Municipal News & Jobs

Lawrence city commissioners on Tuesday agreed to use the gymnasiums of two city recreation centers for overnight shelter of the homeless, despite the city’s fire chief expressing concerns about the safety of the idea. Commissioners at their weekly meeting unanimously approved a plan to use the Community Building, 115 W. 11th St., and the East Lawrence Recreation Center, 1245 E. 15th Street, to each house up to 75 people experiencing homelessness during cold winter nights. The plan, though, required the city to temporarily suspend portions of the city’s fire code meant to protect life and safety, and Fire Chief Shaun Coffey told commissioners he didn’t support the plan due to those changes.
Source: LJWorld.com.

The Barton County Commission Tuesday morning agreed to help fund Great Bend Economic Development Inc. in the amount of $250,000 in a decision hailed by commissioners as a historic cooperative effort between the county and the City of Great Bend. “Today marks a special day in our community,” said District 3 Commissioner Shawn Hutchinson. “For the first time in recent history, Barton County is joining forces with the City of Great Bend and Great Bend Economic Development to develop a countywide initiative focused on growth.” The city already funds GBED for $250,000. Now the county will jump in at the same level.
Source: Great Bend Tribune

Construction of a proposed multiuse trail along the GVI drainage ditch north of Kisiwa Village Road will not proceed, city leaders agreed Tuesday after the city’s parks director confirmed the city did not own sufficient right-of-way to construct it as planned and a landowner to the north was not willing to sell. To proceed without buying the land would require altering the drainage ditch or building a retaining wall, which Park Director Justin Combs said was cost-prohibitive, or using eminent domain to take the land, which none of the city council members expressed support for.
Source: Hutch News

The KMU Executive Committee has named Brad Mears as Interim Executive Director when Colin Hansen steps away from the association in early January. Hansen is joining the Kansas Power Pool (KPP) on February 1 as the agency’s CEO/General Manager. Mears has been with KMU since 2007 and has served as the organization’s Assistant Executive Director since 2014. In that capacity, he has been involved in both the strategic positioning and day-to-day operation of the association.
Source: KMU Dispatch.

KDHE data through Saturday show case rates have been falling across the state for the past eight weeks while positive test rates have remained mostly steady. School-aged children — especially those too young to get vaccinated — have the highest case rates and positive test rates of any age group. Kansas and all of its counties have either “high” or “substantial” community spread, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The improving indicators now contrast with last year’s fall wave, when Kansas was in the midst of its worst surge of the coronavirus pandemic. Many schools were forced to move online only as the virus sickened students and staff.
Source: Dodge Globe

Residents heard more details Monday about a proposed redesign of the city’s bus routes that includes an Uber-like “microtransit” option. Lawrence Transit has proposed two options for a long-awaited redesign of the city’s bus routes and held the first public meeting Monday to present the proposals and get input from residents. Transportation consultants explained that both proposals use traditional routes complemented by a microtransit service that uses a van or a smaller bus that riders can request on demand.
Source: LJWorld.com.

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.