Municipal News & Jobs

Kansas Municipal News

Sales tax approval to replace existing sales tax in Ark City

Voter approval of a permanent, one-cent sales tax to support South Central Kansas Medical Center means that both existing taxes with sunset clauses will be retired when the new tax takes affect, Arkansas City officials reiterated this week.

A half-cent tax was originally set to expire March 31 and a one-cent tax had an end date of Sept. 30, 2026. Both taxes were approved by voters.

With the passage of the permanent, one-cent tax by mail-in ballot last week, both existing taxes will be repealed Dec. 31.

Comments made by Commissioner Duane Oestmann reported in Friday’s CourierTraveler indicated the city could choose to let the half-cent tax run its full course.

But that is not accurate, city officials said. Both existing taxes must drop off when the new one is imposed.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

What former Johnson County Manager Hannes Zacharias learned from a 2,000 mile kayak trip

A 2,000 mile float trip down the Arkansas and Mississippi Rivers taught former Johnson County Manager Hannes Zacharias a few lessons.

People are nice, generous and kind, no matter where you go. The drought really has dried up many parts of the Arkansas as it cuts through the Midwest from the Rocky Mountains to the Mississippi. And dehydration is definitely a thing.

After being unexpectedly ousted from his position late last year, Zacharias decided it was time to fulfill a promise he made to himself more than 40 years ago: that he would one day kayak the entire length of the Arkansas River, and down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.

The 64-year-old had taken a similar but partial trip in 1976 from his hometown of Dodge City, Kan., to New Orleans. This summer, the journey took a little more than three months, beginning May 26 at the Tennessee Pass near Leadville, Colo., and ending Sept. 3, where the Mississippi feeds into the Gulf of Mexico. People often asked him what was different about his two journeys on the same river, more than 40 years apart? The river is still beautiful, and the people are still nice, Zacharias said. But today, there is less water to enjoy. And, of course, everyone has a smartphone and is constantly connected.

Artists turn out to capture Tonganoxie

Though there were many activities happening during the Sunflower Stroll, one might have caught the eye most Labor Day Weekend.

Artists could be seen around town painting various buildings and scenes.

Whether it was Tonganoxie Water Park, the depot, the pocket park during the street dance or a festive truck outside Midwest Carpet Center, there were many Tonganoxie subjects captured and told through artists’ paintings.

Leigh Coffman, Lynette Hayes and Jesse Charles, Sr. organized the first art contest and other art activities for this year’s Sunflower Stroll, the second installment of the new Tonganoxie festival.

Coffman said it was a fun event, but that she had hoped more Tonganoxie residents would have been able to experience the work.

“Next year we will be better prepared and people will know what’s going on and want to be there,” she said.

(Read more: TonganoxieMirror.com stories)

Osawatomie residents voice opinions about trash service

A load of trash collection concerns were dumped at the feet of Osawatomie City Council members during a public hearing Sept. 5 at Memorial Hall, but a decision on who the city’s next service provider will be has yet to be made.

City leaders scheduled the public hearing to gather feedback from the community and to hear from representatives of the two companies bidding for the service.

The city’s contract with Waste Management is set to expire at year’s end, and Harrisonville-based WCA is vying to pick up the contract for Osawatomie’s solid waste and recycling collection program.

Waste Management was represented at the meeting by Bryce Smith, district manager, and John Blessing, public sector manager. WCA was represented by Carey Calabrese, district manager, and Tom Coffman, municipal representative.

Concerns about trash collection recently surfaced after Waste Management (formerly Louisburg-based L&K Services) took over billing from the city several months ago. Having the city take back control of the billing was a common sentiment expressed at the meeting. Council member Tamara Maichel said she’d like to see the trash service back on the city utility bills because the city could then shut off utilities if the bill is not paid. That should cut down on the current issue of residents not utilizing a trash service and instead illegally dumping trash in commercial dumpsters or neighboring trash containers, she said.

(Read more: The Miami County Republic)

Change would benefit possible micro breweries in Winfield

Microbreweries are one step closer to being allowed in downtown Winfield after the city planning commission recommended zoning changes to encourage their development Monday.

The commission recommended changing the required distance that a business receiving 30 percent or more of its annual gross revenue from alcohol sales (including liquor stores, drinking establishments, microbreweries and private clubs) must be from churches, schools, colleges, libraries, hospitals or residential zoning districts.

Previously, these businesses had to be at least 300 feet away from the above entities. Now, they have to be only 200 feet away. The planning commission also approved omitting residential districts from the 200-foot distance requirements and allowing microbreweries in the central business district with a conditional use permit. In some instances, a microbrewery or similar business is appropriate for a certain area and in others is not, said public improvements director Patrick Steward.

The amendments “seem like an appropriate balance of protecting the surrounding neighborhoods while also maximizing the potential uses of the central business district,” Steward said.

