Municipal News & Jobs

Two hundred years ago, on August 10, 1825, a significant meeting took place near the banks of the Neosho River—one that would permanently shape the identity of a small settlement on the Santa Fe Trail. That day, representatives of the U.S. government and the Osage Nation met beneath a grove of hardwood trees to sign a treaty granting safe passage for traders and travelers venturing west along the Santa Fe Trail. The site of that meeting was given a name that has endured through the centuries: Council Grove.
Read more: www.emporiagazette.com – RSS Results in news,government/*

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

Anything in the street goes into storm drains — Lawrence has over 400 miles of stormwater pipes — then flows, untreated, directly into streams, reservoirs and the Kansas River.
Read more: LJWorld.com

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

Wichita city leaders are trying to decide how the city will save water once Stage 2 drought restrictions end. Once those restrictions end, Wichita could move to allow outdoor watering every other day.
Read more: KWCH

A City of Scott City employee died in a workplace accident on July 18. He was found dead by another employee at the city’s water tower, according to the city’s Mayor, Everett Green.
Read more: KWCH

K.S.A. 12-5252(a) exempts cities in counties subject to the FEMA-1711-DR or FEMA-1699 disaster declarations and those counties from certain statutory requirements for the establishment of a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District, including the requirement of holding a public hearing on the proposal, but this exemption only applied prior to July 1, 2013. The provisions of K.S.A. 12-5246(c), which authorize other taxing entities to nullify or void a city or county’s establishment of a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District, apply even when the city or county is not required to hold a public hearing. This action must be taken with 30 days of the adoption of the ordinance or resolution establishing the district. Cited herein: K.S.A. 12-5245; 12-5246; 12-5252.
Read more: Kansas Attorney General Opinions

Visit Hutch announced on Sunday that they have been selected by the National Horseshoe Pitching Association (NHPA) to host the 2026 World Doubles Championship. It will take place from Oct. 9-11, 2026, at the horseshoe pitching mounds in Rice Park and hosted in conjunction with the Rice Park Ringers Horseshoe Club.
Read more: KSN-TV

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

In conjunction with the local Lions Club and City Council, Miltonvale volunteers put up a shade canopy for the city pool. Together, the entities designed, built, and installed the canopy, which is now located on the pool’s sun deck.
Read more: KCLY Radio

A Wyandotte County sheriff’s deputy was shot and killed Saturday afternoon while responding to a call involving a reported threat with a firearm. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says the shooting occurred around 3:45 p.m. at a home in the 2600 block of S. 30th Street in Kansas City, Kansas. A woman had contacted police earlier, requesting assistance while moving out of the residence, citing concerns for her safety. She told authorities a man inside the house had threatened her friends with a gun. Deputy Elijah Ming, 34, and an officer with the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department responded to the scene. As they approached the front door, a man inside the home opened fire. Deputy Ming was struck multiple times. The KCKPD officer was not injured.
Read more: KSN-TV

Sheriff’s deputies in Kansas made an unexpected traffic stop on Friday when they pulled over a vehicle carrying none other than 1980s pop-rock icon John Waite and his band. Sergeant Justin Rugg conducted the stop as the group was headed to Dodge City, Kansas, for a performance at United Wireless Arena. A longtime fan, Rugg couldn’t hide his excitement. The Kiowa County Sheriff’s Office shared the encounter in a lighthearted social media post, calling Waite a “cool guy” and thanking him for taking a photo with the sergeant.
Read more: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

We now know the name of the man who died after a trench collapsed in the city Thursday. The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department (KCKPD) says 54-year-old Francisco Rodriguez, a resident of the city, died that day. The collapse happened at 16th Street and Metropolitan Avenue near the train tracks and the Kansas River.
Read more: KSNT 27 News

A local family is getting ready to embark on a new adventure in Burlingame with the opening of an ice cream parlor in an old bank. Robin Ridgeway is getting ready for the big day when Sweet Savings Bank Ice Cream Parlor opens its doors to the community. Ridgeway and her husband, Brett, along with her daughter Samantha Garrison and son-in-law David Garrison, will open the shop for business at 11 a.m. on Thursday, July 31 at 102 West Santa Fe in Burlingame.
Read more: KSNT 27 News

