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Kansas Municipal News

Newton named ‘Tree City of the World’

After being named a Tree City USA city for 44 consecutive years, one might think being honored by the Arbor Day Foundation would be old hat for the city of Newton.
“We take great pride in this,” said Hondo Collins, superintendent of the Newton Parks Department. “We want to show a commitment to the urban forest. Kansas is not known for its trees, but everyone benefits from trees.
“The past couple of years we have been planting more trees because we have come out of a drought. I would encourage others to plant more as well. We lost a lot of trees in the drought.”
(Read more: Community – The Leavenworth Times – Leavenworth, KS)

Wichita veterans organization hopes for support from city council

A group that helps homeless veterans is organizing support for a big project.

“I don’t think a lot of people are aware of what we have to offer,” Jennifer Garrison, Founder and CEO of Passageways tells us.

For almost six years, Passageways has provided shelter and resources for homeless veterans in Wichita.

But it’s outgrowing its space.

Now, Garrison and others are spearheading a new project.

Homefront Veteran Neighborhood is being developed in South Wichita, at 235 and Meridian.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Wichita city council approves changes for stadium improvement district

Wichita city council members have voted unanimously to change the boundaries for the improvement district that includes the new baseball stadium under construction.

A Community Improvement District was created for the west bank of the Arkansas River, and the district will have a two percent sales tax for businesses within the district. The revenue would be used to help with the stadium project, as well as parking, utilities and other improvements to the area. The boundaries of the CID were expanded to include a couple of areas north of the stadium where a group called Riverfront Partners LLC will be working to develop retail and commercial businesses. The city council voted in early January to approve a development agreement with the group.
(Read more: KFDI 101.3)

Kansas House weighs restrictions on school districts’ handling of at-risk aid

A conservative think tank sought support for a Kansas House bill Monday requiring public school districts to prove state aid earmarked for at-risk students was spent on authorized academic programs and to compel each district to report on student academic progress in relation to each initiative.

Former House Speaker Mike O’Neal, speaking on behalf of Kansas Policy Institute, said new state spending for K-12 students thought to be in jeopardy of failure was being diverted by school districts to general operating budgets rather than targeted at designated students. He told the House Education Committee that House Bill 2540 would better hold local school districts accountable.

“Legislation intended to target at-risk funding toward the goal of lifting up at-risk students has failed largely due to those funds being diluted at the district level,” O’Neal said. “The status quo is not acceptable.”

Business corridor to get $284K of Hays city sales tax

The city of Hays will turn over more than $284,000 in excess sales tax to Ellis County for the county’s $10.8 million Northwest Business Corridor project.

Ellis County is facing a shortage of $2.12 million to pay for the project, which will improve three heavily traveled county roads in a busy industrial area northwest of town.

The county has a $6.5 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration to pay for most of the project. The corridor project is a 55 mph bypass around Hays for north-south US-183 highway, considered key to a planned $40 million private travel plaza development for trucks and super loads.

(Read more: News – The Hays Daily News)

County commissioner’s trip leads to push for travel policy

After county commissioner, Lacey Cruse took a trip to Ghana partially paid for with taxpayer funds, some commissioners including Cruse, are looking at the idea to create a travel policy.

Right now, there is no policy in Sedgwick County for trips taken by county commissioners. A commissioner does not have to disclose details about his or her trip to other commissioners or even get their approval.

According to Cruse, all the commissioners, as well as some city council members and Wichita’s mayor were invited to Africa on the trip.

The invitation came from Queen Mother Nana Aplam II who visited Wichita last summer and was honored by the county commission and other local leaders.

“The whole point of this is to share with our community what partners could partner in Ghana,” said Cruse. “The opportunities are there. People just have to take the time to listen.”

Cruse spent a week visiting with aviation and education leaders, touring parts of the area, and much more.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Treasury yields tilt lower as coronavirus stays in focus

The lack of movement in both stocks and bonds comes as investors look to gain visibility on how the coronavirus could upend manufacturing in China, and spill over into the broader global economy. Though workers across the nation are supposed to start returning back to factories from Monday after the Lunar New Year holiday were extended, efforts to stanch the spread of the pathogen has led some businesses to stay shut.
(Read more: MarketWatch.com)

Municipal Bond Trends for February 10, 2020

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Advisors.

