Kansas Municipal News
BABs subsidy cuts legal under sequestration, federal judge rules
Build America Bond subsidy payments are subject to federal budget sequestration, and public power agencies that floated the bonds are not eligible for refunds, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled Friday. The ruling stems from a three-year-old lawsuit brought against the United States by six Midwestern public power agencies, led by the Indiana Municipal Power Agency. The agencies together issued more than $4 billion in direct-pay Build America Bonds before 2011.
Source: The Bond Buyer
City approves new cybersecurity agreement
In the wake of the recent network disruption (still under investigation) and a review by the Department of Homeland Security last year, efforts were taken to meet the city’s growing IT needs. The city approved a one-year agreement with Adams Brown Technology Specialties for IT and cybersecurity support at its Feb. 14 meeting. Cybersecurity insurers continue to push for additional program and infrastructure standards to mitigate potential threats, while DHS also made some recommendations for improvements.
Source: Derby Informer | News
Overland Park starts work on U.S. Highway 69 express toll project
State and city leaders broke ground Thursday on a much anticipated change in Overland Park. Overland Park approved a plan to add toll lanes to U.S. Highway 69 in 2021. Road crews will spend the next two years building express lanes along the highway from 103rd to 151st streets. The Kansas Department of Transportation said U.S. 69 is the busiest highway in the state, making congestion a problem. Traffic can back up for miles during rush hour.
Source: Kansas City Business Journal
Pittsburg Public Safety Tax Voting
Pittsburg residences will vote whether to continue a public safety sales tax in the next election. The tax went into effect in March 2014. Pittsburg police Chief Brent Narges told KOAM that the public safety sales tax allows the department to better enhance their services to the community with technology, equipment, and more. “As far as staffing goes we’ve had a number of patrol officer positions budgeted along with stand alone drug enforcement unit, additional dispatchers, a crime annalist position, along with a drug prosecutor,” said Pittsburg Police Chief Narges.
Source: KOAM News
Shawnee can’t develop this 12-acre prairie plot
Twelve acres of undeveloped land in western Shawnee will remain that way now that a Kansas City-area conservation group has gained control of the property. The final remaining tract of an old farm just southeast of the junction between Shawnee Mission Parkway and I-435 features a variety of habitats, like woodland, savanna and wetland, that the Platte Land Trust wants to protect.
Source: Prairie Village Post
City of Lawrence staff members want to increase diversity of community events
City employees outlined goals related to diversity in local events at Tuesday’s Lawrence City Commission meeting, with a focus on increasing outreach to diverse communities. Porter Arneill, communications and creative resources director, shared data from community surveys, joined by Derek Rogers of Parks and Recreation, Kalenna Coleman of Equity and Inclusion, and Steve Nowak, director of the Watkins Museum of History. The ETC Institute was commissioned for this survey, and analyzed several performance indicators related to the city’s events.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Meet-and-greet planned for Ottawa city manager candidates
Ottawa residents will get a chance to meet the individuals vying to be the next city manager during a meet-and-greet event next week. The reception is scheduled from 5:30 – 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28, at the Bottle House, 204 S. Walnut. Commissioners will spend two days, Feb. 28 and March 1, to determine who will be one step closer to filling the vacancy. Ottawa City Manager Richard Nienstedt announced his intent to retire in mid-October after 15 years spent managing the city’s day-to-day operations. His last day will be March 31.
Source: The Ottawa Herald
First roundabout in southwest Kansas, resurfacing project to begin in Ford County
The first Southwest Kansas highway roundabout and a resurfacing project to begin in Ford County. Traffic changes are scheduled to start Monday, March 6, for two roadway projects in Ford County. The first project will take place at the U.S. 56/283/400/South 2nd Avenue intersection to construct a roundabout. Then, the second is a resurfacing project that will extend from the 112 Road/U.S. 56/400 intersection one mile south to the intersection of 112 Road/Outlaw Road and then extend one mile west to the U.S. 283/Outlaw Road intersection.
Source: Western Kansas News
City extends funding agreements with WIBA, Greater Wichita Partnership
Wichita’s City Council voted Tuesday to renew agreements and provide funding to two organizations geared toward supporting businesses and growing the economy. The Council approved $400,000 annually for the next three years for the Greater Wichita Partnership, along with $100,000 for one year for the Wichita Independent Business Association, or WIBA.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Airport touts grant programs, new routes in contracting service consultant
Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport has contracted a consulting firm the airport’s leader says could help add new routes from the city and get Wichita in the game on a federal grant program. The Wichita City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved signing Ailevon Pacific Aviation Consulting to a three-year deal for consulting services, continuing a previous partnership between the airport and the firm.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Wichita changes zoning code to increase capacity of home daycares
In an effort to improve access to child care, Wichita’s City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to increase the capacity of home daycares from 10 to 12 children. More specifically, the vote was to approve an amendment to the Unified Zoning Code, which is shared by Wichita and Sedgwick County and includes regulations for home occupations and daycares. The effort is in response to a desperate need for child-care availability in the Wichita area that officials say has a significant impact on the local workforce.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Investors Worry Too-Hot Economy Will Put Fed on More Aggressive Rate Path
The U.S. economy doesn’t look anywhere close to a recession. Investors are starting to worry that may ultimately be bad news for markets…. In ordinary circumstances, that run of strong economic data should be good news for markets as well. Yet investors have been viewing almost everything the past year through the lens of how it might affect the Fed’s interest-rate policy. Their growing fear is that if the U.S. economy remains too hot, it will force the Fed to raise interest rates higher and hold them there for longer than they anticipate. That would raise the chances of a sharp downturn, which in turn, would likely lead to more pain for markets.
