Kansas Municipal News
Could Wichita be the country’s best city for pickleball?
In the late 1990s, a small group of senior citizens in Wichita picked up a paddle sport with a funny name: Pickleball. … Now, 25 years later, pickleball is a serious business across the nation and especially in Wichita — and not just for seniors. The relish and gherkin puns have stopped as thousands of locals, both young and old, have taken up the sport, an incredibly social and relatively easy-to-master combination of tennis, ping pong and badminton. The game, which can be played with singles or doubles, uses ping pong-like paddles and holey plastic balls. The plunk of paddles hitting balls is pickleball’s signature sound.
Read more at: https://www.kansas.com/news/local/article261253602.html#storylink=cpySource: Wichita Eagle
Kansas prepares to distribute $69 million in federal small business economic aid
Kansas is in line to receive as much as $69 million in additional federal support for small business development and entrepreneurship through a U.S. Treasury Department program used to support companies through the pandemic. The American Rescue Plan expanded the State Small Business Credit Initiative, or SSBCI, established in 2010 to assist businesses following the Great Recession from 2007 to 2009. The goal is to improve access to capital in rural and other traditionally underserved communities.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Municipal Bond Trends for May 18, 2022
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.
Sedgwick County solid waste fee to increase next year
Sedgwick County Commissioners have voted to approve an increase in the annual solid waste fee for next year. This is the fee that is charged with property tax bills to homeowners and businesses, and it provides funding for a variety of solid waste programs. The average increase will be 36 cents for 2023. Residential properties will go up from $7.90 to $8.38. Commercial and industrial properties will increase to a range from $5.33 to $10.67 a year, depending on how they’re classified. The fee is expected to generate $1.9 million, and the funding helps support the household hazardous waste operations, special disposal events and other projects like the Trash Coupon Program and the Bulky Waste Coupon Program.
Source: Country 101.3 KFDI
Newton sesquicentennial bash to be June 4
Party likes it’s 1872. That’s the tagline for the upcoming Newton 150 Summer Bash celebrating Newton’s 150-year anniversary or sesquicentennial. The event, which is for all ages, is 4-10 p.m., Saturday, June 4, on Main Street in Newton between Fifth and Seventh streets. There’s no admission charge, but some of the things do cost, like the Ferris wheel. The committee in charge of the event got its inspiration to bring such a ride downtown because of a photo taken circa 1910 that shows that ride resting on a Newton street with people onboard. City of Newton Director of Communications Erin McDaniel said streets will be blocked off for the celebration. On the south end will be a stage and street dance area. Wheat State Revival will perform around 6 p.m., while the headliner act, The Astronauts, from Wichita, will take the stage at 8 p.m. The Revival group plays country/western music, while The Astronauts goes in another direction with ’80s-style pop music.
Source: Harvey County Now
Artist has big plans for Lindsborg mural
An artist has designed a new mural for the City of Lindsborg in McPherson County. But before he can start painting it, he and his supporters are trying to raise money for the project. Cal McNichols has designed a colorful, giant Viking for the side of the Trollslända Toy Store at the corner of Main and State Street. The building already has a mural, but it is seven to eight years old, and the paint has been fading. The mural will be 30-feet tall. The artist said that a Viking was a perfect choice because the local Smoky Valley schools have the Viking as a mascot. It also speaks to Lindsborg’s heritage.
Source: KSN-TV
Randi Shannon chosen to be Paola’s city manager
The job responsibilities that come with being named Paola’s city manager will come as no surprise to Randi Shannon. That’s because she’s been filling the role on an interim basis for the past five months. Paola City Council members made the interim position permanent following an executive session at the end of their May 10 meeting. The council members voted unanimously to name Shannon the city’s new city manager. Shannon has risen quickly through the ranks of Paola city government. She grew up in Rose Hill, Kan., and moved to the area when her husband, Will, started teaching in La Cygne.