Lawrence leaders suggest new ideas for handling sidewalk repairs

City leaders have a couple of new ideas when it comes to the contentious topic of sidewalk repair, including the creation of a sidewalk insurance program and a gradual city takeover of maintenance responsibilities.
The city adopted a policy in 2018 to administer its sidewalk repair ordinance, which had been on the books for decades but had not been strongly enforced. The ordinance requires all property owners — businesses, landlords and homeowners — to pay to repair the sidewalks running along their properties. Under the policy, certain homeowners qualify for financial assistance from the city. Many homeowners spoke out against the approach when the city began fully enforcing the ordinance last year.
Commissioner Courtney Shipley, who took her seat on the commission in December, recently suggested the city consider an optional sidewalk insurance program, and Mayor Jennifer Ananda wants to discuss the city taking over financial responsibility for sidewalk repairs as inspections and repairs are completed. The commission will discuss both suggestions at an upcoming meeting.
Read more: LJWorld.com.

Bill would allow public schools in Kansas to pay for college tuition

Terrell Davis pictures a future where students currently at risk of falling through cracks instead walk across a graduation stage with both a high school diploma and 60 hours of college credit.

Davis, executive director of public affairs for Wichita Public Schools, said the launch this year of the district’s Early College Academy will change the trajectory of 50 students.

These students may come from low-income families, and current state law blocks public schools from paying for higher education classes. Davis said the district is raising funds to help offset tuition costs, but he encouraged members of a Senate panel on Monday to support legislation that would allow schools to use general fund dollars on programs like the one in Wichita.

Flu taking toll in central Kansas

When flu-like symptoms hit Harold Windholz, 86, of Pratt, last week he knew it wasn’t going to be a good experience.

“It started in my chest; it just got real tight. I could hardly breathe,” Windholz said. “It knocked me out for two days.”

Windholz said he stayed home, didn’t go anywhere, propped himself up while sleeping and just tried to stay warm while drinking plenty of fluids. After two days he was no longer running a fever, and though he felt weak, he ventured out to get himself a newspaper.

Pratt recognizes Meyer and remembers Gourley

Past Mayor Doug Meyer was honored for his service and city leaders remembered the service of city employee Lane Gourley at their February 3, 2020 meeting in Pratt.

City manager Bruce Pinkall presented Meyer, who stepped down from mayor to a seat on the commission in January, with a plaque honoring his two years of exemplary service to the city of Pratt. Meyer served as mayor from January 2018 to January 2020.

New Mayor Gary Schmidt opened the regular portion of the city meeting expressing sympathy to the family of City Electrical Distribution Superintendent Lane Gourley for their loss. Gourley died unexpectedly at the end of January 2020 from a brief illness.

(Read more: Pratt, KS – Pratt Tribune)

PSU creates new $1,000 scholarship for grads of Crawford County high schools

The Pittsburg State University Office of Admission announced today the creation of the Gorilla Promise Award for May 2020 graduates of all Crawford County high schools to defray the cost of their first year of higher education.

The award will be in the amount of $1,000, or $500 per semester, a release from PSU said.

In order to qualify, students must be admitted to PSU, graduate from a Crawford County Kansas high school, and be a full-time degree seeking student. Applications for scholarships may be completed at pittstate.edu/admission.

(Read more: Community – Morning Sun)

Wichita considers banning or taxing plastic bags

The city of Wichita is considering banning plastic bags or implementing a city-wide tax to curb their use.

The Wichita Eagle reports that the City Council voted for a new task force to consider reducing or eliminating single-use plastic bags. Either option would make Wichita the first city in Kansas to pass a plastic bag ordinance. Other cities in the U.S. have banned plastic bags or imposed taxes on them.

The task force is scheduled to meet this month to discuss what such a move could end up costing businesses and the city to implement.

The post Wichita considers banning or taxing plastic bags appeared first on News Radio KMAN.

(Read more: 1350 KMAN)

‘We don’t exist’: In push for Dodge City complete count, Census fears threaten resources

The Hispanic culture in Dodge City fosters a fear of the forthcoming census count and a desire to remain invisible, said Jessica Salas, a graduate of the public high school and community college in Dodge City.

“We just got used to being invisible whether we’re legal or not,” she said. “If we’re not being counted, it’s like we don’t exist.”

