Municipal News & Jobs

Kansas Municipal News

Bid to make county commission elections partisan fails by a single vote

Johnson County Commissioner Mike Brown lost his bid Thursday to tie commission elections to party politics. But don’t expect the issue to go away any time soon. Brown and other commission members promised they’d keep the discussion going when the 10-year review of the county’s charter happens in 2021.

The commission narrowly voted down Brown’s motion to put Ds and Rs on the ballot for what has for 20 years been a non-partisan election. Five of the seven commissioners voted in favor, but since it was an amendment to the charter a supermajority of six votes was needed. Had that happened, the question would have been on the ballot in November.

Commission Chairman Ed Eilert and Commissioner Jim Allen were the “no” votes.

Unlikely that Salina will adopt universal curbside recycling

It is looking increasingly unlikely that Salina will adopt universal curbside recycling, following a meeting of the Saline County Solid Waste Management Committee on Thursday afternoon.

The committee took a series of preliminary votes to help draft recommendations to the Salina City Commission regarding the future of the curbside recycling program and other matters related to waste collection. The committee will take a final vote on a complete recommendation in a future meeting.

Salina residents have the choice of paying the city or a private company to collect their trash.

In a preliminary vote, six committee members voted against recommending the city charge all Salina residents who choose to pay city workers to collect their trash $4 per customer per month for curbside recycling, whether they use the service or not.

Only one committee member, Vice Chair Joan Ratzlaff, voted in favor of universal curbside recycling. Ratzlaff said curbside recycling was the primary method the committee was considering to meet its goal of reducing Salina’s landfill waste.

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Atchison countywide sales tax moves along course to resolution

The work of the Atchison County Sales Tax Committee members is over, but the task to resolve the matter will continue on for a while.

Committee members put their heads together during a meeting Thursday night. The members came to a conclusion that financial transparency subject to independent audits and uniformity in accounting is a must as well as passage of inter-local agreements between the county and all the participating municipalities. Collected revenue generated distributed back to the entities will be handed over to the county coffer at a yet to be determined percentage rate. Calculations of the pro-rated percentages will be in accordance with the Kansas Department of Revenue tax ratio formula guidelines based on the municipalities’ populations and income levels. The next leg of the journey to resolve the issue will be up to the respective attorneys, Atchison County Counselor Patrick Henderson and Atchison City Attorney Robert Campbell. The attorney members will draft up the inter-local agreements that Atchison City Commission and Atchison County Commission members expect to review and discuss at the next city and county meeting and some discussion with city councils in Effingham, Huron, Lancaster and Muscotah. Then the next step will be to onto the municipalities for the approval of the agreements.

(Read more: Atchison Globe Now)

Incoming Lawrence mayor ready to ‘set the landscape’ for the city’s future

Even when she gets in her car to go somewhere else, Lisa Larsen has sometimes found herself inadvertently driving toward City Hall out of habit.

Considering the time she spends in the building, that’s not too surprising. In addition to being on the City Commission and the steering committee for the city’s new comprehensive plan, Larsen can often be found sitting among members of the public at the meetings of other city boards, such as the Affordable Housing Advisory Board. She is also one of two commissioners designated to work closely with the national firm hired to find the next city manager.

Larsen said that she thinks all those topics — the comprehensive plan, affordable housing and the city manager search — will be pivotal discussions in 2019, the year she is expected to occupy the center seat at City Hall. On Jan. 14, if city commissioners stick with the tradition of promoting the vice mayor to mayor, which they are widely expected to do, Larsen will become Lawrence’s next mayor.

Hillsboro Community Hospital power to stay on

Hillsboro Community Hospital’s power will remain on due to a last minute resolution that has the unpaid utility bill of $16,644.31 owed to the City of Hillsboro paid off. The rest of the roughly $28,000 owed to the City of Hillsboro previously reported was paid off earlier in the week.

The resolution came roughly 30 minutes before the scheduled shut off. The hospital had reported that there was a plan to stay open using a gasoline powered generator if the power would have been shut off as scheduled.

The utility bill being paid off means that the hospital won’t need to do that, and according to a press release provided by the City of Hillsboro, the city says it is their ongoing desire to undertake reasonable steps to assist in keeping the hospital open while also being a good steward of the city’s finances and utility resources.

City of Pittsburg Deepens Exploration into Public Power

At a commission meeting held on January 8, the City of Pittsburg asked commissioners to approve plans for a detailed analysis into creating a public power utility for Pittsburg.

Over the last two years, the City has been exploring different electricity options – not just public power, but any option that might improve reliability, stabilize costs and make Pittsburg a more attractive place for businesses.

Why? With the City’s electricity costs increasing at a rate that was unsustainable without introducing tax increases, businesses deterred from Pittsburg due to high electricity rates, and enquiries from citizens about frequent rate increases and the overall cost of electricity, it was clear that different options should be explored.

