Kansas Municipal News
Shawnee Mission attorneys’ brief in teacher contract dispute says district can’t keep deficit spending
The salary proposal put forth by the National Education Association – Shawnee Mission would force the district to dip into reserves and leave it with less than a month’s worth of operating expenses on hand after three years, according to the attorneys representing the district administration in its contract dispute with teachers.
In a pre-conference brief filed with the Kansas Department of Labor last week, the attorneys lay out the district’s arguments for the two-year contract offer it had on the table when mediated negotiations broke down in September.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post – Neighborhood news and events for Prairie Village, Fairway, Mission Hills)
Lenexa approves final plans for Stortropolis Self Storage near Falcon Valley Golf Course
Neighboring residents had raised a number of concerns in September about the possible intrusiveness of the project to their neighborhood, including issues with increased traffic and crime and decreased property values.
Since then, the developer, Schlagel & Associates, made a few changes to the architectural design and screening from the neighboring homes. This included slightly lowering the height of one of the buildings, and removed signage and reduced the number of windows on the north side of Building A (the building closest to Price Chopper).
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)
Sedgwick County to continue mental health care program
Sedgwick County will continue its Integrated Care Team (ICT-1) program, which had a pilot run from July 30 to Oct. 31.
The care team treated 205 patients within Sedgwick County and spent an average of three hours with each patient during the 90-day period, according to a county release. The team was also able to treat 51 percent of patients in place, transferring 16 percent of patients to a different local resource, such as EMS or law enforcement.
Throughout the pilot program, a total of 329 public safety resources (law enforcement units, fire trucks, and ambulances) were able to respond to other emergencies. The team was able to prevent 114 visits to the COMCARE Crisis Center and 92 trips to the emergency room.
(Read more: Area | derbyinformer.com)
Crawford County Health Department receives $2,500 grant from the Aetna better health of Kansas partners in community grants program
The Crawford County Health Department was awarded $2,500 from Aetna Better Health of Kansas via the company’s Partners in Community Grant Program.
“We are delighted to provide this grant to the Crawford County Health Department” said David Livingston, Chief Executive Officer, Aetna Better Health of Kansas in a release. “Our Partners in Community Grant Program is designed to empower local organizations and community partners across the state, providing resources for many individuals, including our members.
“As a company, we are committed to continuing work with like-minded organizations including the Crawford County Health Department, encouraging Kansans to live better, healthier lives.”
(Read more: Community – Morning Sun)
Grant awarded to face opioid abuse in Reno County
The Reno County Health Department and Community Drug Impact Task Force have been awarded a $150,000 federal grant to respond to opioid abuse in Reno County.
The “Overdose Data to Action” grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be spread over three years, starting in 2020.
The grant’s intent is to collect better data on drug misuse and overdoses in the county and develop community responses to support intervention, according to the CDC website.
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
Why Wichita is building a three-lane bridge on a four-lane street
Wichita is about to build a three-lane bridge in the middle of a four-lane street.
Starting Monday, Harry will be closed to traffic at the Arkansas River for a $4.2 million bridge replacement project.
Where the current bridge has two lanes in each direction, the new bridge will have one lane on each side for through traffic and a center lane for westbound cars turning south onto McLean.
(Read more: Local News |)
County paves way for future Evergy construction
Lyon County Commissioners approved a minor plat application which would allow for future construction of Evergy facilities during an action session Wednesday morning.
City of Emporia Planning and Zoning Officer Joe Foster approached the board with details of the plat, saying it would be located at 1771 Road G just outside the city limits within the Metropolitan Planning Area. As part of the motion, commissioners also agreed to change the area from an agricultural designation to a light industrial designation.
“The Planning Commission did hear the minor plat application and made a change extending the right-of-way from 25 feet to 40 feet,” Foster said. “That will help meet future demands as Road 180 gets improved. The plat itself is an approximately 20-acre single plot that will meet the needs of Evergy/Westar as they are proposing to expand.”