Deeply held reservations present a challenge to community leaders who are determined to become more culturally competent in the pursuit of a complete census count. Some members of difficult-to-reach demographics, when informed of the benefits of unlocking federal resources, have committed themselves to the same goal.

(Read more: Dodge City Daily Globe)

Derby’s park rental picture changes

Revenue from the city’s park rental facilities was down slightly in 2019, due mostly to the way in which a major venue rental was handled.
The city collected a bit more than $191,000 in rental fees in 2019 from sites in Madison Avenue Central Park and Warren Riverview Park. It was $206,000 in 2018.
The figures are part of the Derby Public Library’s 2019 annual report. The library and its staff have charge of the city’s park rental spaces.
(Read more: Derby News | derbyinformer.com)

Gardner’s documentary coming this Spring

A $27,000 documentary approved by the Gardner City Council last year has not yet aired, but should broadcast this spring. It will feature Laurence Fishburne as narrator.
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The programming, to run under the banner of “great places to live, work and raise a family,” will include a 3-5 minute short documentary. The documentary will bridge the gap between 30-60 minute shows on public television. The videos will also include a 5-6 minute “behind the scenes” documentary that will be emailed to viewers requesting information about great places to live, work and raise a family.
(Read more: Gardner News)

Pit Bull supporters want Junction City to lift ban

Pit bull supporters are calling for the military town of Junction City to lift its ban of the breed.
The Hays Post reports that Kim Bradney of Legalize Bully JC says the ban forces some people in the community near Fort Riley to choose to live in surrounding communities with friendlier pit bull policies. She said the more than 20-year-old ban has left animal shelters flooded with dogs that aren’t adoptable. She said several other cities in the state already have removed their bans.
Commissioner Ronna Larson asked city staff last week to check into different ordinance options.
(Read more: KAKE – News)

Johnson County looks to cut bus routes, grow microtransit. But not all officials agree

Johnson County leaders are looking to reduce bus routes with low ridership and expand other parts of the public transportation system — including the Uber-like microtransit system, which officials say has been growing in popularity each month.

But some worry the plan will cause more harm than good, eliminating a transportation option for some elderly and disabled residents, as well as low-wage workers. They have concerns that the county isn’t doing enough to build a more robust, effective transportation system to better serve the burgeoning Kansas City suburbs.

“I urge you to not cut these routes until you have a plan in mind to assist all of the individuals whose bus routes you would be removing,” Sheila Styron, a visually impaired Kansas City resident, told the board of commissioners at their Jan. 30 meeting. “These people cannot afford Ubers. They cannot afford taxis. If you don’t have something in place to serve them, I urge you to please keep the bus routes until you do.”

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

House panel debates, advances KPERS plan

Members of a House panel wrestled Monday with how best to dispose of Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan to refinance the pension system for state workers.
They settled on advancing the proposal without recommendation to the House floor, where the Republican-dominated chamber can amplify rejection of a cornerstone in the Democratic governor’s budget.
Kelly’s plan for reamortizing the state’s decades old debt to the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System would extend the payment plan from 15 to 25 years, lowering annual payments before they balloon in the coming years. Opponents of the plan gawk at the $4.4 billion in interest that would be added to the debt.

Small town charm at Edgerton Library

Edgerton is unique among Johnson County Library’s 14 branches in that the Library system doesn’t own the building. Instead, the building is leased from the city. Edgerton had lacked library service since the early 1980s. In 1999, the city acquired the vacant bank building at 319 E. Nelson St., and Johnson County Library agreed to a partnership. Many Edgerton citizens turned out to help gut the building and turn it into a wonderful Library space, which opened July 29, 2000. It was a community labor of love.
John Keogh, Library branch manager for Gardner, Spring Hill and Edgerton, spends most of his time at Gardner but always enjoys his visits to the Edgerton branch. “The thing I love about Edgerton is this is a community that still feels like a small town. And they take a lot of pride in that,” he says. “I really love this building. I love the space. I love the architecture. It’s a calming space to be.”
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)

Overland Park looking at 18-month pilot test of e-bikes on recreational trails

Bicycles that get an extra boost from electric motors may be allowed on Overland Park recreational trails soon in an experiment to see how they coexist with other trail users.

The city’s Community Development Committee is moving forward with a plan to run an 18-month pilot project that would allow certain types of motorized bikes on trails. If there are no significant problems, they could be allowed permanently.

