Municipal News & Jobs

Municipal News & Jobs2026-08-07T10:07:18-05:00

Kansas Municipal News

USD 378 presents forum on upcoming bond referendum

 

The Riley County USD 378 school board on held a forum to discuss a proposed $15 million dollar bond referendum with the public.

Speaking to a gathering at the Riley County High School cafeteria Monday, Superintendent Cliff Williams said the bond would cost the owner of a $100,000 home around $18 per month or about $218 in yearly property taxes, comparing it to about a pizza per month for the average consumer. Williams adds that if it passes, one addition would be a middle school gymnasium with locker rooms.

“We take our middle school students up to the high school four days a week and they make four individual trips per day to get all the students through the curriculum there,” Williams said.

(Read more: 1350 KMAN)

USD 428 finding out what went wrong in bond proposal; gearing up for another vote in April

USD 428 and SJCF Architecture found out what they believed might have been the problem with a failed bond issue this fall. Based on a survey, that is still open until Oct. 21, participants stated the dollar amount was too high, athletic needs should be eliminated, figure out priorities over needs, and it was a bad election timing due to the economy and city tax increase.

The survey was designed to seek feedback from voters as to why the $44.87 million school bond issue did not pass and what aspects they did support.

Terry Wiggers with SJCF told the USD 428 Board of Education Monday night there were also comments on the survey that there was too much information and that people did not know what was going on.

(Read more: Great Bend Post)

City hires firm to find new city manager, discusses rundown properties

The Hutchinson City Council went over a list of 11 properties that were considered unsafe during Tuesday’s agenda session. The properties are a continued effort by the city to have older structures either repaired or removed.

The council passed a resolution giving property owners 30 days to either make repairs to the structures or have a solid plan in place to do so.

The council also approved the refinancing of $4.5 million in industrial revenue bonds for Wesley Towers Retirement Community. The city is the go-between for the bonds and is not under any financial obligation. The bonds are being refinanced because of lower interest rates.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

911 issue slow-going; $20,000 raise for city manager

Chanute commissioners discussed issues with the 911 system Monday evening, but did not have much in the way of a response to a deadline from the Neosho County Commission.

“To suggest that we’re not communicating is not accurate,” Cantrell said.

(Read more: The Chanute Tribune)

Wilson among counties urged to upgrade voting equipment

A handful of Kansas counties are being urged to upgrade their voting machines to a voting system that creates a paper record of each vote.

The Topeka Capitol-Journal reports the American Association for the Advancement of Science urged Geary, Grant, Greeley, Hamilton, Harvey, Sumner, Wallace and Wilson counties to upgrade to newer voting machines.

(Read more: The Chanute Tribune)

Newton may lose Historic Preservation Commission

The ability of city staff to review minor projects to improve historic properties in the city of Newton is in a bit of jeopardy, though the city believes there is action to take and a path forward — but that path could mean saying goodbye to the Historic Preservation Commission.

“That would be a nice customer service aspect,” said Kelly McElroy, assistant city manager. “It would be nice for city staff to say ‘yes, this qualifies’ when they are taking a building permit.”

The problem arose in September, when the State Historic Preservation Office found a lapsed agreement between Newton and North Newton. In September 2019 the State Historic Preservation Office notified City of Newton staff that the agreements between the cities of Newton and North Newton and the State Historic Preservation Office that allow reviews of proposed projects to be reviewed by local administrative staff and preservation commissions had lapsed.

(Read more: News – McPhersonSentinel – McPherson, KS)

School Board makes change to “Standards of Solvency and Viability”

School Board members engaged in a lengthy and at times tense discussion regarding the “Standards of Solvency and Viability” at their regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 14. The standards, originally approved in October 2016, had been brought up at the previous two board meetings, as a few board members suggested that changes to the standards should be considered.

At Monday’s meeting, Board Member Kent Saylor proposed a change to how revenue is calculated in the expense and revenue formula that supports the standards.