City officials have said that allowing microbreweries is a way to encourage downtown development.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Trekking for treasure: Republic County is epicenter for 400 mile US36 Treasure Hunt this weekend

It’s a big event with a secret mission.
Lure shoppers from across the state and nation to northern Kansas with the promise of antiques, collectibles, crafts, garage sale finds and other treasures.
But all along US36, communities band together the third weekend in September to introduce potential travelers to the idea that there’s plenty to see and do along a highway that’s easy to travel.
Vendors were already setting up in Belleville on Monday for the 12th edition of the US36 Treasure Hunt, which officially runs Friday, Saturday and Sunday, September 14-16.
“We had more hits earlier this year on our website,” says Paul Kallman, Scandia, president of the US36 Highway Association. Organizers never know how many people will show up until the weekend.
The event features businesses, vendors and private individuals who set up not only on US36, but in the downtown areas of the communities along the route.

Planning commission resists lobbying effort by builders, recommends new design guidelines for Prairie Village homes

For more than an hour on Tuesday, an organized group of home building professionals approached the podium in the Prairie Village council chambers and railed against a set of proposed design standards for new homes in the city.

They would discourage people from investing in their homes and the community, the builders said. They would stifle regreening of aging neighborhoods. They would put an onerous burden on the businesses trying to meet demand for modern houses. Builders should have been more involved in the process.

It was a standing room only crowd in the council chambers for the hearing on Tuesday.
But in the end, the planning commissioners unanimously sided with the group of long-time residents who made clear it was time for the city to take more action to preserve the character of the neighborhoods where they’ve lived for decades.

(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)

Grant reduces purchase of Ellis warning sirens by 50%

Thanks to a grant from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, the city of Ellis was able to replace its 40-year-old outdoor warning sirens with two new sirens at a 50 percent reduced cost.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Liberal City Commission hears of AirFair 2018 success

There was an air of positivity in the chambers during the most recent Liberal City Commission meeting Tuesday evening thanks to many of the happenings of the past couple weeks in the community.

One particular happening was Saturday’s AirFair, which was brought up near the beginning of the meeting by MAAM Foundation Board Member Nancy Parsons.

“I want to thank the City for everything you all did to help make this such a success,” Parsons said. “With the numbers we’ve come up with for both the day and night shows, we came up with approximately 11,750 who were in attendance at the museum. We also noted there were about 92 different zip codes represented and something like three or four different countries as well. We were so excited, we could not have been any happier with that and we couldn’t have done any of it without the City’s help.

(Read more: Liberal First)

City of Topeka raises starting police officer pay by 14 percent

Topeka next year will raise starting pay for police officers by 14 percent, from $19.44 to $22.08 per hour, under a contract the city’s governing body voted 10-0 to approve Tuesday evening.

The nine council members and Mayor Michelle De La Isla spent 40 minutes discussing the agreement behind closed doors in executive session before going back into public session and approving it.

Councilwoman Karen Hiller said they had “some serious discussion and some serious angst” as they discussed the contract.

“Without going into any details, this is a pretty robust contract,” she said.

Hiller asked police officers to help the city “keep the lid” on its budget.

The agreement previously was approved by the city’s rank-and-file officers — sergeants and below — who are represented in collective bargaining by the Fraternal Order of Police.

Mayor declines to make appointment for “private reasons”

City officials discussed whether Mayor Karl Ryan should decline to recommend appointments based on private reasons, before the Salina City Commission failed to confirm either of two remaining applicants to the Board of Zoning Appeals, which has two current openings. On Monday, Ryan recommended the appointment of Brian Bennett to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Ryan chose not to appoint the other applicant, Mike Trow, of Salina, who currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Board of Zoning Appeals.

“I think it’s my prerogative under the guidelines to appoint. I choose not to appoint,” Ryan said. “There is nothing personal, it’s just my private reasons. I’m going to hold that appointment until I see if we get some other expression of interest.”

Trow, who attended the meeting, told commissioners that if he wasn’t reappointed, he would like the mayor to publicly explain his reasoning. Trow said the public might otherwise wrongly assume he did something wrong.

“My concern is that it looks like I’ve done something that I shouldn’t have done and that I’m being kicked off the board,” Trow said in an interview after the meeting. “It looks like I’ve done something and I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong, at least nothing was ever said to me about it.”

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Fight over $22 million Stryker complex could doom Wichita’s biggest soccer league

A no-bid contract to privatize the city-owned Stryker Sports Complex was blocked at the goal line Tuesday, after officials of the city’s biggest youth soccer league said it could run them out of business.

The City Council decided to put off a vote and take another week to try to resolve conflict between the owners of the Wichita Sports Forum, the for-profit business proposed to take over Stryker, and the Sedgwick County Soccer Association, the city’s dominant youth league.

The controversy comes 11 months after the council voted to spend $22 million to upgrade the mammoth sports complex near K-96 and Greenwich. City staff has proposed turning the operation over to Sports Forum, which operates a private indoor multi-sport facility nearby. Construction is now underway at Stryker to replace 13 grass fields with 11 artificial-turf fields, one of which would be indoors. The main goal is to attract out-of-town teams and families for regional soccer and other field-sports tournaments to boost local tourism and the economy. Mark Ohm, the president of the county soccer league, said some of the teams in his league would like to be able to play on the new fields at Stryker, but Sports Forum is planning to start its own youth league.

