Kansas Municipal News
Sedgwick County looking to build new emergency management building
When disaster hits, the command center for Sedgwick County’s Emergency Management Department becomes the hub for first responder’s response coordination. However there is a problem. While there’s room inside for staff, the department doesn’t really have the space to store their supplies and equipment. Sedgwick County Assistant Manager Rusty Leeds explains, “as we went through the pandemic, and then more recently, we had a tornado and then looking back over the past few years, several years actually, emergency management has not had adequate space to maintain supplies for disaster preparedness and response.”
Source: KAKE – News
Hotel Topeka auction ends, sells to new owner
The online auction for Hotel Topeka has concluded and it has a new owner. Ten-X hosted the online auction which began Monday, June 6 with a starting bid of $2 million. Bidding appeared to end at $7.5 million Wednesday afternoon and ramped up in the final minutes of the auction, before the listing was removed. The City of Topeka’s governing body discussed strategies on how to pay for the hotel at its Tuesday night meeting, after it expressed interest on bidding in late May.
Source: KSNT 27 News
Two Kansas towns make ‘Best Small Towns to Visit in the U.S.’ list
Two historic Kansas towns have landed a spot on the TravelAwaits’ “Best Small Towns to Visit in the U.S.” list. This list is decided by the site’s leaders for the Best of Travel Awards. Coming in at number one on the list, for the third year in a row, is Abilene, Kan. “Located in the heart of the Sunflower State, Abilene is home to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum, and Boyhood Home. This may be what pulls hundreds of thousands of visitors off I-70 every year, but the town of about 6,500 is a unique mix of presidential history and western charm,” TravelAwaits said. The city, located in Dickinson County, has won a few impressive titles lately: Best Historic Small Town by USA TODAY, Top 10 True Western Town of the Year by True West Magazine and Destination of the Year by the Midwest Travel Network.
Source: KSNT 27 News
Rural done right: Cafe, food store keep Tampa alive
Little Tampa might not be a shopping mecca, but it does have items its residents need. That’s why county commissioner David Mueller’s work for his home community, once a stop on the Santa Fe Trail, caught the eye of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University. Muller was subject of a Kansas Profile article by the center last week. Tampa’s Santa Fe Trail Café, operated for the last six years by Pat Dalke and her daughter, Ashley Thornhill, serves lunch every day except Saturday and offers a chicken fried steak meal on Sundays.
Source: Marion County RECORD
Survey: should the county move to a four day work week
The Riley County commissioners on Monday unanimously approved the launch of two surveys to gauge public and employee interest in new hours of operation and four-day workweek for county departments. The public survey is available at all county customer service locations and on the county’s website at www.rileycountyks.gov until 5 p.m. June 30. County clerk Rich Vargo presented the proposal, which includes suggested hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday. This would mean all county public offices would be closed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. This would still be a 40-hour work week but would allow for the public to come in before or after typical work hours.
Source: themercury.com
Overland Park says backyard chicken pilot has been success so far
A two-year test program that allows Overland Park residents with at least a quarter acre of land to keep chickens has so far been a success, according to the city department that oversees it. As the program approaches its ending date December 31, the city animal control department noted there have been no documented complaints on properties with chicken permits since the pilot began in March 2022. City councilmembers now will begin to consider whether to make the chicken rules permanent, as some members of the council’s Community Development Committee proposed at a meeting Wednesday.
Source: Shawnee Mission Post
Municipal Bond Trends for June 7, 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.
Lawrence city commissioners request some tweaks to plastic bag ban, but most voice general support
Lawrence city commissioners indicated Tuesday that they will likely approve a ban on single-use plastic bags when a revision of the ordinance comes back to them in the near future. The Sustainability Advisory Board has long discussed options aiming to reduce the use of plastics in the city, which in turn could help reduce the city’s dependence on fossil fuels and prevent some pollution from the bags, contamination through microplastics from bags’ degradation, and animal deaths from eating the bags, among other concerns. … Produce bags or product bags used to prevent contamination or damage would still be allowed under the proposed ordinance. Reusable bags would be exempted from the ban, and single-use disposable paper bags would still be allowed. Kathy Richardson, the city’s director of sustainability, told commissioners on Tuesday that the Sustainability Advisory Board also wanted to add language requiring that any paper bags or reusable plastic bags sold or distributed be made of 40% post-consumer recycled content, “which many other cities also require,” Richardson said. Sprouts in Lawrence sells reusable bags that fit that description for 10 cents apiece, she said. Commissioners on Tuesday said they wanted to see the 40% PCRC information written into the ordinance before they consider final approval.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Leawood Mayor Peggy Dunn will step aside after 25 years in office
The end of this year will mark a milestone for Leawood Mayor Peggy Dunn — her last as an elected official. The city’s long-tenured mayor is not seeking reelection this fall, paving the way for Leawood to get a new mayor for the first time since 1997. After more than a quarter century leading the Johnson County suburb, Dunn says she is ready to step aside and has considered the opportunity to serve Leawood “a tremendous honor.”
Source: Shawnee Mission Post
How did trains transform Johnson County? Find out at this family-friendly exhibit
The last time you drove on Strang Line Road, you might not have thought about how it connects to Johnson County’s history. A new exhibit at the Johnson County Museum is calling attention to all the ways trains have influenced growth and development since they first rolled through the area in 1867. “Trains: Transportation and the Transformation of Johnson County” will be open through Jan. 13. Although the more permanent displays at the museum do mention trains, this exhibit takes an in-depth look, with maps, photos, artifacts and even a small model railway.