(Read more: Emporia Gazette)
Zeeco seeks nine-year tax exemption
Kerri Fallettti, of Cowley County Economic Development, will address county commissioners Tuesday morning about a property tax exemption for Zeeco, Inc./Winfield Industrial Properties LLC.
The company purchased the land and building at 22695 D St., Strother Field and did a complete renovation of the building. The building is currently appraised at $2,268,040.
The building had been vacant for about 12 years; operations began in June 2018 after the renovations were done. About 20 employees work in that building.
Zeeco originally moved into the former Gorden-Piatt building.
The tax exemption, if approved, would be for nine years, 2020-2028. The exemption is projected to be $50,000 a year for a total of $450,000.
(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)
City receives grant toward Wilson Park splash pad
Arkansas City officials continue to work toward Wilson Park improvements outlined nearly three years ago.
The city was recently awarded a $300,000 grant to help build the splash pad and other phase one projects, City Manager Nick Hernandez said this week.
The city received $300,000 from the Land and Water conservation Fund and has two private funding partners to help fund the $777,192 project.
This part of the Phase One plan includes the addition of new restrooms and a splash pad. Hernandez said it will also include the pumping and filtering equipment for the splash pad, and the construction of structures to provide shade.
(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)
City of Winfield offering rebates for electric car chargers
The City of Winfield is now offering rebates for customers who install level 2 electric car charging stations at their homes or businesses.
Customers can earn a rebate up to $1,500 for installing a charging station, according to information provided by Winfield City Manager Taggart Wall.
The car charging stations are a new addition to other rebate programs offered by the city.
“We are pleased to be on the front end of this evolving change in the electric industry,” Wall said.
(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)
Great Bend pitches two new entrance sign ideas for approval
The City of Great Bend and Great Bend Convention & Visitors Bureau pitched the possibility of adding two new entrance signs along the highways coming into the city.
For starters, the Great Bend CVB chose the two entrances with the most traffic to potentially put the signs. According to traffic counts, Great Bend’s two most-traveled entrances are coming in from the east on US 56 Highway or east 10th Street and coming in from the north on US 281 or north Main Street.
CVB Director Christina Hayes says they narrowed down their sign selection for the two entrances.
“We asked Mark’s Custom Signs and B&B Metal Arts to throw some numbers and sign possibilities, and the CVB Board decided on the designs from Mark’s Custom Signs,” said Hayes.
(Read more: Great Bend Post)
Commissioners discuss bridge proposal
When they met this week, Leavenworth city commissioners considered a request for support for a project that could result in the construction of a new bridge across the Missouri River.
But city officials suggested following a process that would bring together various stakeholders and look at other transportation alternatives.
The issue was discussed Tuesday as city commissioners reviewed a letter sent from commissioners in the Leavenworth County government.
(Read more: Leavenworth Times)
Mayor, council to consider approving downtown TIF district
The school board for Topeka Unified School District 501 loomed last October as a potential threat to the creation of a tax-increment financing district to encourage development in downtown Topeka.
But that no longer appears to be the case as Topeka’s mayor and city council prepare Tuesday to consider establishing the Dynamic Core TIF District in an area bounded generally by S.W. Topeka Boulevard, S.W. 17th Street, S.E. Adams Street and the Kansas River.
The USD 501 board voted 6-1 on Nov. 21 to support creation of that district, provided the proposal involved is revised to include specific wording requested by the district. The dissenting vote was cast by board member Scott Mickelsen, who said he was philosophically opposed to TIF districts.
(Read more: Political – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Topeka Metro bus service to reduce routes beginning Monday
The last trip of the day for Topeka Metro buses will come one hour earlier beginning Monday.
Those buses will finish their final runs between 6 and 7 p.m. instead of between 7 and 8 p.m., as they do now, Topeka Metro general manager Bob Nugent said Wednesday.
He acknowledged some people who currently use the day’s last bus to get to or from work will consequently no longer be able to do so.
(Read more: Political – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Reno County will continue mosquito trapping in 2020 using local funding
State funding for mosquito monitoring won’t be available to Reno County next year, so the county health department plans to fund continued trapping of the insects from its budget.
