Kansas Municipal News
Moving Wall coming to Valley Center
A Vietnam War memorial is coming to Valley Center, as The Moving Wall will be set up at Lions Park (316 S. Abilene Ave.) from Oct. 21-25. The display will be open to the public 24/7 during those days and admission is free. The Moving Wall is a half-size replica of the Washington, D.C., Vietnam Veterans Memorial and has toured the U.S. for more than 30 years. The wall contains the names of over 58,000 people who lost their lives in the Vietnam War.
Source: Derby Informer | Area
Derby City Council hears varying opinions on new property codes
Updates to Derby’s property maintenance standards drew a wide range of reactions from council members and citizens on hand at the Oct. 12 city council meeting. As part of a first reading of proposed amendments to Title 8 of the Derby Municipal Code, Director of Public Works Robert Mendoza discussed the changes to property maintenance standards with the Derby City Council. While the previous standards focused on appearance only, the changes would take health and safety into account as well. The amendments would also still focus increased enforcement solely on the exterior of both residential and commercial buildings. Previously, the property code focused on preventing animal infestations, overgrown weeds/grass and bulky waste piling up on residences. The amendments would also address mold/mildew, brick and mortar damage, peeling paint, deteriorated shingles, corroded metal surfaces and a few other items.
Source: Derby Informer | News
KMU’s Colin Hansen leaves to head KPP
Last week, Kansas Municipal Utilities Executive Director Colin Hansen submitted his resignation to the KMU Executive Committee at its regularly scheduled meeting in McPherson. He will be leaving KMU after 22 years of service to accept the position of CEO/General Manager for the Kansas Power Pool (KPP).
Source: KMU
Municipal Bond Trends for October 19, 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.
Wichita City Council could approve Clapp Golf Course master plan
The future of Clapp Golf Course is up for a vote today in the Wichita City Council. The course is located at 4611 E. Harry was closed in 2019 because it wasn’t making any money. Leaders decided to turn it into a multi-purpose park. … Phase I improvements will consist of partial demolition, grading and utility extension to accommodate the new entry drive and parking lot. It will also construct a year-round pavilion, restrooms, a playground and a splash pad as funding allows.
Source: KSN-TV
Prairie Village to let citywide mask mandate expire on Oct. 31
The Prairie Village City Council on Monday evening elected to not take any action on its citywide mask mandate, allowing the current order to expire on Oct. 31. Prairie Village’s mask order — which was the first for a Johnson County city amid this summer’s spike in cases — went into effect on Aug. 24. The city council then extended the mandate through the end of October, largely based on the CDC’s classification of Johnson County as an area of “high” transmission of COVID-19 at that time.
Source: Prairie Village Post
KS law enforcement agencies to collect unused medications this weekend
Law enforcement officers at locations across the state will be collecting unused medications for safe disposal on Saturday, October 23, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said today. The collection events are part of a nationwide effort to safely dispose of leftover medications to prevent accidental or intentional misuse. Since the Drug Take-Back Day program began in 2010, more than 110 tons of unwanted medications have been collected and destroyed in Kansas alone. “Unused medications are dangerous for kids, pets and the environment,” Schmidt said. “Diversion of opioid painkillers, in particular, can contribute to the misuse of these drugs that has become a serious nationwide problem. Getting leftover medicines out of the medicine cabinets and safely destroyed keeps them from falling into the wrong hands and makes our communities safer.”
Source: KSNF/KODE
In rural Kansas and Missouri, unhoused people often go unseen and unhelped
On any given night, an estimated 943 people in rural Kansas and 1,569 people in rural Missouri are homeless. But the actual numbers are likely far greater. … In cities and urban areas, unhoused people will often be on the streets, in public encampments, or in shelters. In more rural areas, people will seek shelter in the woods, abandoned farm buildings or couch surf. Shanae Eggert with Kansas Homeless Coalition said the “hidden homeless population” of rural areas perpetuates a cycle of scarcity. “We don’t identify as many people who are actually experiencing homelessness (as) we would in an urban area, and it’s unfortunately a cycle,” Eggert said. “Because this population is more hidden in those areas, you can’t show an accurate need like you could in the city.”
Source: KCUR News
Johnson County district makes masks optional for older students as COVID cases fall
The De Soto school board on Monday unanimously agreed to make COVID-19 masks optional for high school students, effective Wednesday. The school district, like most others in Johnson County, has had a universal mask mandate since the school year began. But board members decided it was time to remove the mandate for high schoolers as COVID-19 cases decline. Masks will remain optional for high schoolers as long as the percentage of students needing to quarantine or isolate after being exposed to the virus remains below 4%. Otherwise, the mandate will be reinstated. Masks would then become optional again if that number drops below 2% for two consecutive weeks.
Source: Joco 913 News
Hobby shooters peppering neighborhood with bullets; Sedgwick County seeks to stop it
Residents of a Derby housing development say they are sick and tired of dodging bullets fired by neighbors in unincorporated Sedgwick County. They may get some relief Thursday at a special meeting where county commissioners are scheduled to consider a resolution that would make it a violation, with a $500 fine for shooting a bullet that strays outside the shooter’s property. Residents of the Northbrook Addition say they live in fear, in the line of fire behind where their neighbors on larger county lots adjacent to the development shoot targets with makeshift berms for backstops.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Roeland Park extends city mask order, comes to agreement over Bishop Miege’s optional policy
Roeland Park has agreed to allow Bishop Miege High School to continue its optional face mask policy until Jan. 7 for all students, faculty, staff and visitors, with some restrictions. By a 5-4 vote, with Mayor Mike Kelly breaking the tie, the Roeland Park City Council on Monday night approved a memorandum of understanding, effective immediately, allowing Miege to continue its mask policy, which it had implemented Sept. 20. Also on Monday, the city council voted unanimously to extend the citywide mask mandate, which was set to expire Tuesday, to 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 16. In supporting the extension, Kelly noted that neighboring jurisdictions, including Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kan., have mask mandates in place into early November.