The City has met numerous times with the current provider, local stakeholders, large electricity users such as USD 250, Via Christi Hospital and Pittsburg State University, power suppliers, other communities in Kansas and potential partners. Referrals from these groups to additional stakeholders opened up multiple paths and different electricity options that were all explored. Based on the recommendation of local stakeholders, the City Commission and others, the City finally undertook an independent study into public power.

(Read more: City of Pittsburg)

Merriam Building Permit Map Now Available Online

Building is booming in Merriam, and now you can track it in real time. This week, the Community Development Department launched a new map on the City’s website that identifies the open building permits throughout the community.

The map, which will be updated monthly, provides pin locations for every building permit issued. Each permit pin contains additional information about the building permit, including the type of permit, permit number, and issue date.

“We know residents like to stay updated about what’s happening in our community, and this map will help them easily do that at the click of a button,” Bryan Dyer, Community Development Director, said. “The investment in the physical structures throughout Merriam has been steadily increasing over the past year and it really is impressive to see it contained in one map.”

Visit the Open Building Permits map.

(Read more: Merriam, KS news)

Topeka is finalizing details that will bring 300 to 400 young people to the capital city to paint about 60 houses for struggling homeowners

The city of Topeka is finalizing details that will bring 300 to 400 young people to the capital city this summer to paint about 60 houses for struggling homeowners.

Now they need homes to paint.

Shane Wilson, program intake coordinator with the city’s Neighborhood Relations department, said Group Cares, a Colorado-based organization, will bring its team to Topeka from July 7-13.

City officials decided to reach out to homeowners, who must meet specific criteria, in the North Topeka East and West areas, as well as the Ward-Meade area, because the Seaman school district agreed to provide accommodations for the young volunteers, Wilson said. Those areas are close to the Seaman district.

El Dorado City Commission approves sale of Prairie Trails Golf Course

The City of El Dorado has approved the purchase of Prairie Trails Golf Course by GreatLIFE Kansas City, LLC for $550,000. The agreement stipulates that the City maintains “Right of First Refusal” under two conditions. The first condition is that during the first seven years of operation, if GreatLIFE Kansas City. LLC would quit operating the golf course as agreed upon, the City has the right to buy it back for the purchase price plus improvements minus depreciation based on a set formula outlined in the contract. If they quit operating the golf course as agreed upon after the first seven years, the City would have the right to purchase the property back at market value. The second condition is that if they should decide to sell the property, the City would have the right to match or counter any offers.
After much discussion regarding the assignability of the “Right of First Refusal” in the event of future sales, it was determined that exercising the right when the option is made available would eliminate the need for assignability. GreatLIFE Kansas City, LLC will begin operation under a lease until closing which will be 10 business days after platting of the property.

(Read more: El Dorado Times)

Emporia discusses land bank

The Emporia City Commission discussed the land bank it has been considering Wednesday at its regular meeting.

City Housing Specialist Jeff Lynch said the community housing board had been brought up to date about the land bank concept.

“I think they are in general accepting of doing that — serving as the land bank if that’s what we needed them to do,” he said.

Lynch said members had asked the commission for input on goals for the land bank.

There are about four or five actual lots in the land bank, not including Walnut Park. According to Lynch, two people have inquired about lots.

Commissioner Rob Gilligan said he expected the inflow and outflow of lots from the land bank to be fairly constant.

“We’ll get five or six and then we’ll go down to two or three but then we’ll end up acquiring one or two or three more every year,” he said.

The city discussed drafting a memorandum of understanding with the housing board to handle the land bank.

(Read more: Emporia Gazette)

Barton County likely to move to paper voting system in next election

The 2018 November general election was the last for the county’s 89 aging voting machines. Purchased in 2005 and put into use in 2006, the machines had an estimated shelf life of 10 years which has now come and gone.

In early February, Barton County Clerk Donna Zimmerman, will meet with vendors to look at both electronic and paper voting systems and determine which direction the county will move toward in the future. Due to the cost of purchasing new electronic equipment, Zimmerman is leaning at least right now to returning to paper. The 89 voting machines were purchased in 2005 for $300,000 but thanks to a federal grant, the cost to the county was just $30,000. Federal monies are not available this time around to purchase new machines, a big reason why Zimmerman is exploring the paper option.

(Read more: Great Bend Post)

Commissioners help Wakefield with ballfield LED lights

On Monday morning, Clay County Commissioners gave funds out of the County’s Park and Rec. Fund to replace lights at several ballfield in Wakefield.

Julie Murphy, Wakefield City Clerk, met with Commissioners Monday to discuss the request for funding for the new LED Light Structure System for the ballfields in Wakefield, located east of the library on Third Street.