The current “Standards of Solvency and Viability” document was developed by the board’s Finance Committee — which consists of board members Saylor, Ed Reznicek and Kathy Lippert. According to Saylor, it was developed as a basic tracking tool to help monitor the overall financial health of the district as a whole, as well as the financial health of each campus.

(Read more: Sabetha Herald)

KDOT pavement testing begins in Grant and Hamilton counties

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) will be conducting pavement tests on highway sections in Hamilton and Grant counties from Monday, Oct. 14, thru Friday, Oct. 18.  Sections tested will include:

  • K-25 from the north city limit of Ulysses to the Grant/Kearny county line;
  • U.S. 50 in Hamilton County;
  • K-27 from the Stanton/Hamilton county line to the south city limit of Syracuse.

(Read more: Western Kansas News)

Million-dollar gift to support rural health program at McPherson College

 

 

A $1 million gift will help McPherson College fund a new community health care initiative, including ten $25,000 scholarships for students committed to community health. This is on the heels of an announcement last month of a partnership with McPherson Hospital.

“We want to work together to make health care better in our community,” said McPherson College President Michael Schneider. “The narrative for small colleges and small hospitals is a little bit bleak, a little bit challenging. People are wondering what the future holds. We’re going to work together to prove everyone wrong and combine new academic programs in health sciences with outreach in our community.”

Kansas is among states with the highest numbers of rural hospitals and greatest shortage of healthcare professionals of all types, according to the National Rural Health Association.

(Read more: WIBW News Now)

City would forgive hospital debt under proposed resolution

South Central Kansas Medical Center may soon be officially off the hook for the nearly $1.3 million it received from the city during tough financial times.

Commissioners will consider a resolution Tuesday that will forgive all amounts that the hospital has borrowed from the city, dating back several years.
If approved, the resolution wipes out any remaining debt related to construction, equipping, financing and repayment of all loans between the Public Building Commission, the city and the hospital, according to city commission notes.

(Read more: www.ctnewsonline.com – RSS Results)

Young Lenexa siblings write letter to city council to install deer crossing signs

Two young siblings who live in Lenexa have seen their fair share of deer along 83rd Street. They wrote a letter to their local city council member asking if a warning sign could be put up.
“There’s a family of deer we want to keep safe on 83rd, because people go very fast there,” Dominic and Eve wrote in their letter to the city council member.
The 9-year-old and 6-year-old decided to do something about it. They hand delivered the letter they wrote to their local councilman down the road.

Read more: KCTV.

Lawrence City Commission to consider proposal that would allow 2 houses per lot with certain restrictions

City leaders will soon decide whether to move forward with a proposal that would allow two houses to be built on one lot as long as both homes are affordable.

Read more: LJWorld.com.

Labette County officials hold special session to appoint replacement county clerk

The Labette County Republican Party is holding a special session Monday night to choose a successor for the county clerk.

Peggy Minor has been working for Labette County since 1986 and assumed her role as County Clerk back in 2013. Minor will be retiring from her position early with more than a year left in her term.

Monday night, the Labette County Republican Party members will nominate her successor, who will assume the role on December 1st.

Deputy County Clerk Gena Landis has expressed her interest in taking on the role.

(Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)

Garden City Community College Named One of Top 50 Schools in the US for Transferring

Garden City Community College has been named one of Student Loan Hero’s top 50 schools in the country for successful transfer from community college to four-year university.

The rankings were based on transfer-out and graduation rates of students attending public two-year schools that grant less than half of their degrees and certifications for career or vocational training. GCCC shares a 17th place ranking with eight other two-year institutions, putting it in the top 25 out of 513 community colleges ranked overall.

GCCC Vice President of Instruction Marc Malone said the rankings confirm what administrators like himself already know about transfer success and the long-term benefits of an associate degree.

(Read more: Western Kansas News)

Kansas Bets On Wrestling Tournaments, Pickleball And Trampolines With $25 Million In Bonds

On the last day of September, a bulldozer scooped dirt from an empty field between a hotel and a fence separating the land from a house-lined street in Garden City.

