Municipal News & Jobs

Kansas Municipal News

Explore Lenexa City Center’s civic campus

Over the last few years, Lenexa City Center has become a Johnson County destination.
Located near 87th Street Parkway and Renner Boulevard, west of Interstate 435, this vibrant neighborhood is the result of the vision and hard work of dedicated residents more than 20 years ago to create a dynamic space with public, retail, business, and residential opportunities for citizens and visitors.

The Lenexa civic campus is the heart of Lenexa City Center. It’s where you can find Lenexa’s City Hall, Public Market, Rec Center and Farmers Market, as well as a Park University campus and Lenexa City Center Library.

(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

Johnson County commission opens public comment period on bus route reductions despite 2 members’ concerns

People who ride the bus and their allies gave the Johnson County Commission an hour’s worth of reasons they should think twice before cutting routes and reducing service as planned in a couple of months.

Not only would the route cuts hurt people with disabilities and those whose budgets don’t include cars, but they would cost the county in expanded road and infrastructure repair as the county grows, according to several people who testified at the board’s Thursday meeting.

Commissioners are considering elimination of two routes and reduction of others, while expanding a new mictrotransit van service. But although some commissioners expressed support for transit, the majority stood by their earlier decision to open a public comment period on the route-cutting plan. The comment period will involve surveys of riders and online and is set to end in mid-March. No action on the routes can be taken until after the comment period.

Winfield to curb curbside recycling

Recycling options provided by the City of Winfield will change soon in response to a changing market for recyclables, city manager Taggart Wall said Friday.

According to Wall, beginning this spring only corrugated cardboard will be accepted for curbside pickup in Winfield.

The recycling center at Strother Field will open to the public on a limited basis for people who want to recycle clean, sorted glass, aluminum and other materials. Operating hours will be announced later.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Winfield chosen as site of proposed $80 million power plant

A new power plant addition is proposed to be constructed at the site of the current E. 12th St. Power Plant in Winfield.

When the City Commission met in its work session on Thursday, a new generation resource to benefit the City of Winfield and all member cities of the Kansas Power Pool was a centerpiece discussion.

The plant, an approximately $80 million investment, is estimated to have generation capability of 55 megawatts. The current E. 12th Plant has generation capability of 27 megawatts and will remain in active use. The timing for installation is soon after December 2022.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Commissioners hear about security issues at Winfield courthouse

The need to improve courthouse security was one of the subjects discussed in the Cowley County Commissions first work session Thursday morning. The session, at which no action was taken, lasted almost three hours and covered four topics. It provided commissioners Wayne Wilt, Alan Groom and Bob Voegele and county administrator Lucas Goff an opportunity to discuss several issues in depth.

Goff said because the north and south annexes are much newer than the main courthouse, they have safety features missing from the older building.

He said every time he does a walk-through with the county’s insurance companies, they suggest the county would do better with their insurance rates if they took care of some of their security problems.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Ark City could lose millions if all residents aren’t counted in census

Arkansas City lost out on an estimated $30 million in the past decade because not all of its population was counted in the last census, according to a presentation Thursday.

That’s one reason the Ark City Complete Count Committee wants to make sure that local citizens understand the importance of the upcoming Census 2020.

Committee Chair Anita Judd-Jenkins, a former legislator, gave a presentation Thursday at the Avery Family Learning Center.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Couch will be next superintendent at USD 364 Marysville

Michael Couch, 55, was named new superintendent of Marysville’s public schools Friday.

Couch has 33 years of experience in education with nine of those as a superintendent. He was superintendent in Haviland for two years and has spent the past seven years as superintendent at Belleville-Republic County. His experience included overseeing a $17.2 million school improvement project.

Couch was the fourth finalist interviewed for the position here. His term will start July 1. Interim superintendent Denise Guy will finish the school year. She was hired last school year to replace Bill Mullins, who stepped down to concentrate more on family while he continues to battle cancer.

(Read more: The Marysville Advocate)

Kansas college students can learn to fix tractors for free

Students in Kansas can learn how to fix tractors free of charge at two community colleges through a tech program partnership with the manufacturing giant John Deere.

The Hutchinson News reports that students can enroll in the free-tuition agricultural tech program at Garden City and Fort Scott community colleges as long as they find a John Deere dealership to sponsor them. Ryan Unruh, corporate service manager at BTI, says the starting salary for a technician job is $50,000 to $60,000 annually, with higher rates for the experience.

