Municipal News & Jobs

Seventeen sculptures were unveiled Saturday morning as part of the 11th edition of SculptureTour Salina. At 11 a.m. Saturday, tarps were removed from the 17 pieces of art along Santa Fe Avenue created by artists across the nation, including two from Kansas and one from Salina. The Salinan Bob Peck, who has submitted pieces in the tour for a few years, helped unveiled “Santa Fe Strut,” for the 2021 edition. He said he enjoys submitting and coming to this particular tour, and not just because it’s in his city. “It’s always kind of fun to see what everybody else does,” Peck said. “I kind of wonder how they got their inspiration.”
Source: Salina Journal.

The historic American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law on March 12th, delivering $65 billion of direct and flexible aid to America’s cities, towns and villages. After a year of advocacy, the National League of Cities is proud to be a part of this historic victory that will provide much needed relief for local communities across the nation. The U.S. Department of Treasury is in the process of refining the estimates for allocations from the State and Local Fiscal Relief Funds, but estimations for each municipality have been released.
Source: NLC.

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.

The Emporia City Commission considered the approval of a motion of understanding to allow an electric scooter company to provide public transportation during its joint action/study session Wednesday morning. Mike Butler, account executive for Bird Rides Inc., presented a proposal of what it would look like if the 4-year-old scooter-sharing company were to operate in Emporia. The electric scooters are dockless, rechargeable units that travel at a maximum speed of 15 miles per hour and cost $1 to start a ride and 25-30 cents per minute after that. Discounts would be available for qualifying individuals such as veterans, seniors, students, healthcare workers or people with low incomes.
Source: Emporia Gazette.

Kansas bill signed in late April would bring sweeping changes to provide new funding sources and increased access to rural health care and mental health services across the state. A centerpiece provision of House Bill 2208 would allow Kansas hospitals to take advantage of federal action in December, which created the designation of “Rural Emergency Hospitals.” The similarly named Rural Emergency Hospital Act would enable certain Kansas hospitals to certify under this umbrella, allowing them to lower the number of mandated beds and better control costs.
Source: KS Reflector.

Rain or shine, pandemic or not, disc golf is on. The Dynamic Discs Open is hosting some of the best disc golfers from around the country in Emporia from April 28-May 1. Even amateurs can participate or come to watch the best of the best. The tournament usually sees the best in the world, but COVID-19 restrictions kept it to only U.S. participants. It’s still the biggest disc golf tournament in the world and has four rounds for professionals.
Source: KSN.

A massive solar farm stretching from west of Gardner possibly into Douglas County will, if it comes to fruition, become the biggest in Kansas, a state that has lagged behind in solar energy development. Billy Wilkins, project director for the West Gardner Solar Project, said Tuesday that his company, NextEra Energy, has already gotten signatures from landowners for 2,000 acres of the proposed 3,500-acre, $320 million project. The ground-mounted solar array would not necessarily run contiguously, however. Wilkins said the project would provide setbacks and would likely exclude land that is used for recreation or environmental purposes.
Source: KCUR.

One weekend each Spring, Baxter Springs celebrates its history with its annual Cowtown Days. The annual event kicked-off Thursday. As for the name, Baxter Springs – ever wonder where it came from? Wonder no more. The springs portion of the town’s name comes from a number of natural springs in the region, some of which, according to native American lore, had restorative qualities. The Baxter portion comes from the larger than life John Baxter, the city’s first official resident, who brought his family to the area in 1849 and literally towered over the community and it’s residents.
Source: KSN.

The airline industry has been one of the many industries impacted by the pandemic. But, Pittsburg’s Atkinson Municipal Airport has somehow managed to keep things going. Now — it’s about to receive some help. Daron Hall, Pittsburg City Manager, said, “With the public side of things, people being out and about has obviously taken a huge hit with the shut down.” Air travel took a huge hit more than a year ago as a result of the pandemic.
Source: KSN.

In many rural communities, people often have to quite a distance in order to receive the healthcare they need. But this will soon change for folks in Labette County. Oswego, specifically. Brian Williams, Labette Health CEO & President, said, “County commissioner told me it was a dream that started 30 years ago for him to have EMS and healthcare all under one roof.” A dream being made possible thanks to Friday’s groundbreaking in Oswego. “We’re building a rural health clinic along with an emergency medical services building.” Access to healthcare in and around Oswego has been difficult – particularly over the last two years.
Source: KSN.

The City of Lenexa is seeking more than $600 million in federal aid for a pair of road construction projects in Johnson County that failed to get the green light at the state level. Lenexa wants more than $400 million to complete the third phase of the expansive Johnson County Gateway project at the heavily traveled interchange of I-435, I-35 and K-10. The proposal would pay for the construction of a flyover ramp at I-35 northbound and I-435 westbound and improvements to the I-435 interchange at 95th Street among other upgrades to reduce congestion.
Source: KC Star.

Two years ago, Nick Poels decided he wanted K-12 students in his rural Kansas community of 2,500 to learn to code. Kids in Phillipsburg soon had a brand-new computer lab, and Poels hoped 20 or 30 children might use it. “Within two weeks of school starting, we had 351 students involved,” he said. Poels quickly realized he had touched on something. At the time he was the economic development director for Phillips County, in north-central Kansas. Now he’s working with nonprofit NetWork Kansas on a new project to bring computer science education to K-12 schools across the state, with support from the Kansas Department of Commerce. The first focus of his new project, dubbed Ignister, is to push for computer science classes to count as a core curriculum toward high school graduation in Kansas.
Source: Wichita Eagle.

When newcomers visit Wichita, many inevitably bring up the affordable cost of living, especially in regard to housing. For most Americans, rent and mortgage payments are the largest monthly expense they accrue. And research shows that affordable housing positively impacts education, health and economic outcomes of communities at-large. But keeping housing affordable for residents while maintaining and improving spaces requires a delicate balance. This is especially important now, as Wichita finds itself in the thick of a housing boom with listings selling at an unprecedented pace.
Source: Chung Report.