This system consists of six pre-cast, six galvanized steel poles, and 30 Factory aimed and assembled luminaries, including BallTracker luminaires, Murphy said. According to the company’s website, lights with BallTracker technology “provides low-level, targeted light that’s emitted upward, which optimizes visibility of the ball in aerial sports by creating a higher contrast between the ball and the sky, total light control for LED’s ability to target more light down onto the field, and the elimination of glare from the player’s line of sight.”

This kind of light is “better for players, better for spectators,” the company said. It helps to create superior playability for all sports, where players enjoy a field view in higher definition and can track the entire flight of the ball like never before.”

Manhattan raises guest tax; additional revenue to help expand conference center

The tax that visitors to Manhattan pay for a hotel room is set to rise by half a percent. The Manhattan City Commission unanimously voted to raise the city’s transient guest tax from 7 to 7 point 5 percent at their meeting Tuesday.
The city has been looking into an expansion of the Manhattan Conference Center at the Hilton Garden Inn that is now estimated will cost $3.5 million. The additional revenue from the increase in transient guest tax would be intended to help pay down the debt on that expansion, expected to bring in an extra $130,000 per year. HCW, the Hilton’s owning company, will finance $800,000 of expansion’s price tag and agreed to increase annual contributions to that from $100,000 to $120,000 per year starting in 2029.
And should the tax money not come in as expected, HCW as well as the Convention and Visitors Bureau agreed to cover the difference on the gap needed to pay the debt service — up to $25,000 each.
Mayor Pro Tempore Usha Reddi was on board, saying the center will be a benefit to the community.

(Read more: 1350 KMAN)

New commission will enable Topeka youths to say what they want their community to be

It is critically important that the youths of this community play a role in helping move it forward, Greater Topeka Partnership president and CEO Matt Pivarnik told Shawnee County commissioners Thursday.

He told Commissioners Kevin Cook, Shelly Buhler and Bob Archer he consequently felt excited to encourage them to express support for the Greater Topeka Youth Partnership Commission, a new organization consisting of youths and their adult supporters.

The youth commission will give young leaders a platform for “telling the adults what they want their community to be going forward,” Pivarnik said.

Commissioners subsequently voted 3-0 to express support for the youth partnership’s efforts “to provide avenues for youth to express opinions, involve youth in planning and decision-making, prepare youth to be good citizens, build skills, experience and confidence, provide opportunities to make a difference and to build an overall better community.”

The Greater Topeka Partnership will be the youth commission’s “organizational home,” but it will belong to the entire Topeka and Shawnee County community, Pivarnik said.

Marion county fire departments take predicting of wildfire danger in stride

Although some forecasts call for increased wildfires this summer, Marion County fire departments won’t change how they prepare.

Neighboring Chase and Butler Counties are among the Kansas counties most prone to wildfires.

If it has an effect, will be that more emphasis is placed on tactics and preparation, said.

“We might ramp up some of our wildland training, discuss some different things with tactics and strategy,” Lincolnville fire chief Les Kaiser said. “We also re-evaluate our trucks in case we need to make any changes in them.”

But a big challenge, Peabody fire chief Mark Penner said, is maintaining enough volunteers.

“It’s get harder and harder,” he said. “It’s not just us with small fire departments. People just don’t volunteer like they used to. It’s a bit tougher to get people to come and join, but for the most part we have a steady group of guys.”

(Read more: Marion County RECORD)

Augusta to decide on allowing RV parking in mobile home parks

Angie Johnston and Nick Hoefgen with Family First Living were present to ask the Council for consideration for allowing recreational vehicles in manufactured home residential districts.
Family First Living has a mobile home community in Towanda and two in Augusta. In addition to the park located at Custer Lane and Campbell Road, they recently purchased the park on Money Ave., on Augusta’s west side.
“Our community in Towanda and on Custer are highly occupied and both have spaces that were converted to allow for RVs…If they weren’t already set up, it would be a different conversation for us,” Johnston said.
She further shared that they are aware of challenges for the Money Ave. Park.
“We are aware of the blight that needs cleaned up. We’ve already met a lot of the residents and they’re excited about the change.“
Johnston also advised that it would take “a reasonable amount of time in order to be respectful to the residents.”
Family First Living plans to make aesthetic improvements to the front entrance area and all around the park, as well as providing incentives to residents to make improvements to their areas.
“I see this as a win. I don’t see a negative or downside,” Councilman Cale Magruder stated.

(Read more: Augusta Gazette)

Resident wants road closed in Pratt county

A road closure in Pratt County will have to be initiated by the county resident wanting the road closed.

Doug Freund, county road and bridge supervisor, informed Pratt County Commissioners that Joe Berry wants to close NW 60th Street between NW 70th and 80th Avenues.