E bikes, as they are known, are a fast-growing segment of the bicycle market as the population ages. Proponents say they allow more people with mobility issues like bad knees or low physical fitness get out and enjoy the outdoors and a healthier lifestyle.

(Read more: Prairie Village Post)

City, county officials object to Kansas Senate’s property tax ‘transparency’ bill

Garden City Mayor Troy Unruh considers a Kansas Senate bill touted as a boon for property tax transparency to be a hamstring on the capacity of local public agencies to create jobs.

The bill targeting tax revenue increases resulting from higher property valuations led Harvey County Commissioner Randy Hague, of Newton, to declare it an erosion of municipal government autonomy. Andover City Council President Troy Tabor said the process outlined in the bill was overly burdensome and complex enough it could result in the opposite of transparency. The bill won’t do anything to limit the state’s collection of property taxes, said Garnett city manager Christopher Weiner.

McPherson Fire Chief T.J. Wyssmann said the “truth in taxation” legislation restricted the city’s ability to fulfill obligations to public safety because it wouldn’t exempt fire, medical and police agencies. Compliance will force acquisition of computer

Not connected and no Netflix: ‘It’s frankly embarrassing’ in these Kansas towns

The internet service was so bad at Citizens State Bank in Cottonwood Falls that its computers could hardly handle a routine update from Microsoft.

So not too long ago, bank vice president Matt Lindamood loaded up the PCs and drove them over to Emporia, 30 minutes away. There, he connected the desktop computers to a fiber internet connection.

“What we couldn’t get done here happened in a matter of minutes there,” he said.

“There is no better time than now to issue long-term debt”

The municipal market is taking down new-issuance with ease while taxable bonds continue to be a growing portion of the calendar. With rates low and demand significantly outpacing supply, some see a market in uncharted territory.
“This is truly a golden age for our market,” said Dan Heckman, senior fixed-income strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. “There is no better time than now to issue long-term debt, both in terms of the current rates and the out-of world-demand — it’s a perfect storm for munis right now.”
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Heckman added that the market has been and will continue to be under-supplied, even though he senses there will be an uptick in issuance at these new lower rates and yields, but it still won’t be enough.

(Read more: The Bond Buyer)

Municipal Bond Trends for February 7, 2020

Armenian police trainers pick up some lessons at KLETC

An effort to reform the police force in the country of Armenia got a little help from officers and trainers more than 10,000 miles away.

Nine high-ranking trainers from the Republic of Armenia completed a two-week visit to the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center near Yoder on Friday.

“Recently our prime minister decided to create a division for police reform,” said Col. Tigran Yesayan, Deputy Head of the Police for Armenia, who led the delegation.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

Cheap meth driving down some property crimes in Wichita, police official says

Wichita’s burglary, automobile larceny and gun theft from vehicle rates were down last year.

The reason? Cheap meth.

That’s according one police official who said at a public meeting last month that the Wichita Police Department is attributing “a very significant drop” in those property crime categories to record-low methamphetamine prices.

(Read more: Local News |)

General Mills chooses Cheney Reservoir for restorative farming project

A major food corporation has selected Kansas wheat as the best in the nation for a three-year pilot project.

The restorative farming project will discover ways farmers can save water, increase soil health and decrease carbon footprints.

General Mills, with the help of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium, selected the 650,000-acre Cheney Reservoir region as the project’s location.

This region includes farms in five counties — Kiowa, Reno, Pratt, Kingman and Stafford. Water from the reservoir where the runoff from these farms goes is used by residents of Wichita. By way of application, 24 farmers were chosen for this pilot project.

Topeka officials to discuss creating housing market strategy

Topeka’s mayor and city council plan Tuesday to see a consultant’s presentation about creating a citywide housing market strategy.

The Shawnee County Commission will meet at 9 a.m. Monday in its chambers in Room B-11 of the Shawnee County Courthouse, 200 S.E. 7th, while Topeka’s City Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in its chambers at 214 S.E. 8th.

The mayor and council will hear a report from Development Strategies, the St. Louis-based urban planning and real estate consulting firm to which the city is paying $95,000 to carry out a study aimed at creating a citywide housing market strategy.