Kent Aikin, a John Deere instructor at FSCC, says Kansas is in high demand for the field.

Wichita firefighters rescue person trapped in trash truck

Wichita firefighters rescued a man from a garbage truck early Friday morning. People have been injured in Wichita dumpsters before, including in February 2013. KAKE News tries to answer the question: Why would someone choose to sleep inside a dumpster instead of in a shelter?

“Where the dumpsters are, there, the one that faces our house, I’ve seen them go in there before,” said Wichita resident Manuel Acosta. “Sometimes two at a time.”

Acosta lives near Central and West street, and he says people sleeping inside dumpsters there is nothing new. But, around 4:30 Friday morning, a man sleeping inside one of those dumpsters got a rough awakening. A Waste Management truck picked up the dumpster, pouring the man into the back of the truck. The 911 audio describes the event:

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Garden City documentary is people’s choice

Filmmakers Steve Lerner and Reuben Aaronson didn’t create “Strangers In Town,” a documentary about Garden City, for film festivals.

Instead, they created it to get the message out about a small Kansas town that has accepted those that have traveled from around the world to live there.

While the film wasn’t made for a festival, that hasn’t stopped it from picking up two people’s choice awards.

The most recent award was handed out Jan. 20 at the Borrego Springs Film Festival. Additionally, the film received an audience favorite award in 2019 at the Film Festival at Brown’s Point.

“We made the film really to get this message out, and we screened it all over the country, but both of these film festivals that gave us awards. They were the award given by the vote of the viewers at the festival and that means a lot to me because that means the message of the film is resonating with people,” said Lerner, the film’s director of photography. “These weren’t awards made by film critics.”

(Read more: Leavenworth Times)

As PV considers repeal on pit bull ban, a look at Shawnee Mission cities’ current dangerous dog ordinances

Next week, the Prairie Village city council is expected to decide whether to repeal its pit bull ban. Prairie Village is one of a shrinking number of Shawnee Mission area cities that have such “breed specific language” on their books.
As Prairie Village prepares to consider changes to the “breed specific language” currently on its books, here’s a look at what other Johnson County cities’ laws have to say about dangerous animals and specific breeds of dogs…
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

Shawnee Mission school board adopts 3-year unilateral teachers contract

On a 6-1 vote following four hours of closed-door deliberations, the Shawnee Mission Board of Education approved a three-year unilateral contract for teachers, a move strongly opposed by their union …
Teachers and their supporters packed the board room at the Center of Academic Achievement ahead of the specially called meeting, which followed the district walking away from negotiations at the final possible session in the state-mandated process for teacher contracts on Tuesday.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

KDOT awards Parsons Airport $225K

The Tri-City Airport will get another $225,000 worth of improvements following the approval of a grant.
The Kansas Airport Improvement Program announced the grant for the airport owned by the city of Parsons on Wednesday. The Parsons project is one of 23 selected by the program for funding for the purpose of planning, constructing or rehabilitating public use general aviation airports, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation.
(Read more: Parsons Sun)

Municipal Bond Trends for January 30, 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.

Record day for municipal bond yields

It was a record day in the market in a couple of different ways, as yields descended further to new record lows on both the10- and 30-year and the market saw the lowest yield ever for a century bond.
…
On the MMD benchmark scale, the yield on both the 10- and 30-year were three basis points lower to l.15% and 1.80%, respectively. With this move, both maturities set a new record low. The 1O-year muni read hit an all-time low of 1.18% on Monday, beating the previous MMD record low of 1.21 % set on Aug. 28, 2019. The 30-year on Monday tied its previous low of l.83% also set on Aug. 28 last year.

(Read more: Bond Buyer)

Highway 54 reopens in Pratt and Kiowa counties after gas leak

The Kansas Department of Transportation says Highway 54 is open to traffic again between Pratt and Greensburg.

The highway had been closed since January 26th, when a butane gas leak was reported in a pipeline east of Cullison. Traffic was directed away from the area as a precaution.

The highway was reopened Thursday afternoon, and the pipeline company is now working on cleanup operations at the site of the leak.

(Read more: KFDI 101.3)

KCC opens investigation dockets in Reno, Rooks county earthquakes

Following an update on seismicity investigations in two areas of the state, the Commission voted unanimously this morning to open general investigation dockets for both Reno County and Rooks County. The dockets will provide a publicly available place to share all information gathered by KCC staff. The dockets also provide a vehicle for the Commission to issue orders if appropriate.
(Read more: News – The Hays Daily News)

Hillsboro City Administrator Larry Paine announces retirement

Larry Paine, Hillsboro City Administrator had big news to share at the city council meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

“I wanted to announce my plans to retire at the end of June 2020,” said Paine during his Administrator’s report.