County Counselor Bob Schmisseur said anyone interested in closing a road can file a petition to start the road closing process. County commissioners can authorize a road closure themselves without a petition but in this case, the commissioners agreed that Berry will have to start the process.

Freund said there were one or two other land owners that would be effected by the road closure but neither would have to cross anyone else’s property to get to their own property.

Part of the road closing process includes a public hearing on the matter for adjoining land owners.

Hays city commission to consider extension of TDD tax in northeast business area

ays city commissioners will decide Thursday whether to approve a resolution for improvement of East 41st Street from Home Depot east to Vineyard Park.

A 3/4-cent sales tax was enacted April 1, 2005, for the Home Depot Transportation Development District (TDD), which currently includes Home Depot, IHOP, Hampton Inn, Town Place Suites by Marriott, the former JT Travel Plaza and a yet-to-be developed area for 47,000 square feet of retail space.

The TDD tax outperformed projections allowing for the 2004 TDD bonds financing the Phase I improvements to be called early and completed in January 2018.

Special Counsel Kevin Wempe with Gilmore & Bell has determined the 3/4-cent TDD sales tax could continue until March 2027 to fund a portion of Phase II improvements.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Horton City Commission denies trash service rate hike

After several discussions over the past few months, John Blessing of Waste Management was present to discuss the proposed 46-cent per home rate increase. Commissioner Wade Edwards stated that after communicating with Horton residents, the company’s sub-standard service is a concern. A motion was made and the commission voted unanimously to deny the request for the rate increase.

(Read more: Hiawatha World Online)

Nauheim v. City of Topeka: Relocation benefits when condemning real property

Partial syllabus from today’s Kansas Supreme Court opinion:

2.
Whenever federal funding is not involved, and real property is acquired by any condemning authority, K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518 identifies two distinct situations requiring the authority to pay relocation benefits to a displaced person: (a) when the acquisition occurs through negotiation in advance of a condemnation action, or (b) when the acquisition occurs through a condemnation action.

3.
Not every acquisition of real property by a condemning authority is covered by K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518.

4.
The phrase “negotiation in advance of a condemnation action” in K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518 is both temporal and contextual. To be entitled to relocation benefits, a displaced person must show: (a) negotiation resulted in the property’s acquisition before any eminent domain proceedings commenced; and (b) a condemnation would have followed had that negotiation failed.

5.
Whether a negotiation was in advance of a condemnation action under K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518 is a question of fact to be established by a preponderance of the evidence. A preponderance of the evidence means evidence that shows a fact is more probably true than not true.

6.
A finder of fact should consider any relevant evidence that might reasonably bear on establishing whether a negotiation was in advance of a condemnation action under K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518. Evidence is relevant if it tends to establish a material fact at issue.

Parsons ponders changes to tax relief program

With a neighborhood revitalization program set to expire this year, the city of Parsons is looking to push for greater tax relief for owners who improve their property.

The city now has two neighborhood revitalization programs. One was recently approved for the northern part of the city in the area of the junction of U.S. 400 and U.S. 59 (North 16th Street) and pertains to commercial development only. The other, older program set to expire in October allows both commercial and residential property owners in a specific area to get 90 percent tax rebates on additional property tax brought by an increase in valuation caused by improvements. The program is an incentive to encourage people to build new structures or add to existing structures by giving them tax relief for the first five years so that the city benefits from the added valuation in the future.

During a city commission meeting Monday evening, City Manager Debbie Lamb said Feb. 5 is the date set in the program agreement with other taxing entities to begin discussion of extending the program. The other taxing entities include Labette County, Parsons USD 503 and Labette Community College.

The program usually is extended for five years at a time, but Lamb said city staff has discussed pushing the program to 10 years of tax rebates, or at least seven or eight. The city also may consider broadening the program’s range, although it covers most of the city already.

(Read more: Parsons Sun)

Some positions filled; Hutchinson police force still down 14 officers

Recruiting efforts continue in Hutchinson to fill vacancies in the police department.

City Manager John Deardoff says some of the openings were filled, but the department is still about 14 officers short of a full staff.

Deardoff says there are currently four officers in final training. There is still a large hole to fill once those officers hit the streets.

Deardoff says the city and police force have been going to area colleges to try and recruit potential officers. He reiterated this is not a problem in Hutchinson alone, but nationwide. Deardoff says the city will continue to reevaluate its recruiting practices in an effort to fill the vacancies.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Chanute, rec commission line out path to improvements

The Chanute City Commission and Chanute Recreation Commission met Wednesday night to discuss a facilities agreement in a joint work session.

Final action was not taken on the agreement, but city and rec commissioners asked questions about the draft, which will pave the way for renovations of the Santa Fe Park ballfields, the rec center and other improvements.