Local health department officials, meanwhile – at the request of state health officials – plan to travel to Topeka during the upcoming session to make pitches to the governor and state lawmakers to add funding to the state’s fiscal 2021 budget to support mosquito monitoring and testing for mosquito-borne viruses.
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
New Beginnings Inc. building tiny houses to address big needs
In Hutchinson, it’s an economy house, not a tiny house.
“Tiny houses” conjures up images of the HGTV show and a house on wheels, according to Hutchinson associate planner Aaron Barlow.
“We use the term economy home,” he said.
The Hutchinson-based New Beginnings Inc., which addresses housing needs, envisions building three economy homes on a vacant lot at 15 W. 8th Ave. that it recently purchased from the Hutchinson Land Bank.
“We’re now in the design process,” said Shara Gonzales, president and CEO of New Beginnings. “We had to get the property first.”
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
Big settlement offered to wind farm foes
Expedition Wind, the company approved Nov. 15 to develop a wind farm in the southern portion of the county, has sent letters offering settlement to plaintiffs who filed a lawsuit opposing the project. The company offers various settlements, some as much as buying their property for 1½ times its value.
The offer would apply only to plaintiffs of a suit filed Aug. 14 in district court. The property purchase offer is only for those who live within the footprint of the wind farm.
Plaintiffs who live within a mile of the wind farm were offered an initial payment of $5,000 and annual payments of $2,000. Those who live up to five miles of the wind farm were offered a single payment of $2,500; and those more than 10 miles away a single payment of $1,000.
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(Read more: HILLSBORO Star-Journal)
Reno County in running for regional opioid response grant
Besides the CDC grant announced last week, the Reno County Health Department is also in the running for a $750,000 two-year multi-county grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance.
The grant would be used jointly by Reno, Harvey and Barton counties to address the opioid abuse crisis regionally, said Health Department Director Nick Baldetti.
“It’s not a sure thing, but we’ve got a legitimate shot at it,” Baldetti told the Reno County Commission on Tuesday.
That confidence comes from the fact the department was recently contacted by the federal agency to provide audited financials, to show it can manage a grant of that size, which is a vetting process beyond the initial application phase.
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
High-dollar art installations commissioned by the City of Lawrence begin to take shape
After a competitive process, artists have been selected to create some of the city’s highest-dollar public artwork in recent years.
The City of Lawrence has budgeted about $450,000, as part of its Percent for Art program, for three art installations at the newly renovated building that houses Fire Station No. 1 and the Senior Resource Center; the new police headquarters in northwestern Lawrence; and the new transit center on Bob Billings Parkway. Artists have been selected for the first two projects, and the selection process for the transit center is forthcoming.
The city has a long-standing resolution, enacted in 1986, that allows it to set aside up to 2% of a building project’s budget for public art, and the City Commission elected to allocate the funds as part of recent budgets.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Infighting part of the founding of Chanute
The famed unification of four towns to create the city of Chanute is a well-known tale that is actually a little more complicated than most know, according to Chanute history expert Jim Whaley.
“I discovered in my research there are some differences in the stories told about the formation of Chanute,” Whaley said. “The facts stay the same, but the circumstances surrounding those facts are different.”
Whaley’s research yielded a different account of the four towns and how one of those, Alliance, came to be as a result of other infighting amongst the local communities competing for the chance to be the seat of Neosho County. In 1870, the towns of Tioga and New Chicago incorporated themselves within a day of each other, and a fierce rivalry began.
(Read more: The Chanute Tribune)
Aquatic center a part of DRC discussion heading into 2020
Upon completing its Strategic Master Plan in 2018, the Derby Recreation Commission saw the interest in a new indoor aquatic center remain very high.
After gauging feedback from community members about the possibility of a steering committee, the DRC plans to engage the subject in more detail in 2020.
DRC Superintendent Chris Drum said that the finishing touches and opening of the new Hubbard Arts Center remain a priority, but it’s not deviating from the interest of additional aquatic space.
(Read more: Derby News | derbyinformer.com)
BOE approves schematic design for Derby Middle School bond projects
The Derby Board of Education approved a schematic design for upcoming bond projects at Derby Middle School at its Monday meeting.
