Municipal News & Jobs

A pending agreement means state lines won’t be a barrier to first responders when the worst happens. At next Monday’s Galena City Council meeting, approval for an updated “mutual aid agreement” with several neighboring communities is expected to be voted on. Galena has worked with several of these communities in the past, and Mayor Ashley Groves says this updated agreement would make sure they were all on “the same page” with when and how to respond. The agreement would be with several communities, like Columbus and Baxter Springs, even reaching across state lines to Joplin and Carl Junction.
Source: KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com

Downtown Manhattan is inching closer to having an established area where patrons can legally consume alcohol outdoors. City commissioners will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in City Hall. City officials will consider an ordinance that establishes the boundary and regulations for a downtown common consumption area. That boundary, according to agenda documents, would include all of Poyntz Avenue from 5th to 3rd Street and the area near the west entrance of the mall.
Source: themercury.com – RSS Results in news of type article

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

A recent report highlights the growing challenge of unrecognized costs and workforce shortages threatening rural maternity care in Kansas, potentially leading to more service closures. Unrecognized costs refer to expenses rural and critical access hospitals face beyond what is recorded in their official cost reports, which are always a year behind. Karen Weis, PhD, RNC-OB, FAAN, dean of KU School of Nursing Salina and lead author of the report, said, “Some of those costs that aren’t realized are when they don’t have the necessary workforce, be it nurses, anesthesia, lab, respiratory therapy, sonography. Then they must hire costly temporary workers, often called travelers.”
Source: KCLY Radio

The Hillsboro City Council met on Tuesday, June 3, and learned that the Hillsboro Community Child Care Center (H4C) is nearing its opening date with a current enrollment of 61 out of 99 potential spots filled. “One thing that needs attention is the parking lot and the surrounding areas. It’s bad. There’s been rock there for decades, but after the construction process, it’s pretty rough,” said Hillsboro City Administrator Matt Stiles. Stiles said that city street crews estimate that up to 200 tons of rock would be needed to complete the parking area and some other areas around the building.
Source: Hillsboro Free Press

Lieutenant Governor and Commerce Secretary David Toland today announced five grant recipients will share $250,000 funding through the Residential Opportunities On Main Street (ROOMS) program. Five projects in designated Kansas Main Street communities have been awarded $50,000 each to create a total of 29 new residential units in the upper floors of downtown buildings.
Source: Press Releases – Kansas Department of Commerce

The Sheraton Hotel in Overland Park is no longer being considered as a possible location for a World Cup team base camp, city officials have learned. The hotel had previously been one of three in the Kansas City area being considered as a home base for a visiting national team during the 2026 international soccer tournament. But tournament organizer FIFA recently notified city and hotel officials that the Sheraton, which is connected to the Overland Park Convention Center at 6000 College Blvd., has been ruled out because of the large size of the property.
Source: Johnson County Post

For years, police officers have used drones to assist their responses at the scene of emergencies. But now, the Lenexa Police Department is using drones as first responders, sending them out ahead of human responders to more quickly understand the situations that police are getting called into.
Source: Up To Date

In a dispute stemming from Marion withholding incriminating open records, a judge awarded more than $75,000 Thursday to the District Judge Ben Sexton had ruled April 4 that the city acted in “bad faith” and ordered it to pay the legal fees of Bernie Rhodes, who represents the Among the documents the city concealed was a text message from then-Mayor David Mayfield saying he had met with Sheriff Jeff Soyez and then-Police Chief Gideon Cody three days before police raided the paper’s newsroom and told Cody he “was behind him and his investigation 100%.”
Source: Marion County RECORD

Following a public hearing Thursday, Riley County officials nullified the city’s plan to use tax incentives for a duplex development.
County commissioners unanimously denied the proposal from the Manhattan City Commission. The plan would have authorized the use of a state program called Reinvestment Housing Incentive Districts, or RHID.
Source: themercury.com – RSS Results in news of type article

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer’s credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

A bicyclist who had suspected drugs in his backpack was arrested Tuesday. According to the Great Bend Police Department, an officer stopped Shon Rome, 49, at 6:14 p.m. following a traffic infraction at Ninth and Heizer.
Source: Homepage

The Harvey County Commission decided it wasn’t worth the extra effort and possible risks involved to allow fireworks sales in the county. In April, the commission was asked by Michelle Green, a Burrton resident, to lift the current ban on firework sales in rural Harvey County. Green said the current vendor for fireworks was no longer selling them at his location. In April, Sheriff Chad Gay said he would be in favor of lifting the ban. Gay said he spoke to his department, and they felt issues arose from people setting off fireworks, not usually from stands selling them. The commission asked for the planning and zoning department and emergency management department to look into the history of the ban more and share concerns they might have.
Source: Harvey County Now

The Johnson County juvenile services department will begin taking in youths from other Kansas counties as a way of recouping some of the costs of running the detention center at 915 W. Spruce St. in Olathe when it is not at full capacity. Commissioners were told last Thursday that officials from several Kansas counties that are overcrowded or don’t have facilities have expressed interest in bringing juvenile detainees to Johnson County for temporary housing while they await court proceedings.
Source: Johnson County Post

The city of Lenexa will expand a new program that uses drones to respond to emergency calls before police or firefighters arrive. On June 3, the Lenexa City Council voted 7-0 to approve adopting a resolution amending the 2025-2029 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) to include the Drone as a First Responder Program. The resolution included an agreement with Paladin Drones Inc. to purchase six drones along with other operational infrastructure. Councilmember Chris Herron was absent.
Source: Johnson County Post

Cyclists will be able to ride nearly 100 miles of uninterrupted trail in eastern Kansas thanks to a new bridge near Ottawa. The Flint Hills Trail runs from Osawatomie to Council Grove. It offers views of riverside bluffs, woods, rolling farmland and the largest remaining tallgrass prairie region — one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world. “There’s a six-mile stretch without any crossroads through the heart of the Flint Hills,” said Jeff Bender, a region supervisor for state parks at the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. “And you’re up pretty high — there’s some incredible great viewpoints and landscape out there.”
Source: News

Crawford County will serve as a testing ground for a new AI-driven railroad crossing alert system, thanks to a $450,000 grant awarded through the Kansas Transportation Innovation Program. The project is one of 20 selected statewide for funding by Governor Laura Kelly, who announced a total of $4.5 million in awards to support cutting-edge transportation initiatives across Kansas.
Source: www.koamnewsnow.com – RSS Results in news/local-news of type article

Arkansas City is taking steps to update its historic downtown district designation, a move aimed at preserving key buildings and opening new opportunities for reinvestment. The city has selected Davis Preservation, a Kansas-based firm, to lead the effort. The $20,000 project will reexamine which buildings qualify for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, based on a prior resurvey that identified areas for expansion and revision.
Source: KSN-TV

The prospects of higher education just got a lot more affordable for future Humboldt-USD 258 graduates. The Humboldt Promise, announced at Monday’s USD 258 Board of Education meeting, is a scholarship that provides nearly every Humboldt student the opportunity to continue their education beyond graduation. The scholarships — paying up to 100% of the cost of enrollment in college, university, or technical training — was created and funded by The Works Family Foundation, a nonprofit organized to support community development and education in Humboldt.
Source: The Iola Register