City commissioners Randy Galemore, Phil Chaney and Jacob LaRue met with the CRC board, with attorney Kent Pringle and Chanute Interim Superintendent Steve Parsons attending.

Renovation of six fields at Santa Fe Park is estimated at a cost of more than $1 million, which will be split between the city Parks Department and the CRC. City officials recently committed to new lighting to take advantage of current prices before the cost increases.

The agreement would cover 10 years initially, but would automatically renew annually for a practical total of 15 years, dividing the CRC’s $500,000 over 10 years.

The lump sum would replace a lease the CRC currently has with the city for the recreation center, formerly the Chanute High School. CRC pays $2,500 per month in utilities plus $1,000 for the lease, with any excess utilities and the lease payment going into a building fund.

Salina Chamber of Commerce CEO announces retirement after 43 years with organization

After serving the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce for 43 years, the last four as president and chief executive officer, Don L. Weiser has announced his retirement effective May 1.

In a statement released Thursday, Weiser said it is time for him to enjoy a quieter life and spend more time with his family, which includes wife Lynne, daughters Melissa and Laura and his grandchildren.

“I am thankful that Lynne and I chose Salina those years ago,” he said. “We have raised our family here, and we are fortunate to have our children and grandchildren here also. We love this community, love this organization, and see nothing but great things ahead for the future of Salina.”

Weiser is a graduate of the University of Kansas with a degree in journalism. After working in the radio and television industry in western Kansas and Missouri, he and wife Lynne moved to Salina, where he joined the Chamber staff in 1975 as executive assistant to then-president Bob Whitworth.

In his 43 years at the Chamber, Weiser has served in many capacities. After being named interim president and CEO in 2014, he officially was offered the position in April 2015.

“The 43 years of my Salina Chamber career have been very fulfilling and exciting, and I’ve enjoyed seeing and helping this community grow and prosper,” he said. “It has truly been a pleasure to be a part of that.”

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Kansas Department of Commerce Releases Economic Development Statistics for 2018

Kansas has had much to celebrate in the area of economic development during 2018, according to statistics released today from the Kansas Department of Commerce. 2018 has been an exceptional year for the Kansas economy, with over 11,000 new jobs and $1.7 billion in capital investment added to the state’s economy.

The Department of Commerce reports it participated in 138 successful economic development projects across the state during 2018, yielding 11,548 new jobs and 9,116 retained jobs. The total capital investment on these projects was $1.7 billion and $1.17 billion in payroll.

“I’m proud of what we have accomplished with the economy during my time in office,” said Governor Jeff Colyer, M.D. “Unemployment is at record lows, we have more people working than ever before, and job creation is on the rise. Kansas has a brighter future because of the hard work done by so many over the past year.”

Hillsboro hospital, city, county named in foreclosure

Hillsboro Community Hospital could be sold at a sheriff’s sale if Bank of Hays wins a mortgage foreclosure petition filed in district court Tuesday.

The petition, filed Tuesday, seeks a court order that the sheriff sell the hospital building and its contents, then distribute the proceeds first to Marion County for $300,000 unpaid real estate taxes, and next to Bank of Hays for more than $9.8 million owed on the mortgage, interest, and costs of the lawsuit.

According to the petition, the bank is entitled to foreclose on the building, inventory, equipment, fixtures, instruments, documents, health care insurance receivables, deposit accounts, court judgments owed to the hospital, securities, and other tangible and intangible property.

Also named as defendants in the lawsuit are CAH Acquisition Company #5; HMC/CAH Consolidated; City of Hillsboro; Public Building Commission of Hillsboro; Board of County Commissioners; and any other party claiming interest in the property.

(Read more: HILLSBORO Star-Journal)

Hillsboro Community Hospital faces Friday shutdown

If Hillsboro Community Hospital doesn’t pay $28,644.31 owed to the city of Hillsboro for utilities, service will be shut off at noon Friday.

“I have directed city administrator Larry Paine to shut off utilities at noon Friday if the bill is not paid in full by that time,” mayor Lou Thurston told city council members Tuesday.

A second debt owed by the hospital gave rise to a half-hour executive session to discuss potential litigation.

“We may have been sued as a co-defendant by the mortgage holder, Bank of Hays,” Thurston said when he called for the executive session.

Back in open session at 7 p.m., Thurston announced no decisions had been made.

A $10,247.96 check for the hospital’s October utility bill bounced in December. November and December’s bills, totaling $18,396.35, remain unpaid.

(Read more: HILLSBORO Star-Journal)

Miami county disbands fire district boards

Miami County commissioners opted Jan. 2 to disband the county’s two fire district boards — culminating several recent discussions and a Dec. 19 public hearing about transferring governance to the county.

