Municipal News & Jobs

The Rush County Sheriff’s Office said 54 animals were rescued from “poor living conditions” during an investigation this week into a report of a stolen firearm. Two people were arrested. While at the La Crosse home, deputies discovered poor conditions and numerous animals inside. They obtained a search warrant, and the animals were removed with the assistance of a veterinarian and three animal control officers from Hutchinson. They were then placed in the care of six separate facilities. Deputies also found the firearm that had been stolen from a home in La Crosse.
Source: KSNT 27 News

Topeka is rolling out a new communications tool to help locals find answers to their questions fast. The City of Topeka announced on Tuesday, March 25 that it has created a new hotline for people who have questions about city services. People will soon be able to call “311” for non-emergency needs. Callers will be sent directly to the city department best suited to answer the questions they have. City Manager Robert Perez said the 311 hotline should help streamline customer service.
Source: KSNT 27 News

LaHarpe residents gathered Tuesday evening for a community conversation hosted by Thrive Allen County. The discussion focused on improvements to infrastructure, roads, housing, economic development, and civic engagement.
Source: The Iola Register

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.

Wichita is looking to cash in on its own waste. The city is moving forward with plans to sell off biogas, mainly methane, from one of its wastewater treatment plants. Waste that gets pumped into treatment plants creates biogas, which is known to be able to be converted into renewable natural gas, or RNG.
Source: Wichita Kansas Local News, Crime & More |

Amazon is expanding its footprint in Kansas with plans to build a 176,000-square-foot last-mile facility that will create roughly 100 jobs in Bel Aire. The city said Tuesday that the online retail giant has bought 20 acres in the Sunflower Commerce Park in Bel Aire to meet growing customer demand. This marks the company’s third facility in the Wichita metro area, a city of Bel Aire news release said.
Source: Homepage

Rep. Blake Carpenter (R-Derby) recently pitched a novel idea to lawmakers that he says could eliminate state property tax collections within eight years without cutting any services the state provides. In a nutshell, here’s how it works: The Legislature creates a board that is empowered to review and eliminate sales tax exemptions, boosting state revenues to the tune of $2 billion per year. That money flows into a Freedom From Taxes Fund, which grows until it reaches a point where annual interest is enough to fully offset the 21.5 mills the state assesses to fund public schools. Eventually, the fund could be large enough to offset income tax collections as well.
Source: www.derbyinformer.com – RSS Results in news/area_news of type article

Harvey County decided to move forward with a City of Newton partnership for road improvements along East First Street from Spencer to Oliver. The county first heard the request in mid-March, when city commissioners approached the county, asking for a partnership on the project. The city commissioners said this would be a show of unity between the two governing bodies and would be a good signal for developers considering the area.
Source: Harvey County Now

The Shawnee Mission school board could soon finalize new procedures aimed at addressing disparities in school-based donations. One goal of the move is to more closely scrutinize funds raised to pay for additional staff positions. To prevent inequity in donations that may allow some schools to gain educational advantages over others, the school board’s policy committee on Monday afternoon reviewed a draft of an updated district donation policy as well as a procedure for reviewing so-called community-funded staff positions.
Source: Johnson County Post

The idea to bring a single citywide trash hauler Merriam may soon come to fruition. The Merriam City Council during a Monday work session directed city staff to negotiate a single waste hauler contract with GFL Environmental Inc., a Canadian waste hauler that services several other northeast Johnson County cities. Out of four companies that offered bids, GFL came in as the lowest bidder at just more than $830,000 a year. That contract would translate to a monthly cost of about $23 per residence (about $3 more to cover administrative costs, as allowed in state statute).
Source: Johnson County Post

So far in 2025, Parsons police officers have responded to 190 animal-related cases and seven bite cases. In 2024, the department responded to 1,293 animal-related calls and recorded 24 animals bite cases. On Tuesday, March 25, Officers responded to a report of multiple people being bitten by dogs by Daylight Doughnuts. EMS provided care to the victims and authorities took the dogs to Parsons Pet Hospital for a required quarantine.
Source: www.koamnewsnow.com – RSS Results in news/local-news of type article

