in a long time, if not ever, that I feel like I’m home. I just love it. Everybody’s been so amazing and friendly. It didn’t take me any time at all to feel like I belonged here.”
Source: Hays Daily News
Harris finds Great Bend open to newcomers
Maggie Harris has worked at Barton Community College for over 12 years but is fairly new to her role as its chief communications officer, a job she stepped into last September. Born and raised in Dodge City, she attended Sacred Heart Catholic School, Dodge City High school and Dodge City Community College before attending Washburn University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mass media and public relations. “I was recruited to a position in the Admissions Office at Barton Community College as an admissions representative and fell in love with the community at Barton College and the Barton County area,” she said.
Source: Great Bend Tribune
The Bond Market Gets Less Scary
The yield curve is getting less inverted, mostly for good reasons. The yield curve is still looking scary, but not quite as scary as it was as recently as a few weeks ago. Wednesday’s benign inflation report from the Labor Department looked like good news to investors, and one of the places it manifested itself was in the U.S. Treasury market. With growing optimism that the Federal Reserve will raise rates just one more time later this month, and then call it quits, yields fell across the board. Notably, the yield on the two-year note fell 0.15 of a percentage point to 4.74%. The yield on the 10-year note fell by less, declining 0.12 of a percentage point to 3.86%. With that, the 10-year yield is now 0.88 of a percentage point below the two-year.
Source: WSJ.com: Markets
Great Bend council hears Sunday storm update
New Great Bend City Administrator Brandon Anderson told the City Council Monday night that he had its update prepared for the meeting, but “obviously my report changed quite a bit at about 6:30 yesterday.” He was of course referring to the supercell thunderstorm that roared through the community late Sunday afternoon and into the evening, leaving extensive damage in its wake. “I was so impressed with our community,” he said.
Source: Great Bend Tribune
Kansas gambling, Crosswinds casino expanding
Sedgwick County is seeing multiple new additions for gambling. The Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission approved the license for a Historic Horse Racing Facility in Park City. Also, Crosswinds Casino in Park City is expanding to Class 3 Gaming. After Senate Bill 84 passed in 2022, the door opened for HHR and sports betting. “I think it’s good,” Government Manager for the Kansas Racing and Gaming Commission Randy Evans said. “I think it’s an exciting time to be in the business with the different types of gambling, sports betting, typical Las Vegas style casinos, and now HHR parimutuel.” But, the bill was very specific about where the HHR facility was.
Source: KSN-TV
Cities assess ‘widespread’ storm damage — 8K in JoCo still without power
The lingering impacts of Friday’s severe thunderstorms were still being felt Monday, with stubborn pockets of power outages affecting thousands of residents in suburbs clustered in northeast Johnson County. The severe storm on July 14 uprooted trees, downed power lines and, at one point, left more than 180,000 Evergy customers without power. A meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s Kansas City field office told the Post that the metro was hit by a “squall line,” a phenomenon when multiple thunderstorms combine, resulting in higher and more concentrated wind gusts that, in this case, averaged between 50 to 60 miles per hour.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Great Bend community helps each other out after powerful winds brought major damage
Residents in Great Bend woke up bright and early to start clearing out debris after straight line winds up to 85 mph caused trees to fall all around the city. “The definition of people helping people, come to Great Bend. You’ll see, everyone’s coming out to help everybody,” said life long Great Bend resident Gary Parr. Gary drove throughout different neighborhoods in his golf cart offering people an extra hand, chainsaw, and cold drinks. Residents said this is the Great Bend standard. “Pretty much nobody asked. It was just as soon as we seen the damage we all started helping and pitching in,” said Bridgett Arnold.
Source: KAKE – News
The end of Mission Gateway? Johnson County city pulls funding for beleaguered project
The Mission City Council on Monday terminated its redevelopment agreement with Mission Gateway, yanking away millions of dollars in tax incentives the developer argued were necessary to get the project done after nearly two decades of broken promises. A likely death knell for the stalled project, the council voted unanimously to toss out the deal — its fifth iteration for the long-plagued development — because the property owners failed to pay nearly $450,000 in taxes due in May. The city sent a default notice on May 15, giving the property owners, Aryeh Realty, 60 days to pay up. That deadline expired over the weekend.
Source: Joco 913 News
Governor Kelly Proclaims Rural Road Safety Awareness Week
Governor Laura Kelly has proclaimed July 17-21 as Rural Road Safety Awareness Week (RRSAW) in Kansas to call attention to the high number of traffic fatalities on rural roads. The weeklong observance is part of a nationwide campaign spearheaded by the National Center for Rural Road Safety and includes the participation of the Kansas Department of Transportation. With one of the main causes of rural crashes being speeding, this awareness campaign is driving home the need to slow down. “Raising awareness about rural road safety will save lives and put the state of Kansas on the path to ‘Drive To Zero’ traffic deaths,” said Governor Kelly, referring to the state’s ongoing safety awareness initiative. “This safety campaign stresses the importance of obeying speed limits, never driving impaired, and wearing your seatbelt, every trip, every time.”
Source: Governor of the State of Kansas
Students can spread their wings at Fowler Grade School, where Goldbugs learn to lead
Fowler sprang to life last week for the 42nd annual Fowler Threshing Days community festival. Under the coordination of a dedicated team of volunteers, many organizations throughout the community collaborated to provide family-oriented festivities all week long with an “Adventures in the Great Outdoors” theme. Fowler Grade School appreciates the work that these team members and organizations do to provide memorable experiences for the local children, Principal Corri McDowell said. Through the USD 225 school-wide leadership program, McDowell said students learn what it takes to lead the next generation of local volunteers and community leaders that will keep the community spirit and Fowler Threshing Days tradition alive for many years to come.
Source: Dodge City Daily Globe
Municipal Bond Trends for July 17, 2023
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.
Overland Park tourism rebounds to ‘pre-pandemic levels’
A new report shows tourism in Overland Park saw a spike in 2022, rebounding to pre-pandemic levels. Data put together by international advisory firm Tourism Economics shows 4.7 million visitors came to Overland Park in 2022, spending more than $850 million and generating some $95 million in local tax revenues. “Overland Park’s visitor economy has rebounded beyond pre-pandemic levels,” said Warren Wilkinson, president of Visit Overland Park, the city’s tourism and marketing bureau. “While these results are fantastic, we must continue to compete with other communities to expand our position as a great place to visit, live and work.” Overall, year-over-year visits in 2022 were up more than 12%. It comes after a concerted effort to direct funds towards promoting the city in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The city spent $500,000 in federal pandemic relief funds in each of the past two years on marketing efforts.
Source: Shawnee Mission Post