Source: Local News | republic-online.com
Douglas County Commission focuses on landlord relations during work session on needs of unhoused people
Douglas County Commissioners on Wednesday heard the challenges facing an end to chronic homelessness in the county. Owen Cox, a researcher from the University of Kansas Center for Public Partnerships and Research presented the findings of a two-part needs assessment on unhoused people. “We’re really hoping that what you see here today, and what you see in the final report, which is forthcoming, will really help guide any future sort of plans that you might make around tackling some of the issues that the needs assessment has uncovered.” After the presentation, Shannon Oury, executive director of Lawrence Douglas County Housing Authority, told commissioners part of the challenge of eliminating homelessness centers on re-entry into the housing market. Oury cited the example of attaining housing after experiencing homelessness multiple times.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Atchison Embarks on Increased Code Enforcement Efforts
The City is looking to partner with residents to address housing issues in response to recent feedback from the 2021 Community Survey. The survey showed only 23% of residents were satisfied with City enforcement of home/property maintenance issues, and 63% think the City should increase efforts to ensure private property is well maintained. In response, City Code Enforcement Officer Curtis Wheeler is asking residents who receive letters from his office to engage so that a solution can be found. “If you get something from us, please don’t ignore it,” Wheeler said. “If you reach out, we can work with you on timelines, look for programs and partner with homeowners to help.” Wheeler said code enforcement is about protecting the quality of housing stock in Atchison neighborhoods, to protect property values and ensure that housing is available for generations to come.
Source: City Government | atchisonglobenow.com
Hutchinson City council hires former Reno County Administrator Gary Meagher as interim city manager
The Hutchinson City Council on Tuesday approved hiring former Reno County Administrator Gary Meagher as an interim city manager. However, a discussion and any action on the process for hiring a full-time replacement for former City Manager Jeff Cantrell, whose contract the city council ended on May 3, was delayed because two city council members were absent from Tuesday’s meeting. Mayor Jade Piros de Carvalho said they’ll try to hold a brief executive session during one of three upcoming special meetings on the budget to get the process started, but she wasn’t sure which meeting that will be. Under the agreement approved on Tuesday, Meagher, 70, is contracted as interim manager for two months, after which the city can extend the agreement on a month-to-month basis.
Source: Hutch News
South Hutchinson officials debate the direction to take on economic development spending
With the Hutchinson Chamber not making the cut last month for a state grant it sought to begin a new business park with, South Hutchinson city officials agreed Tuesday to take $500,000 it pledged for the project off the table, at least for now. However, the council was not in favor of the city spending money on a speculative commercial building of its own. South Hutchinson City Administrator Joseph Turner advised the council that the chamber would still like the city to commit the funds for economic development but that he was not “automatically willing to commit to another project right now.” Mayor Matt Nisly said he was open to other possibilities if the chamber had a specific project, but he agreed with Turner that it would depend on the project.
Source: Hutch News
Kansas Supreme Court to hear JoCo ‘dark store’ case — with millions in tax dollars on the line
A decision that could mean the difference in millions of dollars of tax revenue to Johnson County, its cities and school boards looms ahead as the Kansas Supreme Court prepares to hear a “dark store” case on Thursday. The Kansas Supreme Court on Wednesday hears Johnson County’s appeal of a lower court’s ruling upholding a state tax appeal board’s decision that the county owes Walmart $60 million in overpaid property taxes. Walmart successfully used the so-called “dark store theory” in arguing that the county had overvalued 11 of its properties in the 2016 and 2017 fiscal years. If the high court upholds the ruling, local taxing jurisdictions — including cities and school boards — could see hits to their annual tax revenues. At the center of the case is the method the county used to appraise values on big box commercial real estate — specifically, 11 properties occupied by Walmart and Sam’s Clubs in 2016 and 2017.
Source: Shawnee Mission Post
Future of passenger air service looking bright in Salina
Although the current carrier, SkyWest Airlines, has been quiet after announcing it will be terminating service in the community, the Salina Airport Authority is encouraged about the future of passenger service to and from Salina. Tim Rogers, the executive director for the airport authority, updated the Salina City Commission Monday about the situation, and said that a proposal was submitted last week to the United States Department of Transportation (U.S. D.O.T.) for Essential Air Service (EAS) to the airport. “One proposal was received from Denver Air Connection…proposing 50-seat regional jet service to and from Salina and Denver, with an option for continued operation also to and from Salina and Chicago,” Rogers said.