Wichita likely ‘most exposed’ metro in U.S. by Boeing 737 Max crisis, economists say

Wichita’s economy is likely the “most exposed” in the United States by the Boeing 737 Max grounding, economists say. And it could be years before the city fully recovers.

A report by Wells Fargo Securities Economics Group released last week concluded that Boeing’s strong order backlog and the tight labor market for skilled aviation workers is likely to limit layoffs across the county to a handful of areas.

Unfortunately for Wichita, it’s the area that will be hit the hardest.

“It’s bad news for Wichita,” said Mark Vitner, senior economist for Wells Fargo Securities and co-author of the report. “It’s a significant impact and hopefully it’s a temporary one.”

(Read more: Local News |)

St. John grocery store to be part of NBC documentary

A visit of the “NBC Today Show Weekend” with Willie Geist to St. John’s White’s Foodliner grocery complex in St. John didn’t go as planned last week. Footage filmed, however, will be part of a special television documentary in the near future.

Residents and travelers through St. John have taken advantage of the food products, prescription medications and fuel island options at the White’s Foodliner since the complex was built two years ago in St. John.

The successful establishment of a grocery store in a rural Kansas community caught the attention of “NBC Today Show Weekend,” and a crew from NBC planned to be in St. John on Thursday to film a segment that will be included in a larger NBC story on shrinking rural access to necessities like food, gas and medication. The entire segment will highlight the success of small grocery stores. It will likely last about 3 minutes.

Pool of rural high school grads smaller

Sitting amid wheat and milo fields in western Kansas, the challenge for Fort Hays State is recruiting rural high school graduates to enroll, according to FHSU president Tisa Mason.

“We are really working hard to get students here but it’s not easy to grow the on-campus population,” Mason said Tuesday morning at an informal gathering of Hays and Ellis County commissioners.

“It used to be several years ago it was said the population that is not going to college are students of color,” Mason said. “Well, now the biggest population not going to college are rural students.”

MSRB opposes withdrawing its submission calculator (which tracks continuing bond disclosure)

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board does not want to withdraw a proposal to more visibly track the timeliness of secondary market disclosures in the midst of opposition from analysts and issuers.

In a letter filed to the Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday afternoon, the MSRB said the SEC should not reject its “submission calculator” despite criticism from muni market participants. The tweak to EMMA would help efforts to improve transparency in the market, the MSRB said.

“The MSRB believes the proposed rule change is complementary to such efforts and so the proposed enhancements should not be withdrawn or disapproved at this time in anticipation of the outcomes of ongoing industry initiatives,” said Gail Marshall, MSRB chief compliance officer.

The MSRB proposed the “submission calculator” in November and would show the number of days between the posting of an annual financial disclosure and the end date of the financial period. The calculation would be triggered once the submission is made on EMMA. It would not require extra work from issuers.

(Read more: The Bond Buyer)

Finney County to add county park

Finney County Public Works director Roger Calkins is excited about the creation of Finney County’s newest county park — Wildwood Park.

Located two miles southwest of Garden City, just west of the fairgrounds, Wildwood Park will offer new recreation opportunities to area residents, Calkins said.

“We’re just excited to give the community an option,” he said. “It’s not necessarily a revenue generator, although it may create some revenue for the community, it’s more about quality of life, giving (people) an option.”

(Read more: News – The Hays Daily News)

Midwest Energy issues credit for overcharged Larned consumers

Midwest Energy customers in the city of Larned may be eligible for a refund credit due to a miscalculated rate last year.

Friday, the City of Larned released a statement providing information to residents about a miscalculated market rate, and their right to a refund.

Larned entered into a new contract with long-time provider, Midwest Energy, in March of 2019.

Midwest Energy is a customer-owned cooperative electric and natural gas company that serves 93,000 customers in 40 counties in western Kansas according to the company website.

According to the City of Larned, the new contract with Midwest Energy had a miscalculated market rate for customers, which both city staff and Midwest Energy noticed. Afterwards, both entities jointly began working on getting to the root of the issue.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Sedgwick County shares damage estimates from Jan. 18 County Courthouse fire

Remediation and repairs are progressing in the County Courthouse following the fire on January 18, according to a Friday news release from Sedgwick County.

On Wednesday, February 5, Commissioners approved an emergency Resolution which allowed staff to work with on-call contractors to do the work rather than using a competitive bid process.

