Municipal News & Jobs

Kansas Municipal News

Most Sedgwick County homeowners to see higher values this year

The Sedgwick County appraiser’s office will be mailing out the annual property value notices on March 1st, and most homeowners will see a higher number.

Appraiser Mark Clark told county commissioners Wednesday that 81 percent of residential properties will be higher this year, with the average increase around six percent. Three percent of residential properties in the county will have a decrease averaging five percent, and 16 percent of residential properties will see no change.

Clark said 53 percent of commercial properties will see an increase with a typical change of seven percent. He said 19 percent will see a decrease averaging five percent, and 28 percent of commercial properties will have no change in value.

(Read more: KFDI 101.3)

City commission lifts pit bull ban in Junction City

The Junction City city commission voted to lift a more than 20-year-old pit bull ban Tuesday night.

Three commissioners voted for the lift and two voted against. There are still parameters for pit bull owners in the city. The dogs must be micro-chipped. One person or one dwelling can only own a maximum of two pit bulls. Plus, you can’t be convicted of a drug felony to own a ‘bully breed’. The dogs must also be spayed or neutered.

Emily Fawcett began pushing for the ban to be lifted about two years ago and was overcome with emotion when the ban was lifted.

(Read more: KSNT News)

More than $20 million awarded to improve safety, infrastructure at 27 KS airports

The U.S. Secretary of Transportation announced Wednesday its commitment to award $20.5 million in airport safety and infrastructure grants to 27 airports in Kansas.

The benefit to Kansas airports is part of a $520.5 million in federal support to airports across the U.S.

The goal is to keep our nation’s airports in good shape and make air travel a better experience for passengers.”

(Read more: KWCH News)

City accepts housing rehabilitation grant

An area of south-central Hutchinson now known as the Creekside neighborhood will be the target of a Community Development Block Grant awarded to the city of Hutchinson last week to upgrade housing.

The $265,600 grant is expected to help rehab 10 properties, half owner-occupied and half rental properties, Ryan Hvitlok, director of Planning and Development, advised the Hutchinson City Council on Tuesday.

To apply for the grant, the city conducted a housing assessment in June 2019 that looked at conditions of housing, helping identify neighborhoods of highest need.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)

Roeland Park adopts 6-week paid parental leave policy for city employees

The Roeland Park city council on Monday evening unanimously adopted a six-week paid parental leave policy for birth and adoptive mothers as well as spouses and partners.

It’s the first policy in northeast Johnson County to offer spouses and partners the same level, Assistant City Administrator Jennifer Jones-Lacy said. Neighboring cities such as Lenexa, Merriam and Mission have expressed interest in such a policy, Jones-Lacy said.

Shawnee adopted a paid parental leave policy in January 2019 that provides 240 hours of leave to the parent who gives birth and 120 hour of leave to the parent who does not.

(Read more: Prairie Village Post)

Kansas coalition seeks removal of barriers to professional licensing

Retired U.S. Army Col. Chris Croft is convinced a 5-year-old Kansas law removing barriers to occupational licensing, certification and registration for military spouses and service members should be broadened to cover anyone moving to the state.

“We need to do the same for all professionals that want to move to Kansas and become Kansas residents,” he said. “It acknowledges that these professionals don’t lose their skills and experience when they move to Kansas.”

While a coalition of business lobbying organizations endorse the reform, an alphabet soup of professional licensing boards and occupational associations in Kansas raised questions about the concept endorsed by Croft, a Republican House member from Overland Park. The credentialing mandate that would cut time allotted for a licensing agency’s review from two months to 10 days was considered Monday by the Senate Commerce Committee.

Study: Incentives help groundwater usage

A study by University of Kansas researchers revealed a five-year, $2.9 million state program offering landowners cash to permanently retire water rights in the High Plains Aquifer was effective in high-priority conservation areas.

Analysis of the Kansas Water Right Transition Assistance Program that was developed to trim groundwater or surface water consumption showed incentives had little influence in creek subbasins or in terms of water taken for drinking purposes. The report examined program effectiveness from 2008–2012.

“Maybe it’s a start, but it’s not something you would expect to stabilize the depletion,” said Tsvetan Tsvetanov, a KU assistant professor of economics. “This is just a drop in the bucket. Essentially what we need is some alternative source of income for those people living out there, aside from irrigation-intensive agriculture.”

Firm’s expansion to bring Maize Industrial Park to 100% occupancy five years after opening

A quick five years after opening, the Maize Industrial Park is going to be completely full thanks to Reiloy USA’s expansion plans there.

Reiloy, which specializes in component technology in the plastics industry, currently has a 54,000-square-foot building in the park with 68 employees.

The company is planning to spend more than $20 million on a new building and machinery. With the expansion, Reiloy also expects to hire 39 more employees in the next five years.

Junction City Commission votes to lift pitbull ban

After a vote of 3-2, the Junction City Commission has repealed the city’s longstanding ban on pitbull-type dogs.

There will still be stipulations in place for pitbull owners within the city. Only two pitbulls are allowed per residence and dogs must be chipped, spayed or neutered and registered with the city.
Read more: Junction City Union.

30-year muni yield sets record low at 1.79%

Munis were mixed on Tuesday on the MBIS benchmark scale, with yields falling eight basis points in the 10-year maturity and rising by three basis points in the 30-year maturity. High-grades were also mixed with yields on MBIS AAA scale decreasing by five basis points in the 10-year maturity and increasing by less than one basis point in the 30-year maturity.
On Refinitiv Municipal Market Data’s AAA benchmark scale, the yield in the 10-year GO was two basis points lower to 1.16% and the 30-year GO was down three basis points to 1.79%, setting a new record low. The previous record was set back on Jan. 30 at 1.80%.
Read more: Bond Buyer.