Source: Prairie Village Post
Overland Park lawyer files $7 million lawsuit alleging she was unlawfully detained
An attorney in Overland Park filed a $7 million federal civil lawsuit against the city of Overland Park, it’s police chief, the Johnson County District Attorney and the county sheriff alleging she was falsely arrested and detained following an altercation with a relative. Shauna McRoberts said she was arrested on a misdemeanor domestic assault and detained for 22 hours on Sept. 16, 2018 by Overland Park police after they responded to her parents’ home. In the 37-page lawsuit, McRoberts said she was the victim of an assault but police arrested and detained her for no reason.
Source: KC Star Local News
City working to address Food deserts in Wichita
A south Wichita community now has no immediate access to fresh fruits and vegetables after their neighborhood Save-A-Lot closed and is now being replaced with a store that does not sell produce. Hamid Bakhtiari, the Wichita-raised developer, is putting in a new dollar store to replace the Save-A-Lot. Bakhtiari said he tried to replace the Save-A-Lot with another grocery storebut that the stores that were interested would not do it without incentives. “We had probably half a million dollars in refrigeration in that place. Walk-in coolers, we had everything there,” said Bakhtiari. Bakhtiari said he was ready to find a new grocery store for the food desert, but did not have enough help from the city.
Source: KSN-TV
Kansas Mainstreet Program to expand its investment in downtown Kansas
Plans to expand the Kansas Mainstreet Program by up to three additional communities is scheduled to happen this winter according to Gov. Laura Kelly. “When our main street businesses succeed, our whole economy succeeds,” Kelly said. “That’s why my administration restarted the Kansas Main Street Program, to help communities program was launched in 1985 reinvest in small businesses.” The program was launched in 1985 but closed by former Gov. Brownback in 2012, then brought back by Kelly in late 2019. According to the current administration, the program invested more than $600 million in its first 27 years. Earlier this year, the Governor announced the addition of Atchison, Baldwin City, and Junction City, which brought the total number of designated Main Street communities in Kansas to 28. The program will now add up to three more designated communities, which are eligible for training and technical assistance designed to help them become self-sufficient in downtown revitalization.
Source: KSNT News
Is city street funding fair? Mayor, council member want to pave south-side dirt roads
The city of Wichita is on track to spend $11.5 million on road repairs next year, but the mayor and a council member say the city should do more to pave roads in poorer neighborhoods, particularly south of Kellogg. Wichita has roughly 100 miles of unpaved streets. Covering those roads in pavement requires property owners to undergo a lengthy and arduous process of gathering petition signatures and convincing neighbors to accept tax increases. Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple made his case for paving some of those unpaved streets Tuesday during the City Council’s debate over the city’s street-repair program.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
Topeka ranks #4 in Wall Street Journal’s Emerging Housing Markets Index
Many Americans are still moving to suburban areas because they can work from home. Recent signs of an economic slowdown driven by the Delta variant made people reconsider their plans and kept smaller and more rural housing markets in the top spots for the hottest new places to live and own. To help home buyers decide on the best place to make housing investments, The Wall Street Journal collaborated with Realtor.com to rank which housing markets are expected to provide both a strong return on investment—and are a nice place to live.
Source: Wall Street Journal
Garden City Water Department earns award
The Garden City Water Department was recently awarded the 2021 Smart Water Application Technologies Outstanding Public Engagement Award for the city’s customer water use report. The report educates customers on their water use and shows how their use compares to other water customers in the community. Before this program, customers were generally uninformed regarding their water consumption, aside from paying the cost of their water bills.
Source: Greater Garden City » Feed
Peace Poles add color to this Johnson County park
The modern peace sign has been an iconic symbol since the late 1950s. Now the City of Lenexa has on display another take on conveying peace: colorfully decorated poles created by local artists. Through the summer, 37 poles have been on display at Sar-Ko-Par Trails Park as part of the Peace Poles Community Art Project. Two additional poles are on display at the Lenexa Civic Campus to help promote the exhibit. The public’s last chance to see the exhibit comes at the end of the month. The poles will remain on display at the park through Oct. 31.
Source: Joco 913 News
One Johnson County city to let mask mandate expire, while another extends its order
One northeast Johnson County city on Monday agreed to let its mask mandate expire at the end of this month, while another extended its mandate through mid-November. The Prairie Village City Council decided against prolonging its citywide mask mandate, meaning it will expire at midnight Oct. 31. Meanwhile, the Roeland Park City Council decided to extend its mask order until Nov. 16. The decisions come as the number of new COVID-19 cases steadily declines in Johnson County, after sharp peaks this summer. On Monday, the county reported an incidence rate — or the number of new cases per 100,000 people in the past seven days — of 91 per 100,000. That’s down from a rate of 191 per 100,000 on Sept. 16.
Source: Joco 913 News
Baxter Springs resident helps restore a piece of Southeast Kansas history
Sometimes it’s hard to avoid the toll time can take on a building. Over hundreds of years a structure can fall into disrepair and sometimes the only option is to tear it down and salvage what remains, erasing history in the process. One man is trying to save the past in Baxter Springs, and while it’s taken some time, the community is standing behind him. “It is such a symbol of what was going on in America at that time,” says Carla Jordan, Historian, “The boom bust history of Southeast Kansas is also the history of America.”
Source: KSNF/KODE