Kansas Municipal News
USD 378 scammed out of more than $115,000
Riley County Police say USD 378 Riley County Schools were scammed out of over $115,000. According to the Thursday’s incident report, an employee was scammed by an unknown person pretending to be part of an insurance company to send them money. The scam occurred Wednesday, with an exact loss of $115,388. Police are asking anyone who receives a similar type of call to report it to RCPD and submit any tips to Manhattan Riley County Crime Stoppers.
Source: 1350 KMAN
Osawatomie seeks public input on downtown redevelopment project
Cathy Caldwell wants to know what the community’s vision is for the OZ Commons Osawatomie Downtown Redevelopment project. The City Council member is not alone. On Tuesday, June 27, residents had a chance to meet and interact with the redevelopment project’s consultant team — Architect One, Alta Planning and Shockey Consulting — and hear from city staff and members of the OzCOMP advisory group, of which Caldwell is a member. The event, which took place in the Osawatomie High School cafeteria, featured interactive stations, maps, questions, and other media to help the city and consultants gather as much feedback and opinion as they could. Participants had a chance to weigh in on a variety of topics: “Vision & Values,” “Investing in Walking & Biking,” “Existing Conditions / Opportunities & Challenges,” “Routes & Preferences Map Drawings,” “Redevelopment Preferences” and “Ideas & Location Preferences.”
Source: Local News | republic-online.com
Critics raise concerns over legality of new eviction moratorium as billions of federal relief funds remain unspent
President Joe Biden reversed course this week with his announcement of a new COVID-related moratorium on evictions, but the order has already gotten strong pushback from critics. The U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced the moratorium Tuesday evening, after Biden gave his approval despite previously questioning whether he had the legal authority to do so. Critics have taken issue with the moratorium, pointing to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling against this kind of federal order earlier this year and billions of dollars in federal housing assistance funds that have been left unspent by the states.
Source: Derby Informer | News
Johnson County commissioners vote to require masks for all K-6th grade schools
Johnson County commissioners voted 5-2 Thursday afternoon to mandate masks for all elementary schools. The board voted to require masking for all students through 6th grade in local school districts. Faculty and staff at elementary schools would also be required to wear masks. The new mask rule will apply in both public and private schools. It gets more complicated when addressing middle schools. The new mask rule says: “This requirement includes children in higher grades who attend school in buildings where children in 6th or lower grades also attend school unless 6th graders are physically separated from higher grades throughout the school day.” Shawnee Mission School District has already mandated masking for elementary schools, but vaccinated teachers can opt out of masking. De Soto School District also voted this week that all staff and students, regardless of age or vaccination status, will wear masks at school.
Source: fox4kc.com | FOX 4 – WDAF
KCK extends utility disconnect moratorium until October to give more time to sign up for help
The Board of Public Utilities board of directors have extended the moratorium for residential utility disconnections for non-payment until October 6. The BPU says people should continue to pay their bills on time so they don’t get too far behind. They said one of the main reasons for the action was to allow more time for people to take advantage of the Kansas Emergency Rental Assistance program, a program funded by the 2021 Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriation Act. The act provided Kansas with about $200 million for rental assistance and is administered by the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation. Tenants who rent their home, whose 2020 household income did not exceed 80% of the area’s median, households where at least one person is going through documented financial hardship due to COVID-19, or at least one person that is uncertain of where they will stay or become homeless.
Source: fox4kc.com | FOX 4 – WDAF
California aviation company to expand operations to Wichita
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has announced that a California aviation company will be expanding its operations with a facility in Wichita. Brek Manufacturing Company intends to purchase two buildings in Wichita, investing $4.5 million and creating 75 new jobs over the next five years. Brek specializes in the making of complex structural aircraft parts, including contoured surface parts common with modern-day aircraft. Company officials said Wichita’s aerospace and aviation ecosystem and workforce were factors in their decision to expand into Kansas. Brek’s products are used in commercial, strategic and tactical military aircraft. The Wichita City Council is expected to consider industrial revenue bonds for the Brek expansion during their regular meeting next week.