“I would like to express my appreciation to Delores Dalke and the city council who offered the position to me 12 years ago. I received great support with the work they wanted me to attend to,” said Paine.

He also thanked Mayor Lou Thurston and the current council for all of their support, particularly with his medical needs early in their term when he battled cancer.

“Before the election, I promised Mayor Lou two years. With this schedule, I will live up to my commitment. The staff I inherited have been wonderful to work with. We needed to overcome the fear of acting independently. They now act as department heads should. They have received the support to bring their departments to the level they should be. The community has been wonderful to (wife) Susan and me. As an outsider, we have been welcomed and included. Many have expressed support for the work we have started and accomplished. I have to conclude this list with the support I received from Susan my whole career.”

(Read more: Hillsboro Free Press)

Unable to reach a contract agreement, Shawnee Mission teachers warn of ‘mass exodus’

Union representatives in the Shawnee Mission school district warned there could be a “mass exodus” of teachers now that the two sides have failed to agree on a new contract for this school year — despite negotiating since last spring.

“Special education (teachers) could walk out today. There are openings in districts 10 miles from here in special ed. Young teachers can go to other districts and make more money,” said Linda Sieck, president of the National Education Association-Shawnee Mission. “Secondary teachers might be willing to take a pay decrease to know that their district is interested in working with teachers.”

School district administration and union officials met for five hours on Tuesday to take one last stab at reaching a contract agreement. The unsuccessful final session followed months of negotiations and a state-mandated fact-finding process.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Spirit AeroSystems, Boeing announce new 737 Max production agreement

Spirit AeroSystems Inc. announced Thursday that it has reached a new 737 Max production rate agreement with The Boeing Co.

The company says Spirit (NYSE:SPR) will restart production slowly, ramping up deliveries throughout the year to reach 216 for 2020. The company did not give a specific restart date.

The company says in a release that it does not expect to reach the production rate of 52 a year until at least 2022.

There is a caveat: the rate agreement is based on expectations for Boeing’s (NYSE:BA) production rate and the return to service for the aircraft. And they warn that, depending on conditions, the agreement could change.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

STAR bonds proposal would give incentives to hospitals, headquarters projects

If Kansas’ STAR bond program is extended, hospitals and headquarters projects could start qualifying for the incentives.STAR, which stands for Sales Tax Revenue bonds, is an economic development tool that’s used to finance the development of major commercial, entertainment and tourism areas. It’s currently reserved for projects considered to be a statewide and regional destination. They also must feature a high-quality innovative entertainment and tourism attraction with unique features to bolster tourism and economic impact, according to the Kansas Department of Commerce.

Kansas City, MO Council passes ‘game-changer’ legislation in border war truce

Another piece of legislation designed to end Kansas and Missouri’s longstanding economic development “border war” sailed through the Kansas City Council on Thursday.

The ordinance, which Mayor Quinton Lucas first introduced in September, limits Kansas City’s power to entice companies across the border with generous tax abatements.

For years, Kansas and Missouri spent considerable taxpayer resources to lure companies — and coveted jobs — from each other. Companies pocketed, at times, hefty state incentives to move their operations a few miles across the state line. The two states agreed to halt the widely criticized practice last year.

(Read more: KC Star Local News)

Baxter Springs City Court cancels temporarily due to flu epidemic

In a Facebook post by the Baxter Springs Police Department Thursday, it was announced that the Baxter Springs City Court would be cancelled Friday, January 31st due to the flu epidemic.

In order to minimize the spread of the flu that has been affecting the Four State area, the Court issued a statement that they would close Friday and notify those with court dates of their new scheduled time.

They ask that you notify the Judicial Assistant next week if your address is not current at, 620-856-3825.

Johnson County chair Ed Eilert named Outstanding Kansas Citian of the Year

Ed Eilert, chair of the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners, has been named one of two recipients of the Outstanding Kansas Citian of the Year award.

The other award recipient is former Gen. Richard Myers, a retired general in the United States Air Force who served as the 15th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Myers, who now serves as president of Kansas State University in Manhattan, was born and raised in the Shawnee Mission area and is a 1960 graduate of Shawnee Mission North.

