Harvey County agrees to contribute $75,000 for broadband expansion

The Board of Harvey County Commissioners gave a verbal commitment Tuesday to provide $75,000 in matching funding toward a IdeaTek project to provide broadband service to underserved rural areas. Commissioners also approved setting aside a total of $250,000 for future broadband projects. Commissioners’ actions followed a long discussion with Nate Oswald, director of customer service and sales for IdeaTek. He told commissioners that five other counties that were part of the company’s grant application had agreed to contribute funding. He said Finney County was contributing $400,000. Other counties and their pledged commitments were: Kingman, $60,000; Saline, $54,000; Reno, $15,000; and Seward, $10,000.
Source: Harvey County Now

Ranson Financial2022-08-18T06:56:15-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Remote-control mower clears the landscape

A group of skateboarders talking about getting a taco 12-pack of Taco Bell noticed something wasn’t right about a mower sticking out of Sand Creek near the restaurant. “Just the nose was in the water,” said Hondo Collins, city of Newton parks superintendent. At the time, Newton Parks Supervisor Tyler Schmidt was using the city’s remote control mower at that location and the kids asked him if he needed help. Schmidt told them it was remote controlled and they said, “That’s dope.”
Source: Harvey County Now

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:49:41-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Pride of Hoyt Days this weekend

What began in 1986 to mark the centennial of Hoyt has continued to grow over the years into a celebration of the southern Jackson County community. This year’s Pride of Hoyt Days, the 35th-annual town festival scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 20, promises to keep the celebratory spirit going, according to Nancy Bailey, president of the committee that organizes the annual festival, held in Hoyt City Park. Many events associated with the festival will be back this year, including the sand volleyball tournament, car show, quilt display, the community fried chicken dinner and the parade, which Bailey said will be led by grand marshal Vicki Gilliland, a longtime resident of Hoyt who has been active in a number of community activities and organizations.
Source: Holton Recorder

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:47:50-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

City of Wichita urging water customers to get backflow tested

The City of Wichita is urging its water customers to get their backflows tested. Every Wichita water customer with an irrigation system connected to the City’s water system is federally required by the Safe Drinking Water Act to have a working backflow device. Working backflow devices ensures that Wichitans have access to safe, clean drinking water. “So, the backflow is to ensure that the water irrigation systems don’t mix with contaminants like fertilizers from your yard,” said Megan Lovely, the public informant officer for the City of Wichita. “So that’s why it’s important to have that backflow connection point tested every single year.”
Source: KSN-TV

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:45:56-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Wichita community comments on proposed redistricting maps

Every 10 years, the City of Wichita conducts redistricting to ensure that each council district is made up of roughly the same amount of people or is within 5%. On Tuesday, Aug. 16, the city held an open house to get the public’s opinion on 20 proposed maps that they had on display. Each of the 20 maps included a summary of changes made from the current district map.
Source: KSN-TV

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:44:42-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Grant to fund EV charging station, vehicles in Osawatomie

With electric vehicles becoming more commonplace, the city of Osawatomie is joining other cities in finding ways to accommodate those drivers. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Thursday, Aug. 11, in front of the new mural at the corner of Fifth and Main streets in Osawatomie to dedicate a new public electric vehicle (EV) charging station. The station will be located next to a parking stall across the street from the mural, where an electric meter is installed. The city of Osawatomie and a consortium of eight businesses and municipalities, working through Metropolitan Energy Center, recently were awarded $5.2 million through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Low Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Vehicle Technologies Research, Development, Demonstration and Deployment program for electric vehicle and charging station projects.
Source: Local News | republic-online.com

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:40:38-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

3D printed homes coming to Parsons

Three-dimensional printed homes in Parsons will be constructed in the near future. “This really puts us kind of at the cutting edge of construction technology,” said Mayor Leland Crooks. “This is really pretty awesome.” Parsons city commissioners Monday unanimously approved a land transfer of all available lots (approximately 13) in the Parsons’ free land program to a company in Iowa. Alquist 3D, based in Iowa City, Iowa, builds 3D printed homes through construction technology.
Source: Parsons Sun

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:38:56-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

No directly elected mayor for now, Lawrence City Commission decides

Lawrence city commissioners on Tuesday decided not to put a question on voters’ November ballots asking if they want to directly elect a mayor. The question was about potential changes to the city’s form of government. A task force suggested that rather than the current five commissioners who are elected at large — meaning by voters across the whole city, rather than by districts — the city should have six council members who each represent a district of Lawrence, plus a directly elected mayor. Commissioners decided last week that they did not want to include the question of districts on ballots. Currently, the mayor and vice mayor positions rotate every year to the commissioners who receive the most votes in elections. A modification of the task force’s recommended change — if commissioners had put it on the ballot, and if voters had approved — would have led to four-year terms for four commissioners and one mayor elected by voters.
Source: The Lawrence Times

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T21:32:03-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Dodge City celebrates 150th with plan for the future

On Monday, the day that Dodge City was celebrating its 150th anniversary, city leaders were also looking to the future as the Dodge City Commission unanimously approved the Downtown Streetscape Project. The project’s goal is to revitalize the historic downtown area. The $13.9 million effort is expected to start this fall and take about two-and-a-half years to complete. Designers kept in mind that the town has a rich Old West history. The focal point of the project is a western-inspired plaza at Second Avenue and Front Street that will serve as a gathering space. A plaza street with improved traffic control for community events will be created on Second Avenue from Front Street to Gunsmoke Street.
Source: KSN-TV

Ranson Financial2022-08-18T07:50:31-05:00August 17, 2022|News|

Douglas County funding could help pave way for improved internet access in rural townships

Douglas County leaders will decide this week whether to contribute toward a local internet provider’s bid at improving broadband internet access in two rural areas of the county. Internet provider Midco is asking the Douglas County Commission to provide $5,000 in support of a grant proposal to the State Office of Broadband Development’s Capital Projects Fund Program. The commission will decide whether to do so at its meeting Wednesday.
Source: LJWorld

Ranson Financial2022-08-17T07:17:53-05:00August 17, 2022|News|