Ohm said the only option to emerge from months of talks with the Sports Forum’s owner would be for the nonprofit league to fold and turn its 4,500 players and 393 teams over to the Sports Forum’s new for-profit league.

(Read more: Politics & Government News |)

Nightly fireworks in Andover spark complaints on social media about noise at bedtime

Fireworks are expected to explode in the sky of Andover’s Central Park every night this week, and some people are not excited.

“This is ridiculous. Some people have to work tomorrow,” Jeanette Kay Cole commented on a Monday night Facebook post by the City of Andover.

“Wish we had been told earlier and I think they should stop earlier it’s a school night,” Rose Mayginnes said in a comment. The fireworks are a part of the National Fireworks Association annual convention in Wichita and Andover this week. But convention attendees can shoot off fireworks from dusk until 10:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, the Andover Police Department said in a Facebook post. More than 900 members from around the world are attending the event, which includes nightly firework product demonstrations in Central Park.

“This is the time when vendors get to show off their new products and wholesalers/distributors can decide if they want to add them to their purchase orders,” police said in the post. “The products being demonstrated will range from the small fountains set on the ground, to the larger aerial fireworks.”

“It’s awful if you have little ones or anyone trying to sleep,” Holly Graves commented on the post. Nobody spoke against the nightly firework demonstrations when they were approved at a city council meeting about a month ago, Andover Mayor Ben Lawrence said in an email. He said the city used its monthly sewer bill mailing insert, cable channel 7, Twitter and Facebook to inform residents before the convention.

(Read more: Wichita Eagle)

With new community center coming, Merriam leaders talk future of Irene B. French facility

While Merriam is in the final stages of design for its new community center at Vavra Park, city leaders began talks on the future of the Irene B. French Community Center.

Mayor Ken Sissom and City Administrator Chris Engel asked councilmembers on Monday for input on how the city should proceed with formalizing plans for the historic building at 5701 Merriam Drive.

In light of some complaints from residents over the past several weeks on the process of designing and building the new community center, many councilmembers shared their hopes to avoid frustrations during the process of planning for the future of the French Center.

The city will form a committee to look at the issue, Engel said. That committee, perhaps an ad hoc group, could be comprised of representatives from residents, councilmembers, city staff and the Merriam Downtown Partnership.

Potential land deal between Ark City and school district resurrects building memories

A proposed land swap between the City of Arkansas City and the Arkansas City school district could give the city ownership of an old stone concession stand and bridge that has conjured up memories of the old Curry Field.

The city and the school district have only held informal discussions about the properties, but some residents are concerned what might happen to the structures and the tradition and history they represent. Ark City School Board member Evelyn Shoup also has fond memories. She said thousands of people had crossed the bridge and purchased tickets and concessions at the building located there.

“It has stood as a symbol of ACHS football for more than 80 years,” Shoup said “It’s a piece of history that shouldn’t be torn down. It needs to be preserved.” City Manager Nick Hernandez said in an email last week that while property containing the bridge and ticket building would be part of the trade, the city has no intention of removing those structures.

He said the building would be utilized as part of a future hike-bike trail extension.

“It will potentially be a shade structure with a picnic table inside,” he said. “Demolition is not an option we are entertaining.”

Rain slows ETA on Russell power transfer; human, mechanical burps cited in outage

A schematic of Russell’s electric power system is drawn in detail on the office whiteboard of Russell Utility Director Duane Banks.

Banks and engineers from area power providers are sorting out ways to tie-in Russell to an additional power transmission feed.

A second tie-in would prevent 16-hour blackouts like the one the city suffered a week ago Thursday, Banks said.

“An alternate feed would be an ideal solution, but it’s very costly,” Banks said. “I have engaged with an engineer to look at this very item …. and I’ve met with Sunflower Electric with conceptual ideas for an additional feed. These are things we’ve looked at to make a more reliable feed.”

But a solution like that won’t come cheap. The lowest cost option so far is $3.5 million, he said.

In the meantime, a portable transformer installed by Western Cooperative Electric, WaKeeney, and Sunflower Electric Power, Hays, replaces the one that failed. It has the city covered, Banks said.

“I don’t feel insecure about the mobile transformer at all,” he said. “And when they make the transfer to the permanent one it should be seamless. There shouldn’t be any outage.”

Banks said he expects Western Cooperative and Sunflower Electric to make the transfer any day. But rain delayed the process, he said.

(Read more: News – The Hays Daily News)

Maple Leaf festival in Hiawatha to feature Children’s Discovery Center’s Mobile Museum

One of the highlights of this year’s Maple Leaf Festival on Saturday, Sept. 22 in Hiawatha is the addition of the Kansas Children’s Discovery Center’s Mobile Museum.