Established in 1973 by historical society The Native Sons and Daughters of Greater Kansas City, the award is designed to recognize individuals who have contributed to the well being and/or historic preservation of the greater Kansas City metro area, through their professional work, civic engagement or volunteerism, or who have simply become part of Kansas City’s history.

Lawsuit: Kansas Highway Patrol targets out-of-state drivers

Ninety-three percent of the Kansas Highway Patrol’s traffic stops in 2017 involved cars with out-of-state plates, according to a lawsuit challenging the practice as an infringement on motorists’ constitutional rights.

In an amended lawsuit filed Thursday on behalf of three plaintiffs, including two Oklahoma brothers who initially filed the complaint, the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas and a Kansas City, Missouri, law firm contend that the traffic stop statistics show that the Kansas Highway Patrol specifically targets out-of-state drivers, including many on the main highway connecting Kansas with neighboring Colorado, because that state’s legalized marijuana.

The case began as a hand-scrawled complaint filed last December by the two irate brothers, but it got significant legal backing when the ACLU and the law firm, Spencer Fane LLP, joined their cause.
(Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)

City of Manhattan looking to demolish flood damaged strip mall

The city of Manhattan is looking to demolish a building that was damaged by flooding. The strip mall located at 3003 Anderson Avenue had water close to the ceiling during the Labor Day flood in 2018.

The Manhattan City Commission decided in September 2019 that the building was unsafe and gave the owners until December 2019 to clean it up. Ryan Courtright, Assistant Chief of Risk Reduction with Manhattan Fire Department, said there was damage from the flood and things left over from the previous tenants.

“We actually had a couple of restaurants that were in the building that food product ended up basically being dispersed through out the building and creating an unsanitary condition,” Courtright said.

Courtright said the city will take bids for the demolition starting in mid February, and the city commission will most likely accept a bid at the beginning of March. The company will then have 30 days to start demolition and seven days to finish the demolition.

(Read more: KSNT News)

Wind farm leases filed at county

As a Labette County committee studying wind energy continues its work, the first four wind farm lease and easement agreements have been filed.

Four of five committee members — Sandy Krider, Kevin King, Mel Hass and Rod Landrum — and facilitator Charlie Morse met Tuesday evening in the Labette County Public Works building in Altamont. Committee member Lori Whitworth wasn’t able to attend. Eleven members of the public attended and discussed various issues with the committee.

The Labette County Commission formed the committee to look into wind farm regulations after a German utility expressed interest in developing a wind farm in Labette County.

(Read more: Parsons Sun)

Sumner County Conservation District celebrating 77 years

The 77th Bankers Awards Dinner and Annual Meeting of the Sumner County Conservation District will be held Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. at the Raymond Frye Complex, 320 N. Jefferson in Wellington.

The theme for this year’s event is “Where Would We BEE Without Pollinators.” Conservation Awards will be presented to Jay Zimmerman of South Haven and Kyle and Lane Bruce of Argonia.

Other awards to be presented will include the Coloring and Poster Contest and the Teacher Appreciation Awards.

Following the meal and awards presentations, the Board of Supervisors for the Sumner County Conservation District will conduct the Annual Business Meeting. Business to be conducted will include the annual report of the District’s 2019 activities, the financial report and the election of two Board Supervisors. The seats currently held by Douglas Hisken of the Belle Plaine area and Leon Becker of the Conway Springs area are the available seats to be filled.

(Read more: Sumner NewsCow)

Johnson County voters approve $186M for school construction and safety

Johnson County voters on Tuesday approved a $186 million bond issue for Blue Valley schools that will help fund security improvements, classroom additions and a new elementary school.

More than 26,200, or 30%, of voters in the district cast mail-in ballots in the bond referendum, with 73.8% in favor of the new spending, according to unofficial results from the Johnson County Election Office.

“It was another outstanding show of support from our community for this bond election. We are blessed to live in a community that strongly supports public education and the Blue Valley school district,” said Mike Slagle, deputy superintendent.

(Read more: KC Star Local News)

Municipal Bond Trends for January 29, 2020

Pittsburg Lank Bank helping make disused properties productive again

Nine new, moderate-income homes are set to be completed in Pittsburg this year.

Land Bank parcels are filling a gap in the current offerings in the market.

