Kansas Municipal News
Shawnee County won’t require masks of farmers market vendors
Shawnee County officials will no longer require masks at the Downtown Topeka Farmers Market. … More than a dozen farmers market vendors attended the Thursday-morning meeting, and by a show of hands, most of those present indicated they were pleased with the amendment. “It became pretty obvious that outdoor venues should be treated differently than indoor venues,” said commissioner Mays.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Washburn’s fall semester to be mix of in-person classes, remote learning
Washburn University’s fall semester will look slightly different as students will spend the first half taking in-person classes and transition into a remote format in November. Washburn’s director of public relations Patrick Early said in a news release Thursday the fall semester will begin August 15. However, the schedule has been adjusted in preparation for a potential second wave of the coronavirus, Early said. Washburn’s fall break, originally planned to take place October 10-13, has been moved to November 21-24.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Dodge City closes City Hall to public after employee tests positive for COVID-19
Administration for the City of Dodge City Thursday reports City Hall is closed to public access until further notice after an employee at City Hall tests positive for COVID-19. “We were notified this morning that one of our employees within City Hall has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now self-isolating,” says City Manager Nick Hernandez. “We have also closed City Hall until further notice while additional testing and monitoring of employees takes place.” Dodge City reports other employees who had contact with the city employee who tested positive for the virus were sent for testing and instructed to self quarantine until cleared by health officials.
(Read more: KWCH News)
Wichita faces deficit due to COVID-19, seeks public input on where to cut
Due to revenue and tax loss from the coronavirus pandemic, the city of Wichita is facing a budget shortfall. According to Mayor Brandon Whipple, the city needs to cut roughly $11 million from this year budget and possibly as much as $16 million from next year’s. “There is no more good decisions, there are just less bad decisions” said Whipple. Wichita residents hope these cuts are not too short sighted. “We just need to have a long term vision on what is important for the Wichita economy” said Connor Hakes.
(Read more: KAKE – News)
Fairway to consider updating public comment policy at future city council meeting
The Fairway City Council Monday evening decided to table updating its public comment policy after several suggested changes from city councilmembers and input from citizens. … The draft presented to the city council included the following adjustments:
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)
Johnson County board approves plan to invest in contact tracing, testing supplies, epidemiology staff for COVID-19
After many reassurances about data privacy and government oversight, the Johnson County Commission approved a $4.1 million expansion of its public health department budget to pay for contact tracing, testing supplies and more epidemiology staff. Some commissioners, who said they were leery of certain aspects of the health department’s request, also asked for and received a pledge that the increased research on the spread of COVID-19 would be fact-based and apolitical. Officials said this year’s extra spending should be eligible for federal reimbursement under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. After this year, the commission will review ongoing expenses for future budgets.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)
Wichita police plan to ban kneeling on necks of handcuffed subjects, more policy changes
Wichita police plan to ban kneeling on necks of subjects who have been handcuffed, as well as several other policy changes protesters have called for. A document provided by the Wichita Police Department to the Citizen’s Review Board on Thursday listed several proposed changes to the use of force policy, which has not been updated in seven years. In addition to the ban on neck-kneeling for handcuffed subjects, the draft includes a duty to intervene for officers witnessing unethical behavior, a requirement to provide medical aid after deadly force is used and a general prohibition on shooting at vehicles. Those and other changes were added at the police chief’s request, according to the document.
(Read more: Local News |)
KDHE rolls out COVID-19 testing strategy
After months of an evolving testing strategy, Kansas has released a statewide strategy that will utilize four types of testing facilities, two methods of testing and the ability to more quickly identify a positive COVID-19 case. Kansas Department of Health and Environment Lee Norman said Thursday during a news conference the strategy will allow for a more rapid deployment force and the ability to test an entire facility such as a skilled nursing home or correctional facility. One of the testing strategy’s goals is to test two percent of the state’s population or conduct 60,000 tests a month.
(Read more: State Government – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Dodge City receives funds for meal programs
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) funds continue to be distributed to Kansas communities. The city of Dodge City recently received $132,000 in funding to be used for meal programs and such economic development initiatives as job retention for low- to moderate-income people.The funding received by the city was through Community Development Response Supplemental funds of the CARES Act, which aims to assist with nutritional programs.
(Read more: News – Dodge City Daily Globe – Dodge City, KS)
Ruling: Jury to decide case against former Leavenworth police officer who fatally shot man in 2017
A former Leavenworth police officer who fatally shot a man in a vehicle in 2017 cannot claim legal immunity, a ruling that leaves it to a jury to decide whether his actions were justified as self defense. Leavenworth County Judge Michael Gibbens found that the force used by then-Officer Matthew Harrington was not statutorily justified as self defense, clearing the way for the involuntary manslaughter case to proceed, The Kansas City Star reported. Harrington was indicted in August 2018 for the death of Antonio Garcia Jr., who was shot multiple times while sitting in an SUV. Harrington was fired for violating policy. The judge ruled in May that a “reasonable person” would not believe use of force was necessary or that the SUV Garcia was in could be considered a weapon.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Appeals court: rules for city tour guides unconstitutional
A federal appeals court has ruled that a South Carolina city’s rules requiring tour guides to memorize facts about the city is unconstitutional. The unanimous ruling Thursday from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond upholds an earlier ruling from a lower court. A libertarian legal group, the Institute for Justice in Arlington, Virginia, filed the lawsuit on behalf of several would-be tour guides. The group argued it was an unconstitutional restriction on free speech to require tour guides to receive a license to talk to tourists about the city.