Burke Jones, director of operations, said at the Nov. 12 meeting that the design represents an early phase in developing the bond projects – which are not set to be complete until August 2021.
The design was presented by McCownGordon Construction and SJCF Architecture, the companies responsible for much of the district’s recent and upcoming bond projects.
(Read more: Derby News | derbyinformer.com)
Greenwood County Commissioners Approved Meeting Room Updates
Commissioners continued discussion over the courthouse meeting room renovation project during their regular meeting on Monday, November 25. Commissioner Chuck Spradlin noted that, after having prompted Emporia and Olpe construction companies over the prospect of completing the project (only being met with replies rejecting the idea of traveling that far for work), Mike Brazzle of Madison’s Brazzle Builders Inc. was approved to construct the commissioners’ desk, lectern, and platform. Commissioners had previously received a bid of $13,800 from Brazzle, an estimate that included the construction of press, legal counsel, and clerk’s desks, in addition to the now approved commissioners’ desk, lectern, and platform. When the subject of approval was bridged, Commissioner Roy Ballard said, “I don’t know that we need a Cadillac in a Chevrolet garage. We want it to look nice, but we don’t want to break the bank doing it.” Spradlin reminded Ballard that discretionary funds had been budgeted for in the previous year.
“I was pretty much opposed to spending too much money. It sounds to me like Mike has the price down to where it would be affordable,” said Commissioner Paul Hodge. Following concerns voiced by Commissioner Ballard about costs, commissioners began reviewing areas where funds could be saved. Though the vote for approval was not unanimous, with Commissioner Ballard voting no, the project received approval with an estimated $13,600 budgeted for completion. Construction will likely begin soon after the start of the new year.
County officials balk at citys proposed tax relief program
Bourbon County Commissioners agreed on Nov. 19 they would adopt a resolution for guidelines for economic development incentives.
Bourbon County Economic Development Director Jody Hoener presented the guidelines and asked commissioners if they would make a motion to adopt the guidelines. Commissioners agreed they would need a resolution for the guidelines and asked County Clerk Kendell Mason to place the resolution on a future agenda.
Hoener’s presentation came a week after a discussion commissioners had Nov. 14. Commission Chairman Lynne Oharah said the Nov. 14 discussion was a response to a presentation made Aug. 27 by Fort Scott Economic Development Director Rachel Pruitt.
(Read more: Fort Scott Tribune)
USDA invests $5.2 million in rural broadband for Kansas families
Wave Wireless, which provides wireless internet service in Labette County, will expand its network next year and bring fiber optic broadband internet service to 1,390 rural Labette County homes. The service will offer up to gigabit speeds.
Wave Wireless received $5.2 million from USDA’s ReConnect pilot program. The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief Matthew Lohr announced the award Monday afternoon at the Neosho Township Fire Department on U.S. 400 and Wallace Road. Galen Manners’ company will get a $2.6 million loan and a $2.6 million grant from the ReConnect program. The total award will be $5,271,852.
Manners will use the money to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises broadband network capable of transmission rates of 100 megabits per second or greater.
(Read more: Parsons Sun)
USD 308 School Board approves research contract
The USD 308 School Board approved a contract Monday that will give the district access to quick-turnaround research as well as research on special projects.
The contract with EAB allows the district to get a quick turnaround on any research the company has done for other districts and provides in-depth research on topics specific to USD 308.
For example, if the district wanted to know about research-based programs that other districts have used to lower chronic student absenteeism and the company had already studied the issue, EAB would get that information to the district quickly. If the district wanted assistance with setting the best start times for schools, EAB would be able to help, but the project might take longer.
(Read more: Hutch Post)
Commission debates giving planning board more direction on wind zoning
The Reno County Commission next week will consider directing the county planning board to move forward with public meetings in the southeast quadrant of the county to discuss the implementation of zoning there, and leave debate about zoning for the rest of the county for later.
The board, in another unexpected move, pulled the reappointment of two Reno County Planning Commissioners from its consent agenda and then approved the reappointment of one, but not the other, without commenting on why.