The City of Andover and residents celebrated a new city park opening on Tuesday evening. The park is unique in its relativity to the new Fire Station 2 and it’s positioning south of HWY 400. Fire Station Park, located at 650 S Andover Road, finally officially opened on Tuesday, July 22. The park was long-awaited by residents who reside south of HWY 400, as they haven’t had their own park with a children’s playground on that side of the highway until now.
Read more: Butler County Times-Gazette

A new four-legged recruit is rising through the ranks at Sedgwick County Fire District 1. She is a 15-month-old Belgian Malinois named Violet who is training to join the department’s search and rescue operations as a K9 crew member.
Read more: www.derbyinformer.com – RSS Results in news/area_news of type article

Amid recent allegations of bullying and verbal attacks, nearly the entirety of the McCune City Council and much of the city government resigned on Tuesday. Resignations included not only three of the five city council members, but also the mayor, city clerk, superintendent, assistant superintendent, and public works director, effectively leaving the small town of 350 without leadership or government infrastructure.
Read more: – Latest Stories

The declaration gives state and local governments, as well as certain nonprofits, the ability to apply for public assistance funds to repair and replace damaged infrastructure. The counties that can apply are Bourbon, Cheyenne, Edwards, Gove, Kiowa, Logan, Pratt, Reno, Scott, Sheridan and Stafford.
Read more: Hutch News

State officials have said the plant will draw employees from as far as Topeka in the west, Leavenworth in the north and reaching into suburbs east of Kansas City.
Read more: CJonline

Designating downtown as a CCA would allow participating establishments within the district to sell cereal malt beverages and alcohol in cups up to 16 ounces, marked with the business logo, that could be carried and consumed within the boundaries.
Read more: Harvey County Now

Originally, the county intended to ask voters to renew the 10-year, quarter-cent public safety sales tax in November, planning to use it on capital and operating costs for the county’s Med-Act ambulance service, sheriff’s office, district attorney, mental health crisis intervention and disaster response. Now, the question is expected to come to voters in March 2026 instead, and the wording of the question could be modified.
Read more: Johnson County Post

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

K.S.A. 41-2911(b)(1) requires city ordinances authorizing Sunday sales of alcoholic liquor and cereal malt beverages to be published twice. If an adopted ordinance is defeated by protest petition but subsequently included in a new compilation of the city code that is only published once, the city has not validly authorized Sunday sales.
Read more: Kansas Attorney General Opinions

For assistance, updating or creating a new city code for your city, contact Larry Kleeman.

And if you are already a city code client, remember to email us each new ordinance so we keep your code up-to-date.

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

In November of 2024, the Macksville City Library announced thankfulness for receiving a $15,000 grant from the South Central Community Foundation. SCCF is a regional foundation that manages charitable funds for seven counties in south central Kansas. Our “Libraries Unite” project allowed the libraries in Macksville, St. John and Stafford to divide the grant equally, each utilizing $5,000 to improve programming, accessibility and outreach to patrons across Stafford county (and beyond). At Macksville, we have finally spent all of our grant funds in some very impactful ways!
Read more: Homepage

At a pre-meeting on July 15, the Garden City Commission heard a presentation on welcoming signs, city limit signs and wayfinding signs. Tyler Patterson, Public Works Operations Manager, said one of the City Commission Goals for 2025-26 is welcoming signs. There are three Welcome to Garden City signs, not including one at the Garden City Regional Airport and Flight Desk Restaurant, in Garden City, Patterson said.
Read more: Garden City Telegram

Newton City Commissioners gave an initial go-ahead for staff to begin formalizing an incentive package aimed at drawing in another hotel. In recent years, the City of Newton has seen a decrease in bed tax revenue, as well as guest space at some local hotels. Bed tax revenue funds city programs such as the convention and visitors bureau. During large events like last year’s adaptive golf open, many attendees found themselves staying in Wichita or other locations.
Read more: Harvey County Now