Source: Salina Journal
Municipal Bond Trends for May 17, 2022
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.
Powell says the Fed will not hesitate to keep raising rates until inflation comes down
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell emphasized his resolve to get inflation down, saying Tuesday he will back interest rate increases until prices start falling back toward a healthy level. “If that involves moving past broadly understood levels of neutral we won’t hesitate to do that,” the central bank leader told The Wall Street Journal in a livestreamed interview. “We will go until we feel we’re at a place where we can say financial conditions are in an appropriate place, we see inflation coming down. “We’ll go to that point. There won’t be any hesitation about that,” he added. Earlier this month, the Fed raised benchmark borrowing rates by half a percentage point, the second increase of 2022 as inflation runs around a 40-year high.
Source: CNBC
City of El Dorado closes pool for summer
The City of El Dorado’s city manager, David Dillner announced on Tuesday morning the city public pool will be closed for the summer and maybe into next summer due to an electrical grounding issue at the pool. For the city of El Dorado, they were set to open the pool on Saturday, May 28 but Dillner announced on Facebook, an electrician was helping the city replace bulbs discovered the pool’s grounding system for the municipal pool had been compromised. “Due to the corrosive nature the pool environment and due to the fact the pool is about 50 years or so old and just due to age, overtime that system will obviously wear out and had not been replaced during the entire life of the pool,” Dillner said.
Source: Andover American
Gov. Kelly signs autonomous vehicle bill into law
Gov. Laura Kelly recently signed a bill into law that will allow for the expansion of driverless vehicles in Kansas under certain circumstances. Senate Bill 313 allows for autonomous vehicles to operate without a human driver when the vehicle can perform basic safety measures like moving to the shoulder of a road and operate under basic road rules. It also requires that the vehicles don’t weigh more than 34,000 pounds on a tandem axle. The new law establishes an Autonomous Vehicle Advisory Committee, an agency that will be responsible for tracking the use and development of driverless vehicles in the state.
Source: Atchison Globe Now
Wichita among 23 Kansas airports receiving U.S. DOT grant
On May 16, U.S. Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall announced a round of grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation that will be going to 23 Kansas airports. The grants will be used to make repairs and upgrades at the airports. Among the airports selected for grant funding was Wichita’s Dwight D. Eisenhower Airport, which will receive more than $15 million to assist with qualifying projects.
Source: Derby Informer | Area
Manufacturer GemTech will move HQ from Olathe to Spring Hill, grow workforce by 50%
An Olathe-based manufacturer will move to a new headquarters in Spring Hill and aims to increase its workforce by almost 50% in the larger space. GemTech LLC’s predecessor company started about 50 years ago and has operated out of a 25,000-square-foot facility at 15665 S. Keeler St. ever since. But the plastic injection molding company has outgrown the space. Construction started in late April on its new 41,250-square-foot manufacturing facility at 185th Terrace and Webster Street. GemTech provides custom molding, design and development expertise for plastic injection molding and mold-making. The company serves the aerospace/aviation, pharmaceutical/medical, transportation, electronics and consumer product industries. GemTech’s website calls the company “the single source for mold and manufacturing service for every application and industry.”
Source: Kansas City Business Journal
Fort Scott School District selects new superintendent
USD 234 chose Destry Brown today as the new superintendent for the Fort Scott School District. School officials indicate Mr. Brown will begin his leadership of USD 234 on July 1st, 2022. Brown is currently serving as the superintendent of schools in Clinton, Mo., but the Fort Scott native says he’s excited to come back to Kansas. “I am so excited to be the new superintendent in my hometown! I look forward to serving the students, teachers, the Board and the rest of the Tiger community,” said Brown. “The Fort Scott school system has a rich history and tradition of excellence. The district has amazing staff and students as well as a super supportive community. All of those things working together will make being the superintendent in Fort Scott a joy and a pleasure.
Source: KOAMKOAM