County commissioners voted 4-1 to disband the First District No. 1 board, which the commission had established in 1974.

Commissioner Danny Gallagher cast the dissenting vote, saying the fire district board had done everything asked of it.

“We asked them to put together budgets for each (community fire department), and they did that,” Gallagher said. “We asked them to do long-range planning, and they did that.”

Commissioners voted 5-0 to disband the Fire District No. 2 board.

The transfer of governance will take effect March 1 for both fire districts.

(Read more: The Miami County Republic)

Road conditions lead to tax protest

Cattleman Merle Schlehuber paid his property taxes under protest because of the condition of county roads running by his land.

So did Chasen Gann and James Enns. All told, county appraiser Lisa Reeder said Monday, annual property taxes on 37 parcels are scheduled for tax protests because of the conditions of county roads.

Their exact reasons are unclear, as are the prospects for successfully protesting their taxes due. Clearly, there is dissatisfaction with county roads. At Monday’s county commission meeting, rural Marion resident Chuck Seifert gave commissioners a piece of his mind about consultant fees about road and other projects.

Seifert said he’d reviewed records of what the county spent for project engineers over the last year and that the county should hire its own engineer.

“You’re paying out way too much on consulting fees,” Seifert said. “Get an in-house engineer and you can save that.”

(Read more: HILLSBORO Star-Journal)

Contract to set price for jail project signed by Marshall County Commissioners

The Marshall County commissioners signed a contract Monday with Loyd Builders, Ottawa, to determine the cost for a jail expansion. The contract gives Loyd Builders permission to work with project architect TreanorHL, Lawrence, to develop a guaranteed maximum price. The contract is a precursor to a potential ”Construction Manager at Risk” agreement between the county and Loyd Builders.

(Read more: The Marysville Advocate)

Arma council member resigns, disapproves of council behavior

Arma City Council Member Richard Kerley resigned Monday night on the basis of treating people with “dignity and respect.”
Kerely resigned Monday, effective immediately.
Arma Mayor Rock Anderson read his letter of resignation to the council. After reading the letter, Anderson said, “It’s really a big loss, the guy had so much talent and did so much work and saved the city a God-awful amount of money, with water and other things he did.
“He has so much knowledge pertaining to public works, water, gas, all kinds of things. A great councilman.“
The council agreed and said it was “senseless” to lose “a man with so many talents,” and going forward they should be “more careful” to avoid losing other council members or employees.
Selecting a new councilman will be on the agenda for the next meeting.

(Read more: Community – Morning Sun)

His time in prison behind him, Leavenworth mayor inspires county’s ‘Expungement Day’

Jermaine Wilson needed a plan.

He was behind bars in the maximum security wing of Lansing Correctional Facility. “Like a caged animal,” he said.

He took up paper and pen there in 2007 and began listing the way it was going to be.

He had God in his life now. No more drugs. No more “chasing the money.” He was going to get back to his 8-month-old son, Jermaine Jr. He was going to take classes in prison. Get out and start a life of service. Go to work. Start a non-profit.

Not on his list? Become the mayor of Leavenworth.

But Tuesday night, some 12 years after beginning a three-year sentence on drug charges, Leavenworth’s rising symbol of hope, unity and redemption took the center seat at the City Commission meeting as the new mayor.

(Read more: Government & Politics News |)

Pittsburg continues to explore creating public electric utility

The City of Pittsburg is continuing its exploration of the possibility of owning the city’s electric service.

The city commissioned a study from GE Warren Associates on the feasibility of purchasing — as state law allows — the local electrical grid from Weststar and forming a public utility.

At Tuesdays’ Pittsburg City Commission meeting, the representative from GE Warren — who said he was a “big proponent” of public power — said the number of customers in Pittsburg would make a city-owned power utility larger than 85 percent of public utilities in the U.S.

Additionally, he said, the utility would generate roughly $35 million in gross sales per year, with an internal rate of return of 9.6 percent per year, adding that — given a 20 year note — the utility would be profitable starting year one.

According to a release from the city, the reason behind exploring forming a utility comes down to costs.

(Read more: Pittsburg Morning Sun)

South Hutch Council votes not to retain police chief

The City of South Hutchinson is down to three police officers and no chief after the City Council on Monday night voted not to re-appoint Chief Mark Thompson.

Mayor Mandi Blumanhourst, in an email, confirmed the council’s action. The News was unable to reach any city council members or the chief for comment.

“The council voted to not reappoint Mark Thompson as police chief,” Blumanhourst stated. “I have no further details to provide.”

Patrol Sgt. Paul Allen said the council appointed no interim chief, but he otherwise had no comment.

Thompson, who worked at the police department nearly 17 years, took over the post after former Chief Scott Jones retired last year, moving up from captain.