Topeka woman can’t get liquor license because husband works in law enforcement

Denise Selbee-Koch’s small Topeka business focuses on empowering women.

She can’t get a liquor license because of her husband.

Kansas law forbids the spouse of a law enforcement officer from selling liquor, a relic of the state’s Prohibition past. Selbee-Koch, who is married to the police chief in Valley Falls, wants to change that.

She co-owns Dirty Girl Adventures with Jennifer Woerner. The organization specializes in guided outdoors adventure that is accessible for all ages and fitness levels. The goal is to encourage women to get outside.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)

Municipal Bond Trends for February 18, 2020

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 Advisors.

City of Topeka to hold budget engagement workshops

Topeka’s city government on Tuesday will hold the first of nine public engagement workshops aimed at giving citizens a chance to learn about the city’s process of crafting its 2021 budget.

The gatherings come at a time when city manager Brent Trout has said he might ask the mayor and city council to vote later this year to raise Topeka’s property tax mill levy for the first time they have voted to do that since August 2013.

The mayor and council are expected in August to consider approving the city’s 2021 budget.

“How would you spend $96.5 million of the city of Topeka’s money?” the city asked Monday in a news release announcing the upcoming workshops.

Shawnee County property values rise most north of Kansas River

Shawnee County property values recently increased by more in areas north of the Kansas River than in areas south of the river, county appraiser Steve Bauman said Monday.

About 80% of properties in Shawnee County saw a rise in their valuation, with values increasing on average by 4% for residential properties and 3% for commercial properties, Bauman told County Commissioners Bill Riphahn, Kevin Cook and Aaron Mays at their morning meeting.

Bauman showed the commission a graphic illustrating that valuations rose by an average of 4% in most areas north of the Kansas River, compared to 3% in most areas south of the river.

Lawmakers want school districts to perform budget assessments

Kansas lawmakers are looking at bringing more oversight to how schools create their budgets.

The Senate Education Committee discussed a bill Monday that would require school districts to conduct a yearly assessment of student needs. Districts would then use that information to create the annual budget. The goal is that district money will be allocated to areas that would best help students succeed.

“What we as legislators are wanting to do, again, is to circle back and make sure that school districts are very intentional in how they’re spending the money,” explained Senator Molly Baumgardner, (R) Louisburg.

Supporters of the bill say the required assessment would help school districts better serve the needs of at-risk or under-performing students.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Area lakes among clearest in Kansas

The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism has announced rankings of the clearest lakes in the state — and several of those at the top of the list are located in the Mined Land Wildlife Areas scattered throughout Crawford and Cherokee counties.

“Aquatic vegetation, underwater structures, and even fish may be visible at these lakes, providing a unique view of what lies beneath the waters’ surface,” the KDWPT press release notes. “From paddleboarders looking for that Instagram-worthy photo, to anglers after the ultimate fishing challenge, Kansas’ clearest lakes should be a part of your 2020 travel plans.”

(Read more: Pittsburg, KS – Morning Sun)

Recycling changes ripple across Harvey County

Following a discussion of recycling policies late last year between Harvey County administration, the county commission and the county’s outside contractor, Waste Connections, changes went into effect at the start of 2020.

With a shrinking market for recyclables and a growing contamination rate among the loads being brought in to the Harvey County Solid Waste transfer station, Waste Connections came before the county commission with two options this past fall — to restructure its contracted hauling rates or eliminate the county’s policy on mandatory recycling.

Harvey County commissioners officially moved to repeal Resolution 2010-8, enforcing mandatory recycling for county residents, in November 2019 and also approved the implementation of a new system with bans and fines to be levied to haulers bringing in recycling loads that exceeded the acceptable contamination rate (10%) for Waste Connections.

Wichita Mayor Whipple takes Hot Ones challenge; eats fiery wings and says funny stuff

It’s not every day you get to watch the mayor of a large midwestern city snarf down eye-wateringly hot hot wings while being interviewed about his personal life.

But that actually happened Monday night at Newman University, where Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple joined two other local notables, Miss Kansas Annika Wooten and Newman basketball coach R.J. Allen, in a “Hot Ones” style challenge.

The event, part of Newman’s basketball homecoming week, was a local takeoff on the hit Web series in which celebrities answer interviewer questions while gagging on progressively spicy chicken wings. A television version of the show premiers Thursday on the truTV network.

(Watch: Local News |)

Firefighters who can sew? Shawnee team may get teased but save department time, money

When a firefighter rips his or her uniform, repairing it isn’t quite as simple as ironing on a patch. Although it used to take weeks or months of waiting and thousands of dollars to repair their gear, the firefighters at the John B. Glaser Fire Station in Shawnee can have everything fixed in a few days.

Capt. Andy Fenstermann, who has been a firefighter for Shawnee for seven years, was the first to take on the task of learning to repair firefighting gear. And it’s not quite as simple as many might think. At the time, Fenstermann had pants that needed to be fixed.

“I actually approached the chief with, ‘Hey, can my mom just fix these?’ And he said, ‘No.’ So I did a little bit of research and found that most manufacturers for the gear will teach you how to sew and certify you in fixing your own bunker gear for your department, and they’ll do it for free,” he said.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Changes coming to look of Hutchinson water tower – eventually

The City Council on Tuesday agreed to relight the city’s elevated water tower off of Avenue A with spotlights shining up from the ground, rather than atop the tower.

The board, however, couldn’t reach consensus on a paint design for the million-gallon tank which marks the city’s southern entrance and tabled the issue for two weeks.

The city staff presented two design options.

The first is with the entire tower painted in a blue-gray color, with the Hutchinson city flag and the word “Hutchinson” in black across the top half of the tank.

(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)