Hiawatha Chamber and Visitor’s Bureau board members are excited about the mobile museum, which will be featured at no cost to families in the community.

“Without the local sponsorships, this would not be possible,” said Ryan Meininger, chairman of the HCVB’s Maple Leaf committee. The Kansas Children’s Discovery Center is a hands-on children’s museum that since opening in 2011 became a special place where children can explore, create, discover and learn through play. Families from all over the world come to visit the Discovery Center.

The Discovery Center’s Mobile Museum puts miniature version of those same exhibits on the road, with designs based on their permanent KCDC exhibits such as the Art Pavilion, Bernoulli Table and Real-tool Build Workshop. These are great for school events and community events – such as the Maple Leaf Festival.

(Read more: Hiawatha World Online)

Extravagant ‘Disney-style’ fireworks show coming to Andover this weekend, and every night this week between 8 and 10pm

Fourth of July may have been months ago, but what’s likely to be the biggest fireworks show in Wichita this year is coming Friday.

All week long, the National Fireworks Association is hosting its annual trade show at the Hyatt Regency Wichita.

To cap off the week, the association is planning a grand public display in Andover’s Central Park on Friday night showcasing the latest and greatest in fireworks technology. The fireworks will start at 8 p.m. Friday.

The show is expected to be more than 20 minutes long.

Admission to the show is $5 in advance at Andover City Hall, 1609 E. Central in Andover, or cash-only at the gate.

“It’s a huge show — Disney-style fireworks,” said Katie Cork, event director for the City of Andover. “It’s all choreographed to music. It’s nothing like anyone here has seen on a normal Kansas fireworks show.” Every night this week from about 8 to 10 p.m., there will be firework demonstrations in Andover Central Park, though they won’t necessarily be choreographed shows.

“They’re geared more toward the vendors, but it’s still open to the public,” Cork said. “If you love fireworks, you love fireworks.”

The National Fireworks Association convention attracts fireworks dealers from across the country and overseas — it will likely draw more than 1,000 guests this year, said Nancy Blogin, its executive director.

(Read more: Wichita Eagle)

Wichita, you probably don’t want to be No. 1 on this ranking of U.S. cities

A new report said Wichita lost more workers than any other U.S. city in the past year, though government data suggests the area’s workforce grew in nearly the same time frame.

For every 10,000 LinkedIn members in Wichita, 280 left the city between August 2017 and August 2018, business networking site LinkedIn said in a report Tuesday. It based the report on members who changed the location of their profile during those 12 months.

A LinkedIn official would not say how many members the site has in Wichita; it has 150 million members in the United States. Jeremy Hill, director of Wichita State University’s Center for Economic Development and Business Research, said it’s true that not too long ago the Wichita area was shedding jobs — between July 2016 and April 2018.

“During this same period of time, the U.S. economy was adding jobs every month,” Hill said. “Since the relative labor market was not as strong here, there was a clear incentive for those unemployed to look for jobs in other markets.”

But he doesn’t think that’s the case any longer.

“Our tone has changed quite a bit from the past few years.”

(Read more: Local News |)

Life Expectancy Estimates Available by Neighborhood in Kansas Census Tract-Level Data: from 62.5 years in Wyandotte Co. to 89.7 years in Gray Co.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s (KDHE) Office of Vital Statistics, Bureau of Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics, has partnered with the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) to produce life expectancy estimates in each census tract in the United States. Six years of data was used, through 2015, for the calculations of this indicator. Kansas specific geographic health statistics.
“These census tract-level life expectancy estimates—based on state death records and population estimates from the U.S. Bureau of the Census—have previously been unavailable nationwide,” said Lou Saadi, Ph.D., State Registrar and Director of the KDHE Bureau of Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics. “Access to estimates like these helps public health experts quantify how people living just a few miles apart can have vastly different opportunities for a long life. With this kind of information, community leaders can examine the factors that may be influencing differences in longevity—such as access to health care, safe and affordable housing, educational opportunities and other factors that impact the health of community members—and target solutions more effectively.”
In Kansas, the dataset includes “life expectancy at birth” estimates for 723 Kansas Census Tracts. Life expectancy at birth ranges from 62.5 years in Census Tract 041800 (in Wyandotte County) to 89.7 years in Census Tract 962600 (in Gray County).

Wichita OKs $81 million for new stadium project, $2.2 million for Wingnuts to go

Wichita will spend as much as $81 million on building a new ballpark for the Triple-A baseball franchise that is planning to move to Wichita.

And the city will pay $2.2 million to the Wichita Wingnuts to break the independent baseball team’s lease at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium, which will be torn down to make way for the new stadium. City officials hope to have the 84-year-old stadium demolished by the end of the year.

The new team, now known as the New Orleans Baby Cakes, will be responsible for maintaining the stadium and will keep all the revenue from tickets, parking, concessions and media. The new stadium itself will cost $75 million and must be competed by March 15, 2020. As part of the agreement, City Hall is also committing to build a $6 million pedestrian bridge across the Arkansas River.

