Kansas Municipal News
From the Flint Hills to the Flatlands: Hundreds of cyclists make the trek across the Sunflower State
50 years ago, the inaugural Biking Across Kansas ride kicked off with participants traveling through Tribune. For the anniversary year, over 700 riders gathered back in Tribune and have spent the past week cycling across the Sunflower State. BAK is the second longest across-state ride in the country. While the eight-day, 505-mile trip can be physically demanding, it’s the comradery with fellow riders that keeps them coming back year after year. Former participant and first-year Executive Director Bryan Toben considers everyone to be family. “It can be a challenge, but we always talk about doing this together,” Toben said. “There isn’t a rider out there that is doing it by themselves, so we just work together…while it can be a challenge it’s also very rewarding. You start that Friday night on the Colorado border with strangers, maybe people you have ridden with before, but by the time you are two to three nights in, it is people that you have slept next to, that have pulled you across the state, that you have hours of riding together and they really become a bond.” Aside from the bond, this ride gives participants a glimpse into the beauty of Kansas that many miss driving by.
Source: WIBW News Now!
Mercy looks to complete acquisition of Pittsburg hospital by Sept. 1
Mercy Hospital Joplin’s top official said Thursday progress continues toward the acquisition of the existing hospital in Pittsburg. Mercy announced in February that it planned to acquire the 50-bed hospital in Pittsburg from Wichita-based Ascension Via Christi ministry. Mercy’s presence in Southeast Kansas already includes the 26-bed Mercy Specialty Hospital Southeast Kansas in Galena and the 25-bed Mercy Hospital Columbus, as well as a number of clinics and medical offices. Mercy officials said the transition of the Pittsburg hospital was delayed for about a month by an apparent cybersecurity problem in the Ascension Via Christi computer system that forced the two groups to hold off on computer communications. Mercy Joplin President Jeremy Drinkwitz said the delay is not a major issue. “Our intention was to get it done by Aug. 1 but now we’ve pushed it back to Sept. 1,” Drinkwitz said in a telephone interview Thursday with the Joplin Globe. “In transactions, sometimes delays happen so we’re in really good shape to close on Sept. 1 and take over the hospital from Via Christi. We’re actually acquiring the hospital and its assets so we’ll take over management and ownership of the facility.”
Source: www.joplinglobe.com
Portrait of a Kansas town that went all-in on clean energy after a devastating tornado
Greensburg was mostly destroyed by the tornado of May 4, 2007. Some homes on the outskirts were repairable. But most of the core of the town was completely wiped out. Debris was everywhere. Hohl’s son’s bedsheet was lodged in a tree, where it would stay for 10 years. And the town’s roughly 1,400 residents had to not only figure out how to put their own lives back together but how to rebuild the town and the community that many had been part of for generations. The decision they made, not to rebuild the town as it was, but to use the tragedy as an opportunity for reinvention, made Greensburg a pioneer in the clean energy revolution. Today, many cities and towns around the world are racing to stave off the climate crisis by constructing environmentally friendly buildings and switching to renewable energy — steps that Greensburg began taking almost two decades ago. (…) After the tornado, multiple businesses committed to returning and some established families did, too, though many older residents chose not to rebuild. At town meetings, an idea emerged that Greensburg should build back green. The town brought in outside sustainability consultants, who helped residents draw up plans to rebuild Greensburg at the highest level of sustainable architecture and energy consumption.
Source: Yale Climate Connections
Freeman plans to open emergency room, 10 inpatient beds in Fort Scott, Kansas
Freeman Health System announced a further expansion into Southeast Kansas on Thursday. Freeman CEO Paula Baker told a crowd gathered around the emergency entrance to the former hospital in Fort Scott — now known as the Bourbon County Medical Facility — that Freeman would reopen the emergency department at the former hospital. Freeman would also have 10 inpatient beds in the building. Baker said: “We’re going to have six separate bays, and we will have 365-day coverage, 24/7, by licensed physicians and nurses that are specifically trained in emergency medicine. We’re also going to have some support for that emergency department, such as laboratory, radiology, computerized tomography and an inpatient pharmacy. All of those services play such an important role in the treatment of emergency patients. We’ll also have opportunities to have outpatient lab, radiology and CT services, which will be available to this community and surrounding communities.” It is Freeman’s second announcement of an expansion into Southeast Kansas in less than a year.
Source: www.joplinglobe.com
Municipal Bond Trends for June 14, 2024
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. 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.
Municipal Bond Trends for June 13, 2024
The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. 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.
Wind energy banned in Shawnee County, solar on one year moratorium
Shawnee County Commissioners are moving one step closer to shaping the future of wind and solar energy within the county. … Commissioners voted unanimously in favor of the solar moratorium. That gives the planning department one year for extensive research into regulations, looking into the viability for solar farms in Shawnee County.
Source: KSNT 27 News
Newton police getting new training facility
The Newton City Commission approved the plans for a police training facility Tuesday night. The city bought a building near City Hall in August and is now asking contractors to put in bids to update it. Newton Police Chief Craig Dunlavy says headquarters will remain at the courthouse, but the department will use the new facility for monthly training and staff meetings as they need more space. Right now, they are asking community partners to borrow their space. The facility is not replacing the state law enforcement training center. It’s going to be used for auxiliary training purposes. Chief Dunlavy says it will also be shared with the sheriff’s department.
Source: KSN-TV
Pittsburg city leaders support $50 million “Gorilla Rising” project for downtown with $10 million investment
City leaders throw their support behind a project to bring a new college of business to downtown Pittsburg. Building on the success of Block 22, project Gorilla Rising is an initiative to build a new college of business at 3rd St. and Broadway. It`s expected the new college of business would be approximately 54,000 square feet and provide space for administrative and faculty offices, educational centers, and additional downtown parking space. Along with that, the historic Besse Hotel on 4th St. will be redeveloped, to create more than 60 new students housing beds and space for the PSU reading and testing centers. The city will invest $10 million to help cover part of the estimated $50 million plus price tag for the project.
Source: KSNF/KODE
In Newton, Professionals organize to serve, unite Latino and Spanish-speaking community
Navigating a new country, culture, bureaucratic system and language is no easy task. Sal Lujano Jr. said he watched his family do it firsthand when they came to Newton from Mexico. “When we first came here, we didn’t have a bilingual person to go to with many things,” he said. “My dad had to figure it out all on his own.” He said it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. He, along with seven other professionals in the community, have been working to create a group named “Latinos Unidos.” The group, with members fluent in Spanish and English, aims to help Spanish speakers in the city navigate a world that’s primarily in English. That might mean putting them in touch with services or providing help setting up a bank account or getting a loan. Lujano, a loan officer at People’s Bank and Trust said his experience growing up and, in his job, drove home the need for such an organization. “Speaking to other people it wasn’t just financing,” he said. “I got tired of seeing Google Translate documents floating around.” Daniela Rivas, who is the City Manager, is also part of the group. One of the goals she stated when coming to the city was to find ways of bringing more people and community members to the table and have them represented and participate in the process. “Our vision is empowering, advocating and celebrating Latinos to achieve their full potential,” she said of Latinos Unidos.
Source: Harvey County Now
Roeland Park now offering residents composting service. What are other JoCo cities doing?
There’s a new way for some Johnson Countians to start composting food waste. The city of Roeland Park is partnering with Price Chopper and Kansas City, Missouri-based nonprofit KC Can Compost to offer residents the chance to sign up for a monthly composting subscription.
This partnership follows similar efforts to divert food waste from the landfill by Overland Park and KC Can Compost to offer services to some apartment complexes in that city.
Here’s how Roeland Park’s pilot program works, and what composting looks like in other Johnson County cities.
Source: Johnson County Post
Tradition vs. economic opportunity for Kansas: How Kansans feel about possible KC teams relocation
Haysville teacher Kelly Kennedy doesn’t hide his love for the team that’s been his favorite since he was a kid. “I grew up in Haysville. And, and my dad was one that said you cheered for your home team,” Kennedy said. “We considered the Chiefs, our home team, even though they’re three hours away.” However, he has mixed feelings about the possibility of the Kansas City Chiefs possibly moving to Kansas. “It would be great for the state and everything else but my whole thing is Arrowhead is such an iconic stadium and that’s pretty much all I’ve known is Arrowhead Stadium,” Kennedy said. “I love that stadium. I love being up there and and so I hope they get it worked out.” As Missouri officials maintain both the Chiefs and Royals should stay on their side of the line, both Kansas Speaker of the House Dan Hawkins, and Senate President Ty Masterson are asking the Chiefs owners to consider a relocation. Saying in a statement last week they’ve asked the team to consider, “The possibility of using Kansas’ unique STAR bond funding tool and explore what that collaboration could hold.” That possibility is receiving bipartisan support in the legislature.
Source: KAKE – News
‘Time for a reckoning.’ Kansas farmers brace for water cuts to save Ogallala Aquifer
JETMORE, Kan. — An inch or two of corn peeks out of the dirt, just enough to reveal long rows forming over the horizon. Sprinkler engines roar as they force water from underground to pour life into dusty fields. Thunder cracks. The wind whips up dirt as a trail of dark storms looms. The crashing hot and cold fronts would probably set off tornado sirens — if there were any in this remote part of the state. It’s spring in southwest Kansas, a hub for the nation’s crop, dairy and beef industries. As the familiar seasonal rhythm plays out, some farmers are bracing for major changes in how they use the long-depleting Ogallala Aquifer. The nation’s largest underground store of fresh water, the Ogallala transformed this arid region into an agricultural powerhouse. After 50 years of studies, discussions and hand-wringing about the aquifer’s decline, the state is demanding that local groundwater managers finally enforce conservation. But in this region where water is everything, they’ll have to overcome entrenched attitudes and practices that led to decades of overpumping. “It scares the hell out of me,” farmer Hugh Brownlee said at a recent public meeting in the district on the changes to come. Last year, Kansas lawmakers passed legislation squarely targeting the Southwest Kansas Groundwater Management District, which spans a dozen counties. Unlike the two other Kansas districts that sit atop the crucial aquifer, this one has done little to enact formal conservation programs that could help prolong the life of the aquifer. The new law aims to force action.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Manhattan residents describe improvements to quality of life thanks to housing vouchers
While two great-granddaughters watched television in her apartment at Brookfield Residence, Janet Webster, a 75-year-old retiree, shared how the housing choice voucher program has enhanced her quality of life for more than a decade.
“For somebody who is on disability — I was hurt on the job in Colorado — and with Social Security, and I didn’t put much in, the income levels I started out with were pretty low,” Webster said. “I’m doing okay now with Manhattan Housing Authority assistance.” Webster worked as a legal assistant and later a truck driver in Colorado. While working as a truck driver, Webster was injured and sustained a chronic disability. Webster is one of the lucky HCV tenants who hasn’t faced much trouble finding a unit she could afford and is available to voucher holders, in part due to assistance from the Manhattan Housing Authority. That is, until the COVID-19 pandemic struck. “I didn’t have difficulty (finding housing) until COVID,” Webster said. “And everything raised in price.” Fortunately, Webster found an apartment at the Brookfield Residence, where she’s lived for several years now. Thanks to the discretionary income her voucher has enabled, she is eager to spend the summer with her five great-grandchildren.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Wichita offers online tool for input on 2026 city budget
The City of Wichita has opened an online budget simulator tool to help in collecting public input on the 2026-2027 budget year. The city will use the simulator as a way to get resident feedback on city budget priorities and to show some of the tough choices that will be made in the next budget cycle. The city is anticipating a balanced budget for 2025-26, but a $13 million shortfall is projected for the 2026 budget. This is due to a decrease in interest earnings along with expenditures growing faster than revenues. The simulator will allow residents to increase or decrease costs for budget areas. It does not have every department or budget line-item, and it’s a sample of the budget proposals that are expected to go to the City Council for consideration. They are organized by areas that residents have listed as highest and lowest priorities for the city in recent years. The City Council is working on the 2025-26 budget cycle with a recommended budget presented in July and adoption in August.
Source: 101.3 KFDI
Kansas City, Kansas, mayor says his downtown is perfect for a new Royals ballpark
As lawmakers in Kansas continue their push to bring the Chiefs and Royals to the Sunflower State, leaders in Kansas City, Kansas, say they can envision a ballpark right in Wyandotte County. In an interview with KCUR’s Up To Date, Kansas State Sen. Jeff Pittman and Kansas City, Kansas, Mayor Tyrone Garner both said that their downtown is an ideal spot for the Royals to put down their roots. “Land is cheap, it is ripe for development, it is centrally located in the Kansas City metropolitan area,” said Garner. “I think that a baseball team downtown would be great, not just overlooking the Kansas City, Missouri, skyline but overlooking the Kansas City, Kansas skyline, as well as our Missouri and Kansas rivers.” “There’s a lot of potential there to do some really awesome things that would be of great value to the great folks that live in that area in the eastern portion of Kansas City, Kansas,” Garner added. Garner said a new Chiefs stadium could work near the Legends — where Sporting KC and the Kansas City Monarchs already play.
Source: KCUR
Outdoor watering could soon be limited to once a week in Wichita. Here’s why
As drought conditions persist, Wichita may soon limit lawn and garden watering to one day a week and prohibit irrigation between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. For now, officials are asking residents to voluntarily adopt water conservation strategies so the city can stave off its first mandatory watering restrictions in more than a decade. Under the drought ordinance adopted in 2013, stage two of the city’s drought response will automatically kick in when 12-month average water levels at Cheney Reservoir dip below 69% full. April’s average was 69%, and the reading Thursday morning was 67.14% full. “We know that stage two is coming very quickly,” city spokesperson Megan Lovely said at a news briefing. But the City Council is set to hear a proposal on Tuesday that would give City Hall discretion to determine when public works should begin fining people for watering their lawns and gardens more than once a week or in the heat of the day.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Pott County to reconfigure planning commission as county commission expands
Pottawatomie County is changing up how it appoints its planning commission members as the county commission expands from three to five members in November. Currently, each of the three county commissioners appoints two representatives to the 10-member planning commission, which serves as an advisory board to the county commission, making recommendations regarding land use, conditional use permits, subdivision development and site plan reviews. They also select four additional members at large. But the expansion of the county commission after this fall’s election means the planning commission needs to undergo reconfiguring, and members of both boards on Monday hammered out a plan to evenly distribute planning commission appointments throughout the county. The county commission will vote on whether to accept the proposal in an upcoming meeting. The new plan separates the county into four planning districts. Each of the five county commissioners will appoint one planning commission member from the district they represent. Then, each planning district will send one member to the planning commission, and an at-large appointee will bring the total number of members to 10. County administrator Chad Kinsley said the plan was the “best recommendation” he’d heard, and county commissioner Greg Riat said it was “fair.”
Source: themercury.com
Labette County close to agreement for battery storage facility
Labette County commissioners are close to an agreement with a company that wants to develop a battery energy storage system on Wallace Road near the Evergy Neosho Substation. Ben Weisel, senior director of development services for Plus Power, spoke with commissioners Monday about the company’s plans to build the battery storage facility south and east of Service Valley Charter Academy. The storage facility would be on the south side of the Evergy substation and start about 1,300 feet east of Wallace Road. The battery storage structures may be about 14 feet tall and will sit on a concrete platform. Weisel said the facility will store electricity in the batteries and release it as needed, sharing up to 300 megawatts, or 600 megawatt hours, of electricity with the Southwest Power Pool.
Source: Parsons Sun
Melvern abloom this weekend during annual Sunflower Days
Sunflowers will be blooming in “the great outdoors” in Melvern this weekend. The Osage County community will be celebrating its annual Sunflower Days Friday, Saturday and Sunday, June 14-16, 2024. This year’s parade theme will be “The Great Outdoors”; the parade begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, with line-up at the school grounds. The communitywide celebration will include a baby show, bingo games, live music, kids’ races, homemade ice cream, funnel cakes, watermelon and the grand parade finale.
Source: Osage County News