At the start of Tuesday’s weekly meeting, Commission Chairman Bob Bush said that Road and Bridge Superintendent Don Brittain suggested to him that the county commission consider giving direction to the planning commission to split the zoning debate “into two or three sections, and to look at the southeast corner first, where the natural boundaries are.”
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
County awards design services contract for Metcalf 2.0
The Metcalf 2.0 project to rehabilitate the busy Louisburg thoroughfare has taken another step forward.
The Miami County Commission on Wednesday, Nov. 20, awarded a contract for survey and design services to BG Consultants.
Seven firms submitted proposals for Metcalf 2.0, which is a joint project between Miami County and the city of Louisburg. A selection committee composed of staff and government officials with the county and city trimmed that list to three candidates. Based on the quality of the proposal and the bid price, BG Consultants emerged the frontrunner.
(Read more: The Miami County Republic)
Pottawatomie County Commission requests more information before approving design of Fleet Maintenance Facility; Limerick Ln. extension project encounters roadblock
Fleet Maintenance Facility
Although the final design and specifications for Pottawatomie County’s new Public Works Fleet Maintenance Facility have been completed, approval from the county commission will have to wait at least one more week.
“Commissioner (Pat) Weixelman asked a question about one of the particular pieces of the design relative to the wall design,” Peter Clark, the director of the public works department, said. “It has a CMU wall sitting on a slab foundation with a trench footing underneath that and he wanted some more detail about how the vapor barrier would work, specifically in that wall system so that it would keep thermal penetration and keep the condensation from happening inside the building.”
Commissioner Weixelman also asked for information on the capital-improvement-plan balance and end-of-year projections on transfers that could provide more funding for the project.
The commission decided to move $300,000 to the Capital Improvement Plan fund from the Road and Bridge Equipment fund and to keep $600,000 in the public works equipment reserve.
(Read more: 1350 KMAN)
Delayed bond payment did not appear to affect Lawrence’s bond rating
Commissioner Stuart Boley said recently that in October of 2014, the city missed making a bond payment that was due on city debt. The missed payment is the type of event that could cause the city to suffer a reduction in its bond rating, which would cause the city to pay higher interest rates on its millions of dollars in debt…
Finance Director Jeremy Willmoth, who was not with the city at the time of the incident, said he did find records that confirmed the missed bond payment. According to records, the city had a $46,951.11 interest payment due on Oct. 1, 2014, for a set of general obligation temporary notes — a type of short-term bond — that had been issued earlier that year.
However, the city did not make that payment on Oct. 1. The city did not make the payment until Dec. 15, 2014, after the city received a delinquency notice. …
Willmoth said he did not find any records indicating that the city had to pay a penalty for the late payment. He also didn’t find any records indicating that the city’s bond rating suffered as a result of the late payment. The 2014 temporary notes received the highest rating that Moody’s bond rating service provides for those kinds of bonds. A 2015 issuance of temporary notes by the city received the same rating. Boley, however, said the incident didn’t go completely unnoticed by the bond rating agencies. He said for the past five years, the city has had to disclose the missed payment among the reams of paperwork that are provided to potential bond buyers.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Church Sues Lenexa For Denying Its Request To Operate A Homeless Shelter
A Lenexa church is suing the city for denying its request to use its building as a temporary homeless shelter.
Shawnee Mission Unitarian Universalist Church says the denial infringes on its exercise of religion, violating the Constitution, state law and federal law.
The church, at 9400 Pflumm Road, occupies a former elementary school building adjoining commercial and office properties, although the building is zoned residential single family.
The church recently partnered with Project 1020, a nonprofit that provides temporary housing to homeless people, to provide overnight shelter for up to 40 homeless individuals per night from December through March.
(Read more: Rural Messenger)
For some rural US TV viewers, local news is anything but
When Dianne Johnson channel-surfs for news in her rural western Nebraska home, all she sees are stories about Colorado crime and car crashes from a Denver television station more than 200 miles away.
