Municipal News & Jobs

Kansas Municipal News

County Commission moves forward with plans for sales tax vote

As the Ellis County Commission works to secure a better financial outlook it appears even more likely that voters will see a sales tax question on a ballot in the near future.

At a special meeting Tuesday, the commission continued discussions on a proposed countywide sales tax.

Early this year all three commissioners expressed interest in putting a sales tax question on the ballot but they were split on the size and where the money would go.

(Read more: Hays Post)

Food for thought: Talk to highlight Kansas’ historic recipes

Louise Hanson, a librarian from Lawrence whose personal bookshelves are filled with more than 500 cookbooks, will present “Tasting the Past: Exploring Kansas Food Memories” at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10 at Bethany Home Activity Center, 321 N. Chestnut St. in Lindsborg.

Community cookbooks are fascinating for Hanson, who reads through them to glean what Kansas’ earliest settlers were eating both every day and for special occasions.

“It’s a great source of primary material,” Hanson said. “Of course, at the time of settlement, they didn’t have a lot of choice about what to eat because of what was available.”

Kansans who immigrated from other countries did what they could to preserve their cultural heritage — whether they were German, Czech, Scottish, Swedish, Greek, etc. — by preparing and passing down recipes of dishes that reminded them of home.

In her presentation, Hanson will show pictures of recipes and people at ethnically centered celebrations.

“It’s an endlessly fascinating story to talk about food and how we try to reinvent ourselves and our identity,” Hanson said.

Still time to take comprehensive plan survey in Leavenworth

Residents of Leavenworth County have only a few more days to take an online survey for a new comprehensive plan.

The comprehensive plan, which is sometimes referred to as a master plan, will provide a future land use plan for the county, according to Jeff Joseph, director of the Leavenworth County Planning and Zoning Department.

The last comprehensive plan for the county was put together in 2008.

In February, Leavenworth County commissioners approved a contract with the company Olsson, Kansas City, Missouri. The company will produce a new comprehensive plan for the county at a cost of $288,800.

An online survey has been set up as part of the process being used to put together the comprehensive plan.

The survey will remain open through Sunday. The survey can be found at www.lvcountyplan.com

(Read more: Leavenworth Times)

Incubator business ready for entrepreneurs in St. John

Communication is crucial for a business to succeed. In a remodeled building at 311 Broadway in St. John, offices with broadband connections are awaiting tenants eager to have a space to conduct their work remotely.

This new facility is called Work Space 311 and it is an incubator where new business can get started, said Carolyn Dunn, Stafford County Economic Director.

Work Space 311 is set up on a membership basis and each business pays a fee to use the building spaces.

Wellington Airport to hold open house

It will be a day for families to check out airplanes, talk to pilots and spark an interest in aviation in children.

The Wellington Airport, 441 N. West Road, is holding its second annual open house from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14.

There will be a handful of small single engine four to six-seater airplanes – such planes as World War II trainers, some homebuilts and Cessnas and Pipers. Pilots will give free rides to kids ages 8 to 17. Parents and guardians will be required to sign their children up for the rides and fill out a form. These introductory flights for children, tweens and teens will be provided by volunteers with the Young Eagles EAA program. Wellington’s chapter, which is only about a year old, is the EAA Chisholm Trail 1631.

“It’ll give young kids a chance to interact with aviators, get an airplane ride and get excited about aviation,” airport manager Matt Wiebe said.

Young people with an interest in aviation can join the Young Eagles club, Wiebe said.

Church said, “It’s kind of to plant a seed of interest. Most kids have never been in an airplane.”

USD 475 working through the process to obtain a federal grant to help pay for a new elementary school on Post

There is progress in the effort to obtain a federal grant to help build a new elementary school on Fort Riley.

The Chief Operations Officer for USD 475, David Wild, said the Office of Economic Adjustment is scheduled to be here for a briefing and tour of Ft. Riley on Sept. 10. Wild noted that is step two out of three steps in the approval process. “If everything goes well on the 10th the district will be invited to submit a formal proposal and application, and we’re expecting approval of that should it occur by the end of this calendar year.”

The new school would replace Jefferson Elementary that was closed at the end of the last school year. If the new school is approved it would be built on the same site as the former school. Wild also referred to nearby Morris Hill Elementary which is near the end of its’ useful life. “Should we be fortunate in receiving approval of the replacement of Jefferson then eventually we will probably also close Morris Hill Elementary, and the school we would be building would be adequate to cover both schools.”

(Read more: Junction City Post)

Kiowa County Senior Center contest was something to laugh at

More than 10 joke-tellers took to the stage earlier this month at the Kiowa County Senior Center in Greensburg in celebration of National Joke Day.

