Kansas Municipal News
Event center proposed to go up in residential area, homeowners not happy
The possibility of a new commercial development has some homeowners up in arms.
An entertainment district is being proposed near 37th and Woodlawn. It would go up right in the middle of a residential area.
That area is Janet Johnson’s sanctuary.
She’s surrounded by sounds of nature and wildlife…but that could be changing.
(Read more: KAKE – News)
KDOT announces projects selected under Local Bridge Improvement Program
Twenty-seven counties will receive a combined total of $5 million under the Kansas Department of Transportation’s Local Bridge Improvement Program. Requests for transportation funding outpaced available funds by nearly three times. The selection of the local bridge projects was announced today by KDOT Secretary Julie Lorenz.
“Improving the overall transportation system in our state is important and that includes those structures under local authority,” said Transportation Secretary Julie Lorenz. “It takes partnerships between the state, cities and counties to move people and goods as efficiently as possible across Kansas.”
The bridge program was reinstated by the agency this summer to assist cities and counties by providing up to $150,000 toward the replacement or rehabilitation of a bridge on the local roadway system. In the FY 2020 budget, $166 million less will be transferred out of the State Highway Fund. This funding will allow KDOT to perform about $400 million in preservation projects, deliver five more delayed T-WORKS projects and enabled KDOT to reactivate the Local Bridge Improvement Program.
(Read more: Great Bend Post)
Good things are going on at Hillsboro USD 410
If you want to see excitement, ask Max Heinrichs what is going on in USD 410. His face will light up and he will talk for awhile about the “exciting things” going on.
“We have some good stuff going on,” said Heinrichs, as he shared on Thursday regarding the Gemini redesign that the district has been working on for a few semesters now.
The district has offered a wide variety of student activities that are presently meeting the needs of students and the community. Participation rates in middle school and high school activities continue to be high.
A “People First” mentality continues to be one of the major strengths of the district.
(Read more: Hillsboro Free Press)
Commission OK’s fire district purchase, interpreter policy
The Reno County Commission on Tuesday OK’d a request from Reno Fire District 3 to purchase a half-dozen replacement air packs, facemasks and air cylinders for its firefighters.
The board also approved minor updated the county’s Title VI Policy, which outlines language interpretation services the county offers, based on the latest federal Census data.
The fire department, based in Nickerson, will make the $30,150 purchase using money from its equipment fund, which has about $630,000 in it, said Fire Chief Bob White. Most of the money is reserved for future fire vehicle replacements.
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
KDA offers reimbersement to specialty crop growers
The Kansas Department of Agriculture has funds available for reimbursement to Kansas specialty crop growers who attend an educational conference with a primary focus on specialty crops. Qualifying conferences may include sessions about production practices, specialized equipment and technology, pest and disease management, specialty crop marketing practices, or business principles for specialty crop producers.
Applicants who apply for the reimbursement will be required to attend the conference and to complete surveys before, immediately after, and six months post-conference prior to payment being issued. Conferences not eligible will include those within the state of Kansas and the Great Plains Growers Conference. KDA will reimburse Kansas specialty crop growers up to $850 each in order to offset the cost of their conference registration, mileage/flights, hotel, meals, etc. The award is available on a first-come, first-served basis. The deadline for application is December 15, 2019.
(Read more: News – The Garden City Telegram)
Pott County needs state approval for courthouse changes
Changes to the Pottawatomie County Courthouse — including demolition — must first meet the approval of the Kansas State Historical Society.
Patrick Zollner, division director of cultural resources for the historical society, delivered this message Monday to the Pott County Commission.
Officials invited Zollner to Monday’s meeting to explain the commission’s structural authority over the courthouse and the nearby stone jail, both of which were listed early last year on both the Kansas and National Register of Historic Places.
(Read more: Parsons Sun)
Regents to name new Wichita State president Thursday
The Kansas Board of Regents will be on campus Thursday afternoon to name Wichita State’s 14th president, according to a university release.
The Regents will meet at 2 p.m. in the Rhatigan Student Center’s Santa Fe Room, 233. The board will ceremonially choose the president from an unranked list of finalists submitted by the presidential search committee.
(Read more: The Sunflower)
Should cities remove offensive comments from the public record? Shawnee thought so.