In 18-24 months, a massive $41 million sports complex, called Sports of the World, is slated to open at this site, with courts of all kinds — pickleball, basketball, volleyball. There’ll be a trampoline park and an outdoor recreation area with cornhole and a life-sized Battleship game. It’s expected to host cheerleading, wrestling and other sports tournaments, drawing in people from Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas.

“People will travel up to two hours to eat at a restaurant,” said Molly Basham, the marketing director for American Warrior Construction, which is building Sports of the World. “So we’re trying as hard as we can to develop and make southwest Kansas the destination for our entire region.”

(Read more: RSS Feed)

8 Kansas counties urged to upgrade their voting equipment

A handful of Kansas counties are being urged to upgrade their voting machines to a voting system that creates a paper record of each vote.

The Topeka Capitol-Journal reports the American Association for the Advancement of Science urged Geary, Grant, Greeley, Hamilton, Harvey, Sumner, Wallace and Wilson counties to upgrade to newer voting machines.

Those eight counties currently use voting machines that record voter choices electronically without creating a paper record.

Katie Koupal with the Kansas Secretary of State’s office says fewer than 10 of the state’s 105 counties use election equipment that doesn’t create a paper trail. She says several counties are planning to buy new equipment before next year’s presidential elections.

(Read more: KWCH News)

Spring Hill welcomes new leaders in Public Works, Police

Public Works has a new leader at the helm.

Jim Boyer will take over the department, which consists of the Streets, Parks and Utilities divisions. Boyer was appointed by Mayor Steven Ellis at the Oct. 10 City Council meeting.

Boyer is no stranger to Spring Hill, having served in a variety of positions within the City for eight and a half years. Previously, he held the titles of City Superintendent, Line Maintenance Supervisor, Wastewater Collections Supervisor and, most recently, Utility Superintendent.

(Read more: City of Spring Hill news)

From highways to quilts: KDOT employee uses engineering skills to design and create

Joyce Muhlenbruch, KDOT’s Area Construction Engineer in Dodge City, was recently featured in the Dodge City Daily Globe, but it wasn’t for her ability to highway engineering skills  It was for her ability and talent for designing and engineering breathtaking quilts.
Muhlenbruch says there were always quilting and sewing projects in their home when she was growing up in Hanoverton, Ohio.  She learned to sew by the time she was five and was quilting with the church ladies by the time she was in middle school.
However, she didn’t make her first quilt until she was expecting her first child.  She decided to make a Raggedy Ann and Andy quilt with a denim back, which she hand-pieced and quilted herself.

(Read more: Kansas Transportation)

Geary Community Hospital officials identify key issues for potential county commission assistance for the hospital

This past week officials from Geary Community Hospital issued challenges to the Geary County Commission.  A member of the governing body, Ben Bennett, said one is to advocate for medicaid expansion. “We’ve advocated for that with our elected representatives for the last year. Hopefully that will give us some relief from the non-paying public that we have to serve.”

In the past officials have estimated that could mean one million dollars per year for Geary Community Hospital, if medicaid expansion is approved by the legislature.

Another challenge involved discussion of a possible future property tax increase support the hospital. Bennett stated that can be done but to do it there are some statutory restrictions on the commission. “And that’s not something that we I know have been very receptive of because of our challenges that we have in the county.” Bennett added the hospital is important to them but the county would have to be prudent.

(Read more: Junction City Post)

County health plan seeks to deal with suicides, food deserts

Decreasing suicides and reducing the number of households that struggle to get enough food are among goals of a recently created health improvement plan for Shawnee County.

The county health department is working to mobilize and engage community organizations and other government entities — including school districts — to team up with the county to address issues spotlighted in that 2020-2022 Community Health Improvement Plan, the county’s community health planner, Susan Caman, said Monday.

“I hope that this plan is a foundation for the start of those collaborations,” Caman told county commissioners Bill Riphahn, Kevin Cook and Aaron Mays.

Caman made a presentation at Monday’s commission meeting about the 45-page plan, which can be found on the county’s website.

(Read more: Local Government – The Topeka Capital-Journal)

German delegation visits Lawrence to celebrate 30th anniversary of Sister Cities program

The world seems a little smaller thanks to a now 30-year relationship between Lawrence and its German sister city.

