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Kansas Municipal News

Municipal Bond Trends for January 8, 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.

Is that parking ticket you got in Wichita legal? Maybe, maybe not

Wichita has decided to reinstate a controversial parking enforcement practice that has been declared unconstitutional by a federal appeals court covering four other states, city officials said.

Wichita has decided that it won’t scrap a method known as “chalking” tires, a means of establishing how long a car’s been parked in a particular space.

“After reviewing the opinion of the court, we have elected to . . . continue chalking tires to monitor parking,” said a statement from a city spokeswoman provided in response to Eagle questions. “Enforcing parking restrictions is crucial to our local economy – businesses depend upon the public having quick and convenient access to their locations.”

(Read more: Local News |)

Rural Kansans Ask Lawmakers To Fix Slow Internet, Bad Highways That Are Holding Them Back

Rural Kansas communities hope to see roads, internet and taxes addressed in the upcoming 2020 legislative session. But some voters in the state’s southwest corner are worried that these decade-old issues will again take a back seat.

On a Saturday morning at St. Catherine Hospital in Garden City, Republican state House Reps. Marty Long, Russ Jennings and John Wheeler, plus GOP state Sen. John Doll talked to constituents about Medicaid, prison overcrowding and abortion.

Voters, however, voiced concern about what they saw as other, similarly pressing issues in rural Kansas.

(Read more: Rural Messenger)

Study determines central Topeka could support a full-service grocery store

After the Dillons food market at 1400 S.W. Huntoon St. closed almost four years ago, residents of central Topeka’s neighborhoods were devastated.

“I knew it was coming, because me and the manager, Bob, talked a lot,” said Emma Ray, who was a resident of central Topeka at the time. “But it was like, ‘Oh my god. What are we going to do now?’ ”

Ray has since moved to another area of the capital city, but the longtime central Topekan makes a point to stay connected with her former neighbors.

Dog park proposed for Marion County Lake

Marion County Park and Lake is the newest proposed site of a dog park Marion’s girl scouts have been working on for months.
The original proposed site was south of the Marion High School football stadium.
When that didn’t work, the girl scout troop got permission to install it across the street from Ann’s Park on N. Roosevelt St.
The troop’s fence installer said water drainage would cause a problem there, so the troop asked Marion council members if the dog park could be installed at Ann’s Park.

(Read more: Marion County RECORD)

Why Shawnee Mission Teachers – Already The Best Paid In Kansas – Are Asking For More Money

Negotiators for the Shawnee Mission School District and the teachers union are at an impasse and will now present their cases to a neutral party. On one side are teachers who feel overworked and underpaid. On the other side are school administrators who say the union’s demands will ultimately put the district in the red. It’s a dispute with deep roots in the Great Recession and all the years Kansas seriously underfunded schools, happening amidst a national conversation on teacher pay. “We’ve reached a critical point,” said Samantha Feinberg, an English teacher at Shawnee Mission East. “We need the district leadership to know that we can’t do our best for students and for families.” Now what’s known as a “fact finder” is getting involved. Appointed by the Kansas Department of Labor, the fact finder will hear both parties out before making a recommendation.

(Read more: )

County’s bill for autopsies tops $10,000

Marion County spent $10,216 in 2019 to have autopsies conducted in Kansas City and Wichita but there is no good alternative, said Karen Selznick, an assistant in Marion County Attorney’s office.
According to Marion County’s 2019 reports, there were three autopsies conducted at Frontier Forensics Midwest in Kansas City, which cost $5,150 between them.
“It’s just something we have to do,” Selznick said. “We’ve recently had a rash of them, but it doesn’t normally work that way.”

(Read more: PEABODY Gazette-Bulletin)

Another push to save Century II, but will it help?

In an effort to help save Century II, a local group is petitioning to gain more than 5,000 signatures in hopes of moving the process one step forward.

From buttons to yard signs and even t-shirts, Century II supporters are now pushing harder to save one of the city’s icons.

“This is our chance to make a stand,” said Celeste Racette with Save Century II.

(Read more: KSN-TV)

Pott. County Sheriff aiming to improve community outreach, launching new social media page

Pottawatomie County Sheriff Shane Jager (left) and Undersheriff Doug Adams (right) appeared on KMAN’s In Focus on Wednesday morning. (Brandon Peoples/KMAN)

Some changes are on the horizon for outreach efforts for the Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office.

Shane Jager was promoted in November by the Pottawatomie County Republican Party from Undersheriff to Sheriff, replacing Greg Riat who resigned to take a position on the county commission. Jager is serving the remainder of the term and has filed for re-election as Sheriff in 2020.

Jager has worked with the department since 1993, spending 15 years as the Undersheriff before his promotion. One of his top priorities since taking over has been improving how the department communicates its efforts to the public.

(Read more: 1350 KMAN)

Topeka City Council OKs ordinance regarding panhandling

Topeka’s city government will ban pedestrians — including panhandlers — from interacting with people in vehicles at 23 of Topeka’s most dangerous intersections, though not at any other crossings.

City council members voted 8-1 Tuesday evening to approve an ordinance putting those rules in place.

Council members Sandra Clear, Sylvia Ortiz, Tony Emerson, Mike Padilla, Brendan Jensen, Neil Dobler, Jeff Coen and Mike Lesser voted in favor of the proposal. Councilwoman Karen Hiller voted against it.

Hiller said she couldn’t support the ordinance because she questioned whether it would really “advance anything” in terms of safety. She said she wasn’t aware of panhandling having been responsible for crashes at any of the intersections listed on the proposal approved Tuesday.

Saline County to pay $800K up front for new road equipment

In a unanimous vote during its 9 a.m. Tuesday meeting, the Saline County Board of Commissioners approved the purchase of the 2020 Caterpillar 150 units from a bid by Foley Equipment.

