Kansas Municipal News
KU launches plan to address nursing shortage; Hospital nursing vacancies peak
As hospitals struggle to recruit nurses and the demand for nursing heightens, the University of Kansas is starting a new initiative to tackle the mounting healthcare labor issue in Kansas. The university’s School of Nursing is forming a new center that will address shortages of nurses and nursing faculty in Kansas. The university’s announcement comes as Kansas hospitals are coping with their highest vacancy rates for registered nurses and licensed practical nurses in more than 20 years.
Source: Sunflower State Journal
Lawrence City Commission’s first meeting with consent agenda change is Tuesday; here’s what the change looks like
Members of the public no longer have the option to pull most items from the Lawrence City Commission’s consent agenda. There’s one item on Tuesday’s agenda that can be pulled. The consent agenda is a long list of items that are generally approved in one motion unless a commissioner or member of the public asks to pull something for discussion. Under a change commissioners approved last week, community members may only pull certain items that are designated as “quasi-judicial.” Deputy City Attorney Randy Larkin said last week that this distinction typically includes items where the commission is asked to apply city ordinance to a request with a specific set of facts — similar to the way judges interpret the law to decide legal arguments.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Riley County presented with survey results for proposed 4-day work week
Riley County Public Information Officer Vivienne Leyva presented commissioners Thursday with results of a July public survey, regarding a potential switch to a 4 day, 40 hour work week. Leyva spoke about the first question on the survey. Close to 2,000 respondents took the survey, with greater than half saying the new schedule would make Riley County offices more accessible for them. Question 2 asked preference for extended hours to conduct business. About 22 percent of digital respondents to the survey said visiting early morning or late evening would be better, with a small amount preferring evenings.
Source: 1350 KMAN
Moundridge City Administrator Murray McGee has announced that he is stepping down; becoming CEO of INK
Moundridge City Administrator, Murray McGee has announced that he is stepping down September 1st after 8 years with the City. McGee has accepted the Chief Executive Officer position with the Information Network of Kansas. INK is a public/private partnership charged by the Legislature with expanding the amount and type of Kansas government information available to the public. … The City Council are starting immediately to conduct a search for a new Administrator. Mayor Kevin Schmidt thanked McGee for his service and expressed his confidence in the City staff who are stepping up to help with the transition during this period.
Source: Moundridge
City of Wichita has given out over $100k in rebates
On Jan. 10, the Wichita City Council approved $100,000 in rebates for citizens who have bought water- and energy-efficient devices in 2023. That number was increased to $125,000 on July 5, as the City Council approved additional funds if the $100,000 was exhausted before Oct. 31. City officials say so far, the City of Wichita has approved rebates for 1,242 water-efficient devices, totaling $112,960.06. The Lawn Care Rebate Program is intended to lower the use of gas and diesel-powered lawn equipment and provides a $50 rebate for residents who purchase new non-combustion lawn equipment and recycle their old combustion equipment. City officials say the City of Wichita has used around $300 for the lawn rebate. It’s possible that the lower number is due to the lack of rain and as a result the decreased need to maintain lawns.
Source: KSN-TV
Home sales are down in Kansas, but you can still expect to pay more in Wichita
Homebuyers in Wichita should expect to navigate a “very competitive” market, according to one real estate site, even as sales slump statewide compared to last year. Tight inventory has driven prices up in many areas and contributed to a seller’s market. Wichita’s median home listing price is $275,000 as of June, which is a 14.6% increase from last year, real estate site Realtor.com reports. Average Wichita homes were selling for about 3% above asking price in June, and most homes are selling after about 28 days on the market. The average home value in Wichita was $186,579 in June, according to the Zillow Home Value Index. Home values are up 5.9% in Wichita compared to last year.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Kingman power outages bring community together
Power outages hit large parts of Kingman during the hottest part of the day yesterday and the day before, but the incidents have only brought the community closer together. The outages hit most of the northwestern part of the city, which is where Julie Wollen lives. She was coming home from work with her husband Tuesday when she noticed something was off. “We came into the house, I’m like, ‘It’s warm in here,'” Wollen said. “My husband’s like, ‘Well, it’s 103 degrees out,’ and I’m like, ‘Well, we have no power.” The City set up a cooling center for affected residents and free rides to help them get there. “One of our city bus drivers came into work and started running the public taxi,” said Adrian Harrel, the City of Kingman’s mayor.