The program has sent hundreds of students to live with host families in both countries, has facilitated regular visits from delegates, and has even led to at least three marriages, according to Sister Cities Lawrence Chair Bill Keel, who is also a University of Kansas German professor. But Keel, who has been involved with the related Friends of Eutin program since its beginning, said the biggest benefit was the perspective it brought to the individual participants.

Read more: LJWorld.com.

Lawrence seeking feedback on desired developments in low-income ‘opportunity zones’

The public will soon be able to provide input on what developments they would like to see in low-income areas of the city that have been designated as federal opportunity zones.

There are two Lawrence census tracts designated as opportunity zones, and developments within their limits are eligible for tax incentives under a provision in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. One of the opportunity zones encompasses all or part of three eastern Lawrence neighborhoods, and neighborhood groups have pressed for more local discussion and input regarding the program.

Read more: LJWorld.com.

Deputy vs. deer highlights fall hazard

Cowley County law enforcement are warning drivers to be aware of deer near roadways now that the mating season is in full swing.
Not even sheriff deputies can escape the wildlife darting in front of them.
A Cowley deputy struck a deer at 11:40 p.m. Wednesday night in the 11000 block of 322nd Road, near the Kansas-Oklahoma border.
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The deer caused damage to the driver-side fender and door areas leaving minor damage. The deputy wasn’t injured, according to a report.

(Read more: www.ctnewsonline.com – RSS Results)

Tiny house project has big impact for small schools

Under the watchful eyes of their teachers, students drilled dozens of screws into metal frame after metal frame Wednesday morning at Ness City High School as they began a project that will provide vacation housing in Colorado and experience that will last the students a lifetime.

While 6A and 5A schools like Hutchinson and McPherson take on large building projects and complete an entire house over the school year, that’s not feasible for smaller schools like Ness City.

Instead, these mostly 3A, 2A and 1A schools are taking on a 3-1A-sized building project — tiny houses.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

Kansas farmers use tech to save water, increase growth

Father and son Ryan and Eugene Goering of Moundridge grow corn, soy and wheat. In the past, this team tried a variety of ways to save on output and to grow smarter. They used a few probes to decide how dry the soil was, and they used an app to determine their crop output by location.

But they knew they had more to learn. Last year, when they heard about the Kansas Water Office’s Water Technology Farm program, they applied.

With the help of KWO, manufacturers, the Kansas Corn Commission and Kansas State University, the Goerings restructured their pivot system, making half of the seven towers a control unit and reframing the other half with a variety of nozzles. The pivots were fitted with different output nozzles, in a variety of configurations and lengths of tube. Some were orange, others blue, and several were black — but most importantly, they ranged in height and output. The Goerings also decreased the amount of water per pass and lowered the water pressure from 20 pounds to 6 pounds.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

USD 489 foundation to raise money for security upgrades through dinner, auction

Tickets are now available for the second annual Hays USD 489 Dinner Show and Auction.

Proceeds raised through the auction and dinner in part will be used to fund the completion of the district’s secure entrance project. The second phase of this project will include adding audio and video systems. This will allow office staff to speak to and see visitors before they are buzzed into school buildings.

“It’s going to give a better view of who the person actually is as opposed to looking 10 or 15 feet through the door. It is going to give a better visual of who the person is and allow us to communicate with them if we have some questions,” Superintendent Ron Wilson said.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Reno County Republicans make their pick for a new sheriff

 Thursday night, the Reno County Republican Party had to make a choice between two current members of the Reno County Sheriff’s Office to fill the position as sheriff. The two choices, were Captain Darrian Campbell who currently heads the patrol division and Captain Steve Lutz who heads the detective division.

By a close vote of 23-18, Captain Darrian Campbell was selected by the Republicans and his name will be sent to the Governor to complete the process.