The bid includes a trade guarantee for the machines, meaning that in five years or 7,500 hours of use, Foley will guarantee a trade value to the county of over $500,000 total for the three machines.

According the request for action document, although there is a high up-front cost to purchase the equipment, the total cost when taking the trade guarantee into account is only $309,297.

(Read more: News – Salina Journal)

Leawood council signs off on final development plan for Ranch Mart North, paving way for major work to begin

The Leawood city council this week approved final development plans for a major revamp of the northern portion of Ranch Mart Shopping Center at 95th Street and Mission, paving the way for substantial construction work to being in the coming weeks.

The council approved a 1% community improvement district sales tax application in April 2019. Funds from that CID, which will increase the sales tax from 9.1% to 10.1% for purchases at stores in the center north of 95th Street starting July 1, will provide an estimated $13.45 million toward the total project cost of $47 million.

Trip Ross of Cadence Commercial Real Estate, which represents the property’s owner, Bob Regnier, who is also President and CEO of the Bank of Blue Valley, said patrons can expect to start seeing work on the exterior part of the project getting under way soon.

Abrupt closure shocks some Basic Energy employees in Pratt

Basic Energy Services, LP with corporate offices in Ft. Worth, Texas, shut down their Pratt pumping operation mid-December, laying off the entire work crew of an estimated 25 employees.

“It was a shock and unexpected. I didn’t see it coming,” said Darrell Martinez of Pratt, who had been employed as a Basic Energy Services driver for seven years.

Rocky Pierce, also of Pratt and another of the laid-off employees, said the shutdown didn’t take him by surprise, given the current economics of the oil field industry.

The shutdown affected 13 Basic Energy drilling operations in six states, with the Pratt and Liberal locations being the only ones in the state of Kansas.

(Read more: Pratt, KS – Pratt Tribune)

City Approves Sales Tax, New Development For Baseball Stadium Area

Visitors to Wichita’s new baseball stadium should expect to pay a little more for some purchases made there.

The Wichita City Council on Tuesday approved a 2 percent sales tax within a newly established Community Improvement District, or CID, encompassing the area around the stadium and parts of the east bank of the Arkansas River.

Revenue from the additional sales tax in the district will pay for the $75 million baseball stadium and riverfront improvements. The city is also using Sales Tax Revenue (STAR) bonds, tax increment financing and general obligation bonds to fund the project.

(Read more: RSS Feed)

Municipal Bond Trends for January 7, 2020

Overland Park OKs arboretum plan, despite higher cost, question over buried artifacts

After months of protest, the Overland Park City Council approved an expansion of the city’s arboretum — despite learning the project will cost more than originally planned.

And though the Council voted 11-1 Monday night to advance the plans, neighbors are still trying to block it, this time with emails from the Shawnee tribe and Kansas’ state archaeologist calling for a study to determine if Native American artifacts lie beneath the Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Gardens.

The expansion would add a new visitors center, outdoor amphitheater and other gathering spaces at the attraction, off U.S. 69 and 179th Street. During Monday’s four-hour meeting, City Manger Bill Ebel told council members the project, which has been in the works for years, is now estimated to cost $17 million — higher than the $12.4 million originally budgeted.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Incorporated with only 500 in 1907, Lenexa now boasts thriving commerce, rich history

The city was incorporated in 1907 when the population was little more than 500. Today it approaches 60,000.

Like most of present-day Johnson County, the land once belonged to the Shawnee Indians through an 1825 treaty that exchanged the property for land in Ohio. Gradually, through a 1854 treaty, the U.S. government shrank the area’s size and the American Indians sold off land. The three main trails connecting the East with Santa Fe, Oregon and California wound through the area, splitting off farther west.

Adam Legler built his limestone barn in 1864 close to the Santa Fe Trail, and today it is the Lenexa Historical Society Museum. Legler Barn is home to many artifacts and exhibits.

(Read more: Joco 913 News)

Prairie Village Macy’s to shut down, ending decades of having department store at Village Shops

The space that’s housed a department store at the Village Shops for decades will soon be vacant.

Prairie Village Mayor Eric Mikkelson informed the city council at Monday’s meeting that Village Shops owner First Washington had told staff that the Macy’s department store which anchors the center would be shutting down. Macy’s then confirmed to the Shawnee Mission Post that the Prairie Village store would be closing soon.

Macy’s spokesperson Carolyn Ng Cohen said that a clearance sale will begin this month and will last eight to 12 weeks. Management has informed employees at the store of the coming closure.

Is Seward County prepared for cyber threats?

A new year has started, and for Seward County, the beginning of 2020 could bring new security for its technology.

Commissioners are scheduled to hear from IT Director Clayton Hoover at Monday’s regular board meaning about security awareness training to end users to help them understand how cybercriminals operate.

The training would come from the Tampa Bay, Fla.-based company KnowBe4, the world’s largest security awareness training and simulated phishing platform that helps manage the ongoing problem of social engineering.

(Read more: Liberal First)

Organizers expect 31st annual Topeka Farm Show to attract more than 20,000 visitors

Tens of thousands of people are expected to visit the Stormont Vail Events Center this week for the capital city’s annual farm show.

The 2020 Topeka Farm Show began Tuesday and runs through Thursday. Organizers of the event say the show, now in its 31st year, allows attendees to explore the latest products in the farm industry and socialize with familiar faces in Kansas’ farming community.

“They come back year after year to buy again from a familiar face, to find out what new products are coming to the market and to see how the new technology is impacting the ag business,” said Jeff Thill, co-owner of Tradexpos Inc., the company that organizes the show.