Source: KSN-TV
Despite old struggles, can new opportunities in Wyandotte County ‘make this place thrive’?
Wyandotte County seems poised for change. World Cup games are coming to the region in 2026 and a new master plan for the county is in the works, but the area still sees many challenges. Those include affordable housing, gentrification and residents’ historically strained relationship with county government and police. KCUR’s Up To Date broadcasted live Wednesday from the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kansas City’s Breidenthal Unit in Kansas City, Kansas, to discuss the community and its future. For many residents, recent momentum and economic opportunity for Wyandotte County is overshadowed by what work still remains.
Source: KCUR
The new Joint Fentanyl Impact Team seized 5,000 fake oxycodone pills in Pittsburg, Kan.
The Joint Fentanyl Impact Team executed a search warrant in Pittsburg, Kansas leading to the arrest of of two people and the seizure of 5,000 fake oxycodone suspected of containing fentanyl, a large amount of cash and multiple guns with ammunition. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said the JFIT along with the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, Pittsburg Police and the Bourbon County Sheriff’s Office executed the search warrant on Thursday and booked 39-year-old Horace Wright and 43-year-old Amanda Lee into the Crawford County Jail. Wright and Lee were both arrested for possession of opiates, opium, or narcotic drugs, possession of marijuana, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug sale paraphernalia, criminal possession of firearm, and aggravated child endangerment.
Source: KAKE – News
Valley Center named Purple Heart City
Following in the footsteps of Derby and Haysville, Valley Center become the third city in Sedgwick County in the span of roughly one year to officially be declared a Purple Heart City. An official proclamation was made at the Sedgwick County Commission meeting on Aug. 2. The official proclamation serves as a statement of support for military personnel, veterans and families of those who have served through the Armed Services in recalling one of the oldest military decorations still given out. Along with Derby and Haysville, Valley Center joins the cities of Holton, Leavenworth, Netawaka and Topeka; Leavenworth and Jackson counties; and the State of Kansas as part of the Purple Heart Trail in Kansas.
Source: Derby Informer | Area
Kansas hits all-time lowest birth rate
Kansas documented the state’s lowest-ever recorded birth rate for the 2022 year, according to a preliminary report. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s annual report shows the number of births in the state dropped slightly from 2021. Last year’s report documented 34,697 births in 2021, with a birth rate of 11.8 per 1,000 people. The preliminary 2022 report recorded 34,376 births across the state, with a birth rate of 11.7 per 1,000 people. Seven counties accounted for about 60% of the state’s births for the year: Douglas, Geary, Johnson, Leavenworth, Sedgwick, Shawnee and Wyandotte. Unmarried mothers made up 36% of all births with 12,370 reported. The rate of births to teenagers between the ages of 15-19 remained at 4.7%, unchanged from the previous year’s rate.
Source: The Iola Register
City Council recommends more WPD power to suspend club licenses
Wichita City Council is recommending ordinances to give police more authority to suspend the licenses of clubs where violence has taken place. This after a shooting at the City Nightz club in Old Town left 11 people injured on Sunday, July 2nd. Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan issued a 30-day suspension of the entertainment license for the club, which had been the site of twelve previous violent incidents in 2023 alone. Three of those incidents involved guns. Sullivan said the shooting wouldn’t have happened if patrons were properly screened before entering the club. City Council claims current licensing ordinances to suspend or revoke such licenses are inconsistent; specifically citing the method of notice given, the official who requests a suspension, and the length of suspension.
Source: 101.3 KFDI
Munis follow global bond sell off, outflows near $1B
Municipals sold off Thursday, following U.S. Treasury losses after more economic data suggested the U.S. economy is strong enough to potentially warrant more rate hikes in the fall. Equities ended down. Ahead of Friday’s jobs report, Wall Street is “watching a global bond market selloff get uglier as U.S. stocks waver ahead of massive earnings from Apple and Amazon,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at The Americas OANDA. Coupled with the Bank of England signaling more tightening is ahead, recent economic data has confirmed the U.S. economy remains resilient, he said, which fanned more concerns over Fed policy uncertainty. “Both initial jobless claims still remain low and the ISM services employment component supports the argument that the Fed might need to deliver more tightening in November,” he noted.