The current sheriff Randy Henderson will retire and Campbell will then be the new sheriff on Dec. 28.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

USD 308 Board to consider further improvements to sports complex

The Hutchinson USD 308 School Board will consider further improvements to the USD 308 Soccer complex during Monday’s meeting. The district wants to make improvements to more fields and the one baseball practice field.

The project includes regrading the fields, installing new irrigation and then planting turf. The work will start with the two south soccer fields in the spring and the two north fields next fall.

The work will be done by Turf Solution who was also the contractor for the main soccer field renovation last year. The cost of the project is about $392-thousand along with an annual maintenance contract that is expected to cost less than $50-thousand per year.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Hutch USD 308 to consider soccer fields upgrade

The Hutchinson Unified School District 308 Board of Education will consider at its 6 p.m. Monday meeting at the Administration Center, 1520 N. Plum St., a proposal to spend $392,356 on a soccer practice fields renovation project.

This represents Phase II and Phase III of the overall project.

Phase I included renovation of the soccer game field, as well as the baseball practice infield, and carried a cost of $351,269 when it came to the board in June 2018. It won approval on a 4-3 vote. Voting for that capital outlay expenditure were: Tad Dower, Valarie Gibson-Smith, Lance Patterson and Anette Roberson. Voting no were: Kail Denison, Greg Meredith and Randall Gray.

(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)

Work begins at future King of Freight office building in WaterWalk

After sitting vacant since Gander Mountain closed in 2017, the riverfront WaterWalk building will soon have some movement inside.

A building permit recently pulled by JACO General Contractor Inc. shows that $500,000 of tenant improvements are about to begin at 605 S. Wichita.

In May, the Wichita City Council approved an amended ground lease that cleared the way for King of Freight LLC to become the new tenant in the former Gander Mountain building. City documents showed the fast-growing freight brokerage had plans to turn it into the company’s new Wichita headquarters.

(Read more: Wichita Business Journal)

‘Annexation bonanza’ as city adds 500 acres

The city of Gardner, in what one councilmember described as an “annexation bonanza,” annexed almost 500 acres of land south of Interstate 35 during a council meeting Oct. 7.
The city also approved a major development agreement with a developer who plans to build retail, commercial and residential properties on parts of newly annexed lands.
The council approved a motion to annex 82 acres located along the north side of 199th street and south of I-35.
The council also approved a voluntary consent annexation of a series of parcels of land located along 199th street after receiving voluntary annexation requests from several property owners in the unincorporated area.

(Read more: Gardner News)

Manhattan wants to ban vaping inside future vape shops

The majority of Manhattan City Commission wants ban vaping in public parks, but commissioners are divided on whether to allow vaping in current and future e-cigarette shops.
Commissioners provided feedback Tuesday on signage, fines and their overall thoughts about vaping and smoking to Jared Wasinger, assistant to the city manager, as administrators seek to combine the e-cigarette and cigarette ordinances.

Read more: The Mercury.

Park City appoints new city clerk

On Oct. 8, the Park City council unanimously approved Marlo Rugg as the new city clerk. She is a Park City resident and was already a city employee.

Rugg has served as the city’s payroll and benefits clerk since May of 2017. Before that, she was the city clerk in Kiowa for nearly a decade. She is certified as a Kansas municipal clerk.

“She has been a tremendous asset to the city and a valued member of the staff,” said City Administrator Sean Fox. “We’re very confident that she will continue to make a positive impact in her new role.”

Read more: Ark Valley News.

Realtor group begins to worry about Lawrence’s growth policies; home sales forecast to decline slightly in 2020

Don’t expect Lawrence’s real estate market to regain its bounce in 2020, a Wichita State economist told Lawrence Realtors on Thursday.

A slight decline is more likely for the number of home sales next year. Stanley Longhofer, director of the WSU Center for Real Estate, is forecasting that home sales in 2020 will be down about 3.5% from this year’s totals. Longhofer is projecting 2019 will finish with home sales off by 3.4% from 2018 totals. All told, Longhofer is expecting Lawrence home sales to hit their lowest levels since 2015.

Read more: LJWorld.com.

Emporia to revisit utility increases

Emporia City Commissioners may revisit utility rate increases that are set to go into effect next year.