A federal judge drastically limited a developer’s lawsuit over an Edwardsville ordinance that would ban heavy truck traffic on a street abutting a $100 million logistics center. Scannell Properties spent millions preparing and planning to build more than 2.1 million square feet of light industrial as part of its Compass 70 Logistics facility. It remains under construction and sits in Bonner Springs, along the border with Edwardsville, just south of Interstate 70.
Read more: Kansas City Business Journal – Local Kansas City News

Natalie and Alex Beauchamp have moved five times in the past four years.  They’ve fit their lives into apartments across Missouri and the Kansas City area. It’s only recently, when Alex Beauchamp’s promotion required a move to Wichita, that the 20-somethings thought to try their luck at buying a home. City leaders talk a lot about attracting people like the Beauchamps to Wichita: young professionals ready to establish roots. But planting here is harder now than 20 years ago. Especially for first-time buyers.  The Beauchamps did just about everything right, according to their real estate agent, Jayna Reece. They arranged their financing, tempered their expectations and became eager students of her guidance about the home-buying process and the Wichita market. Even so, they had a six-week whirlwind of house searching. 
Read more: KLC Journal

It was a night of celebration in Andover as the city officially opened its newest park and welcomed back a beloved community space. Fire Station 2 Park, located just south of Kellogg and Andover Road, sits next to the newly opened Fire Station 2, which inspired the park’s name. The park was funded by the Family Future Forward sales tax, approved by voters in November 2021.
Read more: KSN-TV

In the shadow of the world’s largest hand-painted Czech egg stands the Wilson Czech opera house, a more than 120-year-old building that has been a member of the Wilson community since the town’s beginning. It was built by hand by some of the original residents of this small Kansas community back in 1902. Ford and Kenny Beneba, the Opera House Corporation’s president, says it was built by 26 men and eight mules. However, in 2009, a fire engulfed the century-old structure, leaving its future looking bleak. But like a phoenix from the ashes, the opera house has new life after the community came together to renovate the space into an open-air theater for the entire town to enjoy.
Read more: KSN-TV

Early voting is underway for the primary election in Sedgwick County. Along with candidates, voters in Maize have a special question. The city is asking its residents to approve a 1% sales tax. Maize City Manager Nick Gregory says this sales tax will help reduce future property tax increases while still investing in much-needed infrastructure improvements.
Read more: KSN-TV

Police are notifying Topeka pet owners of some changes the Topeka City Council made recently for cruelty to animals and dangerous dog ordinances.  The Topeka City Council voted on July 8 to amend Section 6.05.100 of the Topeka Municipal Code and repeal the original section. The council’s decision means local pet owners are required to provide animals with water at all times and changes violations of animal cruelty ordinances to a Class A nonperson misdemeanor. The Topeka Police Department said pet owners who have regained ownership of a dangerous dog can also petition the court for an extension of time to comply with the dangerous dog conditions. The court has to find there is a good reason for the extension.
Read more: KSNT 27 News

The leaders of the state’s new Water Program Task Force say they are committed to finding elusive solutions to the state’s long-simmering water crisis. Sen. Kenny Titus, a Republican attorney from Wamego, and Rep. Jim Minnix, a Republican farmer from Scott City who chairs the House Water Committee, appeared alongside Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly at a ceremony in Hays to outline their vision for the task force. The two lawmakers will co-chair a bipartisan group that includes business leaders and conservationists. Their mission: Evaluate risks to water quality and quantity, build a management system that addresses those risks, and secure a dedicated revenue source to ensure the plan, like so many before, doesn’t just sit on a shelf.
Read more: The Eudora Times

The Lawrence Police Department has rolled out a new program asking residents and businesses to register their security cameras on a list or integrate them for realtime access by police. Some community members worry the system could infringe on privacy.  Voluntary participants in the program can register their security cameras and contact information with the police department, allowing police to see where cameras are located and request footage if a crime occurs nearby.
Read more: The Lawrence Times