(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)

Louisburg city council discusses fixes to stormwater system

While most of Louisburg’s stormwater system is in good condition, members of the City Council were told recently that it would take more than $1 million to fix problems with the pipes and structures.

Brent Johnson with the civil engineering firm Olsson presented a stormwater master plan Dec. 17 to the Louisburg City Council. He said preparation of the plan, which included inspection of most of the city’s stormwater infrastructure, started in early summer and wrapped up in the fall. He said there was minor work to be done on the final report to the city, but it should be completed in January. “We completed a system survey and condition assessment,” Johnson said. “We identified areas of flooding concern and prepared a plan for the future.

“We had to walk a lot of the city to identify and locate stormwater structures. We estimated we would inspect 600 structures and we ended up inspecting 2,000,” he said.

Of the 2,000 structures inspected, Johnson said about 80 percent (1,676) showed minor or no deterioration. Just 194 structures are in need of repair, while 249 were listed as “could not be inspected.”

(Read more: The Miami County Republic)

Great Bend working on online payment option for utility bills

The City of Great Bend altered how they attempt to collect late utility payments, and there is now an effort to provide an option for citizens to pay their bill online.

City Administrator Kendal Francis says the City has been approached multiple times requesting the online payment option. Francis acknowledged the online payment is a goal for 2019, but the City first wants to establish the utility network. Great Bend started a policy January 1, 2019, that if you are late on your bill, your utility service will be cut off without a face-to-face reminder. The move was made to eliminate time spent by staff running around town and the liability of handling cash.

(Read more: Great Bend Post)

Sabetha planning commission makes commercial wind generation city code recommendation

More than 60 local residents were present for the Sabetha Planning and Zoning meeting, when the board voted unanimously to remove commercial wind generation facilities from the Sabetha’s “AG” Agricultural District Regulations Code. Others present at the Thursday, Jan. 3, meeting were Sabetha Planning and Zoning Commission members Jerry Johnson, David Koch, Lynn Hartter, Scott Wedel, Shannon Stapleton, Matt Heiman and Scott Krebs. Also present were City Administrator Doug Allen and Assistant City Administrator Bill Shroyer.

Currently, the City of Sabetha Land Development Code Article 2 Section 2-102 — which was adopted in September 2003 — states that commercial wind generation facilities are permitted within Sabetha’s extraterritorial area. Allen explained that the City Commission requested that the Planning Commission review this code. “The Sabetha City Commission has asked you as the Planning Commission to look into our extraterritorial district agricultural section as it is listed as permitted use for commercial wind generation facilities,” Allen said.

According to Allen, the Planning Commission needed to decided either to remove Commercial Wind Generation Facilities (item five) as a permitted use from the article; or it could be moved to be a conditional use, which would require a public hearing; or to prohibit Commercial Wind Generation Facilities from being put up in the extraterritorial district.

(Read more: Sabetha Herald)

Roeland Park survey will ask residents whether they want city parks smoke free, how to address teardown-rebuild issue

Roeland Park residents will have the opportunity to weigh in on teardown/major remodeling guidelines, satisfaction with the updated leaf pickup program, and provide suggestions for pool programming when they receive their 2019 citizen survey. Residents can also indicate whether they want the city’s parks to be completely smoke free. Councilmembers discussed the draft version of the 7-page questionnaire during Monday’s workshop meeting. Once finalized each Roeland Park household can expect to receive a survey in the mail. The survey will also be available online.

The questionnaire will allow residents to provide feedback on how much authority they would like the city to have on directing design aesthetics for new homes and significant remodels and weigh in on which design elements they feel most strongly about. Options include the size and height of a house, setbacks, windows and doors on each elevation of the home, driveway widths, and the percentage of impervious surface (like concrete) allowed. Prairie Village has been dealing with similar issues, and passed a new set of design guidelines last year.

LETTER: Ellis County sales tax for buildings successful

On May 14, 2013, Ellis County voters approved a one-half cent per dollar local sales tax to construct a new building for Fire and Emergency Medical Services and extensively renovate the County Courthouse and Law Enforcement Center. That sales tax went into effect on October 1, 2013, and sunset five years later on September 30, 2018.

At the time of the election, the sales tax was projected to generate $14,352,000 over the five-year period to repay bonds issued to finance construction of the two facilities. Reconciliation of the sales tax receipts through December 28, 2018, indicates that the tax actually generated $16,299,016.69. Expenditures on construction and associated expenses totaled $14,887,328.70, leaving a remaining balance of $1,411,687.99. Ellis County Commissioners will consider in February of 2019 plans for spending that remaining balance.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Lenexa council hears pitch for major revamp of old community center, senior center

The first major change in Lenexa’s old downtown in 30 years began to take shape this week, as the Lenexa City Council got a peek at a project that would significantly alter the block now occupied by the old community center, senior center and a small adjacent park.