Source: Country 101.3 KFDI
Finney Co. OKs study of westside wastewater
Finney County Economic Development Corporation was given permission to move forward in conducting a westside wastewater study at the Finney County Commission’s regular meeting Monday. Lona Duvall, President/CEO of the FCEDC, said the area is quickly running our of commercial and industrial properties as well as residential and one area that they haven’t been able to develop is the area between Garden City and Holcomb, largely to to wastewater, as roads electricity and water is already available there.
Source: GC Telegram.
Municipal Bond Trends for August 4, 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.
Report details how to keep young people in rural Kansas communities
A new report published this week from the Kansas Sampler Foundation examines the challenges and opportunities for young people who choose to live in rural Kansas. The public nonprofit, whose mission it is to preserve and sustain rural culture, says the findings from the report can help revive and refresh communities that are facing the outmigration of young talent. Created through a partnership with the Kansas Office of Rural Prosperity, a nonpartisan initiative,the “Power Up & Go” report is based on 460 surveys and 175 interviews from residents ages 21 to 39 living in every county in Kansas.
Source: Wichita Business Journal
City of Derby exploring new public transit opportunities with Uber
As part of its routine policy of updating priorities quarterly, the Derby City Council turned its focus to some new projects recently given strides made in some areas. … work will shift to priorities like developing options for improved public transit. Regarding that, Sexton reported a pilot program is currently being worked out for Uber to provide potential solutions in Derby. Exploring this pilot program with Uber, Sexton and assistant city manager Kiel Mangus noted the cost structure is intended to remain similar to that of the Derby Dash ($2 per each one-way ride), with the city subsidizing any additional costs Uber may charge per ride.
Source: Derby Informer | News
Manhattan seeks to streamline special events with alcohol
Manhattan city commissioners are onboard with streamlining the process for approving events where alcohol is served. Commissioners discussed a proposal for changing city policy on special events with alcohol Tuesday. Currently, any entity that wishes to have a special event with alcohol sales in Aggieville, downtown or Blue Earth Plaza must use a licensed caterer and set up beer gardens for people to drink in. The proposed policy change would eliminate the requirement for beer gardens and establish special event boundaries that would allow people to drink freely within a cordoned-off city block.
Source: themercury.com
People are leaving rural Kansas, new data shows why
Population growth in Kansas isn’t keeping up with the rest of the country, according to a map from the U.S. Census Bureau, and one reason is people are leaving rural areas of the state. The Kansas Sampler Foundation and the Kansas Office of Prosperity recently released the results of their own survey after getting input from hundreds of young people in rural areas about their moves. Childcare, internet access, and housing are some of the biggest motivations for people deciding not to stay in the state. Some issues like broadband may be a bigger concern in small towns, but not all are specific to rural areas.
Source: KSN-TV
The city of Fort Scott is looking for a new city manager
After 6 months under a new city manager, Fort Scott is already looking for another city manager. Jeremy Frazier submitted his resignation on Monday night….A meeting will be held tomorrow night, where commissioners will discuss who will take over on an interim basis.
Source: KSNF/KODE
Kansas resident’s ‘F*** Biden’ flag can’t stay in yard, town says
“F*** Biden and F*** you for voting for him!” These are the words on a flag the City of Blue Rapids deemed too inappropriate to be in David Sain’s front yard. After being required to take the flag down, Sain said he disagreed with the decision the city made. “You know, I don’t know why they are making me take it down,” Sain said. “It is my freedom of speech and my First Amendment right,” Sain said. The call to make Sain take the flag down came from a resident of the tiny town of around 1,000 people in Marshall County. … The city ultimately cited Sain with promoting obscenity, as defined in the “Kansas Uniform Public Offense Code.”