The team will provide $5 million to $7.5 million for fixtures and equipment.

The team will pay the city a flat $350,000 a year to start as rent, with the amount to be adjusted for inflation every five years over the 20-year lease.

The ballpark will have 6,500 to 7,000 fixed seats and 15 to 18 luxury suites, plus a seating berm and party space for 3,000 to 3,500 people.

The team has agreed to make the stadium available for a week a year for National Baseball Congress World Series tournament games. The annual amateur tournament draws teams from across the country to Wichita.

(Read more: Politics & Government News |)

Governor Jeff Colyer orders flags to be flown at half-staff in recognition of Patriot Day

In accordance with Executive Order 10-12, Governor Jeff Colyer today ordered flags to be flown at half-staff until sunset today, 9/11/18, in observance of Patriot Day.

By a joint resolution approved Dec. 18, 2001 (Public Law 107-89), Congress designated Sept. 11 of each year as Patriot Day, and by Public Law 111-13, approved April 21, 2009, requested the observance of Sept. 11 as an annually recognized National Day of Service and Remembrance.

“Today is a day for us to come together as a nation and to honor the heroes of both our past and present,” said Governor Colyer. “We will never forget those we lost on 9/11, and will always try to live with the spirit of self-sacrifice given by so many patriots that day.”

Patriot Day is an annual observance to remember those who were injured or died during the terrorist attacks in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001.

Statistics can now reveal life expectancy for Hutchinson neighborhoods

We have had statistics that track the health of Reno County and even the city of Hutchinson alone. Now a special study from The National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems has narrowed the life expectancy for residents to an area as small as an individual neighborhood.

It’s the first time ever that public health officials, community leaders, and others working to improve health in Kansas can access census tract-level data to measure and compare differences in life expectancy in each area of the county and the city of Hutchinson. The United States Small-Area Life Expectancy Estimates Project is a joint effort of the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics Access. Estimates like these help public health experts quantify how people living just a few miles apart can have vastly different opportunities for a long life.

In Reno County, the longest life expectancy is in the western half of the county at 80.1 years. Residents in the central and east-central parts of the county have a life expectancy of 80 years. The shortest life expectancy in the county was in the Nickerson area at 76.4 years.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Stoecklein named Hutchinson’s interim police chief

A familiar face to law enforcement has been named by the City of Hutchinson to serve as the interim police chief.

City Manager John Deardoff announced Monday afternoon that Alan Stoecklein will serve in the interim position until the new chief is named and comes on board. That is expected to happen Nov. 1.

Stoecklein enjoyed a 40-year career in law enforcement, mostly with the Kansas Highway Patrol, where he retired as a lieutenant colonel.

Deardoff says he appreciates Stoecklein’s willingness to step in the role and oversee the department until the replacement for Chief Dick Heitschmidt arrives.

No announcement was made about Heitschmidt’s replacement. Two men have been interviewed for the position.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Manhattan firefighters save kitten trapped in car engine

A group of Manhattan firefighters happened to take a break at the right place and at the right time on Sunday.

The firefighters stopped at a local fast-food restaurant and saved a kitten trapped in the engine compartment of a car. They shared the photos on social media.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Derby Recreation Commission starts membership structure survey

The Derby Recreation Commission has identified its next item to pursue within its Recreational Facilities Master Plan.

They launched a survey on Sunday night that will identify any potential correlation between a membership that would allow members to use DRC facilities and take classes for the same fee. Currently, a membership doesn’t allow anyone to take an additional class at either recreational facility without a separate fee. “It’s something we’ve heard about from our clients for quite some time,” DRC superintendent Chris Drum said. “We’ve received some suggestions on things that our clients would like us to look at doing differently.”

Drum said no activity (art classes, softball, soccer etc.) that takes place outside of the Derby Recreation Center or Oaklawn Activity Center is currently being evaluated as an additional membership benefit. The survey, which will run for two weeks, is accessible through all Derby Recreation Commission, USD 260 and City of Derby social media platforms. It has also made hard copies available at its front desk during regular business hours.

(Read more: Derby News | derbyinformer.com)

Strategic Plan Outlines Efforts to Address Opioid Crisis — Kansas Prescription Drug and Opioid Advisory Committee releases four-year plan

In 2016, there were more than 300 drug-poisoning deaths in Kansas, and approximately
half of those involved a prescription or an illicit opioid. Although Kansas is below the national average
for fatal opioid overdoses, the opioid crisis is an emerging threat that remains a priority for the state to
address. The Kansas Prescription Drug and Opioid Advisory Committee has developed a four-year
plan to provide help to those affected and empower professionals with the strategies they need to
reduce prescription drug and opioid misuse, abuse and associated adverse health outcomes.
“Kansas has an opportunity to address the opioid crisis proactively through federal programs and
collaborative strategic planning with stakeholders. We convened the Kansas Prescription Drug and
Opioid Advisory Committee to carry out this critical project,” said Dr. Greg Lakin, Medical Director at
the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE).
The role of the Kansas Prescription Drug and Opioid Advisory Committee is to develop and
implement a coordinated, multi-disciplinary statewide strategic plan to provide a comprehensive
approach to the opioid crisis in Kansas.