An architect walked the council through the first draft of plans to eventually tear down the Senior Center at the corner of Pflumm Road and Walnut Street and bring it under the roof of the community center next door. The drawings also reconfigured the parking lot and created an outdoor gathering space for activities like pickleball or bocce ball in the area where the Senior Center now is. The plan is still in a very preliminary stage, only on the city’s “wish list” and not the more concrete capital improvements budget. Still, the presentation by Brian Garvey of SFS Architecture is the first look at how some of the suggestions from the 2015 planning study of the neighborhood might actually look. And it got very favorable reception by some on the council.

“This is exciting to me,” said Councilmember Corey Hunt. “It’s a good feeling to look at this and think about how it may activate all of downtown.”

Nemaha County Commission hears concerns, continues NextEra wind project negotiations

The Nemaha County Commissioners have been busy this past week listening and absorbing a plethora of information, which has been brought to them by multiple county residents in opposition of two wind farm projects proposed in Nemaha County. The first meeting was held on Monday, Dec. 31, 2018, while the second was held on Monday, Jan. 7.

During the Dec. 31 meeting, multiple county residents attended to express their concern and present information they had found regarding wind energy projects. At the Jan. 7 meeting, Attorney James Neeld – the attorney hired by Nemaha County – was present to answer questions and give an update to residents about where they are in their negotiations with NextEra.

(Read more: Sabetha Herald)

Parsons shows concern with wind farm

With an eye on preserving the recreational opportunities at Lake Parsons, the city of Parsons will continue to monitor discussions regarding a planned wind generation project in Neosho County.

At the urging of City Commissioner Tom Shaw, City Attorney Ross Albertini attended the Neosho County Commission meeting last week. A large portion of the meeting was devoted to discussion on the Neosho Ridge wind farm that Apex Energy is planning to develop on the south end of the county, including near Lake Parsons. Albertini said nothing was mentioned during the meeting about possible pollution to the lake, but he found through research that the city doesn’t need to worry about that aspect.

There is some concern, however, about the migratory patterns of ducks being affected by turbines, as well as the number of birds that would be killed by turbines.

Albertini said Jim Zaleski, economic development director of Parsons, planned to get in touch with a person he knows at the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism to gather more information. The city staff will continue to monitor the progress of the wind farm and plans to send someone to a Thursday evening Neosho County Commission special meeting on the topic. City Manager Debbie Lamb said the Lake Parsons advisory board also would discuss the topic on Tuesday to determine if opposition should be mounted or concerns aired.

(Read more: Parsons Sun)

Cities threaten to ‘turn off the lights’ if KC-based hospital chain doesn’t pay bills

Larry Paine and the rest of the city leaders in Hillsboro, Kan., have a problem.
EmpowerHMS, the North Kansas City-based company that manages their hospital, owes the city thousands in unpaid utility bills. A check written to the city in December bounced, and Paine, the city administrator, can’t get anybody from the company to resolve it.
…
Empower, headquartered at 1700 Swift Ave., operates 14 rural hospitals nationwide, including three in Kansas (Hillsboro Community Hospital, Oswego Community Hospital and Horton Community Hospital) and two in Missouri (Fulton Medical Center and I-70 Community Hospital in Sweet Springs).

But Paine and leaders in other cities worry whether their hospitals can continue to operate under EmpowerHMS management, as signs of financial distress multiply.
…
At least two cities — Hillsboro and an Oklahoma town — are now trying to force Empower to pay up.

(Read more: KC Star Local News)

From Inmate to In-Charge: Leavenworth welcomes new mayor

The city of Leavenworth has a new mayor, and he is anything but ordinary.
Before becoming mayor, Jermaine Wilson took an unusual path.
In 2007, he was convicted of a felony and spent three years in prison for possession of drugs. While behind bars, he became a Christian and decided to make it his mission to teach people not to make the same mistakes he did.
He first spoke to churches and juveniles at detention facilities and taught inmates how to write resumes and fill out job applications. Then, the father of five established the Unity in the Community program.
“Once I got released, I started serving my community,” said Wilson. “The moment that you start to build up people, you build up your community.”

Water, sewer rates to climb for the next 20-30 years in Wichita

Wichita is raising the city’s water rates by 4.15 percent this year while grappling with how to minimize expected yearly rate hikes for the next 20 to 30 years.

The rates are rising now and in the future to pay for a new half-billion dollar drinking-water treatment plant and the cost of complying with new regulations for “biological nutrient removal,” a euphemism for getting more of the dirty stuff out of the sewage water before discharging it back into the environment.

The current water treatment plant is more than 80 years old. It’s plagued with minor problems already and is at risk of major failure in the near future, city staff has said.