Brian Jones, Land Bank Board of Trustees, said, “They’ll be two bedroom, two bath, nice new houses for somebody to own in Pittsburg”

The city of Pittsburg Land Bank Program saw a lot of success in 2019 and is hoping to continue that streak in 2020

Group organized to build Hispanic community’s trust in Wichita Police Dept.

The Wichita Police Department guides an organized effort aimed at building trust with the city’s Hispanic community.

The Asociación de Graduados de Los Talleres Comunitarios (AGTC), also known as the Hispanice — Latino Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association is “the first ever alumni association for Spanish speaking community members of Wichita,” the WPD says.

Created under the direction of Wichita Police Officer Paul Cruz — a public information officer for the department — the volunteer-driven organization consists of citizens who graduated from the Spanish Citizens Police Academy.
(Read more: KWCH News)

Citizens Bank of Kansas funds Cosmosphere Camp scholarships

As Cosmosphere marks its 35th year of summer space camps, Citizens Bank of Kansas will again provide scholarships to eight students to experience hands-on STEAM learning at a camp this summer.

STEAM learning is an approach that uses Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue, and critical thinking.

Scholarship winners will attend the Cosmosphere’s Mars Academy Camp, a four-day/three-night overnight camp where students will focus on building a habitat for another world, understand and overcome the challenges of gathering resources necessary for life, and practice skills like operating robotics and drones. The camp activities culminate in a team mission to orbit Earth.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

Leavenworth partners with power company to offer charging stations

After the reconstruction of a downtown parking lot was completed this past fall, a new feature was added to the parking lot – a charging station for electric vehicles.

The new charging station was installed in a parking lot across the street from Leavenworth City Hall at Fifth and Seneca streets.

The charging station, which is owned by the power company Evergy, was installed in a public parking lot owned by the city.

Evergy previously was known as Westar Energy.

“With more people currently driving electric cars, and advances in technology leading to more prospective buyers, we are excited about the partnership with Evergy to provide this service to residents and visitors of Leavenworth,” Assistant City Manager Taylour Tedder said in an email. “While vehicles are charging people can take advantage of the nearby attractions, restaurants and shopping in the downtown.”

(Read more: Leavenworth Times)

Kansans Can’t Bet The House On Super Bowl LIV, But LV Is A Possibility

Kansans thinking about wagering a few bucks on the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl appearance this weekend would have to go to one of 14 states to do it legally.

But by later this year, sports betting could be legal in Kansas. This year’s bill is a compromise — allowing people over 21 to gamble on sports through the companies that run the state-owned casinos and via online apps. And it has some critical support.

“I feel confident that this year there will be a bill done, a solution passed,” said Republican Sen. Bud Estes, chairman of the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee.

Lawmakers are taking another crack at the issue after sports gambling legislation struck out at the end of the 2019 session, held up by disagreements over who’d run the betting and manage mobile-gaming apps.

(Read more: Here)

Looks like tee time finally is scheduled for Wichita’s new golf entertainment concept

After a couple of false starts over the past few years, it looks like the new multimillion dollar golf entertainment complex just north of Greenwich Place finally is going to tee off. It just won’t be a DRIV Golf Lounge & Brewhouse or a Swings complex as once planned.

Springfield, Mo., businessman Tim O’Reilly is bringing a BigShots Golf franchise to the southeast corner of 29th North and Greenwich, which is across from the Stryker Sports Complex, along with a hotel.

“We think Wichita’s a great place to develop a concept like this,” O’Reilly says.

Derby Historical Society receives $20,500 in grant funds

The Derby Community Foundation recently awarded a total of $20,500 in grants to the Derby Historical Society.

A Community Enrichment Grant was awarded in the amount of $2,500 and will help fund renovations to the restrooms at the Derby Historical Museum. The Enrichment Grant program is a competitive grant process which annually awards up to $10,000 in grants to local non-profits and is funded by the proceeds of Uncorked, the DCF’s annual gala event.

An anonymous Field of Interest Fund of the Derby Community Foundation awarded $18,000 to the Derby Historical Society. $2,500 will be used for museum restroom renovations. That amount is matching the Community Enrichment Grant.

(Read more: Derby News | derbyinformer.com)

Wichita plans to demolish 20 properties west of stadium for parking

The city of Wichita has put out a formal bid for the demolition of 20 properties on a three-acre chunk of land just west of the under-construction baseball stadium…

The city purchased the land for $3 million earlier this month with plans to build a surface parking lot. The sale was laid out in a development agreement approved by City Council Jan. 7 with Riverfront Partners LLC, the development team behind the planned $127-million Riverfront Village north of the ballpark.