Source: Wall Street Journal
Bill banning plastic bag restrictions runs into Senate hurdle
A bill barring local governments from regulating plastic grocery bags and other material ran into a roadblock in the Senate on Thursday morning. The Senate Commerce Committee voted down the bill that had been backed by the business community, including the Kansas Chamber of Commerce, the state restaurant association and the National Federation of Independent Business. It was the second consecutive year that the ban ran into difficulty although it has had widespread support from lawmakers in the past.
Source: Sunflower State Journal
$350M project in Newton will be region’s largest private investment in 5 years
Newton’s City Commission on Tuesday approved a development agreement for the construction of a new manufacturing facility for GAF Materials, a New Jersey-based roofing manufacturer with 26 plants across the U.S. Local economic development leaders in the area have called it the largest private sector investment in the Wichita region in the last five years. Under the agreement, Newton will provide up to $350 million in industrial revenue bonds, including a sales tax exemption on construction materials and equipment, as well as a 100% property tax exemption for 10 years. In order to receive the incentives, GAF must invest at least $75 million in improvements on the site.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Governor Kelly Announces EMP Shield Plans to Build $1.9 Billion, 1,200-Job Computer Chip Manufacturing Facility in Coffey County
Governor Laura Kelly today announced that EMP Shield, an industry leader in protecting electronic devices from destructive magnetic pulses, plans to invest $1.9 billion in a computer chip manufacturing facility in Burlington. The facility will create more than 1,200 jobs averaging $66,000 annually. EMP Shield will build its facility on 300 acres in a secure campus located at Silicon Prairie Industrial Park. The company will be joined by six out-of-state suppliers, resulting in an additional 1,000 jobs created in Coffey County. … EMP Shield plans to have four production lines operating in approximately 235,000 square feet of facilities in the new industrial park that will produce thousands of chips per week. Its suppliers will manufacture necessary components and prepare the final products for delivery.
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce
Kansas governor: $1.9 billion, 1,200-job computer chip plant to be built in Coffey County
A company known for protecting electronic devices from destructive magnetic pulses Monday unveiled plans to invest $1.9 billion in a computer chip manufacturing facility in Burlington capable of employing an estimated 1,200 people when fully operational. Gov. Laura Kelly said EMP Shield would locate the secure chip-manufacturing facility on 300 acres in the Silicon Prairie Industrial Park. That plant would collaborate with six out-of-state suppliers capable of adding 1,000 jobs within Coffey County southeast of Topeka. “Right now, computer chips — the technology that powers everything from cars to smartphones to broadband — are mostly made in China. That’s a problem,” Kelly said.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Garden City launches Citizens Academy program for 2023
Garden City has announced the return of its popular Citizens Academy program, which will take place from March 23 to May 11. The free, eight-week course is open to all Garden City residents who want to learn more about services provided by the city and its daily operations. The program gives people a behind-the-scenes look at what happens within the City on a daily basis and helps them better understand how their community is run. The Citizens Academy program will be led by City staff and includes tours of facilities, as well as group activities. Participants will have the opportunity to engage with City leaders and staff, ask questions, and learn about the various services and programs provided by the City.
Source: KSN-TV
‘Fund the Field’: McPherson schools announce matching fundraiser opportunity
On Friday, the McPherson Public Schools Capital Campaign committee announced that there will be a $100,000 matching funds opportunity for their “Fund the Field” capital campaign project. This campaign was put together to help fund a new outdoor facility at McPherson High School. This includes a regulation artificial turf soccer/football field and an eight-lane track.
Source: KSN-TV
The Parsons Police Department is rolling out a new program
A new community outreach program is in the works for a local police department. The “Parsons Police Department” is rolling out a new program called “R-U-O-K”. The computerized system is geared toward helping people with medical conditions, mental health, and well-being concerns, as well as those who are at high risk for falls. They can add information like address, medical history, and emergency contacts. The system then makes daily automated calls to check in on anyone enrolled in the program.
Source: KSNF/KODE
Shawnee County 911 calls could change
Shawnee County commissioners plan to vote on a program that could change how 911 calls are fielded. 911 calls have a wide range of resources needed, and in the past valuable resources have been sent to a caller’s location, when they were needed more somewhere else. The Nurse Navigation Program changes that. The program was created by the American Medical Response to give everyone calling 911 the proper care. If the call is determined a lower equity call, meaning a lower-tiered emergency, such as illness or non-life-threatening injuries, then they will be put in touch with a nurse navigator to walk them through the best steps for their care.
Source: KSNT 27 News