No one said anything when a former Shawnee city councilwoman, Tracy Thomas, referred to a Kansas City apartment building as the “Blue Jew” during a meeting in early October.
But two weeks later, the planning commission decided to remove Thomas’ comment from the public record, saying it was “offensive” and should not be included in the meeting minutes.
Thomas made the comment during a public hearing on Oct. 7, voicing opposition to a luxury apartment complex, Stag’s Spring, proposed for downtown Shawnee. She argued against the apartment’s facade being an “unappealing” shade of blue, comparing it to the Meyer West Condos in Kansas City’s Brookside neighborhood.
(Read more: Joco 913 News)
Shawnee paves way for consideration of tax incentives for proposed luxury housing development downtown
After hearing from multiple residents both for and against plans for Stag’s Spring, the Shawnee council last night took first steps to look into public financing incentives for the proposed luxury apartment complex project downtown.
Several neighboring residents and business owners at the city council meeting spoke both in support and in opposition of the housing project, a 62-unit apartment complex which would be located along Roger Road just east of Old Shawnee Pizza.
Neighbors in support said they appreciated efforts by developer Kevin Tubbesing to create more density downtown and also use landscaping to create a buffer for their single-family homes nearby.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)
Fairway set to take up consideration of non-discrimination ordinance in November
Three months after the Fairway city council passed a non-discrimination resolution and the city council agreed to further explore a non-discrimination ordinance, the topic will be on the city council agenda in November, Mayor Melanie Hepperly said.
Neighboring municipalities, such as Westwood and Prairie Village, have already passed non-discrimination ordinances. Hepperly said the decision to pass a resolution versus an ordinance came at the recommendation of the administration committee, which is the same committee that was directed to look further into an NDO at the August city council meeting.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post – Community news and events for northeast Johnson County)
Winfield survey seeks public input on city plans
The City of Winfield will release a survey soon to gather input from residents on two new long-term plans for the community.
Surveys about the Comprehensive Plan Update and the Master Plan for Parks, Trails and Recreation will be mailed to residents within the Winfield city limits and the surrounding rural area next week. Completed surveys can be returned to Winfield City Hall or to any bank in Winfield. A digital version of the questionnaire will be available beginning Monday at the city website, www.winfieldks.org. Surveys returned by Nov. 12 will be entered to win free city utilities for the month of December. All responses will be anonymous.
The Comprehensive Plan Update will recommend goals and policies for the Winfield City Commission and offer guidelines for decision making on land use, community facilities, transportation systems and other issues.
(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)
Former resident eyes youth home to save town
Jim Turner, of Wichita, was back at the Mullinville City Council meeting recently to discuss a lease-option for part of a city-owned building.
In months prior, Turner’s idea to turn the town’s former elementary school into a home for troubled youths had been met with lukewarm anticipation. City leaders were not sure if expenses could be met and who would assume leadership and management of such an endeavor.
Turner, a Mullinville native, told council members at their September meeting that he will pay all building remodel costs that will ultimately house 14 boys. He offered $12,000 a year as well as payment of all utilities for the building and insurance. Two rooms presently used by the city will remain at their disposal.
(Read more: News – The Hutchinson News)
7 projects, programs apply for funding from Lawrence’s new affordable housing sales tax
Affordable housing projects requesting money from the city include a mixed-income townhome community, apartments for seniors and the city’s first building project to utilize a new density bonus.
Seven projects and programs recently submitted funding applications to the city’s Affordable Housing Advisory Board, and the board will provide its funding recommendation to the Lawrence City Commission following an upcoming evaluation.
Lawrence voters approved a sales tax in 2017 that will provide about $1 million annually to the city’s affordable housing fund for the next 10 years, and the city began receiving proceeds from the sales tax in July.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Center for Adult Education improves lives for students; open house scheduled
All it takes is for people to make that first move toward changing their lives and Barton’s Center for Adult Education (CAE) will take care of the rest. The CAE will show people how to get started on the path to a better life at an open house from 3-7 p.m., Nov. 7 at 1025 Main St. in Great Bend. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet with students, graduates, staff and partner agencies. Refreshments will be served. The open house is for both potential students and the general public.
Enrollment and Career Advisor Susanne Yarmer wants to help people learn about all the services the center offers in addition to the High School Degree completion program via the General Equivalency Degree (GED) exams.