Commissioners had approved what amounted to an overall 8 percent increase in city utilities — water, sewer and trash — that would amount to roughly an extra $6 on a bill for a household using 5,000 gallons of water each month.

But Finance Director Janet Harrouff said as she has been reviewing the city’s numbers, she found a number of issues between the city’s current water sales falling $200,000 below the budgeted amount and ongoing bond payment schedules that prompted her to do some refiguring.

(Read more: Emporia Gazette)

Zoning, sales tax discussed at joint city/county luncheon

Lyon County Commissioners, City of Emporia officials and representatives of local emergency agencies met for a joint city/county luncheon Wednesday in the Lyon County Courthouse.

City Planning and Zoning Officer Joe Foster took the opportunity to announce he and County Planning and Zoning Officer Sam Seeley would be releasing the second draft of the updated joint community zoning regulations by Oct. 22.

In addition to being made available for download at lyoncounty.org, Foster said there would also be a series of free public workshops for those wishing to learn more about the changes. The first will surround agriculture and be held at 6 p.m. Nov. 7 in the Lyon County Annex, 402 Commercial St., and will be followed by industrial and commercial workshops taking place at 6 p.m. Nov. 14 and 21 at the Emporia Area Chamber of Commerce, 719 Commercial St. The series will wrap up with a seminar on residential zoning at 6 p.m. Dec. 5 in the Civic Building at 516 Mechanic St. The workshops — and resulting public input — will be compiled for use in the writing of the final zoning regulations draft later this year.

(Read more: Emporia Gazette)

Fixing water issues this week in Great Bend

It is a week of tightening up water problems in Great Bend.

Broken valves have caused water leaks in streets and residents’ yards for several months near 24th Street, especially along Meadowlark Lane. For $81,401, APAC started repairs on the valves this week.

The crew from Hutchinson is also working on the replacement of the water line to the hospital.

(Read more: Great Bend Post)

Emporia State receives $2 million aimed at deaf, autism disorders

Emporia State University is receiving more than $2 million in grants to help professionals seeking to bolster employment opportunities for people with hearing problems and autism spectrum disorders.

The university says in a news release that it has one of three programs nationwide that concentrates in working with deaf and hard-of-hearing people.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Sedgwick County needs workers for this year’s election

The Sedgwick County Election Commission is in need of workers for this year’s November 5th election.

Officials with the Commission say they are still needing to hire 53 more people to have all positions filled. Additionally, they would like 20-25 more people in case fill-in’s are needed.

The commission says their ideal goal is 75 more workers because it makes things run smoother, but training starts on Thursday.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Coffeyville Police Department Receives JAG Grant

The Coffeyville Police Department has received grant funding from the JAG Grant program.  The grant will pay for new police technology including: in-car digital video recorders, equipment for forensic evidence investigations and evidence processing, and a prisoner restraint system that will reduce injuries to combative individuals while improving officer safety.

(Read more: Coffeyville, KS – News Flash)

Sedgwick County organizations receive grants for public health, safety programs

Three Sedgwick County organizations have been awarded grants to support public health and safety programs, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt announced today.

  • City of Wichita Police Department will receive $95,633 to fund programs involving recruitment efforts, drug interdiction, homeless and mental health crisis intervention and crisis de-escalation.
  • Episcopal Social Services will receive $74,287 to fund two programs to teach skills to individuals with mental illness to avoid behaviors that result in incarceration or recidivism.
  • Via Christi Hospitals of Wichita will receive $120,000 to support services for sexual assault victims.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Former Topeka city administrator John Arnold dies at 79

John Arnold had already spent 17 years as city manager of municipalities in Colorado, California and North Dakota when then-Mayor Joan Wagnon hired him as Topeka’s chief administrative officer in 1998.

Having Arnold as her CAO made running Topeka’s city government “a whole lot easier” because of his deep experience and his willingness to be candid, Wagnon recalled Thursday.

Arnold, 79, died Oct. 4 in Topeka. Services haven’t yet been scheduled.

(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)

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