Source: Joco 913 News
Four mobile mental health teams will soon be responding to 911 crisis calls in Wichita
Mental health professionals will soon be embedded in the Wichita Police Department to respond to 911 calls, providing face-to-face help for people in crisis, rather than relying on officers who may or may not be trained to do that. At least one of four teams will be on call seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. — when first responders say they receive the most mental health-related calls — and the clinicians can be deployed with officers or called to the scene after contact is made.
Source: Wichita Eagle
Department of Commerce Makes $2 Million Available for COVID Resiliency Program
The Department of Commerce will award $2 million through the Community Development Block Grant – COVID Resiliency (CDBG-CVR) program to enable cities and counties to address issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic when no other funds are available. This is a competitive CDBG grant with an application window that closes July 31, 2023. Funding for the program was made available through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. … Eligible activities for the CDBG-CVR program include COVID resiliency improvements for businesses such as:
- Upgrades to remain open and prevent future closures due to community illnesses and public health emergencies
- Technology, hardware, and software upgrades
- E-commerce updates
- Professional development and training
- Other updates that can be directly related to resiliency improvements
Eligible businesses must have at least 51% of their employees meet the low- to moderate-income (LMI) standards. Like other CDBG grants, cities and counties will apply for the funds on behalf of eligible businesses and then make the funds available, administering the program locally. Non-LMI communities can still qualify for this funding if not an entitlement community. The LMI requirement is determined by the business and not the city. For more information on the CDBG-CVR program and to access the application, click here.
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce
USD 465 voters approve school bond project
A vote to use property taxes to bankroll a $15 million bond project for Winfield schools passed with 59.5% of the vote, according to unofficial figures posted by the Cowley County Clerk on Tuesday. The bond will provide revenue for upgrades to safety and security, air quality and HVAC systems, along with deferred maintenance. Just 13% of voters in the district cast ballots with 676 in support of the bond question and 460 opposed.
Source: CourierTraveler
Rural Saline County will soon have a new option for broadband internet
Rural communities in Saline County will soon have a new option for broadband internet. Nex-Tech, an information technology company, announced Tuesday that it is making progress in a project in rural Saline County to route fiber optic cables and become a local option for high-speed internet. Nex-Tech’s broadband service is a step toward one of the County’s goals in utilizing American Rescue Plan Act funding. Among several others, the issue of access to broadband internet for Saline County’s rural residents has been a focus of the board of commissioners.
Source: Salina Journal
New courtrooms begin to take form at City-County Building in Salina
Beginning in January, people stopping by the City-County Building might have noticed some offices shifting locations and teams of construction workers navigating the building. For the past six months there has been an ongoing project to remodel parts of the building to accommodate more judges and provide more courtroom space after a state mandate increased the number of district court judges in various parts of Kansas. Court Administrator Todd Heitschmidt said the process for getting new judges has been a long time coming, but the change was abrupt. “We’ve always been asking for more judges, and just never thought we’d get them,” Heitschmidt said. “Then we got three at once.”
Source: Salina Journal
Hutchinson will become Smallville on June 15
Hutchinson City Council had lots of proclamations and concerns during their Tuesday morning meeting…. “The fictional character Clark Kent also known as Superman, arrived in Smallville, Kansas in a spaceship during a meteor shower,” Hutchinson Mayor Jon Richardson proclaimed. “I, Jon Richardson, Mayor of the City of Hutchinson, Kansas, do hereby proclaim that June 15-17, 2023, the City of Hutchinson shall be known as: Smallville, Kansas; the home of Clark Kent.”
Source: Hutch News
Former Ottawa city manager Richard Nienstedt to fill in as Topeka city manager goes on leave
Topeka city manager Stephen Wade … had requested a leave of absence, for reasons that aren’t being made public, [Mayor] Padilla said. The leave will last for an “extended” and “undisclosed” amount of time, the city said in a news release. … The mayor and council voted 10-0 Tuesday to temporarily name Richard U. Nienstedt, of Ottawa, as acting city manager. Neinstedt retired in March from the city of Ottawa, the city of Topeka said in a news release. The mayor and council also voted 10-0 to authorize Padilla to negotiate an employment agreement with Neinstedt.
Source: CJonline
Bids reach $5 million in hotel auction; Topeka doesn’t intend to own property long-term
The top bid reached $5 million Wednesday morning as the end neared for a three-day auction in which participants that include Topeka’s city government are seeking to buy The Hotel Topeka at City Center, 1717 S.W. Topeka Blvd. The auction’s reserve, which is the minimum price a seller will accept as the winning bid, had not yet been reached. Meanwhile, City Councilman Spencer Duncan said the city doesn’t plan to own the hotel long-term. … Topeka city manager Stephen Wade said in a news release last week that the city, if it acquires the hotel, will look to experts and team up with private-sector partners while developing a holistic approach to redeveloping it.
Source: CJonline
Council OKs chicken ban
The current city code prohibits the harboring of chickens within the city limits, Great Bend City Attorney Allen Glendenning said, addressing the City Council Monday night. But, recently citizens have expressed a desire to keep “backyard chickens” in the city, arguing the present regulations don’t ban the birds. So, to clarify the city’s will to prohibit chickens, the council Monday approved a revised ordinance specifically prohibiting the fowl. However, it passed on a 4-3 vote with some council members sympathetic to those wanting to keep chickens on their properties.
Source: Great Bend Tribune
Area commissioners share thoughts on financial access
After Harvey County Commissioner Becky Reimer requested read-only access to the county’s accounting system (that was denied by the other two commissioners) two weeks ago and then followed it up by saying she wanted to continue to try to get that access, Harvey County Now reached out to some area counties to learn if this was something done elsewhere. None of the commissioners we spoke to had access to their county’s financial records, but at least one is considering it.
Source: Harvey County Now