It’s frustrating for the 61-year-old rancher, who wants to know the latest developments in Nebraska politics and sports. When floods devastated huge swaths of Nebraska this year, Johnson struggled to keep tabs on what was happening.
“If we actually had local news, we would watch it,” she said. “But all we get is Colorado drug busts and stories about who got murdered in Denver. It has nothing to do with us.”
Johnson is among an estimated 870,000 households nationwide that receive at least one distant network affiliate’s feed from their satellite TV service providers because they don’t live close enough to get conventional over-the-air signals.
(Read more: KSN-TV)
12 years after Greensburg, rebuilding as been a mixed success
A dozen years after a tornado nearly wiped out Greensburg, city leaders acknowledge that the decision to rebuild as quote “the greenest community in America” has been a mixed success.
The E5 tornado that touched down May 4 2007, killed 11 people and destroyed most of Greensburg.
The Kansas news service is reporting that the decision to rebuild in an environmentally friendly way was to set itself apart from other rural towns.
City administrator, Stacy Barnes acknowledges some expectations at the time were unrealistic but says the town continues to work on projects, and she remains optimistic about the town’s future.
(Read more: KSN-TV)
Badges and Burgers
The Pittsburg Fire and Police Departments Fire Up the grill to help kids in the neighborhood. It was the annual badges and burgers event. This year, the proceeds go to the Children’s Advocacy Center. The center provides child safety specialists who serve children in Pittsburg.
(Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)
Lenexa exempting itself from state law requirement for official city newspapers
The city of Lenexa no longer has The Olathe News as an official city newspaper for publishing legal notices. City leaders have agreed to exempt Lenexa from K.S.A 64-101, the state law regarding official city newspapers. And The Johnson County Legal Record is now the only official publication for Lenexa’s public notices.
In 1997, the city had passed a charter ordinance exempting itself from the state law so it could designate multiple newspapers by resolution. At that time, The Johnson County Legal Record and The Olathe Daily News (renamed The Olathe News in 2009) became Lenexa’s official newspapers.
Since then, The Kansas City Star has acquired The Olathe News, and now the publication no longer meets state law requirements because the Star is published out of state. To be considered an official city newspaper of Lenexa, a publication must be circulated on a regular basis and must be published in Johnson County, or at least in the state of Kansas.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post – Neighborhood news and events for Prairie Village, Fairway, Mission Hills)
County takes step toward creating Family Park master plan
A comprehensive master plan for southwest Topeka’s Family Park, featuring trails and pickleball courts, should be complete in three to five months, Shawnee County parks and recreation director Tim Laurent said Monday.
He spoke after County Commissioners Bill Riphahn, Kevin Cook and Aaron Mays voted 3-0 Monday morning to solicit proposals from qualified companies interested in contracting with the county to develop that plan at a cost not to exceed $71,000, while accepting input both from the public and from Laurent’s department.
The master plan is to cover matters that include design, layout and future maintenance of the park, which will be located just south of Midwest Health Aquatic Center, 2201 S.W. Urish Road, according to a document in the agenda packet for Monday’s meeting.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Wichita will receive $14.2 million grant to replace transit center
The City of Wichita will receive $14.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to build a replacement transit center to meet current and future regional transportation needs. The building will connect 17 bus routes, four circulator trolleys, commuter transit and boost economic development in the West Bank area of the Arkansas River.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao today announced that the Federal Transit Administration will award $423 million in transit infrastructure grants nationwide to improve the safety and reliability of America’s bus systems and enhance mobility for transit riders. A list of the selected projects is available online.
“Public bus systems throughout the country provide millions of Americans access to jobs, healthcare, grocery stores, and other vital services,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
(Read more: KSN-TV)
Barton County extends rent-free agreements for two agencies
As a means of community support, the Cottonwood Extension Council and the State of Kansas Parole Office are housed in the county office building at 1208 Kansas in Great Bend. Each agency gets to stay there rent free but reimburses Barton County for a portion of the building’s utility costs.
“They pay their utilities and phone system costs,” said Barton County Administrator Phil Hathcock.
For years, the county has extended office space to these two agencies rent free because they are taxing agencies. If Barton County started charging rent, then the agencies would have to raise their taxes to pay the county.