Westar apologizes for lack of communication on new poles in Wichita neighborhood

Leaders of Westar Energy are apologizing to northeast Wichita residents that are concerned about the new transmission poles. The City of Wichita and Westar held a meeting last week to talk to community members concerned about the electrical poles.

“We wanted to address the concerns in the community. Concerns included a loss of property value, improper compensation, decrease neighborhood esthetics, and more,” said Brandon Johnson, Wichita council member. “Westar listened to the concerns and are ready to address them. This is outside of the purview of what Westar is expected to do.”

Residents in Wichita’s District 1 raised concerns about the large, metal poles going up around Hillside, between Mossman and 17th streets. Sherman said Westar will consider smaller poles on a second transmission line that will be from Mossman to Wichita State University. He also had a message to homeowners and tenants.

“If you’re a homeowner that wants to stay in the house, there will be additional compensation. If you’re a homeowner that wants to move from the house, we will buy your house. If you’re a tenant that lives in that house, we want to talk to you. We want to talk about additional compensation for you living in a house with a big pole in front of it,” said Sherman.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Inside look at Union Station Renovations

Behind barricades and past dust-covered doors in Old Town, you see a massive restoration effort underway in Wichita’s Union Station.

As with any facelift of the kind, it’s delicate and can be complicated – trying to revive the 100+ year-old building into a business plaza.

The people in charge of the project keep a close eye on history, knowing intricate details about the facility.

“This is the ticket booth, this will be a break room and there will be a couple of offices inside” said Chad Stafford, President of Occidental Management, while giving a tour of the facility to KAKE News Reporter Greg Miller. “This is an iconic area and structure to the city and so the pressure is always, is it done right? Is it done with quality?” A call center and other businesses have already committed to moving into the station, bringing hundreds of jobs to the area when the construction project is done.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Despite misconceptions, sales tax not higher at State Fair

The Kansas State Fair’s funding for capital improvements may be at risk because of fairgoer misconceptions about the new Kansas State Fair sales tax law.

“Commercial exhibitors are telling us that fairgoers think state sales tax is higher at the Kansas State Fair,” Bob Moeder, Interim General Manager, said. “We want to make sure our visitors understand that Kansas sales tax is consistent everywhere in the state, but when they buy and take delivery of goods at the fair, a portion of the state sales tax collected returns to the fair for greatly-needed improvements to our facilities.” Moeder said, “The more people shop during the fair, the more we can accomplish to improve the facilities not only for the 10 days of the Kansas State Fair, but also for the hundreds of events held on the grounds throughout the year.”

(Read more: Hutch Post)

New library, old funding: Wichita spends less on libraries than most cities

Wichita’s new downtown library had a heck of a first month.

According to a new report, about twice the number of people visited the Advanced Learning Library in July compared to the downtown branch at the same time last year. Three times as many people applied for library cards. And patrons checked out nearly 68,000 books and other materials — a monthly record for the Wichita library system.

“It’s an exciting time, and that’s certainly cause for celebration,” said Cynthia Berner, director of libraries.

But the celebration has been tempered by a harsh reality: Wichita’s libraries are the lowest-funded in the region, and that budget outlook isn’t likely to change very soon. A few weeks after the grand opening of the Advanced Learning Library — during which hundreds of Wichitans lined the streets for a ceremonial “book brigade” — city officials announced a proposal to close two library branches. Mayor Jeff Longwell has since walked back that proposal.

(Read more: Wichita Eagle)

Sure it has books, but you can borrow lawn tools at this library, too

Books, movies, magazines and music. You are certain to find those at your local library.

But lawn and gardening tools?

In Olathe, the answer is yes.

The city and the Olathe Public Library are piloting a Tool Lending Library at the downtown location, 201 E. Park St. Borrowers can check out small items like pruners and trowels, as well as axes, shovels, tree pole saws, push lawn mowers, post hole diggers, spreaders and wheelbarrows, both metal and polyester. The tool library is open to people 18 or older with a Johnson County or Olathe library card account in good standing. To get started, borrowers must visit the downtown library, show a photo ID and apply for membership.

After that, members can borrow up to five tools for seven days. The library will be gathering feedback on the value of the tool library and what items should be added in the future.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Commissioners consider priorities for Salina parks

City Commissioners discussed how to prioritize spending on Salina parks during a study session Monday. The discussion took place within the framework of the Parks and Recreation Master plan, a document accepted by the commission in July.

Interim City Manager Mike Schrage provided commissioners with an overview of the 436-page document, which contains recommendations for individual parks and survey results from Salina residents identifying what they value most from their parks.

Commissioner Mike Hoppock thanked Schrage for providing the commission with more information about the report.

“I tried looking through the report originally, and I thought, ‘I need the parks for dummies book,’” he said.

