Kansas Municipal News
Andover community shows resilience, rallying together on the first anniversary of the 2022 Andover tornado
Andover Central Park hosted many events on the first anniversary of the Andover tornado. Over 200 people were in attendance for tree planting and a special community prayer breakfast. Many people said they are happy about the progress made to rebuild the city over the past year. “It’s just nice to see the rebuilding. And even where they haven’t rebuilt, it’s cleaned up,” said Lori Loney of the American Red Cross. “It’s come a long way. I mean, homes are rebuilt, people are moving in, the school is amazing,” said Andover resident Megan Henwood.
Source: KSN-TV
What Butler County 911 dispatchers learned from the Andover tornado
Saturday marks the first anniversary of the Andover tornado that destroyed homes and buildings. Behind that day’s response, dispatchers in Andover, Butler County and Sedgwick County. Many say it was unlike anything they had experienced before. The phones were ringing nonstop from about 8 p.m. to midnight. “You just keep doing one thing and go on to the next, and then, it just kept going,” Butler County Dispatch supervisor Marissa Sparks said. … Butler County 911 says, for the most part, everything went smoothly on their end that day, but they still learned lessons on how to work better next time.
Source: KSN-TV
Marshall County voters say no to jail proposal
Marshall County voters said no to a proposed new jail in Tuesday’s special election, which saw very low voter turnout. The total was 718 no votes and 396 in favor, which was 64 percent against the proposal and 36 percent in favor. A total 1,114 ballots were cast — about 16 percent of the 7,060 Marshall County residents eligible to vote in the election.
Source: The Marysville Advocate
Arkansas City EMS takes over after Newkirk ambulance hits deer
The Arkansas City, KS Fire/EMS Department took over for the Newkirk Fire Department/EMS after one of their ambulances hit a deer early Saturday morning. “Continue to use caution when driving, especially at night because deer are still moving about and are on the roadways,” the Newkirk Fire Department/EMS said. The Newkirk Fire Department/EMS says they, unfortunately, encountered one of those deers around 4:30 a.m. while en route to a hospital with a patient in Kansas.
Source: KSN-TV
Municipal Bond Trends for April 28, 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, Beth Warren or Henry Schmidt.
Municipal Bond Trends for April 27, 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, Beth Warren or Henry Schmidt.
Marion County ponders request for tours
A hotel owner might add courthouse tours to attractions she offers guests. Tammy Ensey, co-owner of the Historic Elgin Hotel, asked county commissioners Monday about arranging regular tours of the courthouse, Marion City Library, trails, and other places. Each tour would last about 3½ hours.
Source: HILLSBORO Star-Journal
Derby Passes Golf Cart Ordinance
An ordinance that allows golf carts to be driven on some city streets was passed by the Derby City Council. It allows golf carts to be driven if the speed limit is 30 mph or less, the driver has a valid driver’s license and the golf cart is registered as a special purpose vehicle with the police department, is insured and has valid registration displayed. While carts cannot be driven on streets where the speed limit is above 30, they can cross at a crosswalk.
Source: 101.3 KFDI
Marion unveils strategic plan
Forty-two people gathered Tuesday at Marion Community Center to hear how the city’s strategic plan has developed and make final comments and suggestions. Misty Bruckner, director of the policy and management center at Wichita State University, led the meeting. Bruckner outlined for audience members key points of the draft strategic plan, eight months in the making. She said the meeting would be the last opportunity for citizens to have a say before results are given to the city council.
Source: HILLSBORO Star-Journal
Panasonic starts vertical construction on $4B battery plant in De Soto
Panasonic Energy Co. Ltd. started vertical construction this week in De Soto on its $4 billion electric-vehicle battery plant, moving on from about six months of preliminary site work. Workers erected the facility’s first steel beam on Wednesday, according to a release. They finished moving 4.5 million cubic yards of earth, a process that started in November.
Source: Kansas City Business Journal
How Topeka officials are learning from Colorado Springs to combat homelessness
A recent trip to Colorado is helping Topeka City leaders find a new perspective on approaching the local homeless situation. The Topeka Mayor, City Manager and other representatives visited Denver and Colorado Springs in mid-April to see how those cities approached the concept of low barrier homeless shelters. Because of the unique way they combat homelessness, Colorado Springs is used to visitors from other states. Officials are unpacking what lessons they learned from that impactful trip, and putting together new ideas for what changes could come to the Capital City.