(Read more: Great Bend Post)
Commission approves 2020 funding for senior centers
Butler County commissioners unanimously approved contracts for senior centers within the county at their Nov. 19 meeting. Senior centers within Butler County will receive a slight increase in funding budgeted by the commission for fiscal year 2020.
“We try to budget in a slight increase annually based on what we can afford within the budget,” William Johnson Jr., Butler County administrator, said.
Funding for FY2020 is as follows, according to the meeting agenda found on www.bucoks.com: Senior clubs level II — Benton $2,300, Whitewater $4,000; Senior centers level I — Cassoday $9,200, Towanda $11,200; Senior centers level II — Douglass $31,800; Multi-purpose senior centers level I — Andover $36,500, Leon $35,500, Rose Hill $34,100; Multi-purpose senior centers level II — Augusta $46,130, El Dorado $48,680; Grand total — $259,410.
(Read more: andoveramerican.com)
Pawnee Mental Health receives USDA grant to expand telemedicine and rural access to mental health
Rural access to mental health care is expanding in Kansas thanks to a $42.5 million US Department of Agriculture grant announced last week.
Those dollars are being invested in 133 distance learning and telemedicine projects including Manhattan-based Pawnee Mental Health Services. Executive Director Robbin Cole says Pawnee was awarded nearly $500,000 to expand video conferencing services to Jewell, Mitchell and Washington counties in north-central Kansas.
“With this grant, we’ll be able to place equipment in those offices as well as the county health departments in those counties to enable residents to receive the mental health services that they need five days a week,” Cole said.
(Read more: 1350 KMAN)
2019 local consult meetings wrap up in Liberal and Colby
(Read more: Kansas Transportation)
Derby residents concerned about littering from free newspapers left in yards
The City of Derby says The Wichita Eagle’s free newspaper, Neighbors, is distributed to approximately 6,800 households each week.
Some residents, like Nick Sharp, are concerned that the paper is causing littering in the city.
“It’s just accumulating more trash, you know. You got plastic bags that aren’t recyclable,” Sharp said.”Its just more stuff going to the landfill that nobody wanted in the first place.”
(Read more: KWCH News)
UG Commission approves up to $100 million in IRBs for PQ plant expansion
The Unified Government Commission, on an 8-0 unanimous vote, approved issuing up to $100 million in industrial revenue bonds for the PQ Corp. on Thursday night.
PQ-Zeolyst is expanding its industrial operations at 1700 Kansas Ave., in Kansas City, Kansas. The company makes catalysts that are used by other companies to help the environment, according to UG information.
During a public hearing continued from the last UG Commission meeting, only two persons spoke, the same who appeared last week, Janice Witt and Tscher Manck. Witt opposed the IRBs, stating basically the same thing as last week.
(Read more: Welcome to Wyandotte Daily!)
The Troubling Decline in City Revenue Growth
The most startling conclusion of The National League of Cities’ new fiscal conditions report was that revenue growth “stalled” last year and that this trend has continued—creating real problems for city budgets.
This came as a particular shock to us because gross domestic product from coast to coast continues to grow. According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, “Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased in all fifty states in the first quarter of 2019.”
So, the question emerges: While the economy has remained healthy, why are so many cities experiencing revenue growth stagnation or even declines? Columbia, Missouri (population 122,000), for example, saw annual growth in sales tax revenues of 5.8 percent in 2011, but just 1 percent growth in 2018. The city’s budget report last year noted, “Sales tax growth has been historically low for the last four years. These revenue challenges appear to be long term problems.”
(Read more: Route Fifty – All Content)
Kansas college hopes to grow wine industry within state
A community college in Kansas hopes to promote the winery industry in the state by providing space and resources for small wineries getting started in the business.
Highland Community College at Wamego opened a wine incubator called 456 Wineries last month. Director Scott Kohl said Highland received a federal grant in 2016 to start it.
Kohl said 456 Wineries is a part of the school’s viticulture or grape-growing program and enology or wine-making program.
(Read more: KAKE – News)