Schrage said commissioners need to prioritize how the city should invest in the projects described in the parks master plan.

“We do have a lot of requests and a limited number of resources,” he said

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Florence City Council turns down agreement to continue lease for water

The Florence City Council Monday turned down a proposal to continue leasing spring water from a local family.

People packed Florence City Hall Monday night to make their voices heard on the hot-button issue for the Marion County community.

The city’s had a lease with the DeForest family since 1961 to keep getting water from the family’s spring. That lease is set to expire in May 2019.

(Read more: KWCH News)

Community celebrates unveiling of Salina library exhibit

The exhibit, which will remain through Oct. 12, features photos of memories made at the library since its official opening on Sept. 29, 1968.

The exhibit details dates from throughout the library’s history, including in 1965 when voters approved the issuance of a bond that helped build the current facility.

Salinan JoAnn Neuman recalls the “snowy and exciting” day that year when it was announced that voters had approved the bond.

“My household was probably the happiest home in Salina that day,” she said. Neuman, the widow of Richard “Dick” Neuman, the first director of the Salina Public Library at its current location, said her husband was thrilled “to see his vision becoming possible.”

Twice a charm

Bob Hansmann, a member of the library’s board at the time the bond was approved, said the bond was not initially approved by voters.

“They rejected the bond the first time, but we came back with another one about two or so years later and it passed handily,” he said.

Neuman said the difference was her husband and the board members at the time decided to canvas for support.

“They started to go around from business to business to get as many people to support them as possible,” she said.

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Discussion of comprehensive plan dominates Shawnee County Commission meeting

After considerable public comment, and discussion among themselves, Shawnee County commissioners on Monday morning approved by a 3-0 vote a number of edits and deletions they made to the Shawnee County Comprehensive Plan.

The amended plan then was turned back over to the Shawnee County Counselor’s office, which will incorporate the additions and deletions made at Monday morning’s meeting into the comprehensive plan.

The updated document, which will be posted on the county’s website for public viewing after it has been updated, will be presented for final adoption or further consideration at the Oct. 1 Shawnee County Commission meeting.

Kevin Cook, Shawnee County Commission chairman, said he anticipated a vote would be taken at that meeting.

The comprehensive plan takes into account what Cook said was a “delicate balance between land use and land ownership” in Shawnee County.

Cook said the plan has been two years in the making and will serve as a blueprint for future growth in the county, as well as preservation of agricultural land. It marks the first such comprehensive plan ever for Shawnee County.

Shawnee County officials: Landfill height capped at 1,164 feet above sea level

Shawnee County doesn’t necessarily ban Rolling Meadows Landfill from letting its trash rise higher than the surrounding hills, but it does impose a height restriction on the facility, county officials say.

Rolling Meadows is prohibited from exceeding an elevation of 1,164 feet above sea level, deputy county counselor Jonathan Brzon said this past week.

County officials didn’t know the landfill’s current elevation but said it was 1,136 feet in 2002, the year then-county counselor Rich Eckert said Rolling Meadows officials considered the landfill to be within the rules so long as it did not exceed the elevation of “adjacent land.”

Brzon provided information in response to a question posed by a Topeka Capital-Journal reader, who asked to remain anonymous, as part of a reader engagement project linked to the program ”#TopCity What? You ask. We answer.”

The reader asked, “When the Rolling Meadows Landfill was approved, was there any condition that it never exceed the height of surrounding hills?”

Election under way for new city of The Highlands (in Reno County)

Eight residents of The Highlands cast ballots Thursday, the first day of early walk-in voting at the Reno County Courthouse Annex, 125 West 1st Ave.

“More than I thought, really,” said Reno County Deputy Election Officer Jenna Fager, of the turnout.

There are 304 eligible voters in the Reno County city’s special election. The city is seeking voter approval to levy property taxes to raise $60,000 for its 2019 budget. Citizens indicated by a show of hands at a meeting this summer that they would support a budget of that size. City officials, in turn, submitted the ballot question.

The Highlands was established in 2017, and the state’s property tax lid for local governments triggered the need for the election. Reno County Clerk staff members are working at the polling location to help limit the city’s expense for financing the special election.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

Citizens sold on sales tax

A permanent, one-cent sales tax for South Central Kansas Medical Center received strong support among voters during a mail-in vote counted on Thursday.

The unofficial results showed 66 percent of the votes cast were in support of the proposal set forth by city and hospital officials to establish a long-term funding source for the financially struggling hospital center, while at the same time lowering overall sales tax going to the medical center from 1.5 percent to 1 percent.

Cowley County Clerk Karen Madison reported Thursday afternoon that 1,320 votes, more than 66.3 percent were cast in support of the measure with 670 votes against.

There are 32 provisional votes yet to be counted. Madison said 5,132 ballots were mailed out. That would mean turnout was about 40 percent. The election canvass will be completed Monday for a final result.

Mayor Dan Jurkovich, who also serves as the SCKMC board chair, said he was proud of the hospital staff and the trustees for their success in getting the message out.