A meeting date has been set for Park City to vote on the project agreement for the $500 million Champtown mixed-use entertainment destination, making way for the development to receive key incentives from the state. During its meeting on Tuesday, Park City City Council set a public hearing for Aug. 26 to present and vote on the agreement. It has to receive two-thirds of the vote to pass.
Read more: Wichita Business Journal – Local Wichita News

The Kansas Court of Appeals ruled this month that Riley County District Court judge’s decision to affirm the approval of an amended planned unit development application for Liquid Art winery by county commissioners was valid. While the court saw the merit of Prairiewood Holding’s appeal, their final opinion upholds Judge Grant Bannister’s decision.
Read more: News Radio KMAN

Uncertain of the legality of products found in Carlsons’ Grocery in Marion, police seized 160 cans and bottles of THC beverages Saturday. Bearing names such as “Nowadays,” “Drink Easy,” “Drinking Buds,” and “Happi,” some come in flavors such as raspberry honeysuckle. The containers say that the minimum age to buy the product is 21 and that it contains no alcohol.
Read more: Marion County RECORD

Improvements are coming to Rural Water District No. 1. The district was in hot water earlier this month after Tampa and Ramona residents reported dark-brown water coming from their taps.
Last week, water board chairman Donald Mueller and operator Autumn Chisholm were joined by staff members from the Kansas Rural Water Association to induce flushing of large pipelines in hope of removing discolored water from the system.
Read more: Marion County RECORD

Lawrence Municipal Court for the next month will allow people to pay off $50 in fines with $15 worth of school supplies as part of an annual initiative. The supply drive began Wednesday and runs through Saturday, Aug. 23. It’s “designed to help individuals with outstanding fines while supporting local school children and families,” according to a city news release. The program only applies to existing traffic and parking fines, not future fines, and downtown meter citations issued after Jan. 1, 2025 are excluded, according to the release. Donating toward another person’s fines is an option.
Read more: The Lawrence Times

Area residents make their way around the Garden City Farmers Market July 19, browsing and buying items from vendors. Foot traffic at the event is picking up as vendors with produce have began participating.
Read more: Garden City Telegram

Dennis Alexander rode a lawn mower up and down St. Mary’s Cemetery rows on a recent summer day. Alexander is one of the volunteers at the cemetery who keep it running, make sure the grass is cut and perform other kinds of maintenance. Alexander will take over the cemetery sexton role when the current sexton, Carrol Langenhorst, steps down. Langenhorst is in charge of the cemetery and its maintenance. He said he recently got Alexander to start taking care of his responsibilities. “I don’t believe in throwing in the keys and walking away,” Langenhorst said. “It’s totally unfair to dump the job on someone else, especially a volunteer job.” Langenhorst has volunteered at the cemetery since 1983.
Read more: Harvey County Now

The City of Newton held a 15-minute work session to discuss updates to the city’s building codes. The city has been working in recent months on new versions of the international building code and international existing building codes it plans to soon adopt. The local codes also include numerous revisions and amendments made by city staff. The work session was meant to give developers and property owners a chance to speak on the proposed changes.
Read more: Harvey County Now

Measles cases have spread to 12 counties in Kansas, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s 2025 Kansas Measles Case Data dashboard. Two cases previously counted in Haskell County were reassigned last week to Seward County, health officials said in a correction on the dashboard, which was updated Wednesday. Seward County has no active outbreak-associated cases at this time.
Read more: Local Kansas City Missouri & Kansas News |

As the Kansas City area prepares to welcome hundreds of thousands of fans for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, many local cities are discussing whether – and how – to make it easier to house them. Portions of the 2026 World Cup will take place in Kansas City between June 11 and July 19, 2026. Jackson County leaders estimate that 650,000 people will travel to the Kansas City region during the hotly anticipated global soccer championship. However, legislators noted, as of June 2025 only about 65,000 hotel rooms exist within a hundred-mile radius of the city.
Read more: Local Kansas City Missouri & Kansas News |