The city’s Public Works & Utilities department will accept bids for the demolition work until 10 a.m. Feb. 14, and the project will be awarded Feb. 18, according to the city’s website.

The 20 properties that will be demolished in the project take up three blocks between Maple and Texas Avenue and Oak and Sycamore streets, city documents show. The buildings range from 792 to 6,448 square feet. The oldest buildings on the list were built in 1900. They are single-family homes, warehouses and commercial properties.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Proposed Kansas bill will require medical providers to give patients a breakdown of costs before receiving treatment

Medical bills can be expensive and stressful — especially when the bill is much higher than one anticipated. One Kansas lawmaker has a plan to help prevent these surprise medical bills.

This week, Senator Richard Hilderbrand (R-Galena) has proposed two bills — one for insured patients and one for uninsured patients.

Each bill would require medical providers to give patients a breakdown of costs before receiving treatment — if the patient asks.

Hilderbrand says this gives patients the ability to compare costs with other providers and budget or plan ahead as needed. “It’s just like when you go in anywhere else, you can look up at McDonald’s and see a menu, you know
what a big mac is going to cost…”

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Kansas introduces bills which would make discrimination based on hair texture or style illegal

A Kansas bill has been introduced that would make it illegal to discriminate based on hair texture or style.

The CROWN Act stands for ‘Creating A Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.

It has been passed in three US states and Senator Olethe Faust Goudeau is looking to add Kansas to that list.

She says she has heard many stories of hair discrimination in Kansas and nationally.

Wellington Council contemplating Splash pads in the city

Splash pads and swimming pools were topics of discussion Tuesday evening at the Wellington City Council meeting. The idea of creating a splash pad was presented by Park Board member Annarose White. Later in the meeting, the council received information about the condition of the city’s pool. Splash pads are also called spray pools, and many cities have them. Caldwell has one along with a pool.

A proposal for funding in the 2022 budget has been made for a splash pad in the city, but there are no plans at present and no action has been taken.

A committee could be formed to investigate things like a location, actual costs, and what a splash pad would look like. That would need to be done before a formal proposal could be made to the council. The Park board was just making the city aware of its hopes and plans, City Manager

(Read more: Sumner NewsCow)

Wichita’s Eisenhower named a top-10 small airport in USA Today poll

Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport has been named the third-best small airport in country in an online reader’s poll conducted by USA Today.

The airport trailed Huntsville International Airport in Alabama and T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, R.I., in the top-10 list revealed by the publication Friday morning.

Eisenhower National was originally chosen last month as one of 20 similarly sized airports nationwide to compete in the contest.

(Read more: Wichita Business Journal)

Safe Streets brings neighbors together to reduce crime

A Topeka organization is helping neighborhoods get to know one another in order to prevent crime and they’re among the best in the country at doing it.

Rhonda Cathey and her husband Ron know the names of everyone in their 50 home neighborhood.

“Our neighborhood is an aging neighborhood, so we’re in a transition right now,” said Rhonda. “We have lots of new families coming in and so as new people move in, we reach out and introduce ourselves. “

They’re apart of the Country Club West neighborhood watch. Like many other neighborhood watch groups in Topeka, they work closely with the organization Safe Streets.

(Read more: KSNT News)

Two SEK law enforcement agencies receive awards

Two Southeast Kansas law enforcement agencies are among the highest ranked in the state for traffic safety.

The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and the Pittsburg Police Department both received the AAA Kansas Community Traffic Safety Award for 2019.

The agencies are among 51 across the state to receive the award, and both earned platinum level honors.

They are also among a smaller group of only 6 agencies statewide to earn the award every year since 2011.

Merriam voters approve renewing 1/4-cent sales tax for next 10 with 80% support

Merriam residents have approved the renewal of the quarter-cent sales tax, with nearly 80% of votes in favor of the renewal — the highest approval rate in the history of the city’s special sales tax votes.

The quarter-cent sales tax has funded Merriam infrastructure project for the last 20 years, as the funds can only be used for street, bridge and drainage improvement projects. Unofficial results from the mail-in ballot election released by the Johnson County Election Office Tuesday show just over 2,000 residents voted for a total voter turnout of 28%. Four hundred voters cast ballots against renewing the tax.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post – Neighborhood news and events for Prairie Village, Fairway, Mission Hills)