Jurkovich led town hall meetings in the weeks leading up the vote, and the slogan “Vote Yes, Pay Less” was on signs scattered throughout town.

“Now we’ll have a better way to pay for the hospital,” Jurkovich said.

(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)

Pratt area flood was ‘probably a quarter or half a century event.’

Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism is back in business issuing licenses after a flood of historic levels shut down offices headquartered east of Pratt earlier this week. The waters that damaged KDWPT offices and deluged other regions of the city and county were at a 35-year high, according to Steve McClain, president of Sterling Drilling Inc. in Pratt.

McClain referred to information on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) website which, he said, showed that this flood event crested higher (at 14.66′ at 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 3, 2018) than any previous flood event since at least 1983.

“It is number one now for the last 35 years,” McClain said.

McClain uses a digital Davis weather station at his home which continually gathers data for a summary every 15 minutes of the day.

His weather station just outside the city limits on the south edge of Pratt showed more than 6 1/2 inches fell from 4:30 p.m. Sunday to 6:30 a.m. Monday.

(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)

Reporter participates in Cowley County Emergency Management full-scale exercise

As a journalist I mostly observe and ask questions about any event I cover, but Thursday I had the opportunity to actually participate in the Cowley County Emergency Management department’s full-scale exercise as both an observer and a role player.

A full-scale exercise is held every year to test the capabilities of CCEM, its volunteer groups and partner organizations. During the exercise, partners test and evaluate an emergency operations plan and receive feedback.

This year’s exercise involved a simulated scenario in which an emergency shelter was set up at Tisdale United Methodist Church, and residents evacuated there due to an EF-4 tornado that hit Winfield, and major flooding of the Walnut and Arkansas rivers in Winfield and Arkansas City. Out in the joint information command trailer, local public information officers were busy receiving and validating information from the various groups working at the scene, in preparation for a press release and press conference.

This is where I got to participate by attending the press conference and asking questions, just as if it were an actual event. Brian Stone, the director of Cowley County Emergency Management, had invited me as a member of the local media to help the PIOs interact with the media.

This is the first year public information officers were included in the exercise. A PIO working group was formed here in 2016, consisting of local public information officials who meet regularly and train together so they can be ready to get information to the public and the media in the event of an actual emergency.

Sedgwick County rejects funding increase for senior centers

Despite the presence of dozens of seniors and senior advocates at a Sedgwick County Commission meeting last Wednesday, Aug. 15, the body rejected a request to boost funding for senior centers by $78,000 for 2019.
The vote was 3-2, with Michael O’Donnell and Jim Howell in favor of increasing funding, and David Dennis, Richard Ranzau and David Unruh opposed.
Had the vote gone the other way, the county’s overall senior center funding would have risen from $620,000 to $698,000. The Haysville Senior Center would have received $22,000 in additional funding, while the Clearwater Senior and Community Center would have received an additional $17,000.
The directors of both those centers said they were disappointed in the county’s decision. Both have been requesting funding boosts for at least the past four years.
Clearwater senior center director Kristi Rey said that her center could have used the additional funding to offer better programming and entertainment, making the center more attractive for the people aged 55 and older who are eligible for a $5 annual membership.
“Though we’re on a limited budget, you want to try and provide as much as possible with little to no cost on their end,” Rey said. “It’s tough, on the budget we have. It’s depressing, it’s upsetting, because we could use that money.”

Wichita city council to vote on settlement with Wingnuts

The Wichita Wingnuts could get $2.2 million from the City of Wichita, as a settlement to terminate the team’s lease of Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

City council members will discuss and vote on the issue Tuesday. Council agenda wrote that the city would pay the team in installments through 2026. The first installment would be $1 million later this year, with annual installments afterward. Thursday, Mayor Jeff Longwell announced the New Orleans Baby Cakes had filed an application to relocate to Wichita. Plans call for the team to be housed in a brand new stadium, while the existing Lawrence-Dumont Stadium would be demolished.

(Read more: KAKE – News)

Two McPherson County projects to receive tax credits

The Kansas Department of Commerce has awarded 16 nonprofit organizations around the state Community Service Tax Credits, which has helped nonprofit organizations undertake major capital fundraising drives for several different projects. The Canton Township Carnegie Library in McPherson County will receive $250,000. Also, the Marquette Learning Center in McPherson County will receive $215,000. Tax credit awards are distributed through an application process and may request up to $250,000 in tax credits.

Applicant organizations in rural areas are eligible for a 70 percent credit. Applicant organizations in non-rural areas are eligible for a 50 percent credit.

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Lawrence PD K9 helps seize more than 100 pounds of drugs, celebrates birthday

The Lawrence Police Department Friday posted a photo on its Facebook page of its young K9 sitting proudly in front of a pile of confiscated drugs.

The department says Deuce helped seize 94 pounds of marijuana and 21 pounds of meth in Douglas County.

The department also mentions Friday is Deuce’s 4th birthday.

(Read more: KWCH News)