The head of Wichita’s water system says he hears many ideas about how to keep the city’s water supply from drying up. On Tuesday, he told city leaders why some of those ideas would not work and proposed some ideas the city has never considered. Gary Janzen is the director of Wichita Public Works and Utilities. He told the Wichita City Council that the city is still in Stage 2 of its drought response plan and will likely stay there for the rest of the year. People can only water lawns and flowers once a week. “This isn’t just so people can keep watering their grass,” he said. “This is about the future of our city and the ability for us to grow, to help with economic development.” The water level at Cheney Lake determines the drought stage. The snow and rain over the winter raised it a foot, but it is still down 7.5 feet from normal.
Source: KSN-TV

Ask for a ride and support your community, organizers say. A one-day drive aims to raise awareness of the need for more regional public transportation options, including same-day ride services.
“Drive to Thrive: A Ride Blitz” is set for Tuesday, April 2, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Cloud County. Organized by OCCK, Inc., rides are provided by OCCK Transportation, which serves north-central Kansas with accessible, affordable transit services.
Source: KSN-TV

Gamers will have a new space to call home in the Midwest very soon. In just a few weeks, an Esports arena will open at the 12th Street Community Center in Junction City, bringing gaming and life skills to the Sunflower State.
Source: KSNT 27 News

Measles cases are on the rise in southwest Kansas as the Kansas Department of Health and Environment has recorded 10 confirmed cases as of Friday, March 21. The risk of measles spreading in Kansas remains low. However, pockets of low vaccination coverage leave some communities at higher risk for outbreaks according to the KDHE. The cases have been confirmed in Stevens, Morton and Grant counties, with no hospitalizations or deaths.
Source: Garden City Telegram

The natural gas supply to Hoxie was cut off Monday morning. Midwest Energy says they lost the gas supply line that feeds the city. Meters were turned off until gas could be restored. The utility says it has established service to the city and crews are going door-to-door relighting customers’ appliances.
Source: KSN-TV

Governor Laura Kelly has signed off on multiple bills this week, ushering in a slew of new laws for the State of Kansas. Kelly announced in a press release on Monday, March 24 that she has approved six bills that will become new laws in the Sunflower State. These include the following:
Senate Bill 8 – requires drivers proceed with caution when passing stationary vehicles that are displaying hazard warning lights.
Senate Bill 2 – validating the election results for the bond issuance question sent by the USD 200 Board of Education, Greeley County, at a special election held in May 2024.
Senate Bill 7 – increases the statutory limits on bonds issued by a township on township population and purpose of the bond issuance.
Senate Bill 88 – requires the state long-term care ombudsman and regional ombudsman to receive training in memory care.
Senate Bill 175 – updates the definition of athletic trainer and provides an exemption for those licensed in another state, District of Columbia, territory or foreign country to practice in Kansas.
House Bill 2261 – resolves ambiguity surrounding the classification of Kansas Highway Patrol majors.
Source: KSNT 27 News

A local museum showcasing the bright and colorful world of OZ in northeast Kansas has made some changes recently to enhance the experience of guests. 27 News spoke with Katlyn Britton, operations coordinator at the OZ Museum and Columbian Theatre, to learn more about what has changed following the completion of recent renovation work. She said the museum hasn’t undergone any major renovations since 2003 with recent work focusing on making the place more accessible and welcoming.
Source: KSNT 27 News

Wichitans will wait longer than expected to start drinking water from a new $574 million water treatment plant. Wichita Water Works, the new plant near Sedgwick County Zoo, is already six months behind schedule and tens of millions of dollars over its original budget. The latest deadline for “final completion” is April 1.
Source: Wichita Kansas Local News, Crime & More |