When the laughs were over, Randy Rinker was the first-place winner, followed by Bob Kilgore in second place.

“I am not for sure it really was National Joke Day, but I read it somewhere on the internet so we ran with it,” said Kari Kyle, director of the senior center. “We are always trying to find ways to have fun here.”

Those in attendance (more than 75) enjoyed a special meal sponsored by Ron and Roberta Seiler, during which the jokers came up to the front to tell their prepared jokes.

“I didn’t think we would have more than three or four people participate,” Kyle said. “But we had 11 contestants. It was a lot of fun.”

Parsons Planning Commission to talk about wind turbines

Planners this week will discuss a zoning amendment to restrict or ban commercial wind energy conversion systems in the area surrounding Parsons.

The Parsons Planning Commission will have a special meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday in the commission room at the Parsons Municipal Building.

Concerned about the possibility of 600-foot wind turbines encroaching on the city limits, City Commissioner Tom Shaw urged the city staff to have the planners consider restrictions in the 3-mile extraterritorial zone. Labette County has no zoning in its unincorporated areas, but Parsons controls zoning and codes in the area comprised generally of a 3-mile radius surrounding the city.Shaw’s concerns were brought about by the controversial Neosho Ridge Wind project that will consist of 139 turbines in the southwest portion of Neosho County.

(Read more: Parsons Sun)

Garden City benefits from updated Black Hills Energy infrastructure

Black Hills Energy is on time and on budget to complete a construction project to replace natural gas pipelines in the Garden City area. Black Hills Energy estimates the project will last through October and is intended to meet existing needs for safe and reliable natural gas service.

“Our customers rely on Black Hills Energy to keep their homes and businesses safely connected to natural gas,” said Garden City Supervisor Red Garone. “Proactive pipeline replacement investments help us continue to deliver on that promise.”

Nearly three miles of natural gas lines will be replaced in the Wagon Wheel neighborhood outside Garden City. The public can visit www.blackhillsenergy.com/safekansas to learn more about timelines and completion statuses in their neighborhoods. Black Hills Energy’s Facebook page and Twitter feed also provide information on the infrastructure replacement program and the company’s services.

(Read more: Western Kansas News)

Pratt electrical crews now in Florida awaiting Hurricane Dorian

Five linemen from the City of Pratt Electric Department left Pratt on Saturday, heading to Orlando, Florida so as to be in a position to help restore electricity after Hurricane Dorian hits the area sometime in the next few days. They arrived at their destination late Sunday, September 1.
“We’re here in Orlando waiting on [you] Dorian,” said Jamie Huber, Director of Electric Utilities for Pratt. “The City of Pratt and KC BPU had been requested that we come join them for Storm Restoration, after being there two years ago for Irma. Now we wait.“
Pratt’s interim city manager Bruce Pinkall said the Pratt crew was specifically requested by the Orlando Utility Commission (OCU) because of their good work and involvement in a previous mutual aid event. They were part of a large contingent of electrical crews from across that country that responded to the disaster left in the wake of Hurricane Irma that hit Florida in September 2017.

(Read more: Pratt, KS – Pratt Tribune)

Redesign still has many questions as rollout is underway, says KASB advocate

School redesign is not going to be a transition without challenges. That was the observation of Mark Tallman, Vice President for Advocacy at the Kansas Association of School Boards after he attended a forum earlier this month at the Kansas Leadership Center.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt, as we go through this redesign process around the state, there’s going to be problems with it,” said Tallman. “We know that. There’s going to be opposition. Some mistakes will be made. The issue is, will it overall let our schools be more responsive to what kids actually need today?”

The jury is still out on that point, but it is becoming about teaching skills, not teaching subjects.

(Read more: WIBW News Now)

Miami County seeks to renew quarter-cent sales tax

Renewal of the county’s quarter-cent sales tax for roadway construction and improvements will be put before voters in November.

County commissioners voted 5-0 Wednesday, Aug. 28, to put the sales tax question on the ballot. The current quarter-cent sales tax will sunset Dec. 31, 2020. If approved by voters, the renewal would extend the tax for five years – from Jan. 1, 2021, to Dec. 31, 2025.

County Administrator Shane Krull said the county has used the tax for the past 19 years to finance a number of roadway construction and improvement projects. The tax not only pays for improvements to the county’s road system, it has also benefited the county’s communities.

(Read more: The Miami County Republic)

Wichita ready to sell three land parcels not used in East Kellogg projects

Three parcels of land acquired by the city of Wichita for the current East Kellogg construction projects will be sold to private buyers now that they’re not needed.