Source: The Bond Buyer
Shawnee Names New Finance Director
The City of Shawnee and City Manager Doug Gerber announced on Wednesday the promotion of Sean Rocco as the City’s new Finance Director following a nation-wide search. Rocco has served as Interim Finance Director since May of this year. “Sean has done an outstanding job taking the City through the 2024 budget process and consistently proved himself to be up to the task of Finance Director through his day-to-day work and in every round of the interview process,” City Manager Doug Gerber said. Rocco joined the City of Shawnee in September of 2021 as Deputy Finance Director, after more than a decade in the private sector as an accounting coordinator, project controls analyst, and eight years with Bridgestone Americas as a Senior Field Auditor.
Source: What’s New News Summary
Park City voters approve sales tax increase
Voters in Park City have approved a proposal for a one cent sales tax increase to fund a variety of improvements across the city. The proposal was on Tuesday’s primary election ballot, and 58 percent of the voters approved. The unofficial results have 377 yes votes and 272 no votes. The final numbers will be certified during the Sedgwick County vote canvass on August 10th. The one cent increase will be used for the improvement of streets, parks, and city services, as well as community-driven enhancements.
Source: 101.3 KFDI
Harvey County Commission extends postponement on renewable energy builds
The Harvey County Commission unanimously voted to approve an extension on a commercial renewable energy construction moratorium in the county. The vote was held during the commission’s meeting on August 1st. The Commission previously implemented a six-month postponement at its Feb. 21st meeting. The extension will keep the moratorium in place through Dec. 5th, 2023. The extension was requested by the Harvey County Planning and Zoning Advisory Board, which is currently reviewing the County’s Unified Development Code related to commercial renewable energy.
Source: 101.3 KFDI
New mural, sculpture being added in Delia
It’s a warm Saturday morning in the southwest Jackson County community of Delia, where a UTV is busy dragging the ball field near the former Delia school for weeds and the occasional train whistle punctuates the quiet. It’s also a good day to install a steel sculpture on the south outer wall of the school building, and that’s what Rossville High School art teacher Garrett Larson and his three-person crew are doing — attempting to mount the sculpture using an old Case farm tractor with a loader attachment. The sculpture — a depiction of a buffalo on the prairie at sunset — is actually one of two art projects that Larson has been working on to enhance the outer appearance of the old school, which now functions as a community building after it the Kaw Valley USD 321 board of education voted to close the school in 2010.
Source: Holton Recorder
Rural Kansas school district spared in lopsided vote
Residents of a rural central Kansas school district overwhelmingly voted to keep their district intact, defeating an attempt to dissolve the district in anger over a school closure. Unofficial election results from the Aug. 1 primary show 587 people voted in favor of disorganization and 1,179 voters in Central Plains Unified School District 112 voted against the change. “For Tuesday in August, in a heatwave, this was a huge turnout,” said Denise Schmidt, a Claflin resident, educator and member of the United USD 112 campaign. Ellsworth County Clerk Shelly Vopat, who oversees the county’s elections, estimated turnout was about 60%. The county usually sees a turnout of 30% to 40% in a primary election, Vopat said. Schmidt said the vote showed communities could still pull together and prioritize education.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Lenexa acquired this historic cemetery last year. What happens now?
For generations, volunteers with the nonprofit Lenexa Cemetery Association managed the historic cemetery off Pflumm Road and 87th Street Parkway in east Lenexa. The Lenexa Cemetery, founded in 1872, is the final resting place of several prominent Lenexa community leaders through the generations, including members of the Legler family and some Civil War veterans. The city has now taken over the property and is shifting attention towards maintaining and potentially enhancing the site into the future. Over the years, upkeep of the cemetery and its long-term management grew to be a challenge for the all-volunteer cemetery association. Members of the organization’s board started approaching other groups about taking over for them but there were no takers, Lenexa Parks and Recreation Director Logan Wagler said.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Another move: Sedgwick County thinking of buying this downtown building for admin offices
Sedgwick County government is considering purchasing Murfin Plaza at 250 N. Water for $7.75 million as the new home for its administrative offices. The County Commission on Wednesday unanimously agreed to pay $25,000 in earnest money. The county has 120 days to inspect the 82,577-square-foot property and determine whether to move forward with the purchase. The government has been leasing space at the Ruffin Building on North Broadway at a rate of $58,502.67 a month since moving out of the county courthouse last year to create more room for courts there.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle