Kansas Municipal News
Entirely possible that we’ll see low interest rates forever, asset manager says
Interest rates could remain at their record lows “forever,” according to one asset manager, despite a recent rush to normalize policy by many of the world’s central banks. GAM Investments’ Julian Howard told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” last week that he believed it was “entirely consistent historically to talk about low rates forever.” Howard is the lead investment director of multi-asset solutions at GAM, which has 103 billion Swiss francs ($112 billion) in assets under management. He cited research by economic historian Paul Schmelzing, who was a visiting scholar at the Bank of England when the paper was published in 2020. The research looked at interest rates globally dating back to the 14th century, identifying a downward trend, with Schmelzing predicting that “real rates could soon enter permanently negative territory.” Howard said the lower rates that we had seen in recent years were, therefore, “actually a return to a very, very long-term trend of yields falling over an extended period of time.”
Source: Economy
KCK eyes overhead gondola as a new means of transit to connect to downtown Kansas City
At one time, downtown Kansas City was well connected to downtown Kansas City, Kansas. Over the years, there were trains, ferries and streetcars that allowed people to easily move across the Kansas River and across state lines. But those local connections deteriorated with the arrival of the intercontinental railroads and the interstate highways, said Gunnar Hand, director of planning and urban design at the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas. He’s now eyeing a novel way of reconnecting the respective cores of the two Kansas Cities. Hand and other planners are proposing an aerial lift that would move people in gondolas far above the ground.
Source: Kansas City Star
Ready for air taxis? Here’s why Kansas could be a player in the future of aviation
The next time you are outside, look up. You might see houses, buildings, a few trees. Higher you may see some clouds, a commercial airplane, a military airplane. Maybe there’s a helicopter. In other words, not much. That’s changing. Aerospace engineers and entrepreneurs across the world are in a race to fundamentally change how we see the sky. They are working on new air vehicles — in an industry called advanced air mobility — that will be used to drop packages on your doorstep, transport people and cargo over shorter distances and could even give people the ability to call air-taxis.
Source: Wichita Eagle
Governor Laura Kelly Announces Governor’s Tourism Award Winner
Governor Laura Kelly today congratulated Roger Hrabe, Rooks County Economic Development Director, on receiving the Governor’s Tourism Award. The Governor announced the prestigious award during the annual Kansas Tourism Conference in Liberal. “Our tourism industry supports Kansas jobs, injects millions into our economy, and preserves our state’s unique history for future generations – but its success wouldn’t be possible without talented Kansans like Roger Hrabe,” said Governor Laura Kelly. “Roger truly understands the connection between tourism and developing a thriving community, and his work has gone above and beyond for the people of Rooks County. Congratulations, Roger, on this well-deserved recognition.”
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce
US farmland values rise the most in nearly a decade on crop prices
High crop prices are trickling down to agriculture real estate, which have risen by the most in nearly a decade. Farmland values jumped 18% from a year ago during the third quarter of 2021 in the Seventh Federal Reserve District, a five-state region including all of Iowa and most of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, according to the Chicago Fed. The gains come as farmers were bolstered by high incomes and low interest rates, and after corn and soybean futures climbed to multiyear peaks in Chicago amid adverse weather for crops. Now, the high farmland prices are adding to concerns about inflation, with rising costs for raw materials and transportation leading to increases in food prices.
Source: Wichita Eagle
How will Kansas spend $1.6B in COVID aid? Charities, sheriffs, theaters make their pitch
Help for the homeless. Grants for movie theaters. Hydroelectricity. As Kansas prepares to allocate $1.6 billion in federal COVID-19 aid, business groups, non-profit organizations and civic advocates from across the state are pushing a sweeping range of proposals for spending it. They are all angling for a piece of the one-time funding that could prove transformational for a host of programs and initiatives. The money holds the potential to ultimately touch residents in all corners of the state through dollars for affordable housing, business start-ups, new and improved public buildings, better access to higher education and faster broadband internet. How this funding is spent largely rests with a panel of state, civic and business leaders who have been touring the state, listening to local CEOs, non-profit executives and residents make their case for their particular project.
Source: Wichita Eagle
How Shawnee County is prepping for winter roads
Shawnee County Public Works is busy Monday making sure it’s ready when winter weather hits. The department has been buying chemicals and checking out equipment since September. While that may seem early, the last thing they want to do is be underprepared when winter weather strikes. When plows and other vehicles do get out on the road, the department director wants to remind other drivers to be careful.
Source: KSNT News
Lenexa Police’s new comfort dog ‘boosts morale’ during times of trauma, tragedy
The newest officer at the Lenexa Police Department hasn’t been sworn to protect, doesn’t write tickets and isn’t even human. Nonetheless, Lexi Blue — a golden doodle — has been hard at work serving as the police station’s first-ever comfort dog. Since joining the department in June, Lexi has visited with hundreds of community members, including elementary students, shoppers at the Lenexa Public Market and teens grieving the loss of a classmate. And already, police officers have noticed a difference.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Galena welcomes Lightning McQueen to town
Lightning McQueen is now calling Galena, Kansas home. A number of folks gathered at the famous Luigi’s Pit Stop on Front Street over the weekend. Luigi’s has been home to a number of the Cars movie replicas – from the tractor tippin’ to the sheriff looking over everything. Kids and parents can go check it out at 205 East Front Street in Galena.
Source: KOAMKOAM
City of Sedgwick names Brian Keller as city administrator
Brian Keller, a 1984 graduate from Halstead High School, has been hired as the new city administrator for Sedgwick and will begin on Nov. 22. Keller has spent the last twenty years living in Wamego and working for the State of Kansas with most of that Department of Revenue as a taxation agent. He recently transferred to Wichita and has lived in Halstead for the last few months. Sedgwick Mayor Bryan Chapman said that Keller’s local ties and his interest in living in Sedgwick were factors in his higher, as were his people skills and his ability to communicate. Chapman said he interviewed very well. “He’s very easy to talk to,” Chapman said. “I think he’ll work well with both the public and our employees, getting a feel for what’s going on and I think he’s anxious to learn. I think he’ll be very involved in all aspects of the community.”
Source: Harvey County Now
Kansas sees bumper revenue projections
Kansas is flush with cash, updates to the state’s fiscal forecast released Wednesday project, and the news is sure to prompt considerable jockeying among legislators and Gov. Laura Kelly over how to spend the expected windfall. The state avoided the worst case scenario of seeing revenues plummet due to COVID-19 and instead has seen its tax collections soar in recent months, with experts saying the state’s economy has rebounded from the pandemic. Officials now project the state will take in $1.3 billion more than initially thought for the current fiscal year, a 17% increase which brings the current revenue estimates to $8.8 billion overall.
Source: GC Telegram
How state’s decision on Docking building could affect downtown Topeka
Downtown Topeka’s revival is not a secret — looking at a picture of its strip shows businesses, restaurants and residences where none existed previously. But Morse, a real estate broker at Kansas Commercial, said one of the key building blocks in bringing back the area is less well known: the state of Kansas. Before Docking State Office Building was vacated, workers would carry lunch pails to and from their cars, not wanting to spend time walking over to S. Kansas Avenue. As the state gravitated toward private leases throughout downtown, that opened up more possibilities for state employees to eat, shop and even live in the area. ‘They’ve sustained a lot of businesses and they sustain our growth downtown on Kansas Avenue and changing who we are,’ Morse said.
Source: Salina Journal
These three Kansas rodeos win awards
Abbyville is once again on the map. The Women’s Professional Rodeo Association awarded Abbyville Frontier Days PRCA Rodeo third place in the prairie circuit for best footing — meaning the rodeo ensures a safe and stable ground for the animals in the rodeo. The award specifically focusses on barrel racing horses. The Wild Bill Hickok Rodeo out of Abilene was voted most improved.
Source: Hutch News
Municipal Bond Trends for November 12, 2021
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.
End to lawsuit over nixed $300M Olathe project precedes Garmin land deal
Key puzzle pieces were sliding into place shortly before Garmin Ltd. completed its purchase of the former Great Mall of the Great Plains site in Olathe. The electronics manufacturer bought 193 acres northwest of Interstate 35 and 151st Street, west of its existing Olathe headquarters. Company officials said the acquisition was made for future facilities and workforce growth. But first, there was a separate property sale and resolution of a civil lawsuit involving two parties who used to own portions of the acreage.
Source: Kansas City Business Journal – The Business Journals
States, cities face deadline for proving how quickly they’ve helped renters in crisis
States, cities and counties that excelled at distributing emergency federal aid to renters struggling during the pandemic may soon be rewarded — with yet more cash. Their new funding would be drawn from sluggish states and localities that didn’t move as swiftly to help people facing eviction and homelessness, who were targeted for billions in assistance in relief legislation passed by Congress. The potential redistribution comes during a year in which Americans who risked losing their housing looked to government for help and a federal eviction ban expired. Meanwhile, state and local leaders struggled to ramp up their rental relief programs—and now a major deadline looms. The process for sorting out which states and cities may receive more federal rental aid money and which may see reductions begins Monday.
Source: Kansas Reflector
Electric car drivers are growing in the Midwest, now chargers need to keep up
Keeping an electric vehicle charged can be a challenge. Even for the editor-in-chief of a website focused on electric vehicles. Just consider the range anxiety of Bill Moore. He was scheduled to talk about the cars at the Nebraska Wind & Solar conference. The 12-volt auxiliary battery on his Nissan Leaf had gone dead. He’d thought, well, he could manage the drive in his backup, an all-electric Fiat 500e. “Unfortunately, Bill had to get a hold of us at about 11 o’clock this morning,” panel moderator and Lincoln Electric System manager Scott Benson said. “It dawned on him, ‘I don’t have enough range to get to Lincoln with that car.’” Growing numbers of people face the same problem.
Source: KCUR News
Infrastructure bill’s funds for water systems will be drained quickly
The just-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill will provide the EPA with more than $50 billion for improving the nation’s water systems. Anyone who doubts the need for such funding should take a peek at the inbox of Tommy Holmes, legislative director for the American Water Works Association, which represents public and private drinking water utilities across the country. “I have been getting a relatively steady stream of emails and phone calls from water utilities large and small asking ‘all right, how do we apply for the money?’” Holmes said. “And I have to point out that, well, the president hasn’t signed it into law yet, so EPA can’t officially roll out the program.”
Source: The Iola Register
Plains Cotton celebrates grand opening of massive Clearwater distribution center
On Friday, the Texas-based Plains Cotton Cooperative Association celebrated its presence in the market on Friday with a grand opening event at its massive new warehouse and distribution center in Clearwater. The 473,000 square-foot building is up and running at 13131 W. 95th Street S. in Clearwater Business Park, which is about 20 miles southwest of Wichita.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
Burlingame Library: Rescue grant provides materials fund for community patio
Workers prepare the site for the Burlingame Library’s new community patio. The Burlingame Community Library was recently awarded a $25,000 American Rescue Plan Act grant for the construction of a community patio. This project was made possible by the State Library of Kansas and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Source: Osage County Online