The City Council will vote on approval of the three proposed sales at Tuesday’s 9 a.m. meeting.

(Read more: Wichita Business Journal)

Gorilla Century bike ride largest yet

On Saturday, people from all across the United States traveled to Pittsburg to bicycle 100 miles, just for fun.

This is the largest group to go on the Gorilla Century bike ride since the event started in 2003.

That morning there was an estimated 600 riders, with over 400 pre-registered and many more who registered the day of the event.

The event, hosted by Tailwind Cyclists’ Roger Lomshek, was created to celebrate Pittsburg State University’s 100th year, hence the name Gorilla Century.

City of Wichita considers joining legal action against opioid manufacturers, distributors

The Wichita City Council at its next meeting Tuesday (Sept. 3) will consider joining nationwide legal action against opioid manufacturers and distributors, and pharmacy chains, “alleging a variety of civil claims (including but not limited to public nuisance) and violation of federal laws.”

The consideration comes in the form of a resolution on the council’s meeting agenda.

“As plaintiffs, local governments are seeking damages for costs of law enforcement, first responders, courts, jails, etc., that are alleged to be direct results of the prescription opioid epidemic,” the City of Wichita explains.

(Read more: KWCH News)

Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission votes to recommend allowing two houses per lot, but with some restrictions

Lawrence-Douglas County planning commissioners have voted in favor of a proposal that would allow two houses to be built on one lot if both homes are affordable, but they’re recommending the city limit where and under what requirements the so-called density bonus would be allowed.

At its meeting Wednesday, the Planning Commission voted 7-2 to recommend the proposal, which would be the city’s first land use rule to be directly connected to the affordability of homes. The changes, which were originally proposed by the nonprofit organization Tenants to Homeowners, would allow two homes to be built on one lot as long as both are permanently designated as affordable housing.

The density bonus would allow a second home to be added alongside an existing home or two new homes to be built on a single lot.

Sedgwick County adopts energy plan

Over the last year or so, there has been plenty of regional discussion on renewable energy.

Several counties around Sedgwick County have had robust community hearings or have quietly worked out the details and witnessed hundreds of wind turbines pop up. That said, what works in one area may not work great everywhere.

We made the news this week when Sedgwick County unanimously passed an update to the Community Investment Plan along with zoning regulations for commercial wind and solar farms. Over the last year, we have heard quite a bit of opposition from neighbors concerned about the “flicker-effect,” how these turbines kill birds like eagles, and how they emit a low persistent drone and how living near a towering generator will cause property values to plummet. Nearly everyone says they are in favor of renewable energy production. The disagreement comes when we start defining details about where to place these farms.

A week to go for Great Bend school bond mail-in ballot

The September 5^th deadline to return your mail-in ballots in Great Bend is steadily approaching, and USD 428 Superintendent Khris Thexton says it has been an interesting summer with getting information to the community about the bond issue.

The combined bond of $44.87 million is asking for facility improvements to address safety, security, early childhood education, and renovations.

The mail-in ballot was sent to all registered voters within the Great Bend school district last week, and Thexton is excited to find out the results next week.

(Read more: Great Bend Post)

McPherson College teams with McPherson Hospital to offer new model for rural healthcare

An initiative introduced by McPherson College and McPherson Hospital with a focus on community health sets out to become a new model for community health care in rural areas. It features a new enhanced health science degree at the college with a wide variety of hands-on educational opportunities, thanks to a partnership with the hospital.

Working together toward healthier communities is the goal of the partnership. The partnership will provide opportunities for student learning and community outreach with the intent to create a new model for rural community health in Kansas. There is more to a healthy community than just treating people who are sick, explained McPherson College President Michael Schneider.

“We are looking at this from a holistic, patient-centered approach to health care in rural communities,” President Schneider said. “In small communities, you need to be resourceful uncovering ways to build a healthy community. It includes everything from mentoring at-risk youth to making sure our elderly citizens are safe when they return home from a hospital stay. It also includes solving our challenges to provide good mental health support and treatment for all. This partnership will put our students out in the community working with support from McPherson Hospital to solve these challenges.”

(Read more: Hutch Post)

Kansas lake is called an ‘oasis on the Plains’

It’s not what you expect to find amid flat farmland.

“The uniqueness of being in the middle of western Kansas and having a lake where a lake probably shouldn’t be,” said Greg Mills, park manager for Historic Lake Scott State Park.

In a wooded canyon with rocky bluffs, Lake Scott is fed by natural springs and is known nationally for its beauty.

“We are recognized as the 23rd most scenic state park in the U.S.,” said Mills. “Previously we were recognized as one of the top 50 beaches in the U.S.”

(Read more: KSN-TV)