“Ultimately, our goal is to help people not only find jobs, but to find a career that can support them and their families for years to come. We have programs where students can obtain other credentials such as welding or as a certified nursing assistant (CNA) career paths while simultaneously working on their diploma. We also assist students with digital literacy skills, facilitate partner agencies to conduct workshops for career readiness and help find job shadowing opportunities.”
(Read more: Great Bend Post)
Kansas voters could end unusual census adjustment for redistricting
Kansas could soon end an unusual policy of using its own numbers in addition to federal census data to redraw the boundaries of state legislative districts, a longstanding practice that has cost university communities political clout.
Voters statewide will decide Nov. 5 whether to approve a proposed amendment to the Kansas Constitution to eliminate a requirement for the state to adjust federal census figures when the Legislature redistricts itself. The adjustment counts college students and military personnel not where they’re living but in a “permanent” home elsewhere — outside Kansas for thousands of them.
Kansas is among only a few states that adjust federal census figures for redistricting, and before it started doing it in the 1990s, it did its own population counts for more than a century. Critics see the adjustment as archaic and expensive, and the proposed amendment had overwhelming bipartisan support as it slipped quietly through the Republican-controlled Legislature earlier this year.
(Read more: Hays Post)
This Johnson County race is usually overlooked. So why is it now hotly contested?
It was the disasters in Flint and Newark — where low-income communities were poisoned by lead-contaminated drinking water —that inspired Olathe retiree Ullyses Wright to become a first-time candidate.
“It seems to me that a public entity, serving the public, needs to be representative of the public,” said Wright, one of three contenders for an open seat on the WaterOne board, which oversees Johnson County’s water supply.
“People need to speak up for people of color and people with different socioeconomic backgrounds, especially thinking about what happened in Flint and now Newark.”
(Read more: KC Star Local News)
Riley County Fire District One needs volunteers
Over the past several years there has been a decline in volunteers for Riley County Fire District #1.
Riley County Fire Chief Pat Collins said Monday was the first time in the history of the Fire District that he had to go to the Riley County Commission ( Fire Board of District #1 ) and tell them know there were not enough members left to keep the Peach Grove Fire Station open.
That station is closed to the center of the county and just two miles from the Marshall County line. It provides the first response for fires in an approximate 25 square mile area in northern Riley County. Collins said having the station there, with it current apparatus, when properly staffed has made it possible for the District to obtain a current ISO insurance rating of 5-5Y and reduced insurance rates for 20-30% for years. If that station is closed the people in that area will not only lose basic fire protection from a close station but they could see a sharp increase in insurance rates. The next closest stations are the Swede Creek and in May Day.
(Read more: Little Apple Post)
Lawrence Human Relations Commission to consider sanctuary city proposal
The city’s Human Relations Commission will soon hold a special meeting to discuss a proposal from a local group to make Lawrence a sanctuary city.
The Sanctuary Alliance is proposing that the city create policies that restrict the Lawrence Police Department from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in noncriminal circumstances and help ensure immigrants are not discriminated against. The Sanctuary Alliance’s full proposal is available on the city’s website.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Group delivers final cost estimate for Wichita water-treatment facility
The group contracted to design and build a new water treatment plant for the City of Wichita releases its final cost estimate for the project, coming in at a shade below $500 million.
Wichita Water Partners estimates its final, fixed-price budget at $494.2 million for the new facility planned for construction in northwest Wichita.
“The proposed project will replace Wichita’s 80-year-old water treatment facility. The not-to-exceed cost estimate was developed based on extensive input from city staff resulting in important refinements that will benefit both the project and the rate payers of Wichita,” Wichita Water Partners explains. “If approved, those chases will eliminate the city’s exposure to future construction cost inflation and save the city millions of dollars in capital construction costs.”
(Read more: KWCH News)
Firefighters warn of toxic substances in McPherson landfill fire
Firefighters are warning McPherson residents of toxic substances after another fire sparked at the landfill Sunday.
A neighbor noticed smoke and flames coming from the landfill around 10 a.m. This is the second fire in one week for the McPherson landfill and it’s all hands on deck to get a handle on the situation.
The McPherson Fire Department, employees, contractors, and even some volunteers worked around the clock to get a handle on the fire.
(Read more: KWCH News)