(Read more: Politics & Government News |)
Lifeline Program offers relief to those struggling to keep phone service
Low income and recently unemployed Kansans may qualify for phone service discounts of up to $17.02 per month with the Lifeline program. Currently more than 10 million low-income Americans, including 35,000 Kansans, are benefiting from Lifeline discounts on home and wireless phones as well as broadband. At a time when many Americans may be unemployed or facing other circumstances that make them eligible for the program for the first time, the Kansas Corporation Commission is joining utility regulators nationwide in increasing awareness of the Lifeline program.
(Read more: Fort Scott Tribune)
USDA Ensures All Kids Can Get Free Meals This Summer as Nation Reopens
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has announced a nationwide extension of another key flexibility for USDA’s child nutrition programs. This waiver allows local partners, who have been working overtime serving meals to kids during the health crisis, the ability to continue serving free meals to all children – regardless of where they live – for the remainder of the summer. This action is part of USDA’s ongoing commitment to making it as easy as possible for local program operators to get food to children impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Read more: Fort Scott Tribune)
Pittsburg commission approves funding for CHCSEK residency program facilities
The Pittsburg City Commission this week approved a grant of up to $600,000 — 10 percent of an estimated $6 million total cost — to be paid upon completion of a project to expand Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas’ facilities to accommodate its new family practice residency program. In making his case to commission, Jason Wesco, executive vice president of CHCSEK, said the organization’s goal is to provide access to healthcare, but that goal goes beyond just being a health clinic.
(Read more: Education – Morning Sun)
Individual KS districts to decide how school will look when fall semester begins
he Kansas State Board of Education Wednesday held a virtual meeting to discuss how Fall 2020 could look for schools across the state. The biggest takeaway from that meeting is that the board is going to let each individual district decide what the fall semester will look like for them. The board will be recommending guidelines as it has hundreds of educators and health officials working together.
(Read more: KWCH News)
National Guard working in Johnson County to package 4 million meals for food insecure Kansans
Social distancing requirements have made it difficult for a variety of businesses and programs to operate — including meal packaging efforts for food insecure individuals. As COVID-19 stay-at-home orders progressed volunteer groups began cancelling meal packaging events with The Outreach Program, a national nonprofit aiming to address hunger. This created a supply issue for food banks that still needed access to shelf-stable goods. Then, the Kansas National Guard stepped in. Rick McNary, vice president of strategic partnerships at The Outreach Program, received a call from the Kansas Division of Emergency Management, which was willing to fund production costs. KDEM informed McNary that the National Guard could be used as volunteers, since they were deployed and didn’t have to comply with social distancing guidelines as soldiers. Now, the guardsmen have packaged three million meals — currently working on the fourth million — for food insecure Kansans.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)
10-year Treasury yield drops below 0.7% on fears of a second coronavirus wave
Treasury yields dropped on Thursday as rising fears of a second wave of the virus and a cautious economic outlook from the Federal Reserve drove investors to safe-haven bonds. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note plunged 6 basis points to 0.681%, hitting the lowest level since June 3. The yield on the 30-year bond fell 7 basis points to 1.440%. Yields move inversely to prices. The coronavirus pandemic remains on investors’ radar, with confirmed infections in the U.S. now exceeding 2 million and several areas of the country reporting spikes following the reopening of their economies.
(Read more: CNBC – Bonds)
Near-zero rates here to stay; “Dot plot” expects no rate changes for 3 years
The Summary of Economic Projections, released Wednesday, shows Federal Open Market Committee members expect the fed funds rate target to remain at zero lower bound through next year, with all but two participants expecting no rates hikes in 2022 as well. One member expects rates to jump a full point in 2022, while the other outlier sees rates climbing 25 basis points in 2022. Over the longer run, most members see rates at 2.5%, with others ranging from 2.0% to 3.0%. And in his post-meeting press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said, “We are not even thinking about thinking about raising rates.”
(Read more: The Bond Buyer)
Shawnee to consider extending sidewalk for outdoor seating downtown during COVID-19 pandemic
Shawnee will consider allowing restaurants and bars to have temporary outdoor seating along Johnson Drive downtown. To accommodate downtown businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, Shawnee city staff on Monday proposed a plan similar to what Leawood now offers for the food and drink service industry: Extended outdoor seating. Shawnee’s plan would include parklets. Parklets are sidewalk extensions — decks built in parallel parking spaces adjacent to restaurants and bars — where guests could sit, dine, wait or recreate. Shawnee proposes allowing parklets in parallel parking spaces on Johnson Drive. The decks must allow stormwater to drain, so they can be elevated to curb level. The parklets must also be accessible.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)
Shawnee to provide lease assistance for Drastic Measures, a new cocktail bar coming downtown
The Shawnee City Council on Monday agreed to help pay rent for a new cocktail bar coming to downtown. The owners of Drastic Measures, a spirits and cocktail bar coming to 5817 Nieman Road, requested lease assistance for the first three years of business as they get their feet on the ground….The city’s lease contribution comes from the Shawnee Entrepreneurial and Economic Development program, which supports private efforts to reinvest and redevelop the downtown area and Nieman Road corridor, according to a city memo.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post)