Source: KSNT News
More jobs could come to Topeka with city & county’s $491,900 plan to incentivize companies’ growth
A local economic development group plans to use hundreds of thousands of tax dollars to bring more jobs to Topeka with the city and county’s blessing Wednesday evening. Shawnee County Commissioners Kevin Cook, Bill Riphahn and Aaron Mays, and Topeka Mayor De La Isla, Deputy Mayor Mike Padilla and city council members Hannah Naeger and Mike Lesser all voted on approving the four incentive projects proposed by the Joint Economic Development Organization. JEDO is a partnership between the City of Topeka and Shawnee County which has come up with four different projects intended to bring jobs to the area.
Source: KSNT News
Kansas sees tax collections beat expectations by 11% in July
Kansas is reporting that its tax collections in July were 11% greater than expected, good news even as the spread of the more contagious COVID-19 delta variant has some officials worried about the economy. The state Department of Revenue says Kansas collected nearly $603 million in general tax revenues last month. Its official forecast predicted $543 million, making the surplus $60 million. It was the 12th consecutive month in which tax collections were greater than expected. Revenues have been less than anticipated in only three months during the past four years. July’s surplus came after Kansas ended its 2021 budget year on June 30 with tax collections and cash reserves approaching $2 billion.
Source: KAKE – News
Traveling health care workers assisting local hospitals as COVID hospitalizations rise
“We just don’t have enough nurses over there,” said Debra Robinson. Robinson has been a nurse for more than 40 years. She says right now the need for nurses and other health care workers is higher than ever. “I’m not sure there’s going to be enough to take care of us,” said Robinson. “I gotta stay healthy, because… I’m just not sure if there will be enough if I were to get sick. Yeah, and that’s scary. That’s real scary.” Just before the pandemic, Robinson became a traveling nurse, something she says a lot of hospitals around the U.S. are utilizing because of the lack of workers. “We don’t have the same amount of staff to care for our patients. This time around we will run out of staff before we run out of beds,” said commissioner Sarah Lopez during the Sedgwick County Commission meeting Tuesday morning. Lopez says the recent spread of the delta variant combined with the nursing shortage is a recipe for disaster.
Source: KAKE – News
Critically ill rural Kansans struggle to find proper healthcare as metro hospitals continue filling up with Covid patients
During the pandemic, we’ve often focused on bigger metro hospitals like in Wichita. But when they start filling up, it creates a domino effect making it sometimes impossible for rural patients to get the help they need. Preston Sauers is the CEO of Kingman Healthcare Center. Like many rural communities, the pandemic hit hard for him and his team. “Her statement to the ER provider was, I shouldn’t have listened to facebook. I should have gotten the vaccine,” said Sauers. Over the weekend, a young patient came in with COVID. After doing everything the doctors could, they decided she needed to be transferred for additional care. After days of trying, the closest option wasn’t even in Kansas.
Source: KAKE – News
Lead pipes are a problem, but not locally
According to a report released two weeks ago by The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the United States has between 9.7 million and 12.8 million lead pipes that carry water from the water main under streets to residences. Adjusting for population, the group estimated that Kansas has 5,446 lead pipes per 100,000 residents. That makes Kansas third on the list of states with the highest number of service lines. According to local sources, those pipes aren’t in The Harvey County Now coverage area. Danny Entz, Director of Public Works in North Newton, said the town has never had lead main lines, but may have had lead service lines (the lines that run from the main pipe to the water meter) at one time.
Source: Harvey County Now
Merging the past with the present in Wilson
One of the most notable things in Wilson is the Czech egg. It stands at 20 feet tall and is the biggest in the world. The egg is a tribute to the Czechoslovakian history of Wilson. During holidays and celebrations, they are exchanged to symbolize new beginnings, love, friendship and good things to come. The egg attracts people from all around the world. “My mom is from Czechoslovakia so we stopped, we stopped by here. It was an unexpected adventure kind of, and we always have adventures wherever we go. Ask my family behind you,” said Edward McFall, who was visiting from Colorado.
Source: KSN-TV