Source: KSNT 27 News
Lenexa OKs future mural at Old Town activities complex
Lenexa is on track to commission its first-ever public mural project, which would feature a local artist. Last week, the Lenexa City Council unanimously gave the green light to a plan to put a mural on the outside of the future combined Lenexa Community Center and Senior Center building. The mural is listed as the top priority on the Lenexa Arts Council’s project list also approved last week.
Source: Prairie Village Post
JoCo’s affordable housing crunch is preventing Section 8 tenants from using vouchers
Kamber Corpening felt relief when she first landed a Section 8 voucher in 2020, a promise that she qualified for substantial rent subsidies from federal taxpayers. Then came the hard part — finding a landlord willing to deal with the accompanying red tape and to open units to lower-income tenants. She tried almost 100 places over the course of a year and found few that took Section 8 vouchers.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Shawnee mulls revising long-term plan 2 years after adoption
Shawnee could be on track to revise its current long-range development plan, more commonly called a comprehensive plan. Earlier this week, the Shawnee City Council started workshopping the plan, known as Achieve Shawnee, during a council committee meeting. The conversation focused mostly on multifamily housing and mixed-use developments, which usually combine commercial and some kind of higher density housing in one area. No changes were made this week to the Achieve Shawnee plan adopted in 2021, but multiple councilmembers signaled they have some revisions they’d like to see made to the plan in their wards.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Leawood considers new license plate readers at city intersections
Leawood is planning to add one license plate reader somewhere in the city, and considering using federal funding to help pay for 10 new license plate readers at other strategic intersections. As part of a work session April 17, the Leawood City Council and city staff discussed the possibility of putting some of the city’s federal COVID-19 relief funding toward the new license plate readers.
Source: Prairie Village Post
A Johnson Countian’s guide to this week’s NFL Draft in KCMO
The 2023 National Football League Draft kicks off in Kansas City, Mo., this Thursday. The three-day event — one of the biggest the metro region has hosted in recent memory — features barbecue competitions, football-themed games for kids, fan-centered activities, musical performances and, oh yeah, the actual draft, at Kansas City’s Union Station.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Manhattan plans to tweak regulations for airport, code and housing boards
The Manhattan city government plans to make tweaks to three advisory boards as officials continue their goal of cleaning up rules. The Manhattan City Commission on Tuesday discussed potential changes to the Airport Advisory Board, Code Appeals Board and Housing Appeals Board. City administrators are recommending the Airport Advisory Board meets quarterly in the future instead of monthly. Commissioners also wanted to address the makeup of the board. The airport board has 11 members — six at-large and one representative each selected by Fort Riley, Kansas State University, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, Junction City and Pottawatomie County Commission. The board rules require that two of the members are active pilots.
Source: themercury.com
Atchison County launches tire disposal program
Possibly the biggest finding from the Atchison County-wide clean-up has been the abundance of disposable tires throughout Atchison County. During Monday’s County Commission meeting, County Chairwoman Casey Quinn highlighted the issue that arose with an overwhelming amount of disposable tires brought in last Friday when the county-wide clean-up began. “There are over 200 tires with 14 people of different addresses from all three of our districts who still have tire needs,” Quinn said. “I emailed the state about a tire grant opportunity and asked if they had any program or assistants they can give to our county.”
Source: www.atchisonglobenow.com
Municipal Bond Trends for April 26, 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, Beth Warren or Henry Schmidt.
Wednesday marks 32 years since devastating F-5 ‘Andover Tornado’
Wednesday marks 32 years since of one of Kansas’ most devastating tornadoes. Known as the Andover Tornado, the F-5 caused damage across Harper, Sedgwick and Butler Counties on April 26, 1991. That twister claimed 17 lives — most of them taken from the Golden Spur mobile home park. It began with a touchdown in Harper County and then tore across Sedgwick and Butler counties. In Sedgwick county it grew to F-3 intensity and tore through parts of south and east Wichita, making a direct hit on McConnell Air Force Base. Four people were killed in Sedgwick County.
Source: KAKE – News