Currently, staff are conservatively estimating $750,000 in damages for an insurance claim. Invoices from on-call contractors have not yet been submitted to give a final amount.

The fire on the fourth floor of the Sedgwick County Courthouse was due to an electrical short.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

New downtown boot project under way in Abilene

Abilene Forward is the communities’ organized group of people that work on beautifying and promoting all businesses to bring revenue downtown. As a recent addition to bring tourism to local businesses, the idea of colorful boots placed at different locations downtown was raised.

The very first one has finally arrived in Abilene.

“This first boot will be painted by Karen Cooper and then sent to Holm Automotive for a protective clear coat,” said Allison Blake, co-facilitator of Abilene Forward. “It will either be placed in front of the Visitor’s Center or the city building, the exact location has not yet been confirmed.
Read more: Reflector-Chronicle.

Blanca Soto: Did you know southwest Kansas is a hard-to-count community?

Under counting is particularly common in Latino communities, which presents a problem for towns in southwest Kansas like Garden City and Dodge City, where according to census data, Latinos account for more than 60% of the population. Under counted minorities, such as Middle Easterners, East Africans, Asians and of course Latinos, list language barriers, fear, confidentiality concerns and a distrust of our government as pressing concerns that keep them from participating in the census.
Many Latinos residing in southwest Kansas who are hesitant of participating in the census feel that sharing personal data with anyone from the government means worrying what might happen to their information or themselves.
Considering what is at stake for southwest Kansas, local organizations aggressively are working to ensure an accurate count.
(Read more: News – The Garden City Telegram)

Garden City community recalls Katherine Hart’s work, compassion

Garden City lost a piece of its heart Sunday when local humanitarian Katherine Hart died. Hart was 95.
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Jeremy Gigot, director of the Garden City Community College Endowment Association, said Hart was instrumental in making Garden City and Finney County a wonderful area to live.
“People need to realize what a tremendous advocate she was for Garden City,” he said. “Her life and career was about advancing the community … She was involved in so many things with the Finnup Foundation and in her personal life … she is directly responsible for the quality of live in our community.”
(Read more: News – The Garden City Telegram)

Discussion held on future of downtown Chanute

Community leaders met for round-table discussions Wednesday evening on the future of downtown .
About 30 to 35 people attended the 2 1/2-hour meeting in the Alliance Room of the Memorial Building that was organized by Main Street Chanute. Main Street Director Ruthann Boatwright said Thursday morning she was very happy with the turnout, which included a good cross-mix of building owners, business owners and interested residents.
“I couldn’t have been more pleased,” she said, noting that the turnout was what she had been hoping for.
(Read more: www.chanute.com)

Firefighters conduct mitigation burns to help prevent wildfires in Reno County

Firefighters brought out the torches north of Hutchinson this morning. They’re using fire to help prevent wildfires.
“We’re out here doing some mitigation work,” said Hutchinson Fire Division Chief of Operations, Doug Hanen.
The Hutchinson Fire Department, Kansas Forest Service, and Reno County Emergency Management worked together on small controlled burns along 82nd Avenue and Plum Street Thursday afternoon.
(Read more: KAKE – News)

Municipal Bond Trends for February 6, 2020

Prairie Village becomes latest to drop pit bull ban. KC area has some holdouts

Prairie Village has joined a growing list of cities across the Kansas City metro that have repealed bans on pit bulls.

This week, the City Council voted 9-2 to end the prohibition on the breed — a move the Council tried and failed to accomplish in 2016. Prairie Village follows the lead of nearby cities, including Shawnee, Roeland Park and Fairway. Kansas City, Kansas, and Liberty both removed their ordinances this past year.

Now, only a few cities in the area have maintained their bans, including Overland Park and Independence.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Johnson County says Chiefs Super Bowl parade shuttle service was ‘overwhelming success’

The shuttle bus system set up to get Johnson Countians to the Chiefs parade was an “overwhelming success,” with around 20,000 people moved Wednesday, said Josh Powers, business liaison for the county.

The system went off without a hitch, Powers told the county commission this morning, adding that there were no failures or incidents while it was in place at Oak Park Mall parking lot.

The longest wait to get on a bus was 40 minutes at the peak busiest time, Powers said, but the average was closer to 20